The besiegers wanted to lure reinforcements to arrive, while the defenders were counting on delaying the situation in the hope that the situation would change...... With their respective ghosts in mind, negotiations between the land grant and Winterfell continued day after day. In order to convince each other of their sincerity, the two sides met and held meetings every day, from asking for a sky-high price to paying back the money on the ground, not only did the procedure go one step ahead, but even decent terms and agreements had been drafted in a few ways. After a few days without any help coming in, Egg finally realized that something was wrong—not only by intuition, but also by news from scouts and shapeshifters from all sides.

The first batch of reinforcements has actually arrived nearby, and through the bird's eye reconnaissance from the sky, it can be roughly seen that two distant reinforcements from the Taoha family in Torun Fang City and the Horwood family in Horwood City have arrived in Severn City, plus the conscripts that Severn has stepped up to recruit these days...... Less than a day's miles from Winterfell, more than two thousand people had gathered in the North. And even though the number was already so impressive, this army still did not have any intention of moving to the rescue, but set up tents and fences outside the castle like a land-giving army, and waited on the spot!

It was a bit of a miscalculation, as Egger sat at his table in the two-story stone building of what had once been the Winterfell Inn, pondering what to do with the fish that refused to take the bait.

"The princes of the North are loyal to the Stark family, and they will never be saved when they don't get to the vicinity, which must be Robb Stark's remote control of people from all walks of life through the letter crow, instructing them not to come to their aid hastily. Humphrey looked at the contemplative commander-in-chief and said, "Either the young wolf lord guessed your reinforcement plan from the beginning, or the lord agreed to negotiate after the arrival of the army without putting enough pressure on the other side...... In either case, we have to take steps to break the deadlock as soon as possible. ”

Iger nodded, silent.

After all, who doesn't understand the truth.

When the target to be lured by the encirclement point is as immobile as a mountain, there are only two ways to deal with it: either simply switch from a feint attack to a real attack and take the point of encirclement; or admit that the miscalculation is abandoned, and the plan is lifted, and the encirclement is lifted to find another enemy.

Corresponding to the current situation of the battle, it is either to launch a strong attack and take Winterfell, or to send camp to the city of Severn, dozens of miles away, to beat the first batch of reinforcements gathered there.

Militarily, the first option is obviously superior, however: Winterfell, with a moat, two granite walls, and a thousand defenders, is not a soft persimmon. The first-generation artillery that had just entered service was not enough to destroy such a fortified city in terms of number, caliber, power and durability, and even if the attack on the weak point barely broke through the city gate and attacked it, the street fighting was bound to be extremely bloody and inflicted heavy casualties...... The more central problem is that Winterfell is the political center of the North, but it is of little value to Egger, and there is not much benefit to taking it by storm, and if one or two Starks are injured in a melee, it will confirm the reputation of the white-eyed wolf and chameleon, which is really worth the loss.

And what about the latter option? It is easy to deal with a small city like Severn and defeat 2,000 levies without the protection of the city walls in a field battle, but what is the point of leaving the Stark's field of vision and running dozens of miles away, even if the battle is won, there is no visible real visual shock, and it cannot bring enough deterrence?

Robb's tactical level of command and dispatch was still above Egger's expectations, and his correct command of the northern army was quite effective in putting the "rebels" in trouble...... Egger frantically tapped his fingers on the table, but couldn't make a decision.

Maybe it's time to bombard Winterfell and let the Northerners know they're not joking. However, the first generation of artillery that had just been put into service was extremely easy to kill, but the siege was quite difficult to do, and the amount of gunpowder available was quite limited.

Swinging between the options of "intimidating Winterfell by force" and "attacking Severn instead", a soldier arrived: "Lord Commander-in-Chief, Sir Rodric has come to negotiate again!"

That's right, here it is again, and the monotonous schedule for several days has made the messengers feel a little bored.

"Let him wait!" Iger waved impatiently, the purpose of the negotiations was to resolve the conflict in a more peaceful way, but now Robb Stark's tactical command was too good, and a peaceful solution to the problem could only be a good wish.

While discussing with several mid-level generals which option to choose, a second sentinel knocked on the door and walked in.

"Commander-in-Chief, a little lady with a veiled face sneaked up on me and said, 'There is a very, very important thing that must be seen with you'. ”

Egger looked up a little puzzled—the guard deliberately emphasized "little", which meant that the person who came must be very young, could it be that Arya had come to persuade her to surrender, but if it was her, all her guards should be very familiar, and would not use words like "little miss" to describe it.

Curious, Iger nodded, "Let her in." ”

A few seconds later, a petite girl wearing a large hood and covering her mouth and nose with a scarf scarf squeezed in outside the door.

"Good afternoon, my lord!"

Iger recognized the identity of the person as soon as he heard the soft but unpleasant voice, but the little princess of the former dynasty should have been in Winterfell, how could the Stark family let her out with the negotiators at such a dangerous time?

He waved his hand back and right, stood up and approached the girl: "Mi...... Miss Maeve, how did you get out?"

Messira obviously looked like she had just exercised vigorously, her little face exposed outside her scarf was flushed, and she gasped for breath: "I see Sir Rodric...... Just when he led the negotiation team out of the city gate, he ran over and lied to the guards...... Say, Mrs. Caitlyn asked me to bring a very important word to Rodric, and after telling you that you will be cleared and withdrawn...... But when I came out, I did not chase them, but followed them quietly, and it was not until I got close to the town that I found a sentry from the other side, and came to meet you. ”

After days of negotiations, it seems that not only their own soldiers, but also the gatekeepers of Winterfell have also been careless: when the two armies under the city face each other, how can such a little girl be let out of the city gate?

Iger frowned at the opponent he was facing, but on second thought, he realized that he had taken it for granted: not everyone knew the secret that Maeve Snow was the Messiah Baratheon...... He couldn't infer Messira's status and daily life in Winterfell based on her status as a princess. An adopted daughter who is well-liked and has a flexible mind and is trusted by the head and wife of the family, it is likely that she will often be sent to do some simple communication and management work in Winterfell, and she lies that she has important messages to pass on, and the gatekeeper may not necessarily suspect it.

However, he quickly instinctively thought about the follow-up question: it is easy to get out through a lie, what should I do if I go in again?

"Well, smart. Iger quickly realized that the above questions were not the key, smiled softly at the little princess, and shook his head: "What is the 'very, very important thing' that deserves your such nonsense?"

"Oh, run, sir!" the little princess looked tired and anxious, and looked like she was about to stomp her feet, "Lord Bolton took the dragon hunting crossbow to the last Hearthtown to deal with Queen Daenerys, and this morning sent back the news that the sneak attack has been successful, and you are now on your way south to Winterfell! Now immediately turn around and break through, withdraw the land grant, and find a boat in the East China Sea to escape to the other side of the Narrow Sea, and the people of the Seven Kingdoms may not issue a wanted warrant to arrest you for the sake of fighting against the strange ghosts!"

——