The Mountain of Ice and Fire

"Lord Mountain, how can you help me repel the enemy?" Edmure Tully asked.

"I am the Master of War, Lord Edmure."

"You are merely Joffrey Baratheon's Master of War," Edmure Tully said coldly.

"That is enough."

"Are you asking me to surrender?"

"I can order Randyll Tarly to halt his attack on your vassals, and then we can negotiate."

"Lord Mountain, House Tully has sworn fealty to the King in the North. We will not serve House Baratheon as king again, nor House Lannister," the Blackfish said coldly.

"That's not certain," Mountain said. "Three hundred years ago, Aegon landed in Westeros, and the King in the North bent the knee all the same. The Dornish Martells have always styled themselves as princes, but that doesn't stop them from swearing fealty to the Iron Throne."

"You want House Tully to betray the King in the North?"

"Faced with destruction or survival, there is only one choice, Lord Brynden."

"Are you threatening me?"

"I'm telling you the truth. I want to help House Tully."

"We will not accept 'help' in the form of surrender."

"Very well, my lord! Aelinor, do you want to return with me, or continue to stay in Riverrun?"

"I want to stay with Lord Edmure and defend it to the last moment."

"You won't regret it?"

Aelinor glanced at Edmure: "I won't regret it."

The young girl was determined to marry into a family of higher status, even if that family was facing a difficult situation. This was another successful proof of her mother Sybell Spicer's education of her daughter to always aim high. From the time the girl first understood things, Sybell Spicer had been carefully educating her in the 'marriage' of a great noble.

To marry at least an earl was the girl's firm goal, and Edmure Tully was a duke, there was no higher title than this.

Aelinor was very pragmatic, she was a replica of her mother Sybell Spicer, but the age at which young girls in this world understood things was still too young! Of course, their marriage age was also very young: around thirteen years old, as long as they had their period, they could marry.

*

Mountain led his legion, escorting six thousand civilians, across the Red Fork, and advanced westward. It would take another month to reach Tabeck Hall and Castamere in the Westerlands.

The River Road was built very smoothly, but for walking, the journey of a thousand miles required a long time.

During Mountain's march, the preparations for the New Year's wedding of the King and Miss Margaery had begun in full swing in the Red Keep of King's Landing, and the entire King's Landing felt the festive atmosphere.

People did not like the Lannisters. The Kingslayer Jaime had never had a good reputation; the traitor Tyrion followed closely behind; and the incestuous Cersei was the most unpopular; the butcher Tywin was dead, but the shame never left him.

Fortunately, Joffrey was a Baratheon, although rumors of the scandal of his birth were circulating among the people, but—the King's bride Margaery Tyrell was deeply loved by the people, and her reputation was growing day by day, and she quickly became the future 'wise queen' in the eyes of the people.

*

Below Rhaenys's Hill in King's Landing, there was an orphanage.

This orphanage was the training institution and resting place for Varys's 'little birds', and now it was the 'little birds' base camp taken over and operated by Mountain's 'voice artist' Burney.

Early in the morning, the outside of the orphanage was noisy, and cheers also came from the residential buildings. People were cheering Miss Margaery's name, just like people cheered the King's name on the King's Name Day.

The members of the city watch who followed were used to it, and the Tyrell family's own guards were also accustomed to it.

Queen Cersei had never received such courtesy.

Miss Margaery Tyrell, wearing a floor-length silk dress, walked through the dirty alley, the hem of the expensive dress worth more than ten golden dragons was covered with filth, but Miss Margaery Tyrell didn't care, she only wore this dress once and threw it away when she returned.

Margaery Tyrell entered the gate of the orphanage. Her more than ten maids stayed outside the gate.

The courtyard of the orphanage was crowded with children.

Since the Battle of the Blackwater, the number of orphans taken in by the orphanage has doubled, and it was overcrowded.

The behind-the-scenes boss Burney felt a huge pressure. Fortunately, the arriving Tyrell family brought the food needed by the entire city's population, and Miss Margaery Tyrell came specifically to the orphanage and announced that she would be responsible for all the children's food and clothing in the orphanage, which solved the problem for the voice artist Burney.

Today, Jaime Lannister, a member of the Kingsguard in a white robe, also came to the orphanage with Miss Margaery.

She was sent to Margaery's side by the Queen Mother Cersei. Cersei thought it was necessary for Jaime to feel Margaery Tyrell's reputation in King's Landing, because she thought it was important.

Cersei believed that Margaery Tyrell had begun to control the king and accumulate her own reputation before she married Joffrey Baratheon, which was not a good sign, which made Cersei feel an unprecedented threat.

Jaime didn't care about the threat Cersei said, he was more concerned about the relationship between Captain of the Guard Osney Kettleblack and Cersei.

*

The arrival of Margaery Tyrell brightened the courtyard of the orphanage. The children surrounded her, just like the stars guarding the moon.

At Margaery's suggestion, two guards carried in a huge box, which was pulled over by a special carriage, and Jaime didn't even know what was in the box.

Jaime didn't care about all of this.

After experiencing the harsh environment of the Wall and seeing the horrors of wights, Others, and wildlings, Jaime was indifferent to many things that happened in King's Landing, and the only thing he might really care about was Cersei.

*

The children let out a deafening cheer as the box was opened. Miss Margaery brought them wood carvings of toys, many of these toys: there were warriors, swords, warhorses, spears, and archers...

Half of the orphans' fathers had died on the banks of the Blackwater, and Margaery told the children that these wood carvings were the children's fathers, and they were true warriors.

One child's father was a sword-and-shield soldier, so he got a wood carving of a sword-and-shield soldier. Margaery asked the child his father's name, and the child told her, and she asked the maid to bring her a carving knife and carve the child's father's name on the wood carving of the sword-and-shield soldier.

One child's father was an archer, and he got an archer carving... Finally, Margaery reluctantly left in the hymns sung in unison by the children, which made Jaime feel extremely bored.

Miss Margaery was deliberately trying to be close to the people!

Coming out of the orphanage, Jaime accompanied Miss Margaery Tyrell to the refugee gathering place on Shoemaker Square again. Before she even reached the refugee gathering place, Jaime heard cheers coming from the square. People welcomed her like they welcomed the king. In Jaime's memory, only the late King Robert had ever had such treatment.

People welcomed Margaery Tyrell very much. Walking on the street, the residents of King's Landing also shouted Margaery's name. They paid tribute to Miss Margaery Tyrell from windows, rooftops, streets, and in front of shops.

Jaime changed his mind. He thought that Cersei's worries were not entirely caused by jealousy. Margaery Tyrell was indeed deliberately trying to win people's hearts.

*

Night. Maegor's Holdfast. Queen Mother's bedroom.

Since Jaime returned and put on the white robe again, he was thoughtfully arranged by the captain of the guard to protect Her Majesty the Queen Mother.

"You saw it today, what exactly is that bitch Margaery Tyrell doing?" Cersei said acrimoniously.

"I saw it, but there's nothing wrong with her doing this. She's loved by the people, she's the future queen, which is good for Joffrey's rule."

"She wants to rule herself, not Joffrey."

"She's the queen, Joffrey is the king, you don't need to worry too much."

"No, I absolutely cannot allow her to do this."

Jaime looked at Cersei's distorted face: "Cersei, maybe we should first reach peace with the North. I have seen wights with my own eyes, blue eyes, they can't be killed no matter how you kill them, you can only burn them with fire. I have also seen the wildlings coming south, mighty and vast, you can't see the beginning or the end, I don't know how many people there are. I have also seen..."

"Whether it's wights, Others, or wildlings, shouldn't they wipe out the Northmen first? What are you worried about? Eddard Stark and Robb Stark are not dead yet! Have you forgotten all the days they imprisoned you?"

"That was war, I was defeated and captured, I have nothing to say."

"Now is also war. Right here in the Red Keep, our enemies are the Tyrells, they want to control Joffrey, and then control the power of the entire kingdom; our enemies are also the Martells, Princess Myrcella has become their hostage, we have to find a way to rescue Myrcella, she is an innocent angel. There is also war inside the Red Keep."

Jaime sighed: "Okay, so how are you going to deal with Margaery Tyrell?"

"Let Osney Kettleblack seduce her, and then hand her over to the High Septon of the Great Sept of Baelor for trial."

"She's Joffrey's betrothed!" Jaime stood up and said, "You can't do this, Cersei!"

Cersei was unmoved: "I also heard that Margaery sleeps with her maids every night. She probably likes the same sex as the Knight of Flowers. Jaime, you have to find a way to find out which maids she has slept with."

"She's still a virgin," Jaime said in a deep voice.

"That's not certain; even if she is still a virgin, it doesn't mean she hasn't done anything out of line. After she gets married, I need to have evidence of her scandals in my hands."

"You want to ruin her?"

"If she obeys me, I won't publicize her scandals."

"Stop it, Cersei, King's Landing can't live without the Tyrell family's food."

Cersei didn't seem to hear at all: "Jaime, Captain Osney is very loyal, I will send him to get close to Margaery and maintain a long-term close relationship with Margaery. I will also find out which maids she sleeps with at night. Are you helping me or not?"

Jaime's heart was full of disappointment in Cersei.

He stood up, "Your Majesty, I should go to my post!" He put on his clothes, put on his armor, fastened his sword belt, tied on his white robe, and walked out of the Queen Mother's bedroom without looking back.

*

ps: In July, there is a high probability of 2 updates a day, each with 3,000 words.