Since the Accounting: A Chronicle of the Roman Khanate

Chapter 691: Rome, not Turks

Father Alexander has always been worried about the current situation of the people in the village.

Most of the people here were gathered here in a scattered manner. This is because the scale of the villages here is not large. Natural settlements often only have a few families. Even if they flee together and come here, it is not a big organization, and it is easy to integrate into the new group.

However, there were also some people who were armed refugee gangs of "free men" from Zhao'an - in fact, they were bandits. Most of their organizations were small, and occasionally there were larger ones, but they were also disbanded by their superiors. However, the priest was still worried about these people, thinking that they must have criminal records, so he kept an eye on them.

Former gang members defended themselves by saying that they had quit the gang long ago. And if you really look into it, you will find that there are no clean people in this world.

Others usually like to claim that they are honest farmers who have settled in the village and work hard every day. But if you think about it, you will know how it can be true.

In a place with almost no management, the only meaningful law is the tacit agreement between villagers. If you think about it, you will know that such rough rules will definitely not protect outsiders. Even within the village, it may not be fair.

Because the income from farming was often not enough to live on, farmers generally did some side jobs. In the village community, sometimes everyone was organized to make some handicrafts or do some business - of course, these part-time jobs also included some that made money quickly but were not appropriate according to Roman law.

If there were no conflicts between villages, it was not because they feared the law, but because they were too far apart or could not destroy each other. If one side was obviously stronger, or encountered a weaker group - such as an ill-prepared caravan, then everyone would definitely want to do something.

These peasants were not simple and honest people at all. On the contrary, they were all very cunning. Often, it was those who were not strong enough or cunning enough to deal with the various leaders who were forced to flee their territories and villages and become "free men."

And they are not just bandits. This is not a moral issue, but given the poverty here, it is impossible to support a professional bandit gang.

Therefore, most of the time, these so-called gangs are actually fishing, grazing, hunting, and of course farming. However, because they prefer to occupy places like riverbanks and grasslands, they often participate in trade. Perhaps this share is higher than that of ordinary farmers.

Since they were engaged in trade, it was inevitable that they would resort to violence against each other, because merchants were not a kind group. Those who dared to trade in this land were all ruthless people with backgrounds and strength.

They do covet caravans, and are even invited by other big gangs to try to rob them. But sometimes, caravans will rob them. For example, the caravans run by the Venetians are very popular everywhere, so they often raid their lairs, capture all the gang members, and sell them elsewhere.

The price of being a free man is that you have to take responsibility for everything. They are not legal citizens, so no one cares if they are killed or kidnapped. The princes and boyars even hope that they will die quickly to avoid trouble. Therefore, this kind of caravan will be tacitly approved.

They would go north to Novgorod or northwest to Krakow via the legal routes controlled by the Chamber of Commerce, where they would sell the captured people as slaves in the big market. After all, even if they were penniless, people were still worth a little money.

Therefore, no matter they are called farmers, merchants or gangsters, what they do is almost the same. They all complete their own business and then steal some things. It is just that most farmers are restricted by the village community and have a smaller scope of activities. They are not as professional as the merchants, and they are not as professional as the merchants.

Everyone's situation was actually pretty much the same. Although at first, most of the gang members ran away to make a living because they couldn't stand the oppression of the nobles and the constraints of the village leaders, but within the gangs, different classes soon formed. Only the leaders of the big gangs could live a better life, and the others were actually not that good.

They felt that this kind of life was too insecure, but they didn't want to go back to be slaves for the nobles, so they were always conflicted. Later, when they heard that this place was recruiting, they decisively ran over to join them.

Those truly stubborn bandits do exist. But these "professional players" pursue complete freedom, refuse to accept the leadership of any organization, and do not cooperate with the government. This kind of thinking has actually been around for a long time in this land, and it is almost a religious belief. And these people are essentially people who want to make a living, and just hope to find a better job to make a living in this cruel land. Therefore, the two sides are not the same kind of people, and they don't bother to pretend to join them to make a living. What they despise the most is that they are "betrayers of faith" and will no longer have any dealings with them.

However, Father Alexander did not comment on their words. He privately reminded Sergeant Yang and others more than once that only a small part of their statements were credible, that is, the gangs' lives were not easy, and could even be said to be very harsh - so the guys who survived and came to seek refuge were also very cunning people. Don't let your guard down just because you pretend to be pitiful.

Moreover, the priest always suspected that these people would collude with other bandits to attack here. Although there are regular troops stationed in the village, their main job is to lead the construction. Especially later, the workload became heavier and heavier, and everyone was exhausted every day. As the backbone of the legion, they went out to work, came back to eat and sleep, and had no extra energy. In this case, the safety of the camp must be considered more.

But the entire pioneering area was short of manpower, and the higher-ups couldn't send more people. The priest had no choice but to ask the soldiers to take turns to rest and stay alert. But they were really too busy, so the priest specially selected a few reliable and alert people to help him manage and monitor.

Most of the villagers thought he was meddling, but the priest had a good excuse.

The people in the village, whether they were refugees or free men, all came here on foot. Therefore, there are far more men than women among these people, and most of them are young and strong. Therefore, the priest said that they should be strictly supervised to prevent them from committing the same crimes as Sodom and Gomorrah.

He used this as an excuse to check suspicious people from time to time, monitor their whereabouts, and check whether their personal belongings had changed suddenly. Although everyone felt that it was troublesome, traditionally speaking, this was indeed the work of the church. So, there was nothing they could do about it.

In addition, Father Alexander also strictly enforced discipline and established some rules that everyone had to follow, from what time to go to bed and get up every day to the village's hygiene habits, no matter how big or small.

Some members of the village, especially the former "free men", had dealt with caravans before and envied them because the caravans were the most powerful and wealthy organizations here. Some people were also hired by caravans and would imitate the behavior of caravan members to try to prove that they could blend in with them.

The local caravan members like to call each other "Davarish". This word comes from the Turkic language and means companions in the caravan. On the grassland, caravans are an important source of wealth for major tribes. The task of transporting goods is both important and risky. Therefore, the members of the caravan often have a life-and-death friendship, which gives this word an extra meaning. The locals have also learned this term and use it to address each other.

In Father Alexander's opinion, this word was too gangster-like and would affect the atmosphere of the camp. As an alternative, he advocated learning the customary name of the Romans.

In the Roman army, ten men were the most basic unit. They lived in one tent and ate together. This has been the case since ancient Roman times.

In Latin, this kind of camp was called "Contubernium", which is a derivative of housing and tent. In the Greek era, this word did not change significantly. The members of the camp called each other "Commanipularis", and later the Franks simplified it to "Comrade".

Now, there are two soldiers in the camp, and others also imitate this organization to set up camp and manage militarized. Therefore, the priest advocates that everyone refer to the orthodox Roman customs to address each other, instead of learning the Turkic words.

In order to set a good example, Father Alexander and his assistants took the lead in addressing each other in this way, regardless of the level and position of both parties. This matter was promoted quickly and was accepted by the villagers soon.

During this period, nothing happened in the village, but one day a courier from the legion sent a report saying that several settlements had been attacked and suffered heavy losses. It was suspected that someone was colluding with others. Everyone was convinced, and Sergeant Yang even wrote a letter to his superiors, suggesting that they also learn from Father Alexander's experience. Some of his practices were thus spread.

(End of this chapter)