The clock is ticking.

In the blink of an eye, a month has passed, and the war cannot be carried out every day, and just a few days determine whether months or even years of preparation are useless or not, and this is the manifestation of war.

Now that the Westeros continent has temporarily stabilized, the major families originally thought that since Ivy Crane could defeat the Lannisters, there might be a bigger move next, but they didn't expect the latter to settle down.

If the continent is now divided into three regions: northern, central, and southern, then the balance of power in each region will undoubtedly be maintained.

The north is naturally dominated by the Stark family, and the local combat and the harsh environment make no one want to go there, and Robb is also the undoubted king of the north.

The central part is more lively, with the Arryn family, the Tully family, the Bolton family, and the most eye-catching Flagless family.

Among them, the Arryn family and the Flagless family are mortal enemies, and although the Tully family did not send troops in the previous siege of Harrenhal, they are definitely also hostile. As for the Burton family, the attitude is more ambiguous.

In fact, because of Li Lingyi's intervention, the family of this popular peeling and skinning family did not have the opportunity to rob Winterfell, so they have been stationed in the Horror Castle and have never come out.

Of course, according to this family habit, it's just because there is no chance for the time being, otherwise a little peel, the skin will not let go of this moment of pleasure.

No matter how calm it is, it is only temporary, and it is impossible for the Iron Throne to abandon the unity of the other, nor to recognize the legitimacy of other kings. The reason why I haven't done it yet is that I can't do it, not because I don't want to.

In fact, Li Lingyi also knew that the Iron Throne was definitely seeking an alliance during this time, just like himself, he was also busy making contact with the major families.

Most of them are small families, and they don't have much strength themselves, so they are willing to lean over. And some old powerhouses are more inclined to the Iron Throne, such as the Tyrells, also known as the Roses.

They betrothed Margaery Tyrell and Joffrey Joffrey the Little Rose, a symbol of the alliance between the two families. Sansa has undoubtedly lost her status as a queen-to-be, and her situation has become even more miserable.

However, this is also her own choice, and the bitter fruit she grows naturally has to be eaten by herself, and she can also learn lessons and grow. After all, Li Lingyi wanted to take her with him, but the latter was unwilling to do so, so no one else was to blame.

However, it is worth mentioning that Li Lingyi had a secret meeting with Stannis, and the two concluded an alliance. However, it was only decided to fight against the Iron Throne and the Lannisters together, but it did not say who the Iron Throne would belong to if it was won.

According to the bloodline, Stannis is naturally the most suitable candidate, but Li Lingyi does not plan to repeat the mistakes of the past, rather than changing the new king and rebelling, it is better to come up with a way to completely destroy the Iron Throne system.

This kind of thinking must be very amazing, I'm afraid that even Soros and Berry, the closest people around Li Lingyi, are difficult to understand, so he hasn't told anyone until now, but he is quietly preparing.

During this time, his two cities also made great progress, the population almost doubled, and the army expansion was not very large, adding up to less than 30,000 people.

Unlike the population, the army requires highly qualified and loyal civilians to join, and because the soldiers are not engaged in agricultural activities, they cannot afford to supply too much.

Besides, the soldiers are not expensive, and Li Lingyi attaches great importance to these new troops, and conducts uninterrupted training for them almost every day, with regular plus confrontation training, and takes them to find some bandits in Hejian to exterminate them every few days.

After such a month, the new army was almost the same, at least it could be pulled to the plains to fight for a while, and this made the security of the Riverland much better, and some of the robbers moved to the south.

Of course, it must be not only the Flagless family that is recuperating, but also the big families such as Lannister, Arryn, and Tully are expanding their armies, so that they can no longer be so passive when the next war comes.

It is worth mentioning that quite a few civilians in King's Landing escaped and ran to Harrenhal, and according to the survey, they felt that they could not survive in King's Landing. Because of the expansion of the army, prices in the city have soared, and ordinary people can only eat one meal a day, and some people who are slightly embarrassed can even eat one meal in two days.

No matter how prosperous King's Landing is, when even basic food is in question, the only thing the low-level civilians can do is resist or flee. So they thought of the Flagless Family.

Now on the mainland, the Flagless Family is a special existence, because it is a new family and a family formed by a group of poor people. Even the patriarch Ivy himself has no title, just a free mercenary.

And this kind of family is undoubtedly more attractive to the poor, and he also feels that he has more opportunities to get ahead, so many talented civilians have also voted over, which is also what Li Lingyi wants, after all, what he lacks now is talents in all aspects.

"Ivey. ”

Li Lingyi was looking at the food storage table in the city when Berry pushed the door and walked in. He glanced up, smiling and a little ambiguous in his expression.

"What's wrong?" Li Lingyi asked, "Laughing so weirdly?"

"The Stark family has news. ”

Berry said and sat down, looking at Li Lingyi, who was expressionless, and said casually while reading the report: "What news?"

The Stark family hasn't done much this month, but it's said they're also recruiting, but it's not necessarily who they're going to deal with. After all, now in addition to the Lannisters, the Iron Islands are also their enemies.

Theon's destruction of Winterfell was something Robb couldn't forget, and even if the latter was on the Iron Islands, he would definitely want to take revenge one day. Although there is little hope, it is a little slim...... It's even more difficult to build a water army.

"That's the good news. Berry said in a rare tone a little teasing, "Ivey, you're still single." ”

"En?" Li Lingyi frowned slightly and looked up at Berry, "What do you mean?"

"What else does it mean, although the Stark family didn't say it explicitly, but the message is obvious, they want to marry their second daughter Arya Stark to you. ”

Aya ......

Li Lingyi's expression froze, and he shook his head with a smile, "What are you kidding, she's still a child, and she's only fourteen years old this year, right?"

"So what. Berry didn't really care, "I think it means that if you want to book it first, the wedding can wait until she is an adult." In the end, it's just a formality. ”

“……”

"Ivey, it's up to you to decide, but I think that if we are in alliance with Stark and have a stable north, then we can go all out against the Lannisters in the south. ”