"Hahahahaha!"
After Jon left, hearty laughter echoed through the room.
Stannis and Davos exchanged smiles; it was a rare moment that allowed them both such genuine amusement.
Especially after having just experienced a Pyrrhic victory not long ago.
Jon had always acted like a "Saint," showing affection for his brothers and loyalty to his king. When Stannis brought up the matter of personally deciding his marriage, Jon even honestly recounted his romantic history.
And his romantic history consisted of merely a handful of letters, with the two parties having met only once!
Both Davos and Stannis could see that Old Walder's arrangement for Jon and Roslin to meet was intended to create division between Jon and Robb. This "silly boy" actually thought he had fallen in love.
But the question he suddenly asked before he left indicated that this young man still had a "human touch," or rather, deep down, he still harbored his own desires.
However, when Davos realized that Jon's desires were merely things some people were born with, he felt a pang of sympathy for him.
"Your Majesty, do you think Jon can do it? Can he make those Northerners relinquish the crown?" Davos asked, somewhat worried. He truly didn't want to see such an excellent young man walk down a hopeless path.
But Stannis handed him a piece of intelligence. Davos was about to reach for it when Stannis remembered he was illiterate, so he simply told him the contents of the letter himself.
"This is intelligence obtained by Varys. When Jon sent out messages across the country declaring his support for me as the legitimate king, he also gave Robb Tywin's specific escape route. However, Rickard of the North and Brynden of the Tully Family had a disagreement. Brynden let Tywin go, allowing him to escape back to the Westerlands."
"So you're saying—" Davos said with some surprise, but Stannis cut him off.
"So there are already rifts between the Northern lords and the Riverlands lords. Jon still has a chance. Moreover, the Frey Family has already pledged allegiance to me. Without our approval, Robb might not even be able to return to Winterfell." Stannis said in a relaxed tone, even leaning back comfortably in his chair.
"Your Majesty, please allow me to go with Jon." Stannis glanced at the still travel-worn Davos and nodded.
Just as Davos was about to leave the study, Stannis suddenly spoke, "Rest well for the next two days. You two will depart after the House Tyrell people arrive."
Hearing the words "rest well," Davos's nose twinged.
He bowed solemnly to Stannis, as if all the hardship had been worth it.
"The House Florent has always hoped to serve as warden of the west. They questioned Jon's loyalty. Now, I imagine they won't have much to say." Stannis said in a deep voice.
The lord of casterly rock and the warden of the west were never necessarily bound together, just as Robert once considered appointing Jaime Lannister as Warden of the Vale.
If it weren't for the desire to command the entire military power of the Westerlands, Jon wouldn't have gone through so much trouble.
At this time, Jon returned to the mansion near the Old City Gate. Martin was already waiting at the entrance, and Sansa and Arya had been waiting for a long time.
"My Lord, how was it? What did His Majesty Stannis want with you?" Martin asked, rushing up to Jon.
"Jon, you should call me next time you run away. If you called me, you wouldn't have been caught!" Arya suggested, but Sansa interrupted her.
"Jon is a Duke now, you're not allowed to talk about running away anymore." She looked at Jon and asked, a little embarrassed, "You're still a Duke, still a Stark, right?"
"Yes, I still am," Jon gave her an affirmative answer, and Sansa breathed a sigh of relief. Then Jon added, "However, His Majesty said he wants me to be the lord of casterly rock and warden of the west."
"What?!" The Frey brothers appeared out of nowhere, and Rhaegar Frey, in particular, asked with a look of disbelief, "Casterly Rock—Tywin is still in Casterly Rock!"
Jon explained everything to them, saying that he first needed to persuade Robb to give up the crown, and then lead troops to attack the Westerlands. Only after taking Casterly Rock would he truly be the lord of casterly rock.
"Good! Jon, I believe you can defeat Tywin."
"Take me with you! Take me with you!"
One sister was driven by admiration for Jon, while the other was simply forgetful of past troubles.
Between a lord of casterly rock son-in-law and a Lord of Harrenhal son-in-law, the Frey Family would definitely prefer the former, but the problem was that the former carried too much risk.
So Stevron persuaded, "Jon, I'm not saying your choice is wrong. I just think what you have in hand is truly yours. Although Harrenhal is dilapidated, its area is large enough, and there's such a large God's Eye Lake next to it. As long as you manage it well, within ten years you'll be one of the top nobles in the Riverlands. The Westerlands—"
Stevron didn't continue, as in his eyes, Jon was being a bit too ambitious.
Jon knew that the Frey Family only acted when there was profit, so he didn't tell them that he still had Harrenhal as a fallback.
Afterwards, Dondarrion and Thoros also expressed their concerns. How to convince Robb was one thing, but the Westerlands truly would be difficult to conquer.
Even with the cooperation of the Iron Islands, Robb hadn't considered attacking Casterly Rock, only planning to set up an ambush for Tywin at the Red Fork River.
"Jon, Casterly Rock is an entire stone mountain! Over two hundred feet high, three times taller than the Wall! Think of how many lives would be lost, it wouldn't be enough to take it!" Dondarrion still hoped Jon would abandon this somewhat unrealistic idea.
In fact, there were more difficulties he didn't mention. The Lannister Family had ruled the Westerlands for thousands of years, and countless people bore the Lannister name.
Even if Jon took Casterly Rock, how would he govern it afterwards?
Would he have to sleep with a knife under his pillow every night?
Stannis's decision was soon known to more people. Alliser, who was still serving as acting Hand of the King, was—
—asked by Stannis to prepare at least five thousand troops. If Jon successfully persuaded Robb, these five thousand troops would be used to support Jon in conquering the Westerlands.
Varys, as the Master of Whisperers, naturally already knew, so he brought gifts and his sincerity to Jon.
In the evening, Varys found Jon, as usual, when everyone was relaxed.
"It seems you've decided to attack Casterly Rock?"
"The opportunities one encounters in life are limited. Since I have this opportunity, why shouldn't I try?"
Seeing Jon's frankness, Varys said nothing on the surface, but inwardly he approved. As long as Jon made a move on the Westerlands, whether successful or not, it would take at least three to five years. Even if he succeeded quickly, Jon, as an outsider, would need to exert great effort in a "pacification war."
He would face endless rebellions, harassment from the Iron Islands, and even pressure from The Reach.
But no matter what, this was beneficial to them, so Varys decided to act as a "pusher" to help Jon.
"Jon, do you remember that 'friend' I told you about?"
"Mm." Jon nodded, wanting to see how The Spider intended to deceive him.
"He is actually a Governor of the Free City of Pentos. You must have heard of Pentos, right? My friend mainly deals in businesses like dragon bones. I thought at the time that a young man like you would certainly shine brightly in a foreign land, and he would definitely trust and heavily employ you."
Jon deliberately continued to ask, "That sounds like your friend is more of a merchant. But I only know how to fight. What would a merchant want with me?"
Varys smiled and explained, "He's not just a merchant; he's a Governor, and a Governor naturally needs his own armed forces."
"Oh, I see."
"However, you now have a better option. I have already contacted my friend, and he will invest at least 300,000 gold dragons for you. Whether it's for recruiting mercenaries or developing territory, you only need to grant him a title like Earl. " At this point, Varys smiled appropriately, "Although the Free Cities are free, they are more like a jungle where the strong prey on the weak. He yearns more for the peace of Westeros."
"He thinks Westeros is a peaceful place? My goodness, it seems Hell has an eighth layer." Jon made a small joke.
He naturally accepted this money with a smile.
The Westerlands not only had gold mines beneath Casterly Rock, but also the gold mines of Casterly Rock, the red gold mines of Castamere, and at least a dozen other gold and silver mines.
In other words, as long as he occupied the Westerlands, Jon believed he would quickly become rich, but no one ever had too much gold.
"Then please thank him for his kindness on my behalf. However, 200,000 is enough. Please ask him to convert the remaining 100,000 into various supplies and send them to the Wall. The weather here is gradually turning cold, and I fear it will be even worse at the Wall."
"Of course, no problem." Varys guaranteed with a smile.
In his view, Jon attacking the Westerlands would, on one hand, deplete Westeros's overall strength. If he succeeded, there might be an opportunity to draw him into his own faction.
Varys initially thought Jon was an ambitious man, but he found that this ambitious man's concern for the Wall seemed to exceed his imagination.
"An ambitious man with a sense of responsibility?" Varys silently evaluated in his mind.
The two conversed happily, and after a pot of tea, Varys left.
The news of Jon being appointed lord of casterly rock was temporarily circulating only within the core circle of power; the common people were not yet aware.
The people of King's Landing only knew that Jon had refused Stannis's enfeoffment, and even fled overnight, wanting to return to the Wall to continue his service.
Some called him a fool, while others referred to him as a true knight.
Even the Antler Men, whom Jon had promoted, had begun to spread his good name, "Noble" Jon.
It must be said, "Noble Jon" sounded much better than "Villain" Jon.
Soon, the news that Jon had finally accepted the enfeoffment reached Sandor's ears. He sought out Jon again. Initially, the guards at the door stopped him, but he stood there for two full days before Robb Frey brought him before Jon.
Watching this strong man, nearly seven feet (1.9 meters) tall, explain his intentions, Jon asked, "So you don't even plan to return to the Westerlands and just plan to stay by my side, simply because I killed your brother?"
"Yes, my Lord." Sandor nodded, assuring Jon, "Perhaps my martial arts are not as good as my brother's, but I guarantee that there are few in the entire kingdom who are my match!"
"My Lord, please allow me to pledge my loyalty to you."
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