Robb felt like he was being tricked again, but he couldn't figure out how it was happening.

His original plan was to question Iger first, and this guy would probably do what Karstark said - flamboyant and try to fool himself...... At that time, he would interrupt his rambling and beat him hard to warn him.

If everything that should be said is finished, his attitude is still not correct, and he still conceals and deceives the situation...... No mercy will be spared, and from tomorrow onwards, they will openly support the Commander of the Shadow Tower and help him become the Commander-in-Chief of the Night's Watch.

With Dennis Mellister's steady sophistication, coupled with the suppression and control of Egger's influence by the rulers of the North, he will definitely be able to control the situation of the land grant.

But who would have thought that this Egger seemed to have changed his temperament, and he didn't have time to put pressure and put on a face, so he was like a wine glass turned over at the bottom, and he explained the whole cause of the matter, the process and even his inner thoughts without leaving a drop, and not only that...... He also resolutely admitted his mistakes and expressed his willingness to take all responsibility?

The attitude is so good that it catches people off guard.

As a result, things inexplicably changed from "the guardian of the north to interview and hold accountable the reckless chief logistics officer of the Night's Watch" to "the princes of the north worked together to clean up the mess for this uneasy guy like Egger".

Worst of all, as the Lord of the North, Robb could reprimand anyone, or privately decide who to support and suppress, but he had no right to impose any form of formal punishment on a sworn Night's Watch officer who did not fall under the jurisdiction of the North.

The only people who can dispose of the Chief Logistics Officer of the Night's Watch are the King and the Commander-in-Chief of the Night's Watch...... And now, King Stannis is busy quelling the rebellion, and the Night's Watch Commander is choosing—which means that unless he tears his face, even if Egg confesses his mistakes, there will be no one to punish him substantially.

......

Is this guy really confused and made a mistake for a while, or did he calculate this point and take the initiative to show weakness, so that he could not do anything?

Robb Stark resisted the urge to scratch his head. After all, he is still not sophisticated enough, and when things don't go as planned, he becomes less flexible. It is easy to deal with the enemy on the battlefield, but it is beyond his ability to deal with his own people politically.

Although confused, he at least knew how to hide it: "Well, one last question - a few Night's Watch officers from Castle Black sent me a letter, why didn't I receive it?"

"This ......," said Egger, with an innocent face, "There are sixteen newly opened forts along the Great Wall, making it easy to live in, but training the birds to familiarize themselves with them and know when to fly to these strongholds is a long way for even the smartest letter crows." In fact, for the time being, there are only seven mountain clans stationed along the Great Wall that have set up crow cages - there is no one in the Ice Trace City where we are now, and the number and reliability of the crows in the previous Long Night Fort are far from enough to ensure smooth and stable communication...... I don't know where the adults at Castle Black sent the letter, but you didn't receive it, it's normal, and I didn't do it. ”

The explanation was quite convincing, Robb stared at Egger's face for a while, but found no flaw, and finally had to give up on getting to the bottom of it.

In any case, at least Egger did not continue to conceal and prevaricate in the use of troops to surround Castle Black, and in terms of attitude, he was considered to have passed the test.

"Well, Lord Bolton has a point, let's hurry up and find a way to properly solve the matter of Castle Black first. ”

......

As soon as these words came out, the two counts, Glover and Amber, who had always been on the sidelines, breathed a sigh of relief. They instinctively tended to support Egger, but after all, he had committed a crime, and until the feudal monarch's attitude became clear, they naturally refused to take the risk of taking his own place for the sake of some indirect favors, and now that Robb Stark had the intention of not continuing to pursue it, they could finally say something.

"The top priority is to notify the Houguan Town troops on the side of Castle Black, withdraw the siege, and free the trapped people. Gabbert Glover said: "Then you have to issue a statement explaining the situation and admitting mistakes...... Of course, it is better for the person concerned to do this in person after returning to Castle Black, in front of his sworn brothers. ”

"Hmph, how many days have you been besieging people, and it's over when you go back and apologize?" Rickard Karstark understood that the overall situation had been decided, and although he was displeased, he also knew that he could not reverse the result with his own mental eloquence, so he could only join in the discussion of the aftermath and fight for more advantages for his friends: "Now that there are so many more people in the land gift, there must be clear restraints on the armed forces of the non-night watchmen." The position of commander-in-chief of the Night's Watch was temporarily vacant, and the soldiers could do nothing, but the outsiders were free to run around and dominate...... What is this called? My opinion is that since you have come to give land, you must accept the administration of the law of the Night's Watch, even if the hill clans are friends, you must not condone it!"

"Master Karstark has a point. Robb genuinely agreed with this proposal, and he nodded, "I will send someone to inform the mountain tribes when I get back: they are the people of the north, and I am glad that they have come to the Great Wall to help defend it, but since I have come, I must follow the laws of the Night's Watch like the Night's Watch, and I must not work for them because of whose money and whose food, whether it is right or wrong...... If there is such an unauthorized assembly and mobilization of troops, it will be punished for plotting rebellion, and I will personally inquire about it!"

Robb felt that this was the last chance he could seize - to warn Egger and make him understand that he was serious - and when he said the last two sentences, he was already trying to be very vocal - "And you, now send someone back to Castle Black, let your people withdraw to Houguan Town, and stop doing anything crooked!"

Tie your hands and feet, this is considered to hit Egger's vital point, but this rule is reasonable, strictly speaking, he has taken advantage of the loophole before. did a full set of acts, and naturally he couldn't speak out against it at this juncture, so he could only make a obedient appearance of completely admitting his mistake and accepting the treatment, nodding his head again and again, without any objection.

＊＊＊

It was all expected, he would now honestly send someone back to Castle Black to order the withdrawal of troops as Robb said...... And the subordinates who are ordered will also pack up their things and set off quickly. But...... What happens next after leaving Icemark City will be a little different from what the northern nobles think: the heralds will not be like Jon Royce who is desperately on the road day and night, they will walk a few miles to catch their breath and rest for a while when they reach a stronghold...... There will also be people who fall and get stomach aches on the road...... In short, there were various accidents that delayed the trip.

According to Arya's accurate information, he decisively gave up the original prepared rhetoric on the spot, but the back road that had been arranged did not need to be modified in any way.

The order to withdraw would reach Castle Black two to three days later, and the besieging forces would spend a day withdrawing, with the most elite of them, the Night's Watch, led by Jaime Lannister, heading out to the East Sea to reinforce the "unloading caravan" that had already taken up residence in the fort and controlled the harbor.

Even if Carter Pike had gotten up and returned to his home stadium as soon as the siege of Castle Black was over, Iger had been holding him back for at least a week...... As long as the first batch of loan grain was successfully unloaded during this period and transported to the mountaineer fortress closest to the East China Sea and put into storage, he would not have tossed in vain.

It is true that when I return to Castle Black, I will most likely have to make a public explanation and apology...... Ordinary people would probably think that "bowing their heads and apologizing to their opponents" is a shameless thing - of course, it is actually a bit - but: he used his own troops to surround the Night's Watch headquarters, but forced the battle-hardened defenders of Castle Black to not dare to fight, and they were not substantially punished afterwards, let alone forced to withdraw from the election of the Night's Watch Commander-in-Chief.

Anyone with a bit of a brain should understand who actually wins.

......

The mess was over by the time the patrol guards were eating breakfast, and the team assigned by Iger to send the withdrawal order hurried on their way under the watchful eye of Sir Rodric, whom Robb had assigned...... And the nobles of the northern realm, who held a meeting to "wipe his ass" for him who made a mistake, also started their inspection of Icemark City as originally planned after finishing the meal.

The new landgoers, the Seven Kingdoms used to call them "Savages", while they called themselves "Free People". However, the people who now faced the nobles of the North were neither savage nor free—most of the boldest, strongest or murderous had been lost in the fight against the Strangers or following Mance Rader in their assault on the Great Wall, and among those who survived, the young men with a little bit of brains and responsibilities also went to Houguan Town early to seek work to survive the race...... The rest are basically old, weak, sick and disabled...... No, not even the old, sick, or disabled, only women and children and a small number of soldiers left behind.

They were ragged and hungry, and thanks to the hard work of the Night's Watch Logistics Department, they barely managed to maintain the status quo of "neither freezing nor starving". The nobles of the five great families of the North were fully armed, especially wearing helmets, and cautiously visited these "dangerous" Cypriot visitors, only to see a group of hungry people who cowered and could not even talk to them.

The fearful, numb, and hopeless look in his eyes was something Robb had heard from his father's story: in the midst of winter or war, when the stock was running out of food, and spring or peace was delayed, the people of the territory who had shrunk in the winter towns outside Winterfell had basically seen this in their eyes.

(The so-called wild people, stripped of the sense of distance and rumors, are nothing more than a group of peasants living outside the Cypriots.) ）

More than one Northern nobleman felt this way, and that was exactly what Iger wanted. However, this time everyone was acting in their true colors, and there was no false thing to do—what Iger did was to send a message to the new landgivers beforehand that was not a lie, in order to provoke this state of affairs: if the northern nobles found that they were restless and obedient, they would all be driven back to the north of the Wall.

Guarding the Great Wall and fighting against the ghosts, of course, it is impossible to rely on these poor creatures...... But the leaders of the major families in high positions know that although the world is not dominated by ordinary people, it is inseparable from the composition and support of the people at the bottom. If the entire group of foreigners can have the status of the inhabitants of Icemark City, it may be a feasible option to fill the land with them to support the real defenders of the Great Wall.

......

The tour of the Great Wall has not yet passed the halfway point, so naturally there is no hurry to make a conclusion, everyone is busy with their own things, the short day in the northernmost frontier of the Seven Kingdoms is fleeting, the sky is dark, and the roof of the kitchen soon rises again, and in the night that slowly envelops the earth, a new visitor arrives in Ice Trace City.

He also came from the west, and he was dressed in black...... However, unlike Jon Royce, the Commander of the Shadow Tower is not alone, nor does he appear to be in the dust, and is in a fairly good physical and mental state.

Dennis Mellister decisively left Castle Black because he judged that the conflict between Carter and Iger would sooner or later cause chaos, so he stayed away from the land of right and wrong early, for fear of being involved. It turned out that he had guessed correctly, and that the mess was far bigger than he had previously thought, as big as ...... The extent to which he came up with the idea that he might be able to profit from it.

On the day that Castle Black was surrounded by the Houguan army, he learned the news through the letter crow, and quickly selected his men, planning to send all the way east along the Great Wall to search for the nobles of the north and report the news. If this news can anger Robb Stark and bring down Egger West, then he will be the next commander-in-chief without any suspense.

Coincidentally, on the same day, a new piece of heavy news also came from the direction of Shenlimburg, which strengthened Mellister's intuition of "victory or defeat in one fell swoop...... At this time, he couldn't sit still anymore and personally led people on the road.

They weren't as desperate as Jon Royce was, and they were a few minutes slower than the former, who was farther away, but they had finally made it to Icemark before it got dark today, and they didn't have to think about tomorrow's journey.

＊＊＊

Dennis dismounted, handed the reins to his subordinates, and stood in front of the courtyard of Icemark City to look around.

The water exhaled from his mouth was cold and formed a white mist, and judging from the soldiers in the north everywhere, he had reached his destination—the election of the next commander-in-chief had dragged on for too long, and it was really unpredictable that he would be forced by an external change to the point where the results must be produced immediately.

He took a deep breath – whatever the outcome, things were going to end tonight.

Soon a soldier approached to inquire and interrogate, and after some question-and-answer negotiations, Dennis unexpectedly learned that someone from Castle Black had already sent the news first, and Robb probably already knew the details of this land-grant mutiny, and maybe they had discussed the results.

"Tsk-"

Dennis frowned and pondered for a while, planning to find out the news from his old friend before deciding on his next move.

He quickly changed his plans, and after asking where the northern princes lived, he made his way to the main fort with a clear goal, and advanced to the quarters of the Karstark family.

......

"Ho, Dennis!" Rickard Karstark cried out in surprise, "why are you here?"

It is hard for outsiders to imagine that a rough man like Count Karstark, who is heroic and righteous and has a straightforward personality, would be so close to Dennis Mellister, who is sleek, sophisticated, cautious and never makes mistakes...... But in response to the sentence: gentlemen are harmonious but different, and the difference in their personalities has not affected their relationship at all. In fact—more than forty years ago, before Dennis joined the Night's Watch, they met and became friends at a jousting tournament.

Dennis Mellister took off his helmet to protect him from the cold, and said with a smile: "I want to visit my old friend, what reason do you need!"

"Haha, no, no, the Great Wall is the territory of the Night Watch, and you, the commander, naturally go wherever you want, and it's not my turn to force it. Earl Karstark smiled roughly, quickly remembered something, waved his hand, drove away the squires and juniors in the house, and waited for the door to close before he sat down in the chair again: "If you have come to report what has happened at Castle Black, then you are late, and Jon Royce has already made everything clear in the morning." ”

"He's heard that he's the first night watchman in months to set foot back on the lands north of the wall. One day and one night, he rushed from Castle Black to Icemark City, which is really worthy of Bronze Jon. He still insists that Egger West killed his youngest son, and that his temper is as hard as his bones. Dennis shrugged helplessly, and couldn't help but complain. "How did Robb Stark react?"

"Naturally, I was angry at first, but then I ...... Alas, it's a long story, you sit down first, drink some warm warm-up and I'll explain slowly. ”

Hearing that things weren't going in the direction he expected, Dennis sat down with a frown, took the mulled wine from Karstark, and listened patiently.

Rickard Karstark is a rough man with average narration skills, but after all, he is a nobleman with some education, picking and choosing, not losing the point, and after a while, he finally restored the inexplicable change of the Xingshi question this morning to Dennis.

"Egger has a really good relationship with the Starks, Robb can't be cruel to him at all, and with Luce Bolton on his side...... Even such a big thing was mixed up by him. Karstark sighed, "I'm afraid you're going to run away in vain." ”

Dennis didn't think that although he wasn't there, he could almost imagine what was going on...... Turning big things into small things and small things into small things is really a good means of crisis public relations, and I have to accept it.

It's just that I don't know how Iger persuaded Luce Burton to help him?

"We won't run in vain, don't worry. If it's just to help Carter and them sue, how can I run away myself? That's too cheap. "It's too late, it's too late, it's useless to say more," Dennis shook his head slowly, "I have another important business on this trip—to convey the urgent military information on the west coast of the northern border. The Iron People, led by Euron Greyjoy, have once again invaded the Rocky Shores and Streamlands, and have now surrounded the Flint Finger, once again threatening Deepenburg, leaving the northern frontier in danger. ”

"What, these bitches raised them again?!" Kahoe City is thousands of miles away from the west coast, and Kastark is naturally not worried about his own distress, but the princes of the north have always been in the same spirit, and everyone has to help if their family suffers, and this coming and going consumes food resources, and the next winter will be very sad, so he is naturally nervous. "Didn't these robbers go to plunder the riverbend before, why did they run back again?

"It's not for us to consider, there are only the Flying Shadow Tower and the letter crow of Castle Black on the side of Deepwood, and Castle Black is besieged, so I can only relay this news to Robb Stark...... And once the Guardian of the North learns the news, he will inevitably suspend the current inspection of the Great Wall and take you to the west coast to lead the troops against the Iron People, and at that time, the people who have not been able to suppress the field will be able to give away the land. ”

"As soon as we're gone, no one can hold back Egger. "Protecting vassals is naturally a higher priority for a lord than investigating a land grant, and Robb Stark's reaction is no guess. Although Karstark was rough, he quickly figured out the key to this: "It's a pity, this time he didn't take the opportunity to bring him down when he made such a big fuss, and the ...... There is no chance. ”

"Didn't you find any problems with your patrols along the Great Wall?"

"There are a lot of problems, but it's not a big deal, you have to admit that this kid Egger has really done a good job of the land grant resettlement plan, so far, Robb is quite satisfied with the situation in Houguan Town, Long Night Castle and Icemark City - no, forget it, I won't go around in circles with you, to be honest, the fact is that the land grant is in good condition far beyond Robb's expectations, and he is very satisfied. "I don't like Egger, but I can't do anything with my conscience, let alone Glover and Amber, and the old thing from Ruth Burton is desperately trying to speak for him like I've taken the wrong medicine, and even if I have the heart, I can't just sway Robb's thoughts with one enemy and three alone." ”

rushed to Icemark City full of anticipation, but before he even saw Robb's face, the hope of a comeback was dashed...... Rao is a belly with Dennis's self-cultivation, and he can't hide his regrets. He let out a long breath, his expression changed several times, his gaze drifted away for a few minutes, and when he converged again into one point, his expression became firm.

"I know the basics, thank you, Rickard. Dennis Mellister rose from his chair and said goodbye to Earl Karstark, "Now, I'm going to go and have an open and honest conversation with the future Commander-in-Chief of the Night's Watch to put this damned campaign to an end tonight." ”

"You're going to surrender?" Karstark asked, surprised, "It's not like you, what Egger did this time will make his approval rating at Castle Black plummet, and you still have a chance." ”

"If the Iron Folk don't come and harass the north, and your patrol continues, I do have a chance, but now...... Why deceive myself?I may be able to delay the election for a few more months or a year with all my might, but what is the point of doing harm to others and not to myself, and if the strange ghost takes advantage of the opportunity to attack, it will cause a catastrophe?" said Dennis as he put on his coat again and walked to the door without hesitation, "The moment I left the Shadow Tower the day before yesterday and rode out of the gate, I swore in my heart that I would never go back again as a candidate for commander-in-chief. If I can take advantage of the fact that Iger sent troops to besiege Castle Black this time, I will persuade Iger to abandon the election and support me on the condition that he will not stop the land grant resettlement plan after being elected. Or, drop out of the race and convince him to accept my conditional support...... Now the fact is that he launched a mutiny without telling the guardian of the north, and he was still unscathed, I asked myself if I had the ability. Since I'm not an opponent, why not fight for more benefits while he doesn't know the news of the Iron Min's attack and the chips are still in my hands?"

——