Chapter 261 I won’t teach you to be smart

Clay never got into any more trouble with Harry Rivers.

He is a little illegitimate son of Shili City, just a poor guy with a unclear mind.

Since he felt that he was on Edmure Tully's side, that didn't matter to Clay.

In line with the principle of not stealing away but making the best use of everything, Clay took out all the two thousand sets of cotton-padded clothes left in the warehouse.

They were distributed to the soldiers who had made achievements in this war with him.

After this, Clay no longer had to talk to Harry Rivers.

He has lost his role here in Clay.

If Stonehedge City was not attacked again in the subsequent war, then Clay might never see this man again.

Everyone has a choice and that's okay.

As long as you can take responsibility for your own choices.

…

Clay's troops began to rest in Shili City. Without anyone's permission, the entire army marched into the city and chose a warm place to rest.

He couldn't let his soldiers be blown by the cold wind every day on the empty river plains.

Since everyone in Hejian regarded Clay Mandler as a powerful military leader, he might as well give full play to this setting.

I am a military leader, so I am a bit arrogant and do not abide by some basic rules of the nobility. I put my soldiers first in everything. Doesn't it seem very reasonable?

If he still has the aloof and aristocratic demeanor, it would conflict with the image in the eyes of the adults in the Riverlands.

It's still troublesome, after all, the taste is wrong.

"Krison, you take our people and some of the guys who have served in this battle and are obedient to form a team and look after the grain depot for me. Do you understand?"

Without mercy, Clay occupied most of the rooms in the main castle of Stone Fence City. At this time, Clay was enjoying the private wine of the original owner of Stone Fence City. Opposite him was Krissen, who had a somewhat puzzled look on his face. · Mandalay.

"Master Clay, why do we send people to look at the grain depot?"

"Oh no, that's not what I meant. I mean, is there anyone in Shili City who dares to attack us?"

Seeing the strange look in his master's eyes, Kristen quickly added something.

Clay sighed and pushed a glass of the wine he was going to enjoy to Kristen.

"Krison, sometimes there is more to things than meets the eye."

Clay didn't care whether Kristen drank the glass of wine or not. After drinking a large glass of wine, he took a long breath and continued:

"Indeed, no one in this stone fence city dares to challenge our authority."

"But you have to remember that things are different now."

"In the past, the people in Hejian only regarded us as a helper who could solve their problems. They were the hosts and we were the guests."

Clay smiled, leaned back in the soft chair behind him, and looked through the window at the falling snow.

"And now, because of some stupid actions by that idiot Edmure Tully, coupled with his own cowardice, and... Robb Stark has lost a battle he shouldn't have lost."

"Your master, I, want to reverse this bad situation. I am forced to step by step from a guest to these river dwellers, with a mountain above my head that makes them breathless."

"The most interesting thing is that they built this big mountain bit by bit with their own hands."

"Now, they invited me here, but found that the host and guest had unknowingly shifted."

"The people of the Riverlands want to live, so they must give me the army, but if the army is given to me, they will have trouble sleeping and eating."

"We are from the north after all, and before, without even saying hello to anyone, we took over Twins City and a large piece of surrounding territory from their territory in the Riverlands."

"They dare not say it with their mouths, but they must be muttering in their hearts."

"There's no telling what day I, Clay Mandler, will stab them with my long sword. After all, we have a "criminal record," don't you think?"

When Clay said this, his tone was very natural, and there was no sign of anger at all.

Kristen was stunned.

After all, he is not a nobleman, so he cannot understand these things and cannot feel them.

He had always thought that Clay was a pivotal figure in the union between the North and the Riverlands, but he did not expect that the people of the Riverlands would have such an attitude towards Master Clay now.

Moreover, he didn't understand why Master Clay would talk about this at this time, because he and Clay Mandler were not the only two people here.

Ser Brynden Tully, the Blackfish, who had fought alongside Clay before, but was theoretically one of the closest people to Edmure Tully, was also here at this time.

However, after hearing Clay's words, the old knight just glanced at Clay lightly. The smile on his face was a little strange, but he didn't say anything. He just kept to himself, tasting the wine in the glass.

He didn't show any signs of anger, and didn't seem to hear what Clay was saying just now.

Clay looked at Kristen and waved his hand, indicating that he could go about his business.

Kerrison will gradually understand the things behind these things. As Clay's status continues to improve, the value of his bodyguard will also increase.

But now, he couldn't understand it for a while, and the next words were not suitable for him to listen to.

After Kristen left, Clay leaned back comfortably in the soft chair. This feeling was much more comfortable than bouncing around on the horse every day.

"Lord Clay, Edmure... although he is old enough, there is no suitable person to teach him. My brother indulges him too much."

This old sergeant wanted to say something for Edmure Tully when he came up.

He is a Tully after all.

"Well, it's adult time now, right?"

Clay smiled.

He picked out a good quality wine bottle from the side and threw it to Brynden Tully.

Heiyu took it and without even looking at the wine, he raised his head and took a sip for himself.

He wore a set of fine black armor with fish scales. In Clay's impression, he rarely took off this armor.

"You know, Lord Clay, I think you are very strange. You always give me a strange feeling of strangeness."

Clay glanced at him, then looked away, looking out the window again at the still falling snow.

"Oh? Sir Brynden, why do you think so?"

Now that he had said that, Clay couldn't help but answer. He knew that this old guy must have something to say to him.

"Maybe you don't feel it yourself, but in the eyes of outsiders like us, you have risen too fast."

"I've spent some time learning a few things about you."

"Before the war even showed signs of war, you went to the Twins City, which was still ruled by the Frey family."

Hearing such a name, Clay tilted his head slightly. He already knew what Brynden Tully was going to say to him.

Sir Blackfish's words continued.

"In my opinion, that city is an obstacle that is difficult to overcome when you raise troops in the north."

"As a result, you, Clay Manderly, sneaked into the Twins City with some people. Then, all the Frey family died, and the Twins City came under the banner of your Mandalay family."

"If you say this, it has nothing to do with your previous trip to Twin River City. I don't believe it."

"Under this assumption, I discovered something interesting. How did you know that this battle was going to be fought?"

"Without this extremely sudden and perfect victory, you, Clay Mandler, would have been nothing but a member of the Northern Army, without any merit."

"Not to mention the war when you led your troops south for the first time."

Brynden Tully's tone was quite emotional. He was a witness to Clay's success, so he found it incredible.

From a small heir to the Mandalay family, he is now a general commanding an army with a large number of troops and overwhelming the nobles.

It only took two years.

too fast.

Incomprehensibly fast.

Maybe it seems reasonable when viewed alone, but when compared with other aristocratic young people, there is a problem.

Clay just nodded to Brynden Tully's words.

He did these things and there is no need for him to deny them.

As for what happened in the Twins, there is no proof. If Aenys Frey hadn't made a mistake and bumped into him, Frey would not have perished so quickly.

If you seek death yourself, who can you blame?

It's just going along with the flow.

Clay understood the meaning behind what Brynden Tully told him.

This is telling myself that I have risen too fast and my foundation is unstable.

This time Edmure Tully was doing something behind Clay's back, and Brynden was not in a hurry, it was just a lie.

He knew exactly what people who came off the battlefield thought as he had experienced many wars.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be sitting here, delivering words to Clay in a roundabout way.

Now Edmure Tully no longer has any military power. His last honor and pride is the empty title of Duke of the Riverlands.

What we can do is to make some stumbling blocks on things like logistics.

Clay has too many ways to deal with Edmure Tully.

Although Clay is from the North, no matter what he does, he will not usurp the Tully family's position as guardian of the riverlands.

However, if Clay bullies Edmure Tully too harshly, the reputation of the entire Tully family will be tarnished.

Lord Tywin's father, known as the "Laughing Lion", was a weak and incompetent Lannister.

When he was the Lord Protector of the West, Lannister fell to the point where anyone could bully him in a short period of time.

If Tywin Lannister hadn't used thunderous means to create the famous "Casmet's Rains" after he came to power, Lannister would still be the Guardian Duke.

Weakness is original sin, but strength has no taboos.

This is what Brynden Tully is worried about. The more powerful the Clay is, the less he takes Edmure Tully seriously, and the less respected the Tully family will be.

What is happening now is the result of Clay firmly holding on to the military power, while being left to indulge Edmure Tully and let him do whatever he wants.

And the nobles are all human beings.

In himself, Sir Brynden knew very well that his nephew's ability was indeed beyond words.

But he is unwilling to be a mascot from behind and wants to continue to prove himself.

However, it turned out that he couldn't do it.

What troubles Ser Brynden Tully the most is that there are people like Tytos Blackwood who clearly have the opportunity to guide Edmure Tully.

However, these nobles just watched from the sidelines, watching Edmure Tully make mistakes again and again.

What kind of thoughts are behind this, I am afraid only Edmure Tully is still in the dark.

As Edmure Tully's uncle, Brynden certainly didn't want this to happen.

This time Edmure Tully was stupid again and dared to mess with the logistics of Clay's army.

The old guy immediately had a premonition that something was not going to happen, so as soon as Clay settled down, he immediately sat down with him.

"Ser Brynden, you don't have to think too much, Lord Edmure... I won't interfere with him too much. As for now, it's a time of war. It's a matter of life and death. It's just a matter of expediency."

Clay glanced at Brynden Tully, waved his hand, and sounded helpless.

"Hey, Lord Clay, I'm afraid to hear you say that. The more you indulge him, the more he will do more despicable things."

Brynden Tully sighed, his tone a little sad.

In this generation of the Tully family, the only male direct descendant is Edmure Tully.

It has to be him if it's not him, but that's what he looks like.

We are not afraid of people being stupid, but we are afraid of people not listening to advice.

If people always live in their own fantasy world, then there is really nothing anyone can do about it.

"Lord Brynden, I want to remind you."

Of course Clay knew what Sir Blackfish was talking about. He pointed at the center of his eyebrows and his voice became colder.

"I don't have the surname Tully, so I have no obligation to teach Edmure Tully cleverness."

He originally wanted to say that I am not Edmure's biological father, but after thinking about it, it was not appropriate to say so, so he saved the sentence.

"He can't even handle his own vassals, so what else can he do?"

"Not to mention the distant past, just the three hundred years of the Targaryen dynasty that you and I have known."

"There are many examples of people who are not very good at fighting, but who know how to use their hands to win the war in the end."

"Edmure Tully is a worm on the battlefield. This is not a fatal problem. As long as he can take care of himself, sort out the riverlands, and act as a dragon in internal affairs, it is enough."

"But, Ser Brynden, you know exactly what Edmure Tully did."

Clay didn't want to mention these nonsense at first, but now that the words were said, he had nothing to hesitate about.

"The Vance whose head I beheaded, I later found out after asking Tytos Blackwood that it was Edmure Tully who had slipped in."

"Your good nephew patted his chest and ensured that this person was qualified. Tytos Blackwood could not disobey the prince's wishes, so he had to comply."

Clay didn't want to delve into the role played by the Earl of Crowtree City in this matter, because it was unnecessary.

"You were there during this battle. You know very well that he couldn't even tell the direction of the battlefield that was more than ten miles wide."

"Later, I found out that this person had no battlefield experience at all."

"It's just that his surname is Vance, and he's friends with Edmure Tully."

"Your good nephew wants to add his own men to the army."

"I would like to ask Lord Brynden now, just because of your nephew's stupidity and self-righteousness, you in the riverlands lost nearly a thousand valuable and expensive cavalry. How many times are you willing to pay this price?"

"I can tell you clearly that such tuition is too expensive. I can't afford it, nor can I pay it."

Clay's palm tapped lightly on the table. Although the sound was not loud, it made Brynden Tully open his mouth and was unable to say a word.

"You, the Tully family, have a big business. I don't care if you want him to ruin the family. But my Mandalay family, a small family, doesn't have the ability."

"It's not that I don't teach him. I just want him to calm down a little, see with his eyes, and think for himself. It's not difficult."

"Instead of claiming to be a genius and being stubborn!"

He rarely spoke so much, but this time, what Edmure Tully had done disgusted him.

From his point of view, the Riverlands do need a weak master, but being weak does not mean messing around.

There are still a lot of enemies, and the north cannot be in chaos just yet.

Clay shut his mouth. He had said everything he needed to say. As for how much Brynden Tully would say to Edmure, that was not what he cared about.

Coming to the north and fighting a wiping battle was just to protect the interests of the north and the Mandalay family from being harmed.

When his side is stable, he will no longer be this thankless so-called commander-in-chief.

He never wanted any bullshit honors. When he came with the dragon, the enemy was reduced to ashes and the others knelt in the dust.

Until then, all glory belongs to itself.

In other words, on top of the crown on his head.

Family members, I’m not feeling well today. It’s 4,600 words today. It’s impossible for me to gurgling. Please allow me to slow down and continue tomorrow.