In Rus', the wilderness has always been synonymous with danger for city dwellers. Without a large number of guards, venturing into the wilderness was almost equivalent to seeking death.
As for rural residents, most of them would never leave their villages in their entire lives; even going to the market often involved half the village's men and women going together.
But villagers would still educate their children and family to be careful of the wilderness. The bandit gangs in the wilderness were never easy to deal with. Even a strong adult male running recklessly in the wilderness could easily be captured and enslaved, let alone children.
The Prince's roads, however, were much safer. Villages and fortified settlements could be seen from time to time, offering places to rest, and their presence provided safety for people.
But when traveling on the roads, one must remember that roads are also active areas for various bandit gangs; who knows where hundreds of robbers might be ambushed.
These roads are safe, but once something happens, it can very likely be a major incident.
Although there are Prince's armies patrolling the roads, you cannot guarantee they will be there when an attack occurs, so ultimately, you can only rely on your own abilities.
Merchants and travelers form large teams to move across this land, because only large teams can deter the bandit gangs who view them as prey.
Recently, the difficulty of bandit gangs has even increased, as some of them are now equipped with bows and crossbows from Moscow. Although at most one or two people have these, even iron armor is not very effective against them.
However, for a certain group of people, they move very freely in the countryside. These people are the chieftains from various places.
On the one hand, these people all have Druzhinas and wear iron armor themselves, while on the other hand, it is because they are highly valued by Moscow.
In response to merchants being robbed, Moscow's countermeasure is to strengthen road patrols, and they do not specifically conduct sweeps against bandit robbers.
But if a chieftain is robbed or killed, then Moscow will dig three feet deep. It doesn't matter if they can't catch the actual killer; they will make sure that the captured bandits pay the price, and enough heads must be presented.
Under such circumstances, naturally, few people dared to act against the chieftains of Northeast Rus. Acting would mean facing Moscow's elites coming for their lives. After suffering a few losses, everyone understood.
Of course, Moscow also invested a huge amount of resources to achieve this effect, but when the satisfactory result was reported to Rostislav, everyone was pleased.
However, chieftains rarely leave their lands; partly to strengthen control over their territory, and partly to be ready to respond to potential conscriptions at any moment.
Moscow is very strict with conscription. If someone fails to respond to conscription and also does not pay a huge exemption fee, then his land will be confiscated, and his status will be revoked, turning him into a commoner.
Everyone understood how serious Moscow was about these matters, especially after dealing with a few individuals. From then on, situations like long-term absence from their territory to escort merchant caravans using privileges disappeared.
Compared to the money from escorting merchants, it was more important to hold onto their properties, for which they had paid a lot to acquire.
However, today, the chieftains of Suzdal are assembling in an orderly fashion, due to an order from Moscow.
Recently, several more incidents of merchant caravans being robbed have occurred. Rostislav has ordered chieftains from various regions to gather their forces for a clear-out operation, to make the bandit gangs restrain themselves.
Valin Kashensky naturally had to attend this meeting; he was the most powerful chieftain in the Suzdal region. This chieftain's attire was quite flamboyant; he wore gilded armor bestowed upon him by the Prince, making him appear dazzlingly golden.
Behind him were about ten iron-armored followers, who, like their master, also had a flamboyant appearance.
Over the past three years, Valin's strength has grown significantly. Previously, he was merely a lord who could only muster a hundred men, but now he can mobilize three hundred people at once, and his fortified settlement also houses several iron-clad warriors, who are veterans seasoned in battle. He has also equipped his household servants with several crossbows.
Actually, Valin didn't need to attend this meeting at all, as such meetings are held periodically. Mobilizing forces to suppress bandit gangs has long become a routine formality for everyone, because the work assignments for each meeting are not significantly different from before.
But he came this time, and his purpose was to meet an old friend, Meshko.
Three years ago, after Meshko returned, he found that his territory had been destroyed in a rebellion, his fortified settlement had been breached, and as for his people, he didn't know where they had gone.
After all, Meshko always knew only how to apply more force, besides great force. It was too easy for those pagans to incite riots in his territory.
And then, just as Valin had predicted, Meshko was quickly granted new territory, and Edward's territory was temporarily placed under his management. Although Meshko could not incorporate Edward's territory into his own, the income from this territory belonged to him.
Relying on the stable funds and slaves sent by the King of Poland, Meshko quickly built a new fortified settlement, more magnificent and spacious than the original.
Upon learning all this, Valin couldn't help but sigh that people truly are different. Everything he had struggled for over a decade to achieve, Meshko obtained with a mere flick of his finger.
And the chieftain's desire to elevate his family grew stronger. If his descendants could also be like this, it would be wonderful.
The last time he met Meshko was three months ago, when they gambled on horses together at the Moscow racetrack. It had been a while, so Valin really wanted to see his old friend, which is why he still came to this boring meeting.
Soon, Valin's retinue arrived at the meeting place. A tower once stood here, but it was now dilapidated, with only some stones remaining on the ground as a mark of its past existence.
As for who it once belonged to, no one knew; the name of the tower's builder had vanished into the long river of history.
Due to its being the highest and most open area in the region, everyone chose it as the center for their gathering.
Rostislav once stayed here during his inspection of Northeast Rus. Valin still remembered the grandeur of that time, with tents covering the area around the tower, all belonging to the nobles who had accompanied Rostislav.
Before Valin arrived, many people were already there. Although each chieftain brought at most five or six followers, the total number of people still reached over a hundred.
There were also some merchants here, including no shortage of kvass vendors. Now, each of these followers held a cup; this national drink of Rus' was sold everywhere.
Some farmers also set up their stalls, selling their agricultural products to the followers, and some even built makeshift canteens on the spot, cooking large stews to sell to these followers.
In fact, this place was originally a local rural market. After all, the terrain here is open and at a high elevation. At fixed times each month, nearby villagers would bring their produce here to exchange, so there were never few merchants and farmers here.
This market rose after the Moscow Prince arrived. Rostislav brought not only the oppression of feudalization but also made the economy more prosperous, and many people also benefited from the increase in productivity brought by advances in technology and tools. The flow of goods and people became much more active compared to the stagnant waters of the past.
However, Rostislav's actions were ultimately for the purpose of taxation. For example, at this market, there was a permanent tax collector of the Moscow Prince, who was responsible for managing the market and collecting some reasonable bribes from transactions. This was also a tradition in Rus', where officials obtained resources from their locality.
Valin's retinue quickly blended in, and Valin himself soon found his old friend, Meshko. When he found Meshko, the former King of Poland's illegitimate son was in the midst of a drinking contest with someone, drinking wine from Bulgar.
Since the war with Bulgar, Northeast Rus had established stable wine trade with Bulgar, and with this trade, wine also began to spread.
The Moscow Prince offered very favorable prices to Bulgar wineries, which made the winery estate owners even willing to sacrifice market share in their home country to satisfy the foreign market.
This, of course, led to many complaints from the estate owners, but they didn't care about those complaints; nothing was more important than making money.
And this was exactly the effect Moscow wanted, as it would strengthen this group's inclination towards Rus' and foster a strong Rus Faction in Bulgar.
This group is now actively clearing land and establishing new vineyards with the funds earned from Moscow, and there's no need to worry about quality issues, as there's a huge shortage of low-end wine in Moscow.
However, in Northeast Rus, most people didn't see that much; they only felt that the Prince allowed them to drink wine, so they continuously cheered for Rostislav and showed even greater support and love for the Moscow Prince.
Now, even at roadside stalls, there's usually a small barrel of wine, but this stuff isn't cheap; even the lowest quality kind is considered a luxury for the common people.
After all, this was real wine, not a substitute like kvass, and people were still willing to pay for a small cup, while Moscow was raking in huge profits from these imported alcoholic beverages.
But for someone of Meshko's stature, this wine was clearly too poor. As a child, he drank the finest from the King of Poland's cellar, and after arriving in Northeast Rus, he drank the best Bulgar wine.
Even the kvass he drank was the refined kind from the Moscow Court, with a large amount of honey added and carefully blended.
But since his wine skin was empty, he could only drink this inferior wine now. However, because its quality was so poor, he drank it like water.
The person drinking with him naturally couldn't keep up with such an old drunkard and soon began to sway amidst a chorus of jeers, then wisely retreated to avoid passing out and embarrassing himself, while Meshko remained as if nothing had happened, with a rather lonely, invincible look on his face.
"Meshko, long time no see."
Seeing this, Valin immediately sat down in front of Meshko, taking the place of the drunken man, while the Polish Knight's attendant immediately refilled the chieftain's wine.
"Oh, Valin, it's you. It's a pity there's only this inferior wine here now, but this is all there is to drink. I can't even get drunk on this stuff; it's like drinking water."
Even seeing an old friend, Meshko seemed a bit dispirited, as drinking this wine was truly too uninteresting and affected his mood too much.
The Polish Knight's current appearance was very much like that of a dissolute young master, and many people probably thought the same. Looking at him like this, no one would likely guess that he was the warrior from the Bulgar War, the one praised in the ballads.
"I don't care what I drink, you know, I've drunk worse things."
Valin had climbed up from the bottom; he had drunk watered-down kvass countless times, so this was truly nothing. He directly drained the wine in one gulp.
"If only there was a cup of Rostislav Palace's kvass here, that stuff is truly wonderful."
Meshko sighed, reminiscing about the fine drinks from the Prince's court, those were the good things. As he thought about it, he couldn't help but feel nostalgic for his days in Krakow, when he enjoyed the treatment of the Piast royal family.
However, it was just a thought; he had long known that such a life was destined not to return, and his business was doing quite well now, with no deficiencies and nothing to complain about.
"Yes…"
Valin also subconsciously sighed. He had tasted that stuff, and the result of tasting it was Valin subconsciously believing it was absolutely not kvass.
Just as he was savoring that wonderful taste, he suddenly heard the continuous ringing of a bell.
"Tsk, what a pity, it started before we even had a chance to say a few words."
Meshko subconsciously complained. This was the meeting bell, indicating that time was up, and without stopping his movement, he stood up directly.
"Let's go to the meeting and see what those people have to say today."
The meeting hall was very simple, just the place where announcements were usually made in the marketplace. The Princes pulled up chairs and sat side by side, listening to the Moscow official above them explain the Prince's orders.
The number of chieftains was considerable; over the past three years, the number of grassroots nobles representing Moscow's authority had expanded significantly. After all, everyone saw Moscow's prosperity, and warriors continuously joined the Prince's ranks. There were always some who couldn't enter the Druzhina, and then, naturally, land was distributed.
Rostislav's standards for land distribution were very lenient: as long as you had iron armor and could prove your martial prowess, you would be allocated a piece of land and a few slaves, but taming the countryside was up to you.
This stage eliminated many people; some always had their heads bashed in by old peasants, but more than half persevered, successfully tamed their villages, and then used the supplies provided by Moscow to build their fortresses.
Thirteen years had passed since Rostislav arrived in Northeast Rus, and many things had changed.
After so much chaos, people's resistance to the princely authority was no longer as strong, making these things a bit easier to accomplish than before—but only a bit.
As the Moscow official spoke eloquently from above, as usual, the chieftains were drowsy listening to these matters, as the content of the pronouncements rarely changed. Valin was naturally the same; it was just a matter of going through the motions anyway.
However, a remark from Meshko beside him made Valin alert.
"Look at these fellows, they're not seizing this opportunity. This is a great time to train themselves. When war begins, they'll only be able to train on the battlefield, and failure means death."
Ignoring the fact that he himself was being criticized, Valin's focus was on war. Did this mean war was about to begin?
Meshko had Moscow's sources of information. Unlike these chieftains, Meshko's lineage determined that he was naturally in the top circle of Rus' nobility and had access to information that no local chieftain could compare to.
This was also the key reason why Valin had always maintained a good relationship with Meshko. Meshko's strong combat ability was one aspect, and his information sources were another.
Even a casual piece of information revealed by this King's illegitimate son could potentially elevate a local person like him to the next level.
Valin had always yearned to reach the next level. He was currently only half-stepping into that circle; to truly become a regular at the Moscow Court, he still needed to work harder.
He hoped to complete his path as much as possible; he didn't trust future generations, so certain things had to be completed by him.
Moreover, he had the conditions for it; Valin was still very young and could still push forward.
"How so?"
The chieftain asked in a lowered voice; such matters were not suitable for public discussion.
"Vseslav of Polotsk is bound to cause trouble sooner or later. The news from there is increasingly restless, and Kiev's probing of that area is also increasing. Furthermore, Lord Rostislav has been secretly preparing for war for a long time. By then, it will probably be a great war sweeping across All Rus. Now, you must seize the opportunity to train well, lest you lose your life directly when facing such a great war. And this time, the Prince also wants to see the state of the lower ranks during the suppression."
Meshko casually spoke of matters of great significance, though it was only in front of Valin that he was so casual. If Meshko didn't consider him part of his network, Meshko wouldn't have mentioned a single word.
Valin's heart, however, was shaken by this. Although he didn't understand the intricacies, he clearly heard the phrase "Rus' War," which meant a war on the scale of All Rus was about to begin?
"In short, Valin, you should train your men well during this period. On the battlefield, you can only rely on yourself for survival; no one else is reliable."
Meshko continued, urging his old friend to intensify training.
What he didn't know was that there was no need to persuade; those few words had already made his old friend decide to take this bandit suppression seriously and let his subordinates truly see some blood.