Chapter 316 War Letter
The north wind is blowing, the cold is sweeping across the river, the frozen soil has grown, and the weeds have condensed into ice.
It's just that the ocean currents on both sides of the Trident River and the continent are always flowing in circles. The freezing point temperature quickly passes, the ice cubes freeze and melt, and the frozen soil grows and disappears like a burrowing rat shrinking back into the mud.
But everyone in Westeros knows that winter has arrived. No matter how dull or upright your temper is, you must be vigilant and concentrate on farming and preparing for the winter.
The city walls of Harrenhal seem to be weeping. There are more and more residents here. Houses and villages are rising outside the city walls. The large empty wasteland that once surrounded Harrenhal has been replaced by smoke. There are many protruding chimneys. It is a mud building. Masons, bricks and pottery workers from all over the Riverlands and even the royal territory have settled down near Harrenhal. They are looking for work everywhere and are wandering outside the city of Harrenhal.
Tob Mott's residence is in a low tower in Harrenhal, next to one of Harrenhal's five fingers stretching out to the sky, like a baby reaching out to grasp its mother's fingers, tightly fitting together.
What is different from usual is that there is a divine residence of the Seven Gods Blacksmith in the hall of the low tower.
Countless King's Landing blacksmiths followed him in admiration of his name. Together with the craftsmen and servants of Harrenhal, they cleaned up the idle fortresses of the huge castle and housed the royal blacksmiths.
The golden dragons from the treasury are continuously exported in exchange for the labor of bed weavers, furniture carpenters and cooks.
Simon stayed in the housekeeper's building in Harrenhal, with the treasury's account books in front of him. Although the Duke did not arrange additional assistants or accountants for him, the person who could maintain the balance of payments of the declining He'an family was not an easy person after all. Seniors still use their talents in an orderly manner.
Attis rode a tall war horse. Gray Wind and Lynx Adam roared and attacked at the front of the team. The blue-robed cavalry anxiously tugged on the reins to calm the frightened war horses and cracked their whips hard to disperse the surrounding civilians to avoid being caught. Shadow lynx and direwolf accidentally killed.
The roar of the dragon can be heard outside the city, and the newly arrived civilians will look up eagerly, but those who have already settled down will not put down their work and continue to cultivate the land, work with handicrafts, and manage their own stalls.
There are many shops, and naturally there are many mercenaries coming, many of them coming from the Reach. It is inevitable to lament why they left the Reach so early and did not respond to the call of the old man in Oldtown to go to Hightower's house. Serve, otherwise you should be making a lot of money right now.
Hotels, taverns, and brothels sprang up after hearing the news, and some people even voluntarily repaired the King's Avenue, mainly to remove the weeds around it to make the appearance of the houses clean and tidy.
Robb grabbed the reins and turned his head, "That's it, Hand."
Attis nodded slightly, without shirk, and stopped to watch.
Robb Stark and a few of his Winterfell guards rode on horseback, with Gray Wind running in front, baring his teeth and threatening to intimidate Adam, the shadow lynx.
Adam was not fooled, and quickly climbed up the tree with his limbs, looking calmly at the ferocious direwolf.
The two ferocious beasts looked at each other, and the horses around them were trembling. The blue-robed guards were also focused. Although they were familiar with the direwolves and shadow lynx, they were still nervous and held their swords in warning.
Attis snorted in the distance, and Adam, the shadow lynx, lay down on the tree crown behind him, hid behind the tree, and emerged from the dense bushes on the side of Attis.
The Stark flag was raised on the land of the Riverlands for the last time. The cold direwolves leaped in the wind right on top of the helmets of Winterfell's guards, and gradually disappeared behind the distant wilderness hills.
Robb Stark kissed Jeyne on the cheek, climbed onto his horse, and was in the same armor and attire as when he came, running to where he came from.
Jeyne Westerling folded her hands and looked worriedly at Robb who was walking away.
"Prime Minister, I..." She couldn't help but say when she saw Robb walking away.
"No," Attis interrupted Jenny, "the northerners will not allow the Westerling family to enter the Neck. In the south, accompany your son and train him to be a qualified lord. This is even more important." Safety, Robb is a northerner who wants to become a man of the Night's Watch. I'm afraid it will be difficult for you to survive in Winterfell. Besides, a child cannot live without his mother's company. Leonard Stark needs you, the future guardian of the North. The Lord of Winterfell needs you."
Jenny bit her lip, pursed her lips, and said no more.
She knew that in the game of nobles, especially in the south, there was not much room for rejection. This was not the Castle of Crag, nor was it the Winterfell where Robb said the masters and servants got along warmly.
The team returned towards the evening, and the setting sun was not as high as Harrenhal. The entire castle only had some gaps to let through the afterglow from the west, making it look very cold.
"Woo! Woo!" The bugle rang three times, and Harold Hutton's cavalry patrol arrived belatedly. Tired for nearly a day, they just wanted to find a soft bed to sleep on, or to sleep in a woman's arms. Just for one night, there is no shortage of such services for soldiers in Harrenhal nowadays.
What was different than before was that there was a messenger among their ranks, a messenger from the Reach.
Attis took off his armor and handed it to Ser Ungay. He placed his hands on the warm fire and listened to the messenger from the Reach.
The lords of the Vale and the Riverlands sat at long tables on both sides, looking at the strangers from the Reach.
"Sea monsters attacked the city, thick fog filled the old town, dragon flames fell into the tower, Lord Leyton Hightower surrendered to Euron." Attis summarized the messenger's words and was surprised. He thought Euron would not choose to directly Instead of attacking Hightower or Tyrell, who lack sea power, they will choose to take a side attack and take King's Landing directly. Unexpectedly, there are many weird and wonderful people behind him.
"Lord Baelor Hightower and his nine thousand soldiers from the Reach are heading east along the road, coming towards King's Landing." The messenger panted and told Attis the news.
Attis typed the letter without any emotion on his face.
The messenger was sitting behind the long table in the front row of Bailu Hall, stroking his hands and enduring the long silence.
But fortunately, the intrusion of the butler Simon ended the silence.
He held the letter in his hand, with the Greyjoy coat of arms clearly printed on it.
"My Lord Prime Minister, your letter comes from the Iron Islands."
Attis took the letter from Simon and quickly scanned the contents.
The messenger's panicked voice sounded from the front: "Your Majesty Prime Minister, Euron Greyjoy is always good at deceiving people. If there are any words of framing, they must be words of provocation!"
Attis smiled and murmured what Euron Greyjoy had written in his letter.
"Yours sincerely, to all the lords of Westeros, from the Great Wall to Dorne, from Lannisport to Gulltown, I, Euron Greyjoy, will soon come to the throne, ascend the Iron Throne, and be crowned in the long winter. The King of Westeros became the only king of the Andals, Rhoynar and the First Men. He is now the lord of Oldtown and the patriarch of the Hightower family, Leighton Hightower, who protects the South and tens of thousands of River Bend soldiers. Join the Ironborn's crusade, and I will lead the dragons and sea monsters to conquer Westeros, follow what Aegon Targaryen did, and unite the fallen Westeros."
The field was already noisy.
"Dragon and sea monster? The Seven Gods are on high!"
"Absurd! Ridiculous!"
"The kings these days really pop up one after another for people to laugh at!"
"If Greyjoy's bastard doesn't jump around, I would have forgotten that such a character existed!"
"Hightower surrendered? How is that possible!"
Attis didn't pay attention and continued to read: "What I did was all righteous, and I carried out the ancient ways by force and robbery. However, the gods taught you to be kind, so that the people under your jurisdiction would not be killed, and your wives and daughters would not be plundered and turned into salt." I think that surrendering the city can protect your title and territory."
"Kill him!"
The crowd was furious.
"Otherwise, when the sea monster's tentacles penetrate your flesh and blood, when the dragon's fire engulfs your body, you will see how tall I am! I, Euron Greyjoy's tall shadow will threaten killing and ruthless robbery. Take what you value! ”
"Presumptuous!"
Finally, one of the knights couldn't sit still and stood up, "Prime Minister, there is no other way to deal with this group of iron people who only know how to plunder. A light cavalry can accomplish their goal and defeat them in one fell swoop!"
"They...have dragons," the messenger reminded in a low voice.
"We have dragons too!"
Attis raised the letter and said, "Compared to the declarations of war I have seen, this one is obviously a lot longer."
"Hahahaha!" Seeing that the lord was still in the mood to joke, his subordinates also smiled in response.
He placed the letter in the fire and watched it turn to ashes.
"Euron Greyjoy says he is tall," Attis said, his eyes sharp. "When his head falls from my horse, he will see how tall I am."
(End of chapter)