My mother urged me to have Lord Ned wear the black, and Miss Sansa also pleaded for her father many times.
Joffrey stared at Sansa, a smile on his face, then turned to face the crowd, "That's their weak, womanly hearts.
As long as I am king, the crime of treason will be severely punished! Ser Ilyn, cut off his head!"
Sansa on the platform and Arya, hidden in the crowd, almost fainted.
The current Queen Cersei quickly grabbed her son; she knew this was not a wise decision.
She had already threatened Ned with her daughter's life to make him confess his crimes publicly.
Now, killing Ned would only make Joffrey and the North irrevocably hostile.
Why was the Mad King of the Targaryen Family called the Mad King?
Wasn't it because he indiscriminately killed nobles, causing everyone to live in fear, and was finally branded a madman?
Archon, who was responsible for judging Ned in King's Landing, and Varys, the Master of Whisperers, were also stunned by Joffrey's words.
How was this different from what was agreed upon?!
One grabbed Joffrey's cloak, and the other excitedly spat at Joffrey.
Joffrey shook his head, ignoring their advice.
Because of Cersei's long-standing doting and his status as king, there was no one in King's Landing who could change Joffrey's mind.
Cersei also did not try to dissuade him much; her doting on her son still outweighed political considerations.
Besides, her brother, the Kingslayer, was currently on a rampage, so what storm could the North stir up?
Amidst the incredulous gasps of the crowd, Ned Stark passed away.
...
In the Great Hall of King's Landing, Joffrey was toying with his jesters.
The killing of Ned two days prior had greatly boosted his confidence, making him feel somewhat elated.
Cersei sat to Joffrey's left, watching her son's antics with interest.
Just then, a servant walked into the opulent hall, holding an exquisite gift box: "Your Majesty, Queen, a gift has been sent from the North."
Sansa, who had been sitting below the King and Queen like a dead person, suddenly looked up, her eyelashes fluttering.
Joffrey instinctively flinched, but then, remembering that only a few days had passed since he killed Ned and the Northern army wouldn't know the news yet, he immediately straightened up considerably.
He also remembered that he was the King and became even more imperious.
"Aha, is it a letter preparing to swear allegiance and surrender to me?
What was that traitor's name, Robb...Stark?!"
Queen Cersei waved to the messenger, signaling him to bring the gift box to her.
She wanted to see what was inside before deciding whether to show it to Joffrey.
Because Joffrey was still a child and needed to be slowly groomed, if everything were told to Joffrey, he would probably have been scared out of his wits by now.
After all, a new king had emerged in the south, and Robert's third brother had also raised a rebellion.
The Hound, Sandor Clegane of the Kingsguard, took the gift box and then passed it to Queen Cersei.
Cersei, with an indifferent smile, casually untied the packaging on the gift box and opened it.
Clang.
The gift box fell to the floor.
Everyone in the hall was drawn to the sight; their gaze was not on the horrified and bewildered Cersei, but on what had rolled out of the gift box onto the floor.
It was a human arm, and a letter.
Joffrey was startled, jumping up from his chair, fumbling around frantically, trying to steady himself, his lips trembling slightly: "He...how dare he...send such a thing to a king, disrespect! Treason! He..."
[Lady Cersei:
I heard that you and the false emperor Joffrey have imprisoned my father, and I am deeply alarmed.
I humbly ask that you, esteemed lady, show mercy and release my father and two sisters, so that they do not suffer any grievance.
I heard that the Lannister always pays their debts, and I have long admired your family.
I plan to emulate this matter.
As retaliation for my brother Bran, and to alleviate your longing for your lover, I hereby present the left hand of Kingslayer Jaime.
Ser Jaime is living quite well with me, and I plan to use him to exchange for my family.
I hope you will grant this request.
Sincerely, Robb Stark]
The hall meeting ended in confusion.
Cersei took several ministers to the study, and after reading the letter, she trembled with rage.
That damned Robb!
The entire letter used humble and respectful language, yet there was no hint of respect, but rather contempt and threats everywhere, damn it!
Cersei didn't know how to proceed with the current situation: "What do we do now, Ned is dead, will he kill Jaime?!"
The others remained silent; they hadn't believed it was Jaime's arm, but Cersei seemed very certain, Robb must have placed a token in the gift box.
Did that mean the Lannister forces had been defeated?!
And now they hadn't been able to stop Joffrey from killing Lord Ned; if Robb marched into King's Landing, the consequences...
Cersei saw that they were all silent and was somewhat irate: "Every single one of you is useless!"
Littlefinger Petyr, the Master of Coin, finally spoke: "My Lady, my suggestion is to agree to Robb's request and make peace with the North first."
Varys, the Master of Whisperers, objected: "Make peace? We killed Ned, and one of the little girls escaped.
Would Robb agree to exchange a little girl for the Kingslayer?!"
"How will we know if we don't try? Perhaps we can offer more money."
Archmaester Pycelle, the oldest among them, was completely unperturbed.
He was a veteran official who had served under six different rulers and had experienced several rebellions, but none of them had affected him; wasn't he still living well?
After much discussion, Cersei finally calmed down and made a decision: "Immediately write back to that traitor Robb.
Tell him we will treat his family well and send them back immediately, but Ned is already dead.
If he wants more money, we are willing to pay.
"Write to my father, tell him to return to King's Landing to guard his King.
I don't want us to have so few people available when that false king attacks."
"Petyr, there's something I need you to do.
I heard that the Rose Family has allied with the false king; they are just a bunch of ambitionless fools.
If they want their daughter to be queen and One Heart to become a prince, we have a legitimate king here."
"Tell Joffrey not to trouble Sansa anymore.
I heard he forced Sansa to look at her father's corpse a few days ago.
If that little girl is driven to suicide, we will have no cards left to play."
Once everyone had left, Cersei clenched her fists, her nails almost piercing her skin.
"Jaime, you must be alright..."
The anxious situation made her feel a surge of irritation and emptiness.
She paced back and forth, still unable to calm her emotions.
So she turned to a nearby maid and said, "Call my cousin Lancel Lannister over."
...
__________________________________
Give Review and Power Stone to support me if you like this...