Egger exposed the details of the other party in one sentence, and Mance Red was suddenly speechless, and was silent for a moment with his arms crossed on the table, and then said with a calm face: "The days are getting shorter and shorter, the nights are getting colder and colder, and those ghost things in the forest are getting stronger and stronger. Not only is the range getting closer to the Great Wall, but the fire and obsidian are getting worse and less effective at killing them. If we don't manage to cross the Great Wall, I and my people will all die in the Shadow Forest and become puppets of the ghosts......"

After choking on him, Mance finally stopped talking and switched to a new, more candid opening, with Jon standing to the side and pressing the hilt of his sword while the higher-ups of the Night's Watch focused their eyes on each other. The Chief Ranger shrugged his shoulders without wavering, "That's good news, from now on, the Night's Watch and the inhabitants of the Seven Kingdoms will no longer have to worry about the threat of the wildlings. ”

"I confess that the defenses of the Great Wall are well organized, and if you do not let them go, the freedmen will never be able to pass through on their own. Mance didn't reply to Jeremy's words, but continued, "But I dare to come here today because I'm ready for everything—don't you wonder why I chose the Frost Fang, so far from the Wall, as the meeting place in the first place, and how long it took me to reach the Wall after gathering a hundred tribes together? Guess what my men and I were doing on the north side of the Wall during this time?"

"Didn't you bring too many things that slowed down the trip? Mormont said displeasedly, "A few months ago, Colin, the severed hand of the Shadow Tower, tortured the captured captives and warned me that you might be looking for some mysterious means to break through the Wall. I was going to organize an expedition to find out, but I abandoned the plan for a series of reasons...... Without mentioning this, I would like to give you a piece of advice first - stop using this kind of question to continue the communication between us, we are not here to talk to you. ”

"Okay, okay. The situation is stronger than people, Mance Rader reluctantly raised his hand to show his understanding, and quickly revealed the answer: "Colin is right, as my old boss, he knows me too well." I led a hundred tribes along the Frost and Snow Fang Mountains and the Ruhe River, digging three feet into the ground and digging countless tombs in search of a legendary artifact, the Horn of Winter. This thing is also known as Joman's horn, and in the ballad, a thousand years ago, Joman, the king of the outside world, sounded it to awaken the giants of the earth, and it is said that if you play it near the Great Wall, you can bring down the Great Wall of Desperation. ”

"Shh

"I have always been skeptical about the story in the ballad, whether this horn will work or not, who knows if I don't blow it. Mance shrugged, "I do have a subordinate who wanted to try, but I stopped it. If the Great Wall does fall, what else can stop the Strange Spirits from going south to exterminate the human race? No matter what happens, I don't want that ghost thing to pass through the Great Wall and destroy the entire human world......"

Mormont was amused: "So, you found a legendary horn, but you are not sure if it will bring down the Great Wall, and you are not going to try it...... So what's the difference between this thing and not existing?"

"Because I know what is important, and I know which is more important between my own safety and the survival of humanity. Mance said, "Yes, I was a member of the Night's Watch and ended up fleeing the Shadow Tower to join the Cypriots, and I am undoubtedly a traitor under your rules...... But what about the many free people beyond the Wall, who also have parents, lovers, and children...... They also eat and drink, what is the difference between them and the people who live south of the Great Wall?"

"What's the difference?" Bowen Marthy interjected with disgust, "People who live on the south side of the Wall don't climb over the Wall to the north to kill people and steal goods from you, like raiders. ”

"That's because the climate in the south of the Wall is much milder than in the north, and the resources are far more abundant than in the north, so you can live well without risking any risk!" Mance raised his voice a lot, "But even in such harsh conditions, the raiders are only a very small part of the free people! A group of hot-blooded men proved their courage and improved their lives by crossing the Great Wall and bringing back the spoils of war...... This is essentially different from those who swore to join the Night's Watch for the sake of honor, or who put on black after living a life and committing a crime? Not to mention, these men are now almost all dead in the battle against the Wall, and almost all that is left are innocent! Why would you rather let the Free Folk die in vain and become enemies of the living, rather than give us a way to live, so that we can cross the Wall and fight death side by side with you in the near future?"

"That's nice, it's easy to open the gates for you to pass through, but what's next?, let the fortresses along the Great Wall be reduced to mole villages, let the giants camp in the ruins of Winterfell, let the cannibal tribes slaughter the mountain clans and occupy the wolf forest, and the raiders go deep south to White Harbor and Neck to steal the daughters of the northerners, and force the women to their wives?" Bowen snorted coldly: "The Night's Watch doesn't need outside help to keep the strangers out of the Seven Kingdoms!"

"Quite possibly, but it's the thousands of mountain clansmen who give you this confidence. Mance didn't answer directly, but instead pulled up something else: "Your allies do play a big role, but I have shapeshifters by my side who can enter the eagle's body, soar over the land grants and the North, and rely on its eyes to see the situation. With their help, I know that although you rely on the help of the mountain clans to defend the Great Wall, you are facing great food pressure. And right now, the North itself is in trouble, and it is difficult to continue to support the at......trition of the Great Wall," he asked with a serious expression, "Now that you know the existence of the real enemy, why would you rather hold on to long-standing prejudice and hatred than accept a new helper who is full of desire to fight death by your side? ”

＊＊＊

Iger breathed a sigh of relief: Fortunately, Mance had taken a miserable and convincing way...... When he heard his trumpet of Tidong, Egg thought that the king of the outer world was stupid enough to threaten the night watchman to open the door. If the other side adopts this plan, then the negotiation will be a dead end, and no matter how much he wants to subdue the wildlings, how much voice and new ideas he has, he will not be able to reverse the outcome - his own words do have weight, but the Night's Watch Legion is not his word after all. The Blackcoat Legion is an organization of soldiers, and even if the Winter Horn is real, it will be difficult for the defenders of the Great Wall to accept the threat and open the door to the enemy.

"No one would rather let you die than have your help. Mormont listened carefully to Mance's words: "But there are two questions—first, who can guarantee that the savages will be able to keep their own peace after entering the customs? Second, the savages are called 100,000, and the number is so large that even if they carry food, it is difficult to feed themselves, how much reserve do you have to dare to say that everyone can eat for a while?"

"I've never controlled a hundred thousand wildlings, and maybe there were so many people north of the Wall, but by the time the freedfolk realized what was constantly attacking and killing us in the forest, and took up a group to protect themselves, hundreds of people had already fallen and many more had fled beyond reach...... When I finally gathered a hundred—in fact, this number is estimated—among the Mountains of Frost and Snow, we numbered about 70,000 in all, and many more on the way south, but at most not eighty thousand. Mance answered the second question first: "And these people, after this period of attrition, have only half left." ”

"You've lost 40,000 men in your attack on the Wall?" asked Mormont, "but we didn't kill or wound so many. ”

"Only a few are lost in the offensive, and the greatest threat to us is the presence of those who lurk during the day and act at night. Mance's expression was uncertain, as if he was still reminiscing about the fear of being attacked by strange spirits: "In order to avoid them, we had to get as close to the Wall as possible, but so that you on the top of the Wall could not see where we were, we had to keep a little distance from the Wall. Although they have a knack for dealing with the living dead, they still launch sneak attacks almost every night under the leadership of the strangers, and if they are lucky enough to repel the corpses of the dead before they have time to cremate them, if they fall into chaos in the dark and fail to win quickly, then by the next day we will have dozens or hundreds of more enemies...... The dead and wounded were partial, and many more, those who left the army and fled out of despair and fear. ”

Mance's tone was flat, but everyone present could hear the fear and hopelessness in it, and thankfully, they weren't the ones who confronted the strangers outside the Wall.

"So, you don't have 40,000 left?"

"These days, after seeing that there is no hope of breaching the Great Wall, in order to give the next generation greater hope for survival, I have made a difficult decision - let the wounded, sick and old people who have aged to a certain extent, end their own lives to reduce the burden on others. The king of the outside of the plug was expressionless: "This is not a new thing, every time in the past winter, there will be some people who are about to enter the earth with limited mobility, take the initiative to enter the forest empty-handed, and give their lives to the old gods...... But this is the first time that it has been carried out in batches. In order to prevent turning into the living dead, we chose to take the poison fruit and have the bodies of the living burned after they fell. Now, we have 30,000 people left. ”

So, Mormont nodded, "But you didn't answer another question, how do you ensure that the wildlings can defend themselves after passing through the Great Wall, and not threaten us, or even invade the north south?"

"I think I've just answered that question. Mance said: "Thirty thousand, although there are no old people, but after all, there are babies and children...... With a large number of soldiers already killed in the attack on the Great Wall, we cannot threaten the entire north. Moreover, in the event that the command of the attack on the Great Wall failed and twenty or thirty thousand people fled, I offered to let the freedmen who might be dragging others down to end themselves, and hundreds or thousands of them still did so. What is this? It is a manifestation of prestige and control, and I can and will govern my people!"

＊＊＊

The wildlings relied on self-settling to reduce their burden, keeping their numbers to a certain level, so as to ensure that the remaining resources were enough for their own people, and that Mance patted his chest and assured the Night's Watch that he could help solve the food crisis at the Wall!

As soon as these words came out, all the high-ranking night watchmen in the hall were unable to answer for a while. Others, such as Chief Affairs Officer Bowen Marthy and Chief Ranger Jeremy Lake, are shocked by the brutal and tragic choices the Wildlings make to survive, while others, such as Jon Snow, are younger newcomers who have no grudge against the Wildlings and can't help but feel compassion.

Only Egger was the only one who was very moved—the savages had taken the initiative to weed out the old, weak, sick and disabled from the population who had lost their ability to work and their fighting ability! They had done such an unthinkable thing in a civilized society, and Mance, who had proposed this plan, had not yet been killed by his own people!

Imagine a high-quality labor force composed entirely of young people who are extremely cheap and have no pressure to retire for at least one or two decades...... This is the coveted citizen of the ruling class of many countries!

The bottom line is this: if Mance is right, the number of wildlings is now reduced to the point where the Night's Watch can control it, and the logistics department can rely on Braavos's aid to feed them.

And now, the opportunity to take this near-perfect group for himself is in front of him!

Mance Rader had no idea that his words had inadvertently tickled one of the most powerful men in the Night's Watch right now. He threw all his chips and now ...... Just watch the night watch, and the people will not agree.

"We have no doubt about your prestige among the wildlings. "But that's why I'm afraid—you're going to rely on this influence to direct the wildlings to attack us after passing through the Wall." ”

"The wild people rallied around me because I promised them to take them over the Great Wall to take refuge in the south. Mance replied, "But I couldn't, and in the end I negotiated to persuade you to let us go through the Wall." Under these circumstances, I am no longer able to convince the freedmen who have survived blood and fire and have settled through the Great Wall to take up arms again and continue fighting...... If you're really not at ease, then leave me at Castle Black as a hostage. ”

"Excuse me. Iger raised his hand: "One thing, I don't know why no one mentioned it...... I don't think the savages are in a position to negotiate with us at all, and I prefer to use another word to describe the conversation at hand – the surrender ceremony. ”

"Is there a difference? peace talks, or surrender, whichever word you choose, I just ask that me and my people be allowed to pass through the Great Wall. ”

"No, it's a big difference. Iger smiled lightly: "If the wild ...... The freedmen are going to surrender to the Night's Watch, so I think we have the right to put forward all kinds of conditions. Mance Raid, if you can promise me the following two points, I can first support the passage of you and your people through the Wall on behalf of the Night's Watch Logistics Department. ”

Say. ”

"One, surrender all your weapons before crossing the Wall, and let them be kept by the Night's Watch, and second, after passing through the Wall, you will become the new inhabitants of the land grant, and you will be subject to our administration in full accordance with the laws of the Land Grant established by the Night's Watch. ”

"Handing over all your weapons is negotiable, but the law?" Mans laughed, "The freedmen have their own laws, and they won't kneel, and even if I agree, they won't enforce them." ”

"It's not a matter of deliberating whose laws to follow, and I'm afraid it won't be their turn to choose freely this time. Iger didn't laugh, "If you don't want to follow the law of land granting, just stay outside the Great Wall and wait for death with that bullshit 'freedom'." If you want to cross the Great Wall, you have to fully accept our conditions!"

......

Mance put away his smile and glared at Egger. Judging from the fact that the other night watchmen did not interrupt him, the words of the chief logistics officer in front of him were very effective, which confirmed the fragmentary information provided by his subordinates: "I said, even if I promised, I couldn't carry it out." ”

"There will naturally be punishments for non-compliance in the provisions of the law, as long as you promise, whether you can enforce it or not is a matter for the law enforcer, and it is not your turn to predict the future. ”

"Since you are so confident, then I promise, when will you be able to open the door?"

"He's not the commander-in-chief. Bowen interrupted, "If it's going to be voted on, then I'm against letting the wildlings cross the Wall on behalf of the Night's Watch officer." ”

"I also think we need to discuss it again. The Chief Ranger likewise said, "but respects the opinion of the Commander-in-Chief."

Mormont and the chief craftsman did not say anything, and Egger had an idea and quietly attached to Mormont's ear: "My lord, promise first, once the savages gather outside the gate of the Black Castle and wait to pass through the Great Wall, how will the law of land grant be determined at that time, or even open the door to let them in or sneak attack and grab a wave of food and leave them to fend for themselves, it's not all up to us?"

The two had already discussed this in their previous conversation, and Mormont nodded slightly, feigned hesitation for a moment, and gave the final reply of the Night's Watch Legion as the commander-in-chief.

——

[Big chapter, make up the first two days. I've been busy lately, so I won't explain it when I break off. 】