Chapter 660: Moving the Capital to Harrenhal
Northern border, outside the Great Wall.
The First People's Fist Peak.
The rustling sound of stepping on the snow.
Three night watchmen in black robes led skinny horses and trudged at the foot of the snow-covered mountain.
"I say, we should find a place to warm up."
A thin young man spoke, shivering with cold.
He already had a sly look, and his neck and chest were even more wretched.
"Shut up and save some energy."
The sturdy night watchman refuted and led his horse forward.
This is the territory of the wild men, and they may encounter migrating wild tribes at any time.
There is no place for the night watchmen outside the Great Wall. They are the hated "crows".
"Be quiet, find a shelter before dark."
The last young man patted his companion's shoulder and took out a piece of moldy dried meat from his arms and handed it over.
There was not much food left, and they were all hungry.
We are all miserable people, and we can only get through the difficulties by supporting each other.
"Thank you."
The thin young man showed gratitude in his eyes, and after a moment of hesitation, he put the dried meat into his arms.
He seemed to be worried and patted his chest.
Before joining the Night's Watch, he was a prisoner in the Red Castle dungeon and was arrested for theft.
The damn Minister of Justice locked him up in the dungeon without asking why.
Da Da...
Suddenly, there was a sound of horse hooves kicking in the distance.
The three of them looked up and threw themselves into the snow to hide.
They thought they were unlucky enough to run into a wildling tribe.
They were rangers who followed the commander of the Night's Watch to walk out of the Great Wall and observe the migration route of the wildlings.
Unfortunately, rangers never live long.
The wind and snow obscured their vision, and figures appeared in the fog.
The three Night's Watch held their breath, pulled out their daggers and stabbed them into the necks of their mounts.
The three thin horses that were shaking when they walked were bleeding profusely, and soon fell to the ground and died.
They couldn't be discovered because of the horses.
"Roar..."
The footsteps became more and more frequent, accompanied by inhuman hoarse roars.
Listening carefully, there seemed to be the sound of skeletons colliding.
Da Da...
The wind and snow gradually subsided, and the vision suddenly widened.
The three night watchmen carefully poked their heads out, and instantly showed fear on their faces.
Thousands of shaky frozen corpses surrounded them, and the stench filled their heads. The sound of tattered armor and bones rubbing against each other echoed in their ears all the time.
The army of the dead moved forward aimlessly, as if controlled by an unknown force.
They did not find them.
Or they found them, but did not care at all.
"Woo woo~~"
The skinny young man was frightened and his jaw almost dropped.
Fortunately, his companion covered his mouth, and the three of them buried their heads in the snow pit covered by a big rock.
Finally, the army of the dead passed.
The three of them were stiff, and only then did they take a breath after realizing it.
Da Da...
The sound of horse hooves stopped beside them, and a chilling coldness came over them.
The skinny young man was most vigilant and turned his head in panic.
A pale, long-haired weirdo riding a rotting dead horse stopped in the snow, staring at them with a pair of blue eyes.
Whoosh——
The cold wind whistled, and the pale weirdo pulled out an ice crystal spear from his back.
Then,
"Ah!!"
The snow echoed with a shrill wail, as if falling into hell on earth.
...
"Ah!!"
King's Landing, Red Castle.
Visenya screamed loudly, and her little hand was bitten in her brother's mouth.
"Hehe~~"
Ego perfectly demonstrated the principle that a rabbit will bite when it is anxious, holding his sister's hand and gnawing it.
Saliva flowed all over his face, with a sticky and sour smell.
"Ego, don't bite your sister!"
Rhaenyra hurried over and separated the fighting siblings.
Visenya cried and her fingers were bitten by her little milk teeth.
"Why don't you do anything?"
Rhaenyra hugged her crying daughter and glared at Rhaegar in a complaining manner.
Rhaegar, who was flipping through the account book:...
Bang——
After closing the crude account book, Rhaegar stretched his body, stood up and took out the gold dragon and silver deer coins from Egg's pants.
Not thinking it was enough, he picked up his young son's short legs and shook them upside down.
More than a dozen coins fell down, and there was even half a copper star.
"Woo~~"
Egg didn't cry or make a fuss, but bit his mouth and made a humming sound of dissatisfaction.
Rhaenyra was stunned for a moment, and her face became embarrassed.
"See, your good daughter did a good thing."
Rhaegar hugged Egg again and rolled his eyes: "Visenya is almost using her brother's pants as a piggy bank."
It must be so uncomfortable to put so many coins in the trouser pocket.
"Visenya!"
Rhaenyra's face darkened, and she stared at her daughter with a bad look.
As expected, a little girl's ghostly howling sounded in the Red Keep.
The servants walked by with their heads down, trembling and not daring to say much.
Whenever they heard this sound, it represented a signal.
Someone was beaten.
…
After the brother and sister finished dealing with the other pair of siblings, they walked to the council hall together.
"Your Majesty."
The commander of the Kingsguard, Erik, nodded and saluted, pushing open the door on one side with one hand.
On the other side was a Kingsguard with gray hair and green eyes, who was shorter and had a young baby face.
"Your Majesty."
Hall Reed was very shy and pushed open the door on the other side.
"Thank you for your hard work."
Rhaegar smiled slightly and took Rhaenyra's hand and walked into the hall.
The hall was full of people, including the ministers and family members.
When Rhaegar sat in the main seat, the three elders who were in a circle spoke first.
"Rhaega, do you want to move the capital?"
Viserys frowned deeply and was wrapped in a thick blanket.
"Moving the capital is not a trivial matter, and everyone in the seven countries will discuss it."
Rhaenys stood beside her cousin, disapproving of this move.
Grand Bachelor Orville, Finance Minister Linman, and Intelligence Director Tormund were sitting at the parliament table, all looking like they were hesitant to speak.
The only ones who really don't care seem to be a few young people.
Helena plays with a sapphire, with her son Viserion and daughter Daniela sitting at her feet.
Aegon leaned close to him and coaxed one pair of children into a fist fight with another pair of cousins.
"Quiet, idiot."
Aemond grabbed the collar of Aegon's neck and said disgustedly: "As if he is sick."
Having said that, the sapphire prosthetic eyes under the black eye patch are missing.
Lei Jiadong looked to the west and sighed softly: "Winter is coming, Harrenhal is more suitable for hoarding food and troops than King's Landing."
King's Landing is a rat's nest with leaks from all sides.
Except for a port along the coast, it is far less reliable than other famous castles in terms of physical resources and strength.
Harrenhal is located in the warmer Riverlands, so the geography is exactly the opposite.
There is a large area of fertile farmland where food can be harvested, and there is no shortage of fresh water and fish in the Divine Eye Lake.
The key point is that Harrenhal is big enough to hold the entire royal family and the necessary winter food.
Under the dragon's nest on Qianmian Island, there is underground magma that is developed year by year, and the dragons can also spend the winter here.
Don't worry about the cold in King's Landing causing the temperature of the dragon's lair to drop.
Viserys shook his head and still disagreed: "King's Landing has been the capital since the founding of the Conqueror, and the capital cannot be moved easily."
The meaning of King's Landing is the arrival of the King.
If the capital was moved to Harrenhal, what would the nobles of the Seven Kingdoms think?
"Father, things are not that simple."
Rhaegar said seriously.
"If we want to move the capital, what should the people in the city do?"
Viserys ignored the opinions of the people. Could the millions of people in King's Landing be abandoned so easily?
Harrenhal is big enough, but it can't accommodate millions of people.
"Brother, listen to him."
Damon was interested and wanted to hear what his good nephew had to say.
When it comes to governing the country, the good nephew and the elder brother are evenly matched, but they have a very original vision.
Will not make random decisions.
Seeing this, Viserys reluctantly swallowed the rest of his words.
To be fair, he has deep feelings for King's Landing.
This place carries all the joys and pains, and people never want to leave their hometown when they get old.
"Father, winter is coming."
Rega's tone was calm and pointed to the point.
"winter?"
Viserys was stunned for a moment.
On the contrary, Daemon and Rhaenyra's eyes flashed, and they thought of the Conqueror's prophecy at the same time.
Rhaegar looked at the blood relatives and ministers present, and said with a serious face: "Heavy snow covers the northern border, and the savages are attacking the Great Wall in large numbers."
"As far as I know, the heavy snow will spread all the way to the entire seven countries, forming a cold wind and cold that is rare in a century."
"Did Bellon write to you?"
Viserys was a little excited and worried about his eldest grandson's safety.
"Almost." Rhaegar shook his head and continued: "Harrenhal is easy to defend but difficult to attack. The Hall of Hundreds of Furnaces is warm enough to ensure that the family can survive the difficulties."
Migration to the continent of Essos is not allowed unless absolutely necessary.
Harrenhal and Dragonstone are the ideal places to live.
The geographical basis of the former is superior to that of the latter.
The land of Dragonstone is barren and it relies entirely on maritime trade to collect taxes.
The Stone Drum Tower was not big enough to accommodate the troops managed by the royal family.
Harrenhal is rooted in the Riverlands and can directly control the Riverlands, the Vale, and the Reach, which in turn stabilizes the royal family's dominance.
At this time, Viserys finally thought of the Conqueror's prophecy.
The heavy snowfall in the north and the chaos of dragons indicate that disaster is coming.
Rhaegar threw out a ledger, slid it in front of his good uncle, and said solemnly: "The capital move cannot be made with any fanfare. Father and the dragon cubs will leave first. You must stay in King's Landing and serve as prime minister."
King's Landing still needs to be the capital, but the royal family still has to move when it's time to move.
As the Dragon Prince and Prime Minister, Daemon staying in King's Landing can stabilize the people's hearts.
"no problem."
Damon shook his head and laughed. He pulled his daughter behind him and told her, "Rhaena should stay with her adoptive mother, and she can also take care of the dragon cub for you."
Rhaena's eyes sparkled, holding a younger brother in one hand.
"Rhaena can return to Tidal Head Island."
Rhaenys spoke up and stroked her granddaughter's cheek with her palm: "She is the heir of Laninor, and this has never changed."
Rhaena lowered her head, unhappy.
Damon saw it and smiled: "Don't worry, stay with Rhaenyra first and learn the court etiquette."
He still looked down upon a mere Chaotou Island.
It would be better if the daughter did not succeed, and she would still be an upright Targaryen.
"Okay, that's it."
Rhaegar made a decision and began to give instructions: "Rhaenyra and I moved the capital to Harrenhal, Aemond stayed to cooperate with Daemon, and Helena returned to Summer Hall..."
The names were read one by one.
Not only Helena is returning to the fief, sisters Daenerys and Maekar are also returning to the Vale and Volantis.
Jenny is alone in the Eagle's Nest City, facing the cold winter with no confidence.
Daenerys controlled the blizzard, enough to intimidate many children.
The Golden Fields received financial support from Quiles, and Daeron began to recruit troops and horses non-stop to reclaim the wasteland.
Meka is young but has great ideas.
Returning to Volantis, he can supervise the Slaver's Bay and assist his uncle Daeron in completing the mission.
"Helena is leaving too?"
Aemond frowned slightly, complaining about this.
Helena raised her head, and a clear stupidity flashed in her big eyes.
"Summerhall is located on the border of Dorne, warmer than Harrenhal."
Rhaegar did not favor one over the other, and said seriously: "With her in Summerhall, the Stormlands and Dorne will be much more stable."
As long as the five southern territories are controlled, the remaining western territories and northern territories will not be in trouble.
