Just like Nuo City in the north, life in Kiev was filled with a strong Valangian style; dazzling, unrestrained feasts, piles of food, and barrels of fine wine showcased Kiev's extravagance, while handicrafts from Constantinople highlighted the taste of the Rus' elite and signified their close ties with the imperial capital.
The Prince's Red Mansion (all princely residences were called Red Mansions) was always the permanent venue for banquets, and at the birthday feast of Vsevolod's son, the Rus' elite gathered, their feasting sounds filling the air, and everything shone brilliantly under the candlelight.
Like their distant relatives in Scandinavia, most Rus' people wore long hair, and the majority still maintained the unrestrained ways of the north, while a small number, like the Greeks, were reserved, causing them to seem somewhat out of place at the banquet.
Yaroslav presided over the banquet alone, the Kiev Grand Duke calmly entertaining chieftains, wealthy merchants, nobles, and foreign envoys.
As the eldest son of the eldest son, Rostislav naturally received special treatment; after considering his opinion, Yaroslav placed him in a secluded yet dignified corner.
But even sitting in the corner, the Nuo City Prince could still feel some gazes, and this feeling of being spied upon made him very uncomfortable.
Because as news of the Kiev Grand Duke's high regard for him spread, those who had believed Rostislav was out of the running were astonished to find that he could still be in the game, after all, the Kiev Grand Duke's actions were clear for all to see. And most importantly, the Kiev Grand Duke had not yet announced the distribution of power in Rus'!
Rostislav didn't think much about that; after arriving in Kiev, he either wrote in his father's Red Mansion or went out for training, and these occasional visitors annoyed him, but he had to receive them, especially the remnants of his father's forces.
His father died too suddenly; throughout Rus', there were people who had bet on his father's succession and were now stuck, almost despairing, but Rostislav's rise gave them new hope.
Rostislav was also happy to accept this political inheritance, after all, who wouldn't want their power to be stronger.
"That must be my third uncle's wife."
Rostislav looked at the woman holding the infant, her attire having a strong imperial style, and her face was beaming with a happy smile, a mother's smile.
"Which means, that must be Monomakh."
Monomakh, this was the nickname of his third uncle's father-in-law, Constantine IX of Constantinople, "the one who fights alone."
However, the Prince was not referring to him, but to the infant; he knew very well what great achievements this infant, who would bear the name Monomakh, would accomplish in the future.
Vsevolod stood excitedly beside his wife; although he disliked noise, this young Prince was immensely pleased with the blessings and compliments, and he was immersed in the joy of being a father.
Upon noticing his deceased elder brother's son staring at him, his third uncle returned a friendly smile, and Rostislav raised his goblet in a gesture of courtesy.
In these days, Rostislav had also met his uncles; among them, his third uncle had a strong scholarly aura, was proficient in Greek literature, and perhaps because he found a similar aura in his elder brother's son, and they also had common topics, he treated the Nuo City Prince with the most affection.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted among the crowd, growing louder and louder, seemingly a quarrel.
Yaroslav appeared quite calm, his slightly changed expression quickly masked; he first apologized to the Polish envoy with whom he was conversing happily, then walked towards the source of the quarrel.
At the center of the quarrel was Vseslav of Polotsk (Note 1), the famous Sorcerer Prince; his reputation in Kiev was very bad, it was said that his mother taught him sorcery, and there were rumors that he would turn into a werewolf at night.
Moreover, as a Christian Prince, he even allowed pagans into his court and had close ties with a powerful pagan group called "Wolves," which was also one of the reasons for his bad reputation.
As for the person quarreling with him, it was Yaroslav's current eldest son, Izyaslav—the Prince's first uncle.
The first uncle was of medium height and slightly balding; his overall impression was one of mediocrity, and historically, he was indeed a mediocre person.
And the second uncle stood beside his brother, showing his silent support.
The reason for the quarrel was that Izyaslav brought up Vseslav's cowardice during the campaign against Poland (Note 2) back then, which clearly insulted the Sorcerer Prince.
When Yaroslav arrived, he demanded that the Kiev Grand Duke uphold his honor and emphasized his blood kinship.
In response, Yaroslav said:
"Prince, honor must be defended by the sword, and as for your service, I have already given recompense, but I will not punish a Rus' person for speaking the truth."
Vseslav's face turned red then white, clearly the Kiev Grand Duke's words in public greatly stimulated his nerves, and the Sorcerer Prince's beard even trembled slightly.
"I am very sorry, please forgive me, Kiev Grand Duke, but this banquet is probably no longer suitable for me to be present."
After speaking, Vseslav left the banquet directly, Yaroslav's expression was somewhat gloomy, but he did not erupt.
The second uncle shrewdly clapped his hands, signaling the banquet to continue, the musicians resumed playing cheerful tunes, and the people continued with the feast; this interlude passed just like that.
Rostislav, meanwhile, paid attention to his uncles; he knew that the schemer in the north was among them, but who exactly was it?
The information was still too scarce, he still had to remain low-key, and he didn't know when he would find that schemer.
However, the schemer seemed to have noticed that someone was looking, and thus directly vanished without a trace, ceasing all activity, which is why Rostislav was actually not as tense about this matter anymore.
"What exactly is going on?"
Watching the farce conclude, Jan, who was sitting next to the Nuo City Prince, was somewhat puzzled; he hadn't understood what was happening from beginning to end, why they quarreled, and why it ended that way.
"It's nothing more than the exclusion of Bryachislav's descendants; that incident was just a pretext."
Rostislav began to explain to Jan, since there was nothing else to do now anyway.
"This line of Polotsk is not the descendants of our grandfather, but the descendants of our grandfather's brother; although they are blood relatives, they are ultimately not our own people. They are one of the few independent Princes in Rus' today and once fought against our grandfather. Our grandfather never liked them."
The Sorcerer Prince's ancestor was Yaroslav's brother; after this brother died, his sons received Polotsk from "Saint" Vladimir, and the Principality of Polotsk was thus born; they have ruled independently of the Kiev court ever since, up to today.
Thinking about the history of the Polotsk line, Rostislav's thoughts couldn't help but drift to himself, as his situation was similar to theirs.
It seemed now that his grandfather would give him land, but he just didn't know which one, which was truly troublesome.
However, what Rostislav didn't expect was that after the banquet, Jika, the Captain of the Guard who was settling him, found him, and the reason for finding him was simple—his grandfather was waiting for him.
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Note 1: The center of Polotsk was Minsk, which is the current capital of Belarus; this principality was roughly in this area.
Note 2: In 1041, after a marriage alliance with Poland, Yaroslav sent troops to help Kazimierz I return to Poland and suppress the rebellious peasants and tribes.