Chapter 196 The Beginning of the Battle of King's Landing

Time in this world will not stop for anyone.

While Clay was busy dealing with a bunch of hungry guys in the north, a big drama was also going on in King's Landing, thousands of miles away in the south.

The news that Lannister was about to be unable to hold on any longer was like a gust of wind, instantly blowing into the ears of the two Baratheon brothers.

It's impossible to say that you don't feel itchy. The current situation is that Stannis and Renly, the two Baratheons, it doesn't matter whether they can catch the false king Joffrey or not. Who puts the butt first? Being in that chair comes first.

So Stannis, who had been staying at sea without moving, finally landed from the shore near the Mud Gate with ten thousand people.

It's not that Stannis doesn't want to bring more people, but he only has so many people. Dragonstone itself is sparsely populated, plus some Stormland nobles, a small number of royal nobles to support them, and people from the original royal fleet. Stannis Only then did Nice gather 10,000 people.

Facing Renly's 80,000 troops, Stannis is naturally at a complete disadvantage, but it does not matter, because once he successfully sits on the Iron Throne, the vassals of the Baratheon family will not treat him Hands on.

The facts are there, Robert is dead, and Joffrey is a scoundrel. No matter how you look at it, it is Stannis's turn to take the Baratheon throne. The inheritance law is clear and everyone knows it.

However, Renly was made Duke of Storm's End by Robert and became the lord of the entire Stormlands. In addition, he was a Baratheon himself and was particularly charming, so everyone followed him.

But now, the real heirs have entered the city, sitting on the Iron Throne and proclaiming themselves king. They, Baratheon's vassals, are holding the banner of Baratheon to attack the other Baratheon on the throne. Doesn't this sound a bit rebellious?

"Your Majesty, this old lion Tywin is probably not very good anymore. We charged yesterday and held on to the Dragon Gate for a long time. We almost captured the Dragon Gate, but then the old lion went crazy. , we just withdrew.”

The speaker was an earl who led troops under King Renly Baratheon. When the news of Lannister's failure reached Renly, Renly, who could not bear it, sent people to step up the siege. intensity.

The strength of the Lannister defense is indeed getting weaker day by day. Renly can see this from standing in the camp observing the battle situation, but it is helpless. After all, the Lannister still has an elite army of more than 20,000 people. In a short period of time, They cannot be eliminated inside.

At this time, Stannis arrived. There was no other way. Renly was forced to stop the attack and sent 20,000 men to block the south to prevent Stannis from making a surprise attack on his camp.

Renly originally didn't station anyone near the Mud Gate, because not far outside the Mud Gate is the docks of King's Landing, and the entire Blackwater Bay is under the control of Stannis. He sent people to set up a camp there, then Caught between Lannister and Stannis.

Although Renly did not know how to fight, his men were not fools. Lord Randyll Tarly firmly opposed this matter and convinced everyone present with a topographic map of King's Landing.

As a result, the current form of King's Landing has become that Lannister is in the city, but the defense line is gradually shrinking, and many of the defensive weapons at the top of the city have been smashed and cannot play a role in defending the city.

Without these things, as long as Renly's army ascends to the top of the city, it will immediately be a brutal hand-to-hand battle, attrition. Lannister would not dare to play like this with Renly, or he will be eaten alive.

Renly's army surrounded the entire west, north, and southwest sides of King's Landing. Renly's army surrounded six of the seven gates, leaving only the Mud Gate belonging to Stannis's troops.

Renly never made a move against Stannis because he knew very well that the vassals below would not agree. It would be easy to say that the Lannister had been destroyed, but now, this is simply not possible.

Stannis, on the other hand, has no such concerns. It's just that his troops are too weak. Renly sent 20,000 people to stop him. There is no way that he can lead a bunch of miscellaneous troops to break through Renly's camp.

Just as the three parties were confronting each other, things suddenly changed, because the Lannister defenders at the Mud Gate seemed to have some communication with Stannis outside the city.

…

"So, what Duke Tywin means is that he will depose Joffrey's bastard's throne, and then open the mud door and let me enter the city to proclaim myself king. He will bow down to me and be loyal to me, on the condition that his entire family will be spared, and they will be guaranteed the western realm." The position of protection?"

In the camp, Stannis stared at the little dwarf in front of him, shaking the letter in his hand with a strange look on his face. He didn't quite understand what Tywin Lannister was going to do.

"Dwarf, tell me, what is the purpose of your shrewd father sending you to me? If you really want to surrender, why don't you go to my good brother Renly? He has a much better reputation than my brother. "

In terms of prestige, Stannis Baratheon is still self-aware. He is very aware of his character flaws, so he cannot understand why Tywin Lannister chose to surrender to him.

Tyrion, who was slightly taller than the long table, was wearing luxurious clothes embroidered with golden heroes, but his messy beard ruined the beauty. He looked at Stannis with a relaxed look on his face.

"You have two questions, Your Majesty."

Tyrion shook his finger, even though Stannis still called him a Duke, which was Stannis's title during Robert's time. Everyone around him glared at Tyrion, but Stannis's face remained unchanged. .

"My answer to the first question is that my beloved father might want to use your hands to kill me. After all, he doesn't want to be accused of parricide."

"Second question, um... my father said this, let me learn from you, ahem..."

Tyrion adjusted his posture, walked towards the center of the tent with his hands behind his back, imitating Tywin Lannister's pace and tone, and said slowly:

"Stannis is like the smelly stone in the pit, but no matter how smelly the stone is, it is still heavy and will not be repeated easily. And Renly is like the clouds in the sky. One moment it is blue sky and white clouds, and the next second there are dark clouds covering the city."

Tyrion finished imitating his father's words, then spread his hands and got half a bottle of wine for himself in the wine glass that Stany put on the table. He took a breath and drank up all the sour wine in one gulp.

Stannis understood what he meant. He was saying that he was a hard-edged person. Once he agreed to Lannister's surrender, he would not touch them easily. Renly was a capricious guy. Even if Lannister opened the door, he would not touch them easily. The gate, there is no guarantee that there will be no Targaryen disaster.

What they did will happen to them again more than ten years later. It is impossible to say that they are not afraid. The city cannot be defended. Generals with a little experience know this.

Nodding thoughtfully, Stannis continued to ask:

"Tyrion Lannister, it's not because you can't hold on because of your military strength. You can't hide this trick from me. With my brother and the skills of those delicate roses, Tywin will never be forced to surrender. to the point where there are other reasons, right?”

Tyrion grinned and didn't answer even a word, but in his heart he couldn't help but sigh that Stannis's judgment was accurate. Indeed, the reason why Lannister couldn't hold on in King's Landing was not because of the military at all.

It's about how to feed the hundreds of thousands of mouths in this city.

Yes, while Clay was busy running around Slaver's Bay, Dorne, the North, and beyond the Wall, the Lannister who had been holding on finally reached the point of exhaustion...well, in terms of food.

All the granaries in King's Landing will soon be exhausted. The little food in the city can be sold for exorbitant prices, and people have begun to starve to death.

Under such circumstances, the Lannister cost of maintaining law and order in King's Landing suddenly became unacceptably high.

Think about it, every time you patrol, a hand may stretch out from the darkness, and this hand holds a stained blade. The owner of the hand has a pair of hungry green eyes.

In a very short period of time, the order in most places in the city was out of control. In order to get a bite to eat, the people of King's Landing did everything they could, while the golden robes who had been transferred to the city could only keep the rich and nobles in their homes. In this area, people here still have food, so the order is pretty good, but that's all.

Every night, standing on the high platform of the Prime Minister's Tower, Tyrion could see dots of sparks in King's Landing. That was because he was far away, and if he was close, it would be a blazing fire.

It can be said that King Joffrey has actually lost control of King's Landing and most of his capital. Except for a few main roads and wealthy areas, the golden robes did not dare to go anywhere else.

That is because Tywin Lannister, who kills more than 20,000 people without blinking an eye, is in the city. The hungry mob has some brains and does not have the courage to directly attack the army. Otherwise, the city will be completely in chaos.

"I didn't say anything. Stannis, you know better than me what kind of people live in King's Landing."

"Okay, I understand what you mean. I can let Tywin and you guys go, but Lannister can never keep the crown anymore. That brat must kneel at my feet. This is the bottom line."

"Yes, but my elder sister may not agree with it, but my dad has a clear mind, and I guess he can handle this matter just by pressing his head."

In fact, the current situation is the same as when Clay and Melisandre were dealing with it. There were three parties confronting each other. The party with the initiative could form an alliance with any party, but this party did not dare to say no.

Because once you refuse, it means that you don't want to cooperate with me, then... I will cooperate with your competitor.

"We will open the Mud Gate tomorrow evening and let your army enter the city. However, after that, all our troops will try to break out. Since Joffrey is no longer the king, the Lannister family will no longer stay here. It’s necessary to go down.”

Stannis was silent for a while, and the staff next to him were also silent. Frankly speaking, this actually posed a problem for them, because if Lannister ran away, why would Stannis, who only has 10,000 people, Defend King's Landing?

But the other way around is the same thing, can you refuse?

No, Stannis doesn't agree. This is killing the Lannister family. They turned around and formed an alliance with Renly. Anyway, they are all kneeling. I will kneel to whoever saves my life.

"Yes, I agree, but you must ensure that our army fully controls the city defense and takes over the seven gates of King's Landing before breaking through."

"That's no problem. We're all planning to leave. Why are we still here?"

"Then I hope you keep your promise. Otherwise, I will temporarily put aside the conflict with Renly and drag you Lannisters out of the Red Keep and kill them."

"You can kill them. Anyway, you can kill the Lannister in the Red Keep as you please. Except for my brother, you can do whatever you like with the rest."

"…Stop making wisecracks here, Tyrion Lannister, and stay with me until my army enters the Mud Gate."

"Make a condition, give me enough good wine, and don't want Dorne's horse urine! Oh, by the way, find me a woman, otherwise I will suffocate to death!"

"I can give you wine, but women, sorry, there are no women in my army."

Tyrion Lannister left under the leadership of the soldiers, his groaning voice still lingering in the empty tent.

"Original and stubborn Stannis, your inability to adapt is really your biggest shortcoming in your life..."

Coming outside the tent, looking at the wall of King's Landing nestled like a giant beast at the end of the line of sight, Stannis's black eyes reflected little bits of firelight.

"Are you stubborn? As long as I can ascend the throne, I am not stubborn. Tyrion Lannister, if you can live to see me, this is my concession to you. All those who stand in the way of me becoming king, Shouldn’t they all die?”

The low murmurs were shattered by the wind on the Blackwater River. Stannis looked to the right front, at the Red Keep built on Aegon's high hill. It was brightly lit and looked so dazzling in the dark night sky.

A year ago, his brother died in this castle that was bright on the surface but was actually filthy inside. Today, as his heir, Stannis has never felt so close to his brother's chair.

Stannis thought of Renly. In fact, what pained him the most was the fact that Renly wore the crown.

He could not forgive Renly for betraying him. After his brother Robert died, he spent the rest of his life trying to ascend the throne, but his own brother stood in front of him.

Stannis Baratheon, His Majesty the King, was about to go off to the most important war in his life, but he didn't know how to face his younger brother.

If Renly had a fight with him, would he order his death?

Stannis didn't want to admit it, but a voice, a voice that annoyed him, kept telling him.

He must do this!

orz, let’s sort out my thoughts. I’ve been under a lot of academic and work pressure lately. The author still doesn’t have good time management, so I just try my best to write!