The departure of the Norwegians also signaled the end of the revelry; the soldiers gathered in Novgorod packed up their belongings, and every day, soldiers left Novgorod in twos and threes, returning home with wealth and a belly full of stories.
As the army departed, the crowds drawn by the market gradually dispersed, and this revelry, which had arisen from war, slowly settled into peace.
For Rostislav, life returned to normal; he resumed his usual training, his subordinates still needed honing, and new recruits needed training—recently, his glory and generosity had attracted quite a few warriors to join him.
He now commanded three hundred armored knights, a force that was not to be underestimated in any known country in the world, and it was the foundation of his stability; in chaotic times, one could only rely on loyal, armored warriors.
According to the traditions of the North Rus', the Prince never forgot to bestow gold and silver, personally distribute food, and treat his personal guards not as subordinates but as brothers, comrades, and fellow soldiers; only with sincerity and genuine care could he gain their loyalty and willingness to die for him.
Vishata was most gratified; he saw the shadow of Rostislav's father in him and became even more convinced that this child would achieve great deeds in the future, and with his son following that Prince, his future achievements would certainly not be low.
Compared to Rostislav's ease, Yaroslav was much busier.
The war had proven the Great Duke's authority; the great victory in Estonia had shown the strength of the Rus' to the entire North Rus', and chiefs from various regions came with tributes to swear allegiance to the master of the Kiev throne, while exiles pleaded for the Great Duke's help, and merchants eager for profit also arrived.
The wise Great Duke's throne was never short of petitioners, and there were also complex official duties; his work was extremely busy.
Time passed quickly in such an atmosphere, and spring arrived swiftly, bringing pleasant news from the South Rus': the wise Great Duke's son, who was the Nuo City Prince's third uncle, Vsevolod, had a male infant born to his wife.
The news of a new member joining the Great Duke's family quickly spread throughout Novgorod; Yaroslav was very pleased about this, as nothing was more exciting than the birth of a new life, and more importantly, he could finally extricate himself from the complex work in the North Rus'.
Because of this news, the Kiev Grand Duke decided to return to the southern court; he appointed the venerable Ostromir—Vishata's father—as the Nuo City Mayor, and Rostislav was also taken with him.
Rostislav was not surprised by this; his teacher, Bishop Luka, had already guessed it; going to Kiev was not a bad thing; if the Great Duke was willing to let him get close to the center of power, it meant that there would certainly be a share for him in future power distribution.
Thus, the Nuo City Prince left Novgorod, where he had lived for nearly ten years, and embarked on the journey south to the famous Mother of Cities.
Along the ancient Valangian waterways, a massive fleet sailed south; this fleet included not only the Prince's personal guards but also merchant caravans following the fleet south, bound for the imperial capital; this war had allowed them to collect so much cargo that they naturally had to go south on a large scale to make a fortune in the imperial capital.
Faced with such a large fleet and the Trident banner, no water bandits dared to intercept them; challenging a huge fleet was already suicidal, let alone one protected by Rurik.
Soon, they arrived at the famous Pine Resin City, Smolensk (hereinafter referred to as S City); the river ended here, and now portage (land transport of boats) was required.
This was also the foundation of S City's prosperity; it was the center of the river system that spanned the entire Rus', and its abundant pine resin made merchants willing to come; the flow of gold and silver from all directions led to the city's rapid development.
Rostislav knew that in the future, Smolensk would become a major city second only to Kiev and Novgorod; this city was full of vitality and energy, with countless gold and silver flowing through it.
Its strategic position was even more important; by controlling this place, one could effectively block the passage between North Rus' and South Rus'.
After re-entering the river via portage, the rest of the journey was without any obstacles; Kiev was just ahead.
On this voyage to Kiev, Rostislav did not remain idle in the cabin like many others; instead, he began writing a book, titled 'the tale of yaroslav'.
Yes, this was a biography written by Rostislav for the Great Duke Rostislav, his grandfather, recording various deeds of his grandfather from birth to the present.
The Nuo City Prince initially started writing with the idea of leaving more historical materials for future generations, and he had been writing intermittently for several years—this was influenced by his past life as a history enthusiast—but after his father's death, this book took on another purpose: to demonstrate his superior talent and intellect to his grandfather.
The writing style of this book differed somewhat from the popular chronicles of the era; it contained fewer religious sermons, and since Rostislav was a visitor from a later era, he partially adopted the research perspective of future generations.
Of course, the main body still belonged to the style of this era; Rostislav deeply understood the principle that being half a step ahead is genius, but being a full step ahead is madness.
And since it was dedicated to his grandfather, Rostislav naturally employed various flowery literary techniques, glossing over his grandfather's less glorious military achievements and praising his hard-won great victories, with the aim of portraying his grandfather as a great man. (Note 1)
In terms of culture, Rostislav was actually very ambitious; the culture of Kievan Rus' was still in its nascent stage, with a pitifully small number of cultural groups, while the vast rural areas remained dominated by pagan beliefs.
However, from another perspective, this was also fertile ground for heroes to gallop, as a person from a later era, he was very clear about the methods and tricks of cultural dissemination.
For instance, besides writing this biography, he was also discussing miracle plays with the church; a miracle play is a drama that reenacts stories from the Bible.
In the Rus' of today, which is full of pagans, such a form of performance could undoubtedly attract many people, instill in the populace the consciousness of God's greatness and holiness, and thereby promote the Christianization of the people.
After all, compared to boring sermons and the Great Duke's coercion, in an era where entertainment was scarce, this method was much more effective.
His teacher, Bishop Luka, fully supported his idea; when he left Novgorod, his teacher had already given him the prepared stories and stated that he would soon send people to Kiev for rehearsals, and what Rostislav needed to do was to edit the script based on this material.
After all, no one in the entire Rus' could write scripts; the farces popular in the countryside and cities were mostly improvisational performances and accumulated ancestral routines, largely relying on the actors' abilities.
Rostislav was always full of enthusiasm when it came to these literary endeavors; after all, if he succeeded, he would be a figure remembered by this land, and even the entire world, in the future, thus achieving immortality in another way.
Note 1: Yaroslav was excellent in foreign policy and domestic affairs, and his various constructions could be considered the work of a great man, but his battles were too unsightly; to write his biography, this aspect needs to be carefully embellished with flowery language.