Hahahaha
After Jon left, hearty laughter echoed in the room.
Stannis and Davos looked at each other and smiled; it was a rare moment that brought them both such joy.
Especially since they had just experienced a Pyrrhic victory not long ago.
Jon has always acted like a Saint, showing affection to his brothers and loyalty to his king. When Stannis offered to decide his marriage, Jon even honestly told him about his past relationships.
His romantic experience consisted of only a handful of correspondence, and the two parties had only met once!
Both Davos and Stannis could see that Old Walder arranged for Jon and Roslin to meet in order to create a rift between Jon and Robb. This silly boy actually thought he was in love.
But the question he suddenly asked before leaving shows that this young man still has humanity, or rather, that he still has his own desires deep down.
But when Davos realized that Jon's desire was something that some people were born with, he felt sorry for him.
" Your Majesty, do you think Jon can do it? Can he get those Northerners to put down their crowns?" Davos asked Dao with some concern. He truly didn't want to see such a talented young man walk down a hopeless path.
However, Stannis handed him a letter of intelligence. Just as Davos was about to reach for it, Stannis remembered that he was illiterate, so he simply told him the contents of the letter himself.
"This is intelligence Varys obtained. Jon also gave Robb this information when he sent the message to the whole country that he had hailed me as the rightful king." Tywin's specific escape route was uncertain, but Rickard in the North and Brynden of the Tully Family disagreed. Brynden released Tywin, allowing him to escape back to the West.
"So you're saying—" Davos said with some surprise, but Stannis interrupted him.
"So there's already a rift between the Northern lords and the Riverlands lords. Jon still has a chance, and the Frey Family has already pledged allegiance to me. Without our approval, Robb might not even be able to return to Winterfell." Stannis said casually, even leaning back in his chair.
" Your Majesty, please allow Jon to go with me." Stannis glanced at Davos, who still looked somewhat travel-worn, and nodded.
Just as he was about to leave the study, Stannis suddenly spoke up: "Take a good rest these two days, and wait for the people from House Tyrell to arrive before you set off."
Upon hearing the words "get some rest," Davos felt a lump in his throat.
He bowed deeply to Stannis, as if all his hard work had been worthwhile.
" The people from House Florent have always wanted to be the Warden of the West. They questioned Jon's loyalty, and now I think they have nothing to say," Stannis said in a low voice.
The Lord of Casterly Rock and the Warden of the West were never necessarily linked together, just as Robert once considered entrusting the Vale Guardian to Jaime Lannister.
Jon wouldn't have gone through all this trouble if it weren't for wanting to control the military of the entire West.
Jon returned to his mansion near the old city gate, where Martin was already waiting at the door, and Sansa and Arya had been waiting for a long time.
"Sir, what is it? What does His Majesty Stannis want with you?" Martin asked Dao as he rushed up to Jon.
" Jon, you should call me next time you run away. If you call me, you won't get caught!" Arya suggested, but Sansa interrupted her.
" Jon is a duke now, you're not allowed to mention running away again." She looked at Jon and asked Dao somewhat embarrassedly, "You're still a duke, still Stark, right?"
"Yes, I still am," Jon gave her a definite answer, which reassured Sansa. Then Jon added, "But Your Majesty said I should be the Lord of Casterly Rock and the Warden of the West."
"What!" The two Frey brothers suddenly appeared out of nowhere with Dao, and Rhaegar Frey asked Dao in disbelief, " Casterly Rock — Tywin is still in Casterly Rock!"
Jon explained to everyone in detail that he needed to first persuade Robb to give up the crown, and then lead his troops to attack the West. Only after taking Casterly Rock would he become the Lord of Casterly Rock.
"Great! Jon, I believe you can definitely beat Tywin."
"Take me with you! Take me with you!"
One sister's motivation stemmed from admiration for Jon, while the other was simply a case of forgetting past mistakes.
Between a Lord of Casterly Rock son-in-law and a Lord of Harrenhal son-in-law, the Frey Family would certainly prefer the former, but the problem is that the former is too risky.
So Stevron advised Dao: " Jon, I'm not saying your choice is wrong, I just believe that what you get is what you get. Harrenhal may be dilapidated, but it's large enough, and there's such a big Eye of God Lake next to it. If you manage it well, in less than ten years you'll be one of the top nobles in the Riverlands, in the West—"
Stevron didn't continue, thinking Jon was being too ambitious.
Jon knows The Frey Family members are all driven by self-interest, so I didn't tell them that I still had Harrenhal as a safety net.
Dondarrion and Thoros also expressed their concerns about how to persuade Robb to put things aside for now, as the Western Territory was indeed a tough place to fight.
Even with the cooperation of the Iron Islands, Robb didn't set his sights on Casterly Rock; he only wanted to ambush Tywin at Red Fork River.
" Jon, Casterly Rock is an entire rocky mountain! It's over two hundred feet high, three times higher than the Great Wall! Just imagine how many lives would be lost fighting it!" Dondarrion still hoped that Jon could give up this somewhat unrealistic idea.
In fact, there were many more difficulties he did not mention. Lannister had ruled the western regions for thousands of years, and countless people bore the surname Lannister.
Even if Jon takes over Casterly Rock, how should he manage the team afterwards?
Do you have to put a knife under your pillow every time you sleep?
Stannis's decision quickly became known to more people, and Alliser, who was still acting as prime minister, was replaced by Stannis.
Nice demanded that at least five thousand troops be prepared, which would be used to support Jon's campaign in the West if he successfully persuaded Robb.
As the Minister of Intelligence, Varys was already aware of Dao's situation, so he approached Jon with gifts and his sincerity.
In the evening, Varys once again found Jon when everyone was off guard.
"So you've decided to attack Casterly Rock?"
"The opportunities one encounters in a lifetime are limited. Since I have this opportunity, why shouldn't I give it a try?"
Seeing Jon's candor, Varys didn't say anything on the surface, but he agreed in his heart. As long as he made a move on the West, regardless of success or failure, it would take at least three to five years. Even if he succeeded in the short term, Jon, as an outsider, would have to expend a lot of effort to fight a counterinsurgency war.
He will face a series of rebellions, attacks from the Iron Islands, and even pressure from The Reach.
Regardless, this was in their favor, so Varys decided to "help Jon out " as a pusher.
" Jon, do you remember that friend I told you about?"
"Hmm." Jon nodded, wanting to see how The Spider planned to fool him.
"He is actually a governor of the city-state of Pentos. You should have heard of Pentos, right? My friend mainly deals in things like dragon bones. I thought that a young man like you would definitely shine in a foreign land, and he would trust and value you."
Jon deliberately followed up by asking Dao, "Then it sounds like your friend is more of a businessman, but all I know is how to fight. What would a businessman like him want me to do?"
Varys laughed and explained to Dao, "He's not just a businessman; he's the governor, and a governor naturally needs his own armed forces."
"Oh, I see."
"But you have a better option now. I've contacted my friend, and he'll invest at least 300,000 gold Dragons in you. Whether it's recruiting mercenaries or developing your territory, all you need to do is give him a title like Earl." Varys smiled at this point. " While Free Cities are free, they're more like a jungle where the strong prey on the weak. He longs for the peace of Westeros."
"He thinks Westeros is a peaceful place? Good heavens, so there's an eighth level in Hell." Jon joked.
He naturally accepted the money with a smile.
The Westerlands have more than just Gold Mine at Casterly Rock, Gold Mine at Casterly Rock, and Red Gold Mine at Crastermeier; there are at least a dozen other Gold Mine and silver mines.
In other words, Jon believed he would soon become rich once he occupied the western border, and no one would complain about having too much gold.
"Then please thank him for his kindness, but two hundred thousand is enough. Please use the remaining one hundred thousand to purchase various supplies for me and send them to the Great Wall. The weather here is gradually getting colder, and I am worried that it will be even colder at the Great Wall."
"Of course, no problem," Varys assured Dao with a smile.
In his view, Jon's attack on the Westeros would weaken the Westeros ' overall strength, but if he succeeded, he might have a chance to win Jon over to his side.
Varys initially thought Jon was an ambitious man, but he discovered that Jon's concern for the Great Wall seemed to exceed his expectations.
"An ambitious man with a certain sense of responsibility?" Varys silently evaluated Dao in his heart.
The two had a pleasant conversation, and after drinking a pot of tea, Varys left.
The news that Jon has been crowned Lord of Casterly Rock is currently only circulating within the inner circle of power; Dao is not yet known to the general public.
The people of King's Landing only know Dao Jon refused Stannis's reward and even fled overnight to return to the Wall to continue serving.
Some called him a fool, while others called him a true knight.
Even those who had been mentored by Jon had begun to praise him for his noble name, " Jon. "
To be honest, "noble Jon" sounds much better than "villain Jon".
Soon, news of Jon's acceptance of the reward reached Sandor's ears. He approached Jon again, and although the guards at the gate initially stopped him, he stood there for two whole days before Robb Frey finally brought him before Jon.
As the burly man, nearly seven feet tall (1.9 meters), explained his purpose, Jon said, "So you don't even plan to return to the West, and only plan to stay by my side, just because I killed your brother?"
"Yes, sir." Sandor nodded and assured Jon, "Perhaps my martial arts are not as good as my brother's, but I assure you that there are few in the entire kingdom who can rival me!"
"My lord, please allow me to pledge my loyalty to you."