Chapter 214
2021-01-06
Chapter 214 Dragon Returns[To Doran Prince of House Martell:
I hope you also remember me.
Under Jon Connington, I have known Lingmei for many years, and was also your brother-in-law's loyal servant. I miss them as much as you do.
I am not dead, nor is your younger sister's son. I hid him for safety. Now, it's time to end hiding.
The dragon has returned to Westeros, determined to take back his rightful rights and avenge his father Prince Rhaegar and mother Princess Elia.
Renly Baratheon is dead and we are heading towards Storm's End, where the defenders have been led away, unsuspecting, and we will take them by surprise. By the time you received this letter, the True Dragon flag must have been planted at the city head of Storm's End... In order to deal with the counterattack of the slayer's younger brother, we need Dorne's support, hope Prince will not give up!
Jon Connington
Griffin's Roost count
The Hand of the True King]
Funny, really funny.
A dragon has returned to Westeros, but not the one oneself is expecting, or even aware of, its existence. Doran Prince put down the letter and handed it to younger brother Oberyn Martell, who was next to him.
It is undoubtedly a fantasy story to let Dorne, who is at the southern end of the distant continent, waiting for the situation to change, join the blood and fire with a note. But if the note was delivered by The Spider Varys himself, that would be a different story.
...
"Aegon is still alive?" Oberyn finished reading the letter, snorted and threw it on the table, "It turns out that when the Six Kingdoms besieged the Westerlands, we harassed our coastline, The pirates who sacked our village and killed our people are actually my nephew's?"
"No, only the Golden Corps mercenaries who landed from Cape Wrath were Prince Aegon's people, the rest... just me Tywin Lannister, hired by Tywin Lannister, as far as intelligence is concerned."
"No one wants this letter to be true more than I do, but Gregor Clegane took Aegon from Elia and banged his head fiercely On the wall, countless people saw my nephew's body. Maybe I should tie you up to King Stannis to show my allegiance? Lord Varys, I'm curious - you're not going to be the Minister of Intelligence at King's Landing, run out Supporting the rebels, what is the purpose?"
"A pitiful person with a broken body...what else is there for the purpose? It is only to completely end this long rebellion and restore order and peace to the Seven Kingdoms. That's all. According to the law, Aegon is the real king, Lord Oberyn's word 'rebel' is not very accurate." Varys shrugged sadly, "King Stannis firmly believes that the deaths of Duke Arryn and King Robert are all my fault... ...If I don't leave quickly, I'm afraid my poor head will be stuck on the wall of the Red Keep." He sighed: "The body of little Aegon seen by countless people actually belongs to a poor farm child, the real Prince has already been sent out of Red Keep by me in advance. We originally planned to take advantage of the rivalry between the two deer to get in. Who would have thought that this brother's infighting would end as quickly as the wind, which would be unpredictable... If Dorne doesn't act now, Then we can only watch as Stannis leads the army into the Stormlands, easily defeats the Golden Corps, and kills the last Targaryen male in the world."
"Touching loyalty, Lord Varys, your words make a lot of sense. I can't argue with that at all... let's talk about what's not relevant, let's talk about what matters: how do you prove that Aegon is really Elia's child?"
"Prince wants me to prove that, Or how can I prove it?" Varys asked rhetorically, "There are indeed several ways of identification among folk legends, but all of them do not require the presence of both children and parents, and Maesters has already proved through experiments: including drops All methods, including blood, are unreliable. Even King Robert, didn't he finally figure out if his three children were oneself? Does it mean that Aegon Targaryen was raised by his father Rhaegar's best friend, Jon Connington? If he wasn't real, how could Earl Connington be willing to play dead for his self-destructing honor and stay incognito for more than a decade? "
"Who can prove that this Earl Connington is real?" The Griffin's Roost count I know is a proud youngster and a blast. How could he possibly be willing to be a nanny with a child? I don't quite believe it. "
"Lord Oberyn doesn't believe it, just go to Griffin's Roost and see the Hand of the True King, right?" Varys said without the slightest hesitation: "Earl Connington has changed a little over the past ten years, but it's not disfigured. Since you are familiar with him, you should recognize it." "
Oberyn frowned and glanced at his brother.
Sitting in a wheelchair, Doran Martell, who was silent from beginning to end after reading the letter, said:" No offense, Lord Varys - but if someone comes with a letter to me, I'll send a brother over to verify it's true, and there's no one left in my family. "
"Doran Prince's concerns are well-founded. Varys looked as usual: "So, as a sign of sincerity, I would like to stay in Dorne as a pledge. "
......
You're a hostage? Ten eunuch's lives are not as important as oneself's only young brother. Doran didn't say these words, and shook his head: "Even all this It's all true, so what does my dear nephew want me to do? Dorne's are thick as sand...that's just a bold statement, not every Dorne is a Red Viper. The Dorne leader, plus a mercenary group that would be defeated every time they come to Westeros, this is not a combination that can win Iron Throne at all. "
"What about Reach?" "
"Reach? "Doran's expression changed slightly: "Why do they help?" Let me guess... the Aegon Targaryen you're talking about, is married to Margaery Tyrell? "
"No, Aegon's queen will be Daenerys Targaryen." Varys shook his head: "To avoid future disputes over inheritance, the best way is to let the last pair of Targaryen join each other." King Aegon promised Rose something else—security, family continuity, and a voice. Stannis is not Robert, showing mercy as long as the enemy is willing to kneel... He certainly won't let go of the Tyrells who supported his brother's rebellion. For Reach, since he must bear the wrath of Iron Throne, why not pull an ally or two and fight with vigour? "
"Tyrell's house?" "Oberyn let out a laugh: "They lost two battles in a row, and King's Landing lost a lot of money. Why are they still unwilling to give up and continue to toss?" Really perseverance is commendable! "
"A Reach Land is a Reach Land." Varys smiled slightly: "Even if it loses two more battles, it's still the thinnest camel in Seven Kingdoms." ”
＊＊＊
This sentence is irrefutable, especially Dorne, whose territory is mostly desert, and whose population and property are at the bottom of the Seven Kingdoms.
The living room facing the Water Gardens was quiet for a while, except for the chirping of birds and insects and the breeze. After a while, Doran spoke again: "Dorne has shed enough blood more than ten years ago. Now that my younger sister's revenge has been avenged, we have no intention of participating in the feud again. "
"Have your revenge been avenged?" "Varys screeched in disbelief. "Prince means getting the head of the 'Magic Mountain'?" If this is called revenge, then I may be too high on the blood of Dorne people! "
"Clumsy tricks, Lord Varys, we're not children anymore." "Oberyn laughed. "If Reach is really in the game, that's really Interesting, but what about my nephew's supposedly three-dragon queen?" If Daenerys also shows up and recognizes my nephew's identity, then even if my big brother disagrees, I will go alone and join True Dragon. "
"Princess Daenerys...currently still in Meereen in Slaver's Bay, entangled in so many chores that it's hard to get out, and my people are doing everything they can to get them back to Westeros as soon as possible." "
"As soon as possible, that's not yet, Lord Varys." "Oberyn made no secret of his disdain for wordplay, "It's too much to try to harass us with empty hands—"
"Lord Varys. Doran Prince interrupted the younger brother, "Your mission is to send us a message, and you've done it. But joining a war is a big deal after all, can I have a discussion with the younger brother before making a decision? "
"That's natural, and it's related to the future survival of the family, so it's a long-term plan." "Varys went to war, and while he seemed to have suffered a small loss in his conversation with Oberyn, he was The Spider, not a lobbyist... The confidence he had in persuading Dorne to go to war came from the information the little birds sent back, not the Eloquence. He stood up and bowed slightly: "Then, let's say goodbye first. "
"Areo, send Lord Varys back to his residence to rest!" "Doran said loudly, watching oneself's bodyguard Captain take The Spider away, and then sighed and looked at Oberyn until he was sure that the other party couldn't hear oneself again.
......
"This eunuch, I'm afraid you don't know that you have sent Quentyn to Meereen to marry Daenerys. "Oberyn raised Erlang's legs and said with a smile: "The so-called little Aegon, God knows if the mercenaries have been cut off because of the Blackfyre bloodline, and they made a trick to find an excuse to fight back to Westeros." In my opinion, the Spider was bound and sent to King's Landing, just as a tribute to Stannis - always on the winning side, and now, Stannis has won. "
"I have warned you for so many years, finally figured it out?" Dao Lang smiled and looked towards younger brother.
"It's not that I figured it out, but no matter what, the deer is always better than the lion." Stannis is harsh and rigid, but it can't get us Dorne up. And, we never have to worry about him favoring our adversary. "
"Indeed, I should swear my allegiance to Stannis immediately, following the 'always on the winning side' rule." But this time, I'm afraid I have to do the opposite. Doran changed the subject: "You have to go to Stormlands." "
"en?" Oberyn suspected that oneself had misheard: "But now the Stormlands are a mess, with pirates, mercenaries, and vassal armies running around." Even if I have a few more arms, I can't guarantee safety. "
"That's right, so I'm not asking you to go alone, but with the army." "
"With the army?" Oberyn was even more puzzled, which was completely inconsistent with oneself's brother's usual cautious style: "But... Dorne's army entering the Stormlands without authorization is tantamount to declaring war on Iron Throne. Didn't we talk about it before - to keep a low profile until Quentyn brought Daenerys back. "
"Yes, but Renly was alive then." "
Doran looked troubled: "My plan was to sit back and watch the two deer fight until Daenerys returned to Westeros - but as Varys said, this Baratheon's infighting It's over too soon. Crownlands, Stormlands, the strength of the three northern kingdoms has almost no loss. If we do nothing and watch Stannis quell Reach's rebellion and drive the Golden Corps back across the Narrow Sea, then when Daenerys returns, we'll be facing a unified Six Kingdoms. "
"Daenerys has dragons." "
"Dragons are not invincible, we Dorne have slaughtered them, have you forgotten." Doran shook his head: "Stannis won't be a popular king, but he'll keep Seven Kingdoms in order, and we can't give him a chance to secure it." Otherwise, until we close our eyes, there will not be another chance for blood revenge. "
Oberyn was about to open his mouth, but suddenly realized one thing: it's too funny. In the past, Doran persuaded oneself to calm down, why is it the other way around? Since the big brother is determined to fight, he must be After much deliberation, oneself just do it, what's there to question!
"Okay, since you said go, then I will go, my long spear is already hungry. "
"Don't worry, I only let you lead the troops there, but I didn't say when to go or who to fight." "We'll have to wait for news," said Doran. If the little Aegon who doesn't know the truth can't win Storm's End, then it's all in vain... The golden group slaps the butt and goes back across the narrow sea, but Dorne can't run away. Only when the news of him taking Storm's End and raising the True Dragon flag comes, we will send troops north in the name of helping King Stannis fight the rebellion. "
"so that's how it is." "Oberyn suddenly realized, "This way, even if things change, we can fall back on Stannis and get out of the way, Tywin, the Old Guy used this move. "
"Van, but practical." "Doran nodded: "What to do after arriving in Stormlands, you have to see the situation. The first thing to determine is whether Reach really joined the Golden Corps. If the Tyrells don't intervene, then the authenticity of little Aegon is meaningless. We absolutely cannot fight against Stannis' attack independently. At that time, you will really help. Stannis quelled the rebellion, laid down a few castles occupied by the Golden Corps and returned them to the previous owner, just pretend. Other options can only be considered if the Reach land is actually involved in the war. "
"How to choose? "
"Number one, you're going to see little Aegon when it's safe to do so, we can't rule out the possibility that what Varys said is true." House Targaryen's appearance is different from ordinary people. If the child really looks 'one can be sure that it is the child of Rhaegar and Elia', then there is no need to hesitate, we will fully support it, even if it is broken. "
"It's not that the House Targaryen people are special looking, it's that the Valyrians all look that way." "Oberyn shook his head and explained to his brother: "I have traveled across the Narrow Sea and have seen many people with silver hair and purple eyes. It is impossible to judge whether this is my nephew based on his appearance. "
"It doesn't matter if you can't judge it by oneself, what we have to do is to prevent Stannis from sitting on Iron Throne while protecting ourselves as much as possible. Doran became serious: "If you can't judge the truth, then treat it as an ordinary ally. In this case, don't take the initiative to confront Stannis and the northern coalition." It is the Tyrell family who are most afraid of Stannis' success, and the one that Stannis is most eager to eliminate must be 'Targaryen evil remnants'. On the premise of ensuring that Stannis can't win a big victory, try to protect yourself, first consume the strength of the Golden Company and Reach - to ensure that when Quentyn returns to Westeros with Daenerys, we Dorne still have the qualifications to stand in the team and decide the situation. strength towards. "
"Got it. "
"You will start assembling your army tomorrow, and take it to the Yronwood City area of Boneway to stand by, waiting for the news of Storm's End to come in." "
"Okay. "Oberyn stood up and walked towards the door: "I don't have to do it every day, I'll do it now." "
"Wait! Doran turned around and stopped the younger brother: "I know you love adventure and war, but this time, I want you to swear--never take risks lightly!" "
"Do you still treat me as a child, big brother?" "Oberyn smiled. "Okay, I swear." ”
——
[big chapter, made up for yesterday’s work]
(end of this chapter)