The Mountain of Ice and Fire

East of King's Landing, just outside the Iron Gate, lay Rosby Road. Two miles outside the city was the domain of Lord Gyles Rosby of the Crownlands. Lady Tanda was Lord Rosby's aunt, and her family's castle, Stokeworth, was not far from Rosby Castle, the two lands closely connected.

During the period when Littlefinger Tyrell abruptly cut off the grain supply, Gyles Rosby and Lady Tanda took on the responsibility of supplying grain to King's Landing and the Red Keep. This made Cersei fully aware of the importance of the Crownlands nobility. As a result, Lord Gyles Rosby and Lady Tanda quickly became Cersei's close confidants in a single day.

Lady Tanda seized the opportunity to get close to Cersei, determined to become her confidante. She and Cersei shared similar experiences, both happily having lost their husbands. She believed she could understand Cersei's thoughts and thus win more political status and other unspeakable benefits for House Stokeworth.

Lady Tanda, with her simple-minded daughter Lollys, had resided in Maegor's Holdfast before the riots in King's Landing. After learning about the political struggle between Cersei and the Imp, Lady Tanda naturally chose a side.

Under the Mountain's instigation, Lady Tanda and Cersei, both not particularly bright but believing themselves to be unmatched in cleverness, hatched a plan to lure Bronn away from Tyrion and then kill him in Stokeworth.

*

At the brothel of Emily.

Bronn had just thrown himself onto the soft bed of Red Flower when a woman gigglingly pushed the door open. Gyma, who was playfully teasing Bronn, turned her head at the sound and saw her good sister approaching with small steps: "What is it, Deana!"

Deana giggled, stealing glances at Bronn, and whispered in Deana's ear. Both women glanced at Bronn with strange expressions. Then Gyma got up, and the two women giggled as they slipped out the door, gently closing it despite Bronn's attempts to stop them.

Bronn sat up in astonishment, not understanding. He was about to burst into a curse when there was a knock on the door.

Bronn immediately grabbed the scabbard beside the bed, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword: "Who is it?"

"Maester Franken," the voice outside said.

"Maester Franken, I don't know you," Bronn said.

"May I come in, sellsword?" The voice was neither humble nor arrogant.

Bronn agilely jumped to the ground, drawing his longsword from its sheath, ready for a fight: "Then come in!"

The door was slowly pushed open, and an old man in a maester's robe stood outside. There were no soldiers behind him.

Bronn stood naked before the maester: "I'm not interested in men, and I'm even more disgusted by maesters."

"Sellsword, could you please put away your sword?"

"You disturbed my pleasure, Maester."

Maester Franken entered, closed the door, turned around, and faced Bronn and his sword. He stood quietly, watching Bronn calmly.

Bronn looked at his longsword, then at the frail maester. He grabbed the scabbard beside the bed and sheathed his sword: "Maester, spit it out."

Franken calmly gestured towards the luxurious soft couch beside the bed: "Sellsword, may I sit down?"

Bronn could clearly sense the contempt that nobles had for him in their bones. From beginning to end, the maester had not called him by his name.

But Bronn had grown accustomed to this contempt over the decades, so he remained indifferent: "Old man, stop the nonsense. This is a brothel, and I paid for it."

Maester Franken sat down: "Sellsword..."

"My name is Bronn!" Bronn sat on the bed.

"Bronn, could you put on your trousers?"

"No! Old man, if you keep talking nonsense, I'll throw you out."

"You won't throw me out."

Bronn jumped off the ground and reached out to grab the maester's shoulder. His fingers felt as hard as iron hooks to the maester.

"I'm here to bring you a great fortune, Bronn," Maester Franken finally changed his expression.

"What kind of bullshit fortune?"

Bronn picked up the maester and strode towards the door.

"Lady Tanda's daughter..." the maester quickly said, "Lady Tanda has taken a liking to you and wants to marry her daughter to you."

Bronn stopped.

The words 'countess's daughter' had a dark magic for him.

"Which countess's daughter?"

"Lady Tanda."

"I'm not familiar with her."

"She knows you, Bronn."

"She wouldn't know me either. Speak, who sent you? What do you really want to do to me?" Bronn was very shrewd and not so easily deceived. Those who had deceived Bronn before were basically dead.

"You are the Prime Minister's personal guard. In King's Landing, I bet there are few people, whether commoners or courtiers, who don't know the warrior Bronn."

Bronn felt good hearing these words. He thought the wretched old maester had spoken a great truth.

So Bronn released the maester, looked at him, and said nothing.

"Lollys, Lady Tanda's daughter..."

"Is that the simple-minded girl who was raped by more than a dozen rioters for a whole day during the riots in King's Landing and found on the Iron Street only the next day?"

"Er, Lollys is not simple-minded; she is very innocent and pure."

"Raped by more than a dozen rioters and still pure?" Bronn chuckled.

"Er, it's not her fault. She is innocent, the Seven Gods can testify."

"Okay, Lady Tanda wants to throw her old, simple-minded, fat daughter, whose chastity has been defiled by more than a dozen rioters and who is destined not to marry, to me like garbage? Just because I'm a sellsword with nothing? Get out of here, old man! I don't lack women!"

Bronn stepped aside, opened the door of the room, and stared at the maester as if a butcher were staring at a fat pig to be slaughtered.

The maester slowly walked towards the door: "Dowry, Bronn, a large dowry that you won't earn in your lifetime as a sellsword?"

Bronn reached out and pressed on the maester's chest, closing the door with his other hand: "How much dowry?"

"A dowry that you won't earn in your lifetime as a sellsword, Bronn. Although Lollys is unfortunate and her chastity has been defiled by rioters, she is the countess's daughter. Think about it, sellsword. And as long as you agree to marry Lollys, Lady Tanda will plead with the Queen Mother, hoping that the Queen Mother can grant you a knighthood."

"I agree!" Bronn said. He returned to the bed and reached for his trousers.

"But there may be a problem."

"What problem?" Bronn quickly put on his shorts.

"The Prime Minister, after all, you are the Prime Minister's personal guard. And the Prime Minister may not have a good impression of Lady Tanda."

"That's not a problem at all." Bronn put on his trousers and picked up his underwear. "My relationship with the Imp is very clear. I didn't sell myself to him, and I'm not a vassal of House Lannister. He gives me money, and I work for him. Now I don't want his money anymore, and my life is mine. I'm a free man and can leave whenever I want."

"But the Prime Minister may cause trouble for Lady Tanda."

"Don't worry, there won't be any trouble." Bronn put on his underwear, put on his coat, quickly put on his leather armor, tied his sword belt, hung his longsword on the sword belt, then took out a dagger from under the pillow and inserted it into his boot, and then took out a short knife and hung it on the sword belt. "Respectable Maester Franken, please take me to see Lady Tanda."

*

Lady Tanda and Lollys sat in the carriage, with Bronn, Maester Franken, the family's guard captain Bob Stokeworth, and more than twenty family soldiers following on both sides of the carriage.

Bronn was in a good mood. After failing to hit it off with the guard captain Ser Bob Stokeworth, he was not depressed at all, whistling and leading the way in front of the carriage.

He already regarded himself as a member of House Stokeworth.

His fiancée's belly was slightly protruding, obviously pregnant, but not with Bronn's child.

Lollys and Bronn held a simple engagement ceremony in King's Landing, and then Lady Tanda said goodbye to Queen Mother Cersei, taking her daughter and son-in-law back to Stokeworth to complete the wedding.

After a day's journey, the carriage entered the territory of Stokeworth from Rosby Road.

As the sun set, Bronn saw a very large circular fortress in front of him—Stokeworth.

The nobles of the Crownlands were very wealthy. First, they were closest to King's Landing, and they had geographical convenience for any business, whether by land or water.

Second, the Crownlands were the first barrier to protect the King's Landing royal family. The nobles on the Crownlands had more advantages in politics and trade than the nobles in other territories.

Bronn liked the huge circular fortress as soon as he saw Stokeworth.

But he had no ambition to get such a castle. After marrying Lollys, he would get a large dowry and a small piece of land and a few houses to live in temporarily. After the wedding was completed, Lady Tanda would plead with Queen Mother Cersei and contribute to Bronn's knighthood.

Bronn hoped that he could at least become a knight. He had killed many knights under his sword, but he himself was a sellsword with no status.

Following Tyrion and working for him, he had earned a small amount of money, but Tyrion had no intention of knighting him at all.

The Imp believed that he was all about money and lacked loyalty and faith. The relationship between them was a money transaction. Tyrion gave him money, and he worked for Tyrion. Tyrion's money could not buy Bronn's loyalty, and Bronn did not expect Tyrion to knight him.

Both of them saw through each other's prices, so they tacitly adhered to their own rules.

But the hand of fate was about to open the door to Bronn's happiness: he officially married Lollys in Stokeworth, and after spreading the warm seeds into Lollys's fertile land, he would become a knight and obtain a fiefdom in the Crownlands, thus bidding farewell to the life of licking blood from the edge of a knife as a sellsword and living the life of a wealthy and handsome man with assets.

No matter how he thought about it, the sellsword Bronn was very happy. As for the contempt of Lady Tanda's guard captain Bob for him, Bronn didn't care at all. Bronn felt it was very worthwhile to marry a depraved, simple-minded, fat, thirty-year-old woman for a knighthood and money. The reason why Ser Bob Stokeworth despised him was because Bob was a complete fool, and his helmeted head was full of dog shit!

In the last ray of the setting sun, the carriage drove into the magnificent gate of Stokeworth. On both sides of the gate, two rows of spearmen were arranged. The armor was bright, and the spear tips gleamed with black light.

At the bottom of the steps of the gate, Bronn saw a noble woman with a good appearance and a burly knight. He knew that the noble woman was Lollys's sister Falyse Stokeworth, and the man she was intimately holding hands with must be her husband, Ser Balman Byrch.

Lady Tanda had no sons, only two daughters. Her eldest daughter, Falyse Stokeworth, was her heir. Bronn envied Ser Balman Byrch. This guy was luckier than him, marrying a beautiful noblewoman who would own Stokeworth and a large area of territory in the future.

Compared with Lollys, Falyse had a graceful figure, a graceful neck, delicate facial features, and the arrogance of a noble woman made Bronn feel very charming.

Bronn could see that Balman Byrch had severe fat on his lower abdomen, a short, thick neck, and a double chin, and gray eyes. This guy was fat. Although he had a longsword hanging on his waist, his reaction must be slow and his movements clumsy. Presumably at night, on the bed, Balman's skills would definitely not be as good as his Bronn's.

Bronn sighed in his heart for Lady Falyse!

The carriage stopped, Bronn jumped off his horse and opened the curtains for Lady Tanda and Lollys. He first helped Lady Tanda out of the car, and then Lollys reached out for him to hug her. He picked up Lollys's fat body and gently placed her on the ground.

Lollys already knew that Bronn was her fiancé. She looked at Bronn with admiring eyes, and imitated her sister, taking Bronn's hand. Since the engagement, Lollys had been very dependent on Bronn. No matter what Bronn said to her, Lollys nodded innocently in agreement, just like a little girl's dependence on her father.

Bronn realized that Maester Franken was right. Lollys was very pure, innocent, and without any scheming, just like a seven-year-old girl.

Lady Tanda said, "Lollys, be good, go in with Mommy first. If you are so attached to Bronn, everyone will laugh at you."

Lollys looked at Bronn childishly. Bronn smiled and nodded to her. Only then did she let go of Bronn's arm and walked into the castle with her mother. Lollys kept turning her head while walking, smiling foolishly at Bronn.

Ser Balman Byrch stepped forward and extended his hand to Bronn: "I am Ser Balman Byrch."

"I am Bronn."

Bronn and Balman's hands clasped together. Balman pulled suddenly, and Bronn staggered. When he stood still, longswords and spears were pointed at his head, chest, abdomen, and back from all directions.

Bronn's whole body stiffened, and he dared not move.

Balman laughed loudly. He released Bronn's hand. Bronn dared not not let go and loosened his grip. Ser Balman stepped back, and his position was immediately filled by two spearmen.

Before leaving, the Imp told him that his marriage might not go smoothly. If something unexpected happened, please remember how they escaped from the Eyrie.

"Humiliate Ser Balman, and you will escape this calamity, because that guy is a fool!"

At that time, Bronn paid no attention to the Imp's words. He knew that the Imp didn't want him to leave, but he insisted on leaving. The Imp would naturally not say nice things. Even if the Imp cursed his marriage in person, Bronn thought it was right. Of course, whether the Imp cursed, scolded, or gave well-intentioned warnings, Bronn would just laugh it off.

The facts proved that the Imp's words were actually true! That dwarf must have seen through this conspiracy from the beginning.

However, why would this conspiracy target a small sellsword like himself, and Lady Tanda was a countess, a prominent noble in the Crownlands.

"What's going on? Ser!" Bronn's expression changed.

"You are a man of the Hand, under the orders of Queen Cersei. I must kill you, sellsword."

"I'm not a man of the Hand," Bronn said. "You've got it wrong. The Imp pays me, and I work for him, that's all. If you're willing to pay me, Ser, I'll work for you just the same."

"The Queen commands it. Your excuses are useless. Soldiers..."

"Wait a moment!" Falyse said from the side of the steps. "Don't let his blood stain our gate, and don't let Lollys see his corpse, or she'll be heartbroken. Heaven knows how long she'll cry over this sellsword. Balman, take him to the backyard and kill him." Falyse looked at Bronn with disgust, as if she were looking at a maggot in a latrine.

This extreme contempt made Bronn very uncomfortable.

"I am innocent. You have no right to kill me," Bronn remembered what the Imp had told him. "Ser Balman Byrch, I demand a trial by combat. By the Seven Gods, if Ser Balman is a coward, and the honor of House Byrch and House Stokeworth is nothing but a pile of dog shit, then just chop off my head."

Sure enough, as the Imp had predicted, Ser Balman Byrch was furious. "Sellsword, I'll show you the sharpness of Balman's sword! Soldiers, release him."

The soldiers slowly backed away. *Clang*, Ser Balman's longsword was drawn, chillingly sharp, the blade gleaming with cold light.

A fine sword!

At this moment, Bronn's mind was unusually clear. He remembered every word the Imp had said to him when they parted. The Imp had said that trial by combats in the Eyrie were held during the day, but the trial by combat at Stokeworth was best held at night.

Bronn didn't understand why the Imp would say that. At the time, he thought the Imp was being neurotic because of his sudden rise to prominence.

But since the Imp had foreseen everything, there must be some truth to what that little bastard said.

Bronn looked at the surrounding spearmen, the captain of the guard, Bob, and a group of swordsmen. Even if he killed Balman now, he wouldn't be able to kill all these soldiers, especially since there were at least three knights standing beside them.

"Ser, esteemed Lady Falyse, I propose that the trial by combat be held at night, after Lollys is asleep. Lollys is my lawful betrothed, and I don't want her to be unable to find me when she comes to eat dinner later. She is very pure, like a seven-year-old girl, and she is very attached to me. She needs me to carry her down when getting out of a carriage." Bronn found himself possessed by the Imp's eloquence. "Lady Falyse, Lollys is innocent. Tomorrow morning, you can lie to her and say that there was something in King's Landing, and that I received orders from the Hand and returned to the Red Keep at night."

Balman looked at Falyse. Falyse raised her swan-like neck and looked at Bronn, her gaze changing, raising Bronn's status from a maggot to a dead dog. She didn't move or speak, but Balman had already received his lady's message: "Alright, sellsword, I agree to a duel at night, but I'm going to take all your weapons now."

Bronn looked at the surrounding soldiers, on full alert, and the several knights staring at him. He slowly raised his hands.

Thank you [Chau534] [The Early Bird] for your support! Thank you, handshake!