 It is possible that the marriage with Elisiv had been agreed to already during Harald's first time in Rus', or that they at least had been acquainted.During his service in the Byzantine Empire, Harald composed a love poem which included the verse "Yet the goddess in Gardarike / will not accept my gold rings" (whom Snorri Sturluson identifies with Elisiv), although "Morkinskinna" claims that Harald had to remind Yaroslav of the promised marriage when he returned to Kiev.According to the same source, Harald had spoken with Yaroslav during his first time in Rus', requesting to marry Elisiv, only to be rejected because he was not yet wealthy enough.