"Kevan, you stay too. Everyone else get out." The Imp had some experience; this kind of treatment was unprecedented, and he could enjoy it too. Then Ser Kevan walked across the room to the wine barrel.
"Uncle, may I trouble you?"
"Take it." Duke Tywin handed his untouched glass of wine to The Imp.
The Imp was flattered, and simply drank it.
"Actually, the situation isn't as bad as you imagine." Tywin said mysteriously, then sat down. "Regarding the Stark, you are right. If we had Eddard, we could use him as a bargaining chip to bring peace to Riverrun and Winterfell. This would be a truce. Little Joffrey was truly reckless. We could have cleaned things up and dealt with the three storms properly."
The Imp naturally knew the names of the three storms: Robert's two brothers, and Robert's bastard.
"But Little Joffrey..." The Imp cleared his throat. "He's still a Child, and Children are bound to do foolish things."
Tywin looked at The Imp, "Yes, thankfully he didn't marry a prostitute."
The Imp was furious and wanted to splash the wine on the Old Man's face, but he held back.
"But fortunately, I mean fortunately, Eddard's iron mouth earned him a way out."
"What?" Tyrion was shocked. "Then that public confession?"
"It was a fake, but the fake became real, alas. Your sister can't even control her own son."
"Even so, at least the situation isn't as bad as we thought." The Imp said with a grin. "But how do we announce that Lord Eddard has risen from the dead? People will just say that the real Eddard is already dead."
"It's a difficult problem."
"Our country is already full of Kings." Tywin declared. "Renly has also proclaimed himself the new King at Storms End."
Tyrion was a little confused. This was only one King, and Renly was the fastest to act.
"In fact, it's more than that. That bastard blacksmith has long been the King of Myr and Tyrosh. Now he keeps not calling himself King, but instead claims to be the legitimate heir, which is essentially being King. This is just his trick. And there's King Balon."
"This is truly terrible." Ser Kevan sighed.
"Let me think, there are actually Kings everywhere." The Imp said with a mischievous delight. "The King of Storms End, the legitimate heir The Boy Blacksmith, the King in The Red Keep, the King of the Iron Islands. Oh, and those Lords who never obey the Iron Islands, the Rose, the Direwolf, the Falcon, and the Dornishmen who hate us the most."
"Enough." Tywin stopped him. "I cannot let our cause be ruined."
Although Little Joffrey in The Red Keep had ascended as King, he only controlled the Crownlands and the West River.
"My daughter commands us to turn back to King's Landing to defend The Red Keep against Renly and the Knight of Flowers, against The Boy Blacksmith." Tywin's lips were thin, signifying coldness. "Note, it is the King and the Small Council who command us."
"King's Landing." The Imp thought for a moment. "At the necessary moment, we must... we must make a decision. King's Landing has no army, only the Gold Cloaks. Does our Little Joffrey know this information?"
King's Landing was like meat caught in the middle, surrounded by enemies on all sides, and the battle lines were stretched too thin.
"Cersei believes she cannot tell him yet, otherwise he will lead the royal army himself and kill Renly first. Oh, now the one he hates most is his bastard brother."
"Let him think what he wants. We only have this many soldiers. Is King Joffrey really going to lead the City Watch?"
"He claims so." Duke Tywin confirmed.
"If King's Landing loses its Gold Cloaks, then Stannis will be on Dragonstone."
"Yes." Duke Tywin looked at his dwarf son. "Tyrion, I once thought you were born only to be a jester. It seems I was wrong."
The Imp smiled. "That sounds like a compliment, my father. But how should Stannis act? His brother, his nephew are both acting on their own. As for his brother becoming King and his nephew going off on his own, is this uncle just waiting around?"
"This is also one of our opportunities, the civil war among the three storms." Tywin said. "Renly has presented Stannis with a very perfect suggestion, which sounds very good. Let Edric marry Stannis's daughter. Given Stannis's age and his relationship with his wife, I don't think he will have any other Children. This is a good idea. What Renly lacks is a fleet, and Stannis doesn't have many soldiers after all."
"I originally thought Stannis was the greatest threat, but Robert's Bastard also has a few tricks up his sleeve. He doesn't lack popularity, nor does he lack victories. All he lacks is age."
"Will Stannis really agree?" Ser Kevan frowned. "That man is always like cold iron."
"If we're talking about a legitimized bastard and an uncle, that itself is a point of contention. Who will ultimately claim that cold iron throne?" The Imp analyzed. "Too bad Stannis remains inactive."
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