night.
Two guards from Cliff Rock City stood at Miss Jenny's door.
Gregor stepped forward, but two guards blocked his way, their hands on their sword hilts.
"Get out!" Gregor said politely.
"I'm sorry, sir, but Miss said she's not seeing anyone right now."
"Get out!" Gregor spat out the word through gritted teeth, his eyes widening.
The two guards hesitated, and one of them said, "Sir, please wait a moment, I'll go in and..."
Gregor reached out and grabbed the guard by the chest, lifting him up with a slight effort and holding him in the air: "Get out!" He breathed hot air into the guard's face, and with a casual wave of his hand, the guard flew away.
Bang!
The guard fell to the ground several feet away, as if Gregor had thrown him a toy. Fortunately, the guard landed on his back and buttocks together, and surprisingly, he fell onto the grass.
Another guard was so frightened that he reached out and drew a small section of his sword, but Gregor just glared at him, and he couldn't pull the sword out anymore.
"Don't draw your sword. If you really do, you'll only get it halfway out. I'll kill you twice with a punch and a kick," Gregor sincerely warned the guard.
The guard was speechless and dared not draw his sword again, his whole body stiff as a statue.
The guard, dizzy and disoriented from the fall, got up. He had been yelling in the air and thought he was going to have his brains splattered, but he was lucky and landed on the soft grass.
Gregor, though seemingly rough, was actually quite shrewd. He wouldn't kill Jenny's guards without a reason, and he tried to minimize any harm to them.
Jenny is now his fiancée.
It's perfectly legitimate for a fiancé to visit his fiancée.
He certainly didn't have the manners to be a gentleman who couldn't see his fiancée. For a scoundrel, there's no reason if he'll create one, especially when he's in the right.
The engagement ceremony was a great success this afternoon.
Gregor and Jenny sat side by side, received the blessing of the priests, offered many sacrifices of pigs, cattle, sheep, and fruit to the seven gods they were not yet familiar with, received the holy oil to symbolize holiness, then received the blessings of the nobles, both high and low, and accepted a large amount of money and money notes.
Lord Tywin Lannister invited all the nobles in the realm to Casterly Rock, only to tell them that he was going to adopt Jenny as his daughter, without mentioning that he would betroth and betroth her to Ser Gregor the next day. The gifts these nobles brought were insufficient to cover the engagement dowry, so those who had gifts to give did so, and those who couldn't were not embarrassed; they simply signed a dowry note first, and then sent their gifts to Casterly Rock by servants.
After the engagement, Jenny became Gregor's legal fiancée. Just a month later, on an auspicious day, Gregor could carry his beloved back to Clegane's Keep from Casterly Rock.
As soon as the engagement ceremony ended, Jenny said she wasn't feeling well and went back to her room alone, declining all visits, including from her father, Earl Gavin.
In this world, women have no autonomy over their marriages; everything must give way to the interests of their families. Love is a luxury that most people cannot enjoy. Even princesses, princes, or kings themselves, when faced with enormous political interests, love can become a sacrifice for political marriages.
When faced with interests, interests come first, and everything else takes a backseat.
For Lord Gavin and the Westerling family, the greatest benefit was maintaining a good relationship with their lord, Lord Tywin Lannister. The greatest loss was alienating their lord, Lord Tywin Lannister.
No matter how unacceptable the Duke of Tywin's arranged marriage seemed, Earl Gavin could not refuse, and Jenny could not refuse either.
They cannot afford the cost of antagonizing Lord Tywin!
By accepting Jenny as his daughter, Lord Tywin Lannister had already bestowed upon the Westerling family the greatest honor and political benefit. If Lord Gavin and Jenny accepted this honor and political benefit, they would have to accept Lord Tywin Lannister's marriage decree, otherwise they would be making an enemy of the lord.
On the surface, everyone is a winner.
The Westerling family are the winners, Lord Tywin is the winner, Ser Gregor is the winner, and the biggest loser is only one person: Jenny Westerling.
Gregor bent down and entered Jenny's room, carrying an exquisite brocade box in his hands.
Jenny trembled when she saw Gregor; she was afraid.
Fifteen-year-old Jenny was still a little girl, while Gregor was almost the same age as his father: a middle-aged man in his thirties.
In this world, men and women marry young, often in their teens. They don't need marriage certificates; they just need to go to a church, have a high priest officiate, and have it recorded. There is no family planning policy.
Gregor said softly, "Jenny!"
His 'gentleness' made Jenny tremble slightly again.
"Can you do me a small favor?"
"...Wh...what is it..." The little girl's voice was pitiful.
A little lamb facing a big, snarling, drooling gray wolf.
"Could I ask you... for a small favor?"
"..." Jenny nodded subconsciously.
Even in fear, she remained beautiful, her charm undiminished.
Flowers display beauty in dew and morning sun, in moonlight and silence, in any environment—beauty in its own unique way.
The latest novels are first published on 69shuba!
Gregor knelt down and gently placed the brocade box on Jenny's lap. The little girl's eyes were streaked with tears, her lips pale and gray; she was under immense pressure. Being alone in a room with a monster like the Mountain was incredibly stressful even for a strong man.
"...My lord...I am willing to give you all the betrothal gifts...pearls and jewels...all of them...can you...break off the engagement?"
Looking at Jenny's rapid breathing, helpless eyes, and fearful expression, Gregor said softly, "Jenny, I don't lack money. Sir Ador set up a public betting pool, taking advantage of my poverty to humiliate me. I asked Sir Kevan's knight to deliver a message, and with Sir Kevan's guarantee, I took all the bets in Ador's game. I won over three hundred gold dragons, and Sir Kevan also made a net profit of fifty guarantee coins. I no longer lack money, but I lack a lady, a wife, a wife."
silence!
A moment later, Jenny said softly, "Sir Gregor, you deliberately made a bet with Ador, asking Lord Kevan to guarantee your wager, because you already knew the Duke would bestow a marriage upon you the next day. Lord Kevan is a very cautious man, yet he still dared to guarantee it for you, which means he also knew the secret of the marriage. This is a carefully orchestrated scheme, perhaps starting from the moment the raven arrived at my home city of Cliffrock to deliver the message. You've always wanted to marry me?"
Jenny's words strengthened Gregor's resolve to marry her: a woman who combines beauty and talent, he would rather marry the wrong one than let her go.
"Miss Jenny, perhaps the Seven Gods know the truth. But I am more concerned about the cat in the box right now." Gregor opened the box, and inside was a snow-white cat, spotless, without a single stray hair, of pure quality and quite expensive.
Jenny's eyes lit up the moment she saw the cat; it was a genuine, innate love that she couldn't control with reason.
"Rice Cat?" Jenny's voice was a mixture of surprise and delight.
"Yes, but it hasn't eaten for days. Jenny, could you do me a favor and help take care of this poor Reese cat and save its life?"
"You like cats too?" Jenny asked incredulously. She reached out and picked up the cat, her heart melting into its amber eyes. "Oh my god, it has a fever, we need to find medicine for it right away!"
"I don't know what to do?"
"I understand. My mother once owned a Reese cat. I even learned healing techniques specifically for our Reese cat." Jenny forgot everything; the snow-white cat's life hanging by a thread had gripped her heart. "Sir Gregor, we must hurry to the Maester's Tower."
"Yes, Miss Jenny. But Grand Madam Potter doesn't know how to treat it. I've already consulted the Grand Madam."
"I know!" Jenny's voice rose.
Gregor picked up Jenny and the cat together. Jenny felt as light as a feather in his arms: "Miss Jenny, I can walk faster with you in my arms."
Gregor strode out the door, each step covering three steps more than an average person.