The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 533: Monopoly

(Guarantee Chapter)

*

Desmond's ship left the waters of Dragonstone and arrived at Blackwater Bay. However, the Mountain already knew of his arrival, which could only mean that Lord Gavin had released a raven to deliver the message.

Desmond had long heard of the Mountain's infamous reputation: Lord Tywin had been defeated by him, Stannis had been beheaded by him, the Red Viper Oberyn had been killed by him, and the High Sparrow and his Faith Militant had been raided and annihilated by him…

Desmond Redwyne felt a surge of regret. The Mountain had paid in full for the Arbor gold, and upfront. This small displeasure of his might bring him a fatal disaster…

Desmond's legs went weak. Cold sweat covered him, soaking his underwear!

Wagner said unhurriedly, "Ser Desmond, I'll keep the money safe for you; not a single coin will be missing. The Mountain is waiting for you on the royal navy flagship, the *King*."

"Lord, I know I was wrong," Desmond's tough-guy demeanor vanished.

Any burly tough guy was like a half-grown child before the Mountain; any villain would be impressed upon seeing the Mountain. Desmond hadn't even seen the Mountain yet, and he was already intimidated!

If he had encountered the Mountain on the road, Desmond wouldn't have been so afraid, but the fact that the Mountain had specifically sought him out and was waiting for him on the royal flagship made Desmond feel very uneasy!

The *Warhammer* sailed into the royal navy harbor, where dozens of ships of all sizes were docked. Navy soldiers were densely packed, practicing their martial skills on the decks.

The military was disciplined and filled with killing intent!

On the flagship, the Mountain stood at the bow, looking like a giant. He was surrounded by Clegane's men, his four personal guards: Captain Alyn, squire Comm Warner, foster son Landon Gahl, and Captain Joyce Follard.

Desmond recognized the Mountain, but the Mountain didn't recognize him.

Wagner Gahl led Desmond onto the deck. The Mountain looked at Desmond; it was indeed the first time he had seen the Redwyne merchant ship escort commander, and the first time he had seen Desmond.

Desmond looked at the Mountain in fear: arms as thick as tree trunks, huge palms, a body as strong as a mountain, eyes full of malice, and a two-handed greatsword with a huge hilt on his back.

The Mountain stared at Desmond expressionlessly.

He already had some understanding of Desmond from his father-in-law Lord Gavin's letter. As a transmigrator, the Mountain had no impression of Desmond at all. He was a minor character in the books and TV series, one of the smallest minor characters.

The Mountain remembered the two twin brothers from House Redwyne he had met in the Riverlands: Horace Redwyne, the elder brother, and Hobert Redwyne, the younger brother. Two纨绔子弟, but with simple hearts.

"Ser Desmond?" the Mountain said.

"Yes, Lord Duke," Desmond's resentment from yesterday and his displeasure from today had all vanished, leaving only the Mountain's burly strength and imposing power in his eyes.

He realized that he was nothing in front of the Mountain!

On the deck was a table that had been set up long ago, and a huge chair that seemed to have been prepared for the Mountain.

The Mountain went over and sat down, leaving Desmond to stand in front of the table.

"Ser Desmond, have you ever eaten snow salt?"

"No, Lord Duke."

The Mountain gestured, and a servant brought out a bag of snow salt. "Ser Desmond, this is salt for you."

Desmond had heard of the fame of 'snow salt.' Now, snow salt was exclusively supplied to the royal family and sold overseas at a price like gold. It was very famous, but due to the war, there was a shortage of young people and workers in the West, and it had been a year and a half since it could be mass-produced.

Desmond's heart was filled with vigilance. He expressed his gratitude and accepted it.

"Does Lord Paxter eat snow salt or sea salt now?" the Mountain asked.

"Sea salt, Lord."

"Well, can I ask you to do me a small favor, Lord Desmond?"

"Please give your orders, Lord Duke."

"Take thirty pounds of snow salt to Lord Paxter Redwyne for me."

"Yes, Lord Duke. I think Lord Paxter will be very grateful."

Things are valued when they are scarce!

Thirty pounds of snow salt was an extremely valuable thing, like thirty pounds of gold.

In this world, salt was a special product for the nobles. Freemen and commoners had difficulty eating salt. One reason was scarcity, and the other was that it was too expensive. After three years of continuous war, salt had become even more of a luxury.

The Mountain had already resumed mass production of snow salt in the West. The tribal people who had migrated from the Mountains of the Moon to the West brought productivity. After unifying the large and small nobles in the north of the West, the Mountain restarted the production of snow salt. In name, the jurisdiction over the snow salt in the West still belonged to the Lannisters of Casterly Rock. Kevan's youngest son, Martyn Lannister, was in charge of related government affairs. The Mountain also admitted that Kevan was still the Salt Minister of the West, but in reality, it was just a formality.

A wicker box was brought out, opened, and lined with parchment paper. It was full of snow salt.

The snow-white, sandy salt was exquisite and looked like the best work of art.

It was the first time Desmond had seen so much snow salt.

"Royal Family Exclusive Snow Salt," the Mountain said.

Desmond quickly expressed his gratitude!

"Ser Desmond, have you ever been to Silk Street?"

"Yes, Lord Duke."

"Have you ever been to Addam Marbrand's noodle shop?"

"Yes, Lord."

"Westerling noodles are a favorite of the nobles in King's Landing. Have you ever tried them?"

"Yes, Lord, I've eaten them twice… too expensive… Lord… I'm just an ordinary knight…"

"Can you do me another small favor?"

"I'd be happy to," Desmond guessed what the Mountain was going to do.

Sure enough!

"I have a hundred pounds of Westerling noodles to send to Lord Paxter Redwyne. Can you help me bring them to Lord?"

"As you command, Lord Duke."

"I will also send ten pounds of Westerling noodles for you to take home, so that your family can also taste the refined noodles."

"I am very grateful, Lord Duke."

The Mountain hooked his little finger, and Alyn took out a money bag from his pocket and threw it on the table with a snap.

"Ser Desmond, here are fifty gold dragons. I want to give them to you to make you a friend. Are you willing to accept them?"

"…………"

"Are you unwilling to accept the gold dragons, or unwilling to become my friend?"

Cold sweat dripped from Desmond's forehead.

"Lord, please tell me what you want me to do first. As long as it doesn't violate my conscience, my loyalty, or my family, I am willing to do it for you."

"You are responsible for delivering Arbor wine to Plankytown, Sunspear, Storm's End, King's Landing, Gulltown, White Harbor, Lannisport, and even occasionally to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea at the end of the Wall, right?"

"Yes, Lord," Desmond knew that this was what the Mountain wanted to talk about.

"Well, from today onwards, I want you to only deliver the wine you send to King's Landing, Gulltown, White Harbor, Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, and Lannisport to one place: Dragonstone. You don't have to worry about the other places; I'll find someone to deliver them for you. As for the price, I hope you can lower it a little. If you can't make the decision, it doesn't matter. Go back and tell Lord Paxter that if he can lower the price, he can, but I'll accept it even if he doesn't. The wine is delivered to Dragonstone, and the price will be paid to you in full at one time, without owing."

"…………" Desmond didn't know how to answer the Mountain.

"Do you disagree, or can't you make the decision?"

"Lord Duke, I think I need to release a raven back to let Lord Paxter Redwyne know about this."

"Do you have ravens on your ship?"

"Yes, Lord."

The Mountain glanced at Wagner Gahl, who immediately sent navy soldiers to Desmond's ship to get the raven cage.

Three ravens tilted their heads in the raven cage, looking at the generals on the deck.

The Mountain asked Desmond to take out a raven. He took out a parchment scroll that had already been wax-sealed and asked Desmond to put the small parchment scroll into the small iron cylinder on the raven's leg and screw on the small cap. As Desmond spoke to the raven like an old friend, the Mountain's servant brought corn and chopped raw meat. Desmond was surprised by the Mountain's meticulousness in preparing everything.

It seemed that the Mountain had calculated every step.

After the raven was full, Desmond threw the raven into the sky.

Desmond had no idea what was written on the letter that the Mountain had written in advance.

*

Maidenvault.

Prime Minister Kevan was in Lord Mace Tyrell's room.

"Lord Duke, the Mountain told me that he can persuade Lord Redwyne to give him all the sales of Arbor wine, so that he can sell it to the other side of the Narrow Sea to make money. Do you think it's possible?"

Mace Tyrell laughed after a moment of astonishment: "Lord Prime Minister, do you think it's possible?"

"Uh, I don't know," Kevan said.

"Absolutely impossible," Mace smiled. "Lord Redwyne has a naval force that can defeat the Iron Islands fleet. It is rumored that the Ironborn's fleet is similar to Lord Redwyne's navy, but the naval power of the Seven Kingdoms is actually the first of Lord Redwyne. He is committed to developing the navy, firstly because Arbor is surrounded by the sea, and secondly to escort the worldwide sales of wine. How could he give the wine to the Mountain to make money?"

Prime Minister Kevan was persuaded by Mace's words.

He felt that the Mountain's bragging in front of him was too much. Although he said that he wanted to cooperate with the Mountain and was looking forward to finding a way to make money through wine, the Prime Minister's heart was still deeply suspicious.

"Lord Prime Minister, there is no worry about selling Arbor wine, but the price is very expensive. Does the Mountain have so much capital to take all the wine? His legion is different from ours. Our legions are all supported by the vassals, while the Mountain supports so many soldiers by himself. It is impossible for him to have a lot of spare money to do the Arbor wine business."

"The Mountain may want Lord Redwyne to sell him the wine at a low price, and then he can sell it at a slightly higher price than the market price, so he can earn a lot of price difference in the middle," Kevan tentatively said.

"To ensure the good quality of Arbor wine, the price cannot be reduced. Only unique grapes and a unique climate can produce unique wine. No one can replace the Redwyne family's sales channels. If the Mountain wants to rely on barbaric bullying, firstly, he does not have a navy that can compete with the Redwyne family; secondly, I will oppose him; thirdly, the Mountain is in King's Landing, thousands of miles away from Arbor, and his hand cannot reach that far."

Lord Mace Tyrell's words completely dispelled Kevan's thoughts.

He originally thought that the Mountain had some brilliant tricks, but when he thought about the Redwyne family's territory being in the hottest south, in the sea outside Oldtown, even if the Mountain wanted to bully Lord Redwyne by barbaric means, the distance of thousands of miles would make it impossible for him to use them.

The Redwyne family's naval power was very strong. Even when the royal navy was at its peak, it was not as good as the Redwyne family's naval strength. The Ironborn were fierce and good at fighting, making a living by plundering, but they never dared to plunder the Redwyne family of Arbor, not because the Ironborn thought the sea route was far away, but because the Redwyne family's navy was indeed too powerful. The Ironborn had launched all-out attacks on Arbor several times, but each time they did not get any benefits.

Kevan was ashamed of his 'credulity.' Could the Mountain have the ability to make Lord Redwyne submit? If Lord Redwyne was in King's Landing, Kevan felt that this was very likely, but the Redwyne family was in the south thousands of miles away, on an island in the sea, which was absolutely impossible.

*

In the Royal Navy fleet harbor, Desmond stayed in the harbor for three days. His ship also sailed into the Royal Navy harbor for repairs. The Mountain wanted Desmond to wait here for Lord Redwyne's reply.

Desmond had not been able to go ashore for three days because the Mountain wanted the naval minister Wagner to treat him and the Redwyne soldiers well until Lord Redwyne's reply arrived.

Would Lord Redwyne agree to the cooperation plan proposed by the Mountain?

Early on the fourth day, the raven flew back and landed on Desmond's raven cage.

Ravens are intelligent, clever, adaptable, have strong flying abilities, and are surprisingly aggressive. The Citadel in Oldtown also raises a branch of ravens: white ravens.

White ravens can learn human language, understand some of the meaning of language, and communicate with people in language. White ravens are usually released by the Citadel to notify scholars in various places when major changes related to the country occur. Through the quality of white ravens, one can know the intelligence of ravens.

Desmond took out the Earl's reply from the small iron tube tied to the raven's leg, his face solemn. If the Earl did not agree and rejected him outright, then he could not accept anything from the Mountain; but would the Mountain be angry? Would he kill Desmond with a punch in a fit of anger? This was possible. With the Mountain's infamous reputation, killing Desmond and throwing him into the Blackwater Rush was not a big deal.

This thought made Desmond feel uneasy.

Desmond anxiously opened the letter, read it quickly, and his face changed from solemn to relaxed, and then to unbelievable surprise. He was stunned for a while, calmed down, glanced at the snow salt and Westerling noodles that the Mountain had asked him to bring back, and the money bag with fifty gold dragons. A smile gradually appeared on his face.

The Earl agreed to cooperate with the Mountain and sell all the Arbor wine to the Mountain alone. This was the reason for Desmond's daze. He didn't quite understand the meaning of 'all the Arbor wine.' Did the Earl also give up personally selling wine to the other side of the Narrow Sea?

In the future, whether it was Westeros or Essos, could Arbor wine only be bought through the Mountain alone?!

Desmond still didn't quite understand, but it didn't matter anymore. He didn't have to worry about being killed by the Mountain with a punch.

Clearly, Earl Redwyne's agreement to the Mountain's request was related to the contents of the letter the Mountain had written to him. It was a letter that had been prepared and sealed beforehand.

The Mountain had planned everything in advance, which impressed Ser Desmond greatly.

The Mountain was not simply a brute driven by evil; he was actually very wise, a discovery Desmond had made.

After breakfast, accompanied by Commander Vargna, Desmond went ashore and entered King's Landing. He was going to inform the Mountain of the contents of Earl Redwyne's reply, confirm the cooperative relationship between the two sides, and after that, pay a visit to Lord Mace Tyrell.