The Mountain of Ice and Fire

If he remembered correctly, the Mountain knew what Kevan Lannister was about to say.

He decided not to give Ser Kevan the chance: "Lord Duke, the Crossroads has good terrain. To the left, it's close to the shallows of the Green Fork River, preventing the enemy from outflanking us on that side. To the right are the impassable cliffs of the Mountains of the Moon. We only need to set up pit traps and stakes in the woods and along the road on the right, and the Northern army will have to face us head-on."

Kevan glanced at the Mountain. The Mountain's words coincided with his own strategy, and he was inwardly moved.

The Mountain was indeed different. No matter how unwilling he was to admit it, the words just now had proven that the Mountain possessed the beginnings of strategic talent. If this guy was still as obedient as ever, then, after being tempered by war and carefully cultivated by Tywin and himself, the Westerlands army would gain a brave and resourceful general. This would be a stroke of luck for the Westerlands.

Kevan glanced again at the witch who had her eyes slightly closed. Every one of the witch's prophecies had been proven true by time, such as the prophecy of Robert's death, the great victory in the Riverlands, and of course, there were many things the witch had failed to predict, such as the disappearance of Eddard Stark, the disappearance of Varys…

After all, the witch was merely a sorceress, not a true god. She couldn't possibly foresee everything and everyone. It was already a demigod-like feat for her to completely speak out the parts she could foresee.

No matter how you looked at it, the witch was the only wizard in decades who could truly help the Lannisters. Every prophecy she made was accurate.

If the Westerlands gained a resourceful and brave general, and also a witch whose prophecies came true, it would be like a lion growing wings. – This was a sentence Tywin had said privately to Kevan in his study, and Kevan had kept it firmly in mind.

Duke Tywin had long prepared for war against the Riverlands, the Vale of Arryn, and the North by conducting large-scale military exercises throughout the realm, all because of the witch's prophecy.

Kevan glanced at the Imp. That fellow was also eyeing the Mountain, his one green and one black eye gleaming. Clearly, the Imp was also re-evaluating this different Mountain.

The Mountain's words just now were insightful, showing the vision of a general.

"If we can lure the Northern army south, we can conserve our strength and wait for them, ambushing them here," Kevan said. His statement was a direct acknowledgement of the Mountain's military strategy.

This place had a geographical advantage!

To the left was the Green Fork River, to the right were the Mountains of the Moon, and in the middle was the Kingsroad. If the enemy advanced south, any flanking tactics on the left and right wings would be useless, and they could only fight head-on. And this was exactly what the powerful Westerlands army wanted. Only a head-on battle could eliminate the strength of the North.

For this war, the Westerlands army had been preparing with all their might long ago, but at the time, the great nobles didn't know why Tywin had ordered large-scale military exercises.

"Once they see our strength, I fear the Young Wolf will lose his courage to fight and retreat directly," Duke Tywin said calmly. "We must defeat Stark as soon as possible to free ourselves from restraint and focus all our efforts on dealing with Stannis of Dragonstone and Renly of Storm's End. Order the drummers to sound the assembly, and have the entire army cross the Green Fork River to set up formations on both sides of the Crossroads."

"Send word to Jaime, ordering him to completely surround Riverrun. Once we crush the Young Wolf here, Riverrun won't be able to wait for reinforcements and will likely surrender without a fight."

"Order Earl Leo to have all the soldiers of Golden Tooth dig pit traps and set up caltrops on the right side of the Kingsroad to block the enemy's right flank. I will have a decisive battle with Robb Stark on the south bank of the Green Fork River and crush the North in one fell swoop."

"As you command," Ser Kevan said. "Lord Duke, I will go and issue the orders now."

Ser Kevan strode out.

Tyrion looked with great interest as his father Tywin turned to face the semi-barbaric natives he had brought.

"It is said that the men of the Mountains of the Moon tribes are all brave and fearless warriors."

The Mountain remained impassive. He saw through Duke Tywin's intentions. This intention was very simple and obvious – a pretty compliment.

"That's right," Shagga of the Stone Crows replied.

The Mountain coldly eyed Shagga: Shagga was a strong man with a body full of muscles. He had sent the Duke's captain of the guard flying with one blow, which showed his bravery. However, this guy had forgotten to grow a brain while growing muscles.

"Women too," Chella of the Black Ears said.

The Mountain's gaze shifted to Chella: Chella had no feminine beauty. Whether you looked at her figure, face, or hips, she couldn't possibly be a woman, but she was indeed a woman. Tyrion had even called her 'Little Beauty'.

"If you all go to war with me against the enemy, I guarantee you will receive everything my son promised, and even more," Duke Tywin declared calmly and with authority.

"How do we know you will keep your promise?" Ulf son of Umar said. "Besides, we already have the promise of the Halfman. If he doesn't give us armor and weapons, we have the right to kill our prisoners. Since the Halfman is going to give us weapons and armor, why would I need to fight with you?"

This guy is the only leader with brains – the Mountain thought indifferently. His son had already promised to give something, and the father was now making a promise to give the same thing if they fought, which was meaningless.

But the Mountain knew that Ulf, who could see through Tywin's useless compliment, could not possibly be a match for an old fox like Tywin.

Sure enough, Duke Tywin said in a cold tone: "Brave warrior of the Mountains of the Moon, I think you misunderstood. My invitation to you to come and fight just now was merely a polite gesture. I didn't really mean to invite you to fight. You don't need to fight alongside us. The people from the wintery North are made of black ice. Even the bravest knights under my command are afraid when they meet them. Before they arrive, you'd better leave quickly."

The Mountain smiled inwardly: if a compliment didn't work, he would resort to provocation. It was a beautiful psychological tactic, with seamless transitions in speech and a cold expression. The Mountain looked at Tyrion, who had a sly smile on his face.

The first one who couldn't stand the contempt would definitely be Timett son of Timett of the Burned Men, who had been staring at me provocatively – the Mountain judged – and sure enough –

"The Burned Men fear nothing. Timett son of Timett will fight with the lion," Timett said proudly.

"Wherever the Burned Men have been, the Stone Crows have been there first," the strong man Shagga said without showing any weakness. "The Stone Crows will definitely charge in the front. No one can compare to the Stone Crows." Shagga, who only grew muscles, glared at Timett.

"Chieftain Lion, the Black Ears will join the battle," Chella said proudly. "Let you see that the women of the Mountains of the Moon are no worse than any man. But your Halfman son must be with us. He exchanged all sorts of promises for his life. Until we get the weapons he promised, his life is ours."

"Yes, the Halfman is still our prisoner. Until we get the things he promised, his life is ours," the most intelligent Ulf said.

Tywin turned his head and looked at Tyrion with those golden eyes.

Now the ball was kicked to Tyrion's feet, and it depended on how this cunning Imp would answer. The Mountain watched the show quietly and enjoyed it.

Tyrion shrugged his shoulders and smiled: "Father, you can do as you see fit."

Tyrion helplessly passed the ball. Now the ball was at Duke Tywin's feet. All he had to do was kick it into the goal. There was no goalkeeper. – The Mountain smiled inwardly.

"Very well, Tyrion, once the Young Wolf advances south, you and your friends will be responsible for attacking from the left flank."

Attacking from the left flank meant letting Tyrion fight close to the Green Fork River. Once they encountered a strong attack, Tyrion and his men would be driven into the great river by the Northern army. The Mountain knew very well that this was actually Duke Tywin's plan: once the war started, Duke Tywin would order Tyrion to go first to attract the Northern army's combat power.

Tyrion and his men would be used as cannon fodder by Duke Tywin.

The Mountain "envied" Tyrion for having such a father who was a pit, which could train Tyrion and help him grow rapidly in his father's malice: when Heaven is about to place a great responsibility on a person, it must first give him a father who is a pit.

Soon, the leaders of the native tribes were completely fooled by Duke Tywin. They became representatives of those who were sold and still counted the money for the seller.

The Mountain decided to add insult to injury and take advantage of the situation. He needed the native leaders of the Mountains of the Moon to maintain awe of him and his people. Soon, these people would shatter Duke Tywin's contempt in the battle and quickly become a strong and formidable force. The Mountain needed their awe, which might be very useful for future plans.

"Hey!" The Mountain shouted to Tyrion and his group who were turning to leave the hall. "Timett One-Eye, you've been staring at me ever since you came in. Let me send you out." As he spoke, the Mountain strode forward. Tyrion and his native leaders turned around together, and everyone could see that the Mountain's intentions were not good!