After receiving the letter, Rostislav naturally led his Winter Army immediately, heading for the core of Bulgar.
Upon entering the Bulgar capital circle, Rostislav couldn't help but marvel at the richness of this land.
There were vast fields everywhere; although they were quite bare now, with only traces of plowing, that was because the seeds had just been sown. The number and breadth of these farmlands showed what a magnificent sight it would be when the harvest came.
As for cattle and sheep, there were even more. The Bulgar people still retained their tradition of raising livestock from the steppes; they still had large herds of cattle and sheep, and the sight of them moving about was truly spectacular.
The residents' clothing was even more decent, better than many beggars in this Ross Army, showing the local prosperity.
What pleased Rostislav was that he at least didn't see the scenes of rogue mad dogs fighting. Of course, this was likely due to the Bulgar cavalry constantly patrolling the countryside, vigilantly watching the Ross Army pass, indicating they had already clashed with looting parties.
Adam's officials brought a large amount of grain for the Winter Army, all collected locally. Seeing such a large quantity of grain, and observing that the farmers along the way did not seem to be in distress, it appeared that the wealth of this land truly exceeded his imagination.
Many in the Winter Army naturally became restless at this prosperous sight, but Rostislav's killings made them remember certain things, and Bulgar cavalry could often be seen patrolling around, which forced them to calm their restless hearts.
As the Winter Army advanced, Bulgar City appeared before Rostislav, and then he saw Bulgar City, which was modeled after the circular layout of Baghdad.
This was the first time Rostislav had seen this city. It was a magnificent city, comparable to Kiev. The white minarets of the mosques were so tall, looking down upon this northern land.
Many soldiers were stunned by this sight. For many of them, Moscow was already an unimaginably prosperous city, and everything before them now made them feel even more prosperous.
Naturally, Rostislav did not allow the Winter Army to enter the city, as he knew that entering the city would lead to trouble, so he had the Winter Army encamp outside the city.
Many expressed dissatisfaction with this, but unfortunately, these complaints were forcefully suppressed by Rostislav, and seeing this, everyone could only shut up and set up camp outside the city, while the Prince and his senior generals and nobles entered the city.
Many objected to this, as entering a pagan city so rashly was truly dangerous, but Rostislav showed indifference to these warnings, demonstrating complete trust in Adam.
In secret, the Moscow Prince had the Moscow Camp make full preparations to take over the city gates after Adam welcomed them. Some things had to be done openly, while others had to be done in secret.
Next, at the gates of Bulgar, Rostislav met Adam Dulü.
Compared to the pretty boy in Rostislav's memory, Adam, having been tested by war, was more like a man now. His demeanor had become more composed, and his eyes were more spirited and powerful.
Under the gates of his ancestors, the two greeted each other, and then Adam waved to his back, after which Bulgar soldiers carried up a pile of boxes, which they then opened, revealing gold, silver, and jewels.
"Most of Akad and the temple's wealth is here. This is a small gift I offer to the Winter Army, Lord Rostislav."
Adam said quite gently, and Rostislav gave him a smile; everything was unsaid.
Just as planned from the beginning, that boy Adam, as per custom, presented wealth to his benefactor as a token of gratitude.
As they met, soldiers of the Moscow Camp quickly entered the city gates, taking control of the gates from the Bulgar people.
Adam showed no dissatisfaction with this; even if he had any, he hid it very well, which pleased Rostislav. Either way was what he hoped to see.
However, Rostislav was certain that this boy had kept much more in his hands. The wealth of Bulgar islam accumulated over so many years was definitely not so little, but he still had to reward his subordinates. Such things were understood but not spoken of.
But this money was enough for Rostislav. To keep his subordinate wolves and tigers in line, gold and silver were indispensable. Constant suppression, while sustainable for a while due to his prestige, could not last long. Only by stuffing these guys' mouths with gold and silver would it work.
The Prince had initially set his sights on this money, but the amount Adam produced was beyond his expectation. After all, the pricing power for this matter was entirely in his hands; wasn't it up to him how much money was seized?
But it didn't matter if Adam produced very little; as long as there was money to distribute, that was fine. This way, he could focus on feeding the leaders, and the people below would just get some small change. This money was enough to temporarily quiet the beasts.
As for what came next, Rostislav would have to properly teach his subordinates how to do things, telling those scoundrels who had never seen good things how to properly levy, instead of making the situation terribly ugly.
That day, upon seeing the beacon fires nearby, the core of Rostislav's anger was never about the killing and crime, but rather his indignation that these scoundrels didn't even know how to rob, making things so messy.
The Moscow Prince, from beginning to end, was like his subordinates, believing that looting and killing after war were very normal things. In this regard, he had long been assimilated by the people of this era.
But what did you scoundrels mean by massacring and burning villages? Doing such things as if afraid others wouldn't know? Why make things so messy? So ugly?
For things like robbery, levies, or even killing a few people, the public's tolerance was quite high, as armies everywhere would do this. But what was the meaning of direct village massacres and burning?
Thus, the Prince was so angry that he directly halted the grain collection. Damn it, this was originally an opportunity for them to get rich. At that time, he thought these people would still abide by the rules, just collecting grain and money from the villages.
Of course, this was also related to Rostislav's own laxity. Victory had made him somewhat forget what these beasts below were like; otherwise, he would have arranged the grain collection much more strictly and tightly, instead of distributing it casually.
Furthermore, part of this responsibility also lay with the Prince's retainers; they should have accompanied every collection team, but they didn't go.
As a result, these scoundrels took advantage of the situation. At that time, Rostislav felt his face burning; that feeling was very bad. Killing and arson were secondary; what if it provoked widespread Bulgar resistance?
And rape. These scoundrels didn't dare to kill in the towns, but they dared to rape women on the streets. What kind of behavior was this? Of course, rape was permissible, but couldn't they do it secretly?
Hence, those bloody heads and vital organs. The only way to stop madness was with greater madness; the only way to stop bloodshed was with greater bloodshed.
And after this bloodshed, Rostislav could then teach these guys how to do things correctly. The previous order prohibiting collection was only temporary; Rostislav would still release people.
As for why he dared to release them, it was because the Winter Army would at most stay in Bulgar for a few more months, perhaps even less than a month. After all, the purpose of this war was to help Adam ascend, and within such a short time, no matter how much was levied, nothing major would come of it.
Moreover, it was better for everyone if this Winter Army left early; their prolonged stay would truly cause trouble.
Next, the Moscow Prince's men accepted these boxes filled with gold and silver, and then Adam very subtly indicated to Rostislav that he needed to control his men.
For Adam's regime, he heavily relied on the presence of the Ross intervention force, but this did not mean that the Ross people could kill so wantonly on Bulgar land. Such actions were not good for either the Ross people or him.
To this, Rostislav could only give an awkward smile and promise that there would be no problems in this regard, no more such malicious incidents, and that collection would be more orderly. As for the looters, the Moscow Prince stated that the Bulgar people could deal with these wanton killers themselves.
Rostislav didn't care about the lives of those barbarians and undisciplined individuals.
To this, Adam could only nod, as he still needed the Ross people for now and could only try his best to trust them.