With the full support of the four kingdoms of the North and South, the army's artillery displaying immense power, and the local Lord Tyrell leading the way in persuading others to surrender, the remaining resistance within the Reach was quickly extinguished by this three-pronged approach. The clever ones had been invited to King's Landing "as guests," those who swore to die rather than surrender were neatly buried, and those captured and exiled Beyond the Wall began the long journey north...
House Baratheon had gone through rebellion, usurpation, and the extinction of its main branch. Daenerys had no intention of finding Robert's bastards or searching for collateral relatives to inherit. Instead, with a wave of her hand, she abolished the lordly domain and incorporated it into her own rule...
As a result, the Crownlands expanded to more than double their original size in one fell swoop.
Although this was less than the initial ambitious goal of the Great King's Landing Plan, it was still a monumental achievement. Considering that the Slave Lords' Alliance had disrupted things halfway through, failing to achieve the expected result was actually completely acceptable.
In addition, there were also varying degrees of land cession in the areas where the Reach bordered the Westerlands, the Riverlands, and Dorne. After a series of piecemeal cuts, the Reach had shrunk by nearly half.
The latter half of this Western Expeditionary Army campaign had gone so smoothly. Besides the decisive factor of the Western Expeditionary Army's combat effectiveness, another point had played a considerable role: Aegor had bribed the nobles in his own camp with sufficient benefits and strictly concealed the Great King's Landing Plan, packaging this struggle of "expanding royal power and suppressing local forces" as "the four kingdoms dividing the Reach," thereby gaining widespread support.
Now, the only remaining notable troubles within the Seven Kingdoms were the bandit gangs in the no-man's-land bordering the former Stormlands and Dorne, and the negotiations to persuade the Vale, which had not yet sworn fealty, to surrender.
After a brief assessment of priorities, Aegor shifted his focus first to the Anti-Dragon Mother Alliance across the Narrow Sea.
Although the nascent Targaryen dynasty was sweeping all before it on the front lines, winning victory after victory and enjoying unparalleled glory, it was actually already heavily indebted and highly leveraged, with its financial machine operating under extreme conditions. The gold and silver remaining in the royal treasury seemed substantial, but it all came from the Lannisters' transfusion of wealth, compensation fines from Reach nobles, and proceeds from selling Targaryen Bonds. Even without unexpected events, it would only barely last until the end of the war. The shortfall for rewarding merits and repaying debts afterward would require other solutions.
Tyrion's ability alone could never plug such a huge gap. To prevent the financial machine from running out of fuel and stalling, Aegor had to quickly defeat the Slave Lords' Alliance and open up new sources of wealth for the new dynasty by digesting and absorbing the enemy's resources.
The Targaryen dynasty had an overwhelming advantage in military technology, but having just emerged from winter, its strength was insufficient and it lacked endurance. It did not have enough financial and material resources to fight a protracted war against the entire Free Cities system. In this situation, Aegor chose to use a quote from the Teacher to break the deadlock: better to break one finger than to injure ten.
As for which one to break...
Opening the map of the world of ice and fire, it was easy to see the latitude correspondence between the major cities on both sides of the Narrow Sea: in the north, Braavos and Gulltown in the Vale; in the center, Pentos and King's Landing; in the south, Sunspear, Lys, and Volantis.
It was obvious that the combined fleet assembled by the Slave Lords' Alliance, wanting to put pressure on and threaten Daenerys, would definitely focus its attack on King's Landing. This meant that the majority of the enemy navy could only gather and obtain supplies in the harbor of Pentos, using it as a springboard to attack Dragonstone.
Hmm... this analysis sounded like nonsense, and usually, it was indeed worthless. King's Landing, as the capital of the Seven Kingdoms and the location of the Night's Watch Industry arsenal and saltpeter production, had political, economic, and military value far exceeding any other city in this world. It was a place that had to be saved, and no city-state was worth using it as bait for an exchange.
Therefore, Aegor's original plan was conventional: to take the Westerlands Fleet to King's Landing, rendezvous with the Dragonstone Fleet, and jointly confront the main enemy navy.
He did not make it in time for the enemy's first attack, but his opponent was simply too incompetent. Even when given a chance, they could not seize it.
Upon hearing the news of the great victory in the Battle of Dragonstone, Aegor immediately judged that the Slave Lords' fleet, defeated in the initial battle, would return to Pentos for rest and recuperation, and that Tyrosh, Lys, and Volantis in the rear would be in a state of weak defense.
So he quickly issued an order to mobilize supplies to the docks of Sunspear.
As long as the supplies and the fleet moved toward each other, the Westerlands Fleet, after sailing around the southern tip of the continent and passing through Dorne, would not have to sail north back to King's Landing for resupply. Instead, after obtaining the gunpowder and cannonballs it lacked at Sunspear, it could head directly for Lys and Volantis, using the half-month advantage gained by "returning to the city one less time" to launch a surprise attack and catch the Slave Lords' Alliance off guard!
...
After letting out a long, satisfied breath, Aegor submerged most of his body in the water, admitting that soaking in this hot spring was indeed as comfortable as the legends claimed.
Due to the fulfillment of the promise to cede fertile borderlands to Dorne, he received an unprecedentedly warm welcome in Sunspear. After being welcomed into the city with great fanfare and having a cordial meeting with Prince Doran, he had not even had time to catch his breath in his guest room before receiving a private message from an enthusiastic female fan: Princess Arianne invited him to this small mountain north of Sunspear to enjoy the scenery and bathe in the natural hot springs there.
The water temperature was just right, and the sulfur smell it gave off was not pungent. This should have been a pleasant outing and a relaxing time, if Princess Arianne and her Sand Snake sisters had not cornered him, constantly complaining about Prince Doran's past egregious actions of trying to disregard laws and rules and ignore her inheritance rights as a daughter.
Aegor knew the reason Princess Arianne was so eager to get close to him. Infatuation and admiration were false, but the intention to win him over was real.
Every family had its own troubles. When Princess Arianne was fourteen, she discovered a letter from her father to her brother, Prince Quentyn, in which he guaranteed that Quentyn "would become the ruler of Dorne in the future." This was a heavy blow to her young heart at the time, but there was actually another hidden reason behind it: the reason Prince Doran decided to groom her brother, Prince Quentyn, as the heir was because he had already arranged a secret betrothal for Princess Arianne with Prince Viserys, meaning she was destined to become Daenerys's sister-in-law, the future Queen of the Seven Kingdoms.
Although both Prince Viserys and Prince Quentyn Martell had now died unexpectedly, Princess Arianne seemed, and indeed had, secured her position as the future heir of Dorne. However, the suspicion and resentment in her heart over her father's "preference for sons over daughters" still lingered, and insecurity plagued her. This was why she chose to struggle against unseen forces, eagerly befriending and attaching herself to everyone with power and influence, wanting to pave the way for her position as Princess of Dorne.
This rift caused by a small misunderstanding between father and daughter was insignificant once explained, but in Aegor's hands, it became a great opportunity to negotiate with both sides, fleece them, and still have the entire Martell family grateful to him.
"Alright, alright, Princess Arianne." Aegor put on a look of being tired of listening, raised his hand from the water, and waved it. "It's rare for us to meet, so let's not talk only about these unpleasant matters. Actually, I don't think Prince Trystane will pose a threat to you, but if you really can't put your mind at ease, I do have a way to solve this for you..."
The man's straightforwardness startled Princess Arianne. She immediately sat up straight in the hot spring, revealing a bit too much. "Trystane is my brother. I love him! I only ask that the Hand of the Queen say a few good words for me in front of my father, or express the Queen's attitude on my behalf. I don't need you to... 'solve' anyone!"
"Do I look like a butcher who only uses violence?" Aegor rolled his eyes. "I just want to ask Your Highness the Princess, if you become the supreme ruler of Dorne in the future, what benefits can you bring to this land and the Seven Kingdoms?"
Hmm?
As the Princess of Dorne, how could she not understand this sentence? Nothing in the world was free, and Princess Arianne, having grown up in the Martell family, naturally understood this principle. What Aegor asked explicitly was what benefits she could bring to the Seven Kingdoms after her succession, but the subtext was: what was she willing to offer in exchange for his support?
Although it was a bit too blunt, it was exactly to her liking.
"Hand of the Queen, I am very willing to hear any suggestions you may have!"
(To be continued.)