The news that Rostislav would dispatch troops to Bulgar by the end of next year spread like wildfire throughout the entire city.
And with Moscow as its center, this wave continuously spread outwards, growing larger and larger.
Rostislav's grand publicity campaign at the theater indeed achieved his desired effect, and it was very successful; the news of the Prince dispatching troops to Bulgar next year spread as rapidly as a rocket.
People were all discussing this matter, and the battlefield became the main topic of their conversations.
Moreover, the public held an extremely optimistic attitude towards Rostislav's campaign; in their view, no one could resist the Moscow Prince's expedition, and their Prince would surely lead them to a great victory.
Many people began to plan on following the Prince to war, and some even started purchasing weapons and armor at the Blacksmiths Guild stalls, though most were not in a hurry, as there was still plenty of time before the army's departure.
However, what they didn't expect was that the Veche quickly arrived to convey the Red City's order: able-bodied men among the citizens were immediately commanded to take up arms and report for registration.
The citizens were somewhat surprised by this but did not reject it; after all, Rostislav's war could not possibly fail. If it was mandatory, then it was mandatory. Would anyone be unwilling when the Prince was leading everyone to prosperity?
People from the countryside, on the other hand, returned to their hometowns to mobilize their fellow villagers to join the campaign when the time came, as it was better to bring more people along for wealth and fortune.
Even the topics of conversation in the Moscow market changed; everyone discussed prices while also chatting about the war. Everyone enthusiastically debated the future war, with every word expressing their immense confidence in the Prince and their unquestioning certainty of victory.
As for the veterans in the city who had to retire from the battlefield for various reasons, they suddenly found many people seeking them out, asking these old soldiers to teach them skills for survival on the battlefield.
And when the news had fully spread, the entire Northeast Rus was discussing this matter. Across the vast Trans-Volga Region, regardless of people's attitudes towards Moscow's princely government, one thing was consistent:
That was their confidence in Rostislav's military capabilities and his ability to lead everyone to wealth and glory.
Many people in the villages began to prepare; they either pulled out their hidden weapons and armor to repair them or had family members weave armor for them.
Once the autumn farm work concluded, everyone would carry these items to Moscow to join the Prince's army.
Of course, not everyone had such strong expectations for war; some were full of worry, though this worry was not necessarily entirely due to the war.
"Rostislav is truly something! He didn't even inform us in advance and then suddenly assigned such a heavy task... Oh well, it was bound to happen sooner or later."
An angry voice came from the room at the end, and the working Scribes lowered their heads and continued their work, as if they hadn't heard the sound.
They were not like the shouting officer; his qualifications were more than enough for him to complain about the Prince in such a manner.
While the Slavic tradition did not have as many taboos, complaining about the ruler in this way still required status and position.
Moreover, the work at hand was very busy. Recently, the Prince had ordered a census of Moscow's conscriptable population.
And their job was to organize and categorize the collected names, statuses, and family situations of the soldiers.
These soldiers were mainly Moscow citizens; they had stable livelihoods in Moscow and were the most steadfast force among the Prince's conscripted soldiers, as well as the backbone of the battlefield. Their weapons and armor were relatively good.
It was just that Rostislav had never conducted a detailed count of this group, so he decided to take this opportunity to do so.
And through this opportunity, he aimed to complete the population census of Moscow and establish a household registration system within the city.
In this regard, Moscow had actually been in a state of laissez-faire for many years, as the city was still rapidly developing.
Furthermore, construction in all aspects was still in its early stages, and being too specific with this information would not only waste manpower but also be meaningless.
But now, after six full years of development, Moscow was fundamentally different from before.
This city was now the de facto center of Northeast Rus, attracting people from all over Northeast Rus and even nearby regions.
The city now acted like a magnet, attracting everything around it, with countless people wanting to become its residents.
However, Rostislav realized that the city could no longer be allowed to grow wildly; he had to complete its census before everything became increasingly chaotic.
Previously, due to being busy with various matters, Rostislav had never found the opportunity.
But now, with next year's expedition, the Moscow Prince was going to conduct a large-scale census of the city.
The Prince's order was issued, but the executing departments below were filled with wails of misery.
Fulfilling Rostislav's command was not an easy task, because Moscow was a city with a permanent population of tens of thousands and a floating population of at least several thousand.
And Moscow's bureaucracy consisted of only over two hundred people, with fewer than a hundred responsible for clerical work within the city. Recording all these things would be enough to make anyone dizzy, let alone identifying the types of residents among them.
Moreover, these people also had to perform various daily tasks within the city, so the time they could spend on these matters was very limited.
Hence Leo's complaint; he had already been extraordinarily busy recently due to the Prince's declaration, and now such a huge task had been added, which was truly a headache.
Furthermore, the increase in work also exacerbated internal conflicts within the civil service. The Rus Faction mostly consisted of grassroots officials, while the Greek Faction filled the middle and upper ranks. When tasks were added from above, these people could only burden those below them, urging them to collect data as soon as possible for organization.
In response, the Rus Faction viewed this as exploitation by the Greek Faction, believing that those Greeks sitting in the grand building were deliberately oppressing them.
And their attitude also influenced the Veche personnel who accompanied these Scribes in their work, wondering why they got to sit in offices.
Thus, contradictions were amplified in an instant, and Leo found this very troublesome, as it greatly damaged work efficiency.
Facing Leo's angry roar, the Scribes below stood respectfully, not daring to utter a single word; these were not matters they dared to chime in on.
Leo looked at these guys' timidity and suddenly felt a surge of anger with nowhere to go.
"Get out, all of you! Get back to your work! I want to see results as soon as possible!"
The Moscow official could only say these words powerlessly in the end, and the Scribes left as if granted a great pardon; it was truly too oppressive there, and facing their superior's foul mood was truly unbearable.
Watching those guys run off as if greatly pardoned, Leo suddenly found it somewhat amusing.
However, he didn't laugh much longer. He also understood that some seemingly insignificant matters were indeed very important to them.
And after suppressing his smile, Leo couldn't help but ponder the current situation.
Actually, the old Greek bureaucrat's previous words weren't because he found the work difficult or impossible to complete. He was an old bureaucrat from the imperial capital, and one district of that large city had far more people than Moscow.
He had dealt with countless situations far more serious than this in his career, yet he had always endured. During those years of being suppressed, various overwhelming tasks were simply commonplace.
He was more troubled by a sense of unease, an unease about the Moscow Prince's various actions—first a declaration of war, then a population census—which gave him a feeling of haste and urgency.
And he truly didn't think such a feeling was a good sign. Leo had witnessed many things; when he saw a ruler or high official acting this way, the subsequent events usually either developed poorly or completely failed.
However, Leo felt powerless about all of this. He could only sigh and pray in his heart that all of this was just overthinking.