Chapter 325 The Great Famine in King’s Landing

"Your Majesty, we may have to leave King's Landing."

These are the words Davos Seaworth, the Onion Knight, told Stannis seven days ago.

At that time, Stannis loudly rebuked this loyal subordinate and ordered him to go out to collect food for himself.

But now, the Baratheon king knew how wrong he was.

In troubled times, loyal words are hard to hear, but he has no ability to distinguish between loyal and traitorous people.

Now, being stuck on the Iron Throne with no way to get out was the result of listening to the slander.

Standing at the highest point of the Red Fort, looking at the dark mass of human heads outside, his expressionless face was now as cold as a stone.

The king on the Iron Throne was actually besieged in his palace by the people of his capital.

Is this really the most ironic scene in Westeros in the past thousand years?

In fact, Stannis does not know that there are actually very complicated secret passages in the Red Keep of King's Landing.

Some of the exits of these secret passages are actually outside King's Landing.

However, after Varys, the eight-clawed spider who mastered these secret passages, escaped from King's Landing, these secrets were hidden.

Every Targaryen king knew these things, and so did Varys, as Aerys Targaryen's chief intelligence officer.

However, Robert Baratheon, who did not inherit normally, lost this inheritance.

And his brother, Stannis Baratheon, who now sits on the Iron Throne, naturally doesn't know either.

I thought that with Renly's retirement, my throne would be more stable for the time being.

But Stannis never expected that after Renly's army left King's Landing, the order originally maintained by military violence would also collapse in an instant.

The goldcloaks all took off their armor after the war and refused to serve Stannis.

It's not that they have any noble sentiments, but they know very well that doing this job at this time is simply risking their own lives.

Originally, after all the gates of King's Landing were opened, the hungry civilians of King's Landing immediately poured out.

It finally relieved the population pressure in King's Landing.

But don't forget, it is late autumn now, the temperature is abnormal, and fine and dense snowflakes have begun to appear on the land of the king's territory.

These people who stayed in the capital escaped like this, and actually had no means of making a living at all.

Facing the wilderness, they couldn't find much food to fill their hungry bellies.

And if you attack the village, you will encounter ruthless interception and killing by the royal nobles.

For nobles, protecting their territory is the first priority. Who cares whether you are from King's Landing or not?

Therefore, after coming and going, these people who escaped had no way to survive outside.

Coupled with the increasingly cold weather, these guys were forced to return to King's Landing.

What I brought back was a despair that suffocated everyone.

It is impossible to survive outside, and there is no food in the city, making it even more difficult to survive.

Although under the rigid feudal aristocratic system of Westeros, farmers rarely have the habit of rebellion.

However, in the face of the current situation, human beings' primitive survival instinct overwhelms their awe of anything.

So, I don’t know who lit the first fire. Stannis’s army, which had just taken over the gates of King’s Landing, was surrounded by countless hungry people pouring out of the streets and alleys of King’s Landing.

Don't forget, before the war, this city had the largest population among the seven countries, with a permanent population of several hundred thousand.

Even with the back and forth between the Lannister and Baratheon brothers, the population in this city is still staggering.

Stannis only has ten thousand men, and they have to be divided among several gates.

In other words, even if they were all divided, there would not even be a thousand people in a city gate.

No matter how well-equipped they were, they were still scared out of their wits when facing such a huge crowd.

Maybe it's a good thing that they resisted.

But they didn't.

And the result is that, up to now, none of these guys are complete.

In the face of hunger, it is really too much to ask for a human being to remain calm.

Almost immediately after this incident, news came from someone who didn't know where it came from, saying that the royal palace, the Red Keep on Aegon's High Hill, contained food that could feed the entire King's Landing.

So, the extremely hungry people chose to believe this rumor.

Afterwards, Stannis, who was still trying to find a way to contact other princes in the Stormlands and the King's Territory, was caught off guard by these mobs and blocked him directly in the Red Keep.

He didn't even have time to escape.

At this time, the Stag King, who was bent on restoring his Baratheon Kingdom, realized the crisis in front of him.

Although his staff, "Onion Knight" Davos Seaworth, had reminded him many times.

At this point, Stannis has no choice. He has been forced to stay in the Red Keep.

He doesn't have a dragon, so he can't fly out, and the Wang family's fleet can't land. Fortunately, the walls of the Red Keep are high and thick enough, and the terrain is difficult. It is unrealistic to expect the rebels in King's Landing to take down the city.

But this situation is actually very unfavorable to Stannis.

Obviously, this is a devastating blow to a king's reputation.

To outsiders, what kind of cruel king is this to let the residents of his capital besiege his monarch just for a bite to eat?

And now, Stannis, who himself lacks support, is the last person to accept that his reputation has been damaged.

He fought hard to use Clay Manderly's victory in the north, and finally became the final winner of the Battle of the Three Kings around King's Landing.

Originally, he thought that relying on the "righteous" title of the Iron Throne, he could slowly win over more royal nobles and former Stormlands ministers, and then complete the counterattack against Renly, thereby stabilizing his own throne.

But he didn't expect that he himself couldn't even leave King's Landing City now.

With no other choice, Stannis could only rage with impotence.

He sent "Onion Knight" Davos Seaworth to try to go out and explain to the mob, but it was to no avail.

The mob believed that there was a large amount of food in the Red Castle. Unless the king opened the gate of the castle and let them go in and see for themselves, they would not believe a word of the "Onion Knight" at all.

Looking at those pairs of green eyes, the "Onion Knight" didn't dare to open the city gate at all.

These guys have already eaten many people on their side. If they add another one, will they create the first king in the entire history of Westeros to be eaten by his people?

Negotiations failed, and the "Onion Knight" could only choose to go back.

Just like that, he almost didn't come back.

…

"Everyone, we need an effective plan now."

Sitting on the high throne, Stannis spoke coldly, his eyes without warmth scanning the nobles who came to attend the meeting.

A lot of people came. In addition to the military nobles who had entered King's Landing with Stannis before, during the riots in King's Landing, some nobles who had been living in the capital also fled into the Red Keep.

Now, forced to board Stannis's ship, they must come to the throne room and find a way to advise the king.

The hungry people outside have not yet cleaned the fleshy foam from their teeth.

The nobles don't want to be the latest ration.

The king spoke, wanting a solution to the problem.

But what responded to him was the deathly silence in the throne room.

Everyone, you look at me, I look at you, no one says anything.

Quite simply, there is no possibility of a peaceful solution to this situation.

Without food, the hungry people outside refused to communicate.

But this time, there was no food left in the landowner's house, so Stannis entered the throne room in a hurry.

During the subsequent tug-of-war, he didn't bring in much food.

It is definitely not enough to feed the large group of people outside.

Moreover, if they hand over this food, they can get out of trouble?

Sorry, this is not possible.

Everyone knows that as long as they can accomplish this kind of thing once, they will be regarded as long-term meal tickets by the hungry people outside, and it will be impossible for them to leave.

"Your Majesty, we might be able to contact Renly. Well...after all, there is always no shortage of food in the Reach."

Someone made a suggestion.

At this glance, it seems that he is a guy who doesn't even understand the current situation.

They don't even know that Renly has parted ways with the Tyrells and has completely returned to confrontation.

Stannis sighed, pretending not to hear him.

If things were to go by in the past, he would never have allowed such a stupid person to be under his command.

However, in this extraordinary period, every person who insisted on coming to his side gave Stannis great comfort.

He was still reluctant to expel them.

Stannis would feel better with one more person.

"Your Majesty... My suggestion is to give up the throne and fight out directly. Clay Manderly in the north has not yet taken action against our fleet."

The person who said this was the Earl of Tidal Head Island, Montford Velaryon.

This person, when thinking about problems, needs to be more lively.

In his view, the current King's Landing no longer has any ruling value at all.

To be honest, in this current situation, who dares to come?

Previously, Renly Baratheon's 100,000-strong army could not control the outer city, let alone Stannis, who had already suffered heavy losses.

Continuing to stay here will only make things worse, and eventually people like them will be completely buried at the hands of civilians.

Rather than this, it is better to kill out now.

Use the army while it's still available.

In fact, Montford Velaryon knew what Stannis was thinking.

This king who lost his heir actually knew very well that there was a high probability that he would not be able to have the last laugh.

Therefore, now, he is extremely nostalgic for this uncomfortable iron chair under his butt.

If you leave once, you may never come back.

Of course Stannis knows that leaving now is the best solution.

But he never took the initiative to propose this plan because he couldn't convince himself.

But now, Montford Velaryon couldn't stand it anymore.

If this continues, everyone will be doomed together.

As Stannis's number one supporter, Tidehead Island's interests are deeply tied to Dragonstone.

There are some words that Monford feels he can only say by himself.

"His Majesty!"

Seeing that Stannis and others were focusing on him, the Earl of Shithead Island decided to say everything he wanted to say in one breath.

"We only have so many troops. If you want to win the throne in the end, you must not be trapped by this chair!"

"No offense to your majesty, but Renly's hundred thousand men cannot face these hungry people."

"No matter how powerful our army is, there is no way we can hold the throne in this situation."

"Your Majesty, let's break out. The fleet is still there. Let's go back to Dragonstone first and make plans in advance."

"This is no longer a place for kings."

After saying this, you could hear a needle drop in the throne room.

Everyone had different expressions, and it was clear that they had different opinions on Montford Velaryon's suggestion.

"Your Majesty, this is not possible. The Iron Throne is the symbol of the king. How can any king give up his throne?"

Some nobles objected.

Received the approval of a large number of King's Landing nobles.

For these guys, everything they have is rooted in King's Landing.

Renly doesn't want it, and Tywin doesn't want it. What will they do if Stannis runs away again.

These people are the type who can only survive by being attached to the royal power.

Without royal power, they are nothing.

Stannis remained expressionless.

He actually knew that Montford was right, but this decision was too difficult in his heart.

He had spent so much effort to take the throne away, and now he was going to hand it over to a mob.

Stannis really couldn't accept it in his heart.

"Davos, how many days do we have enough food for?"

Stannis made no comment on Montford Velaryon's proposal.

He turned around and asked his henchman "Onion Knight".

As the steward of the entire Stannis camp, the "Onion Knight" certainly knows the answer to this question.

"We still have a week's worth of food, Your Majesty."

After saluting the king on the high platform, Davos Seaworth replied.

Although he knew it well, Stannis still sighed inwardly when he heard this answer.

Too little, really too little!

They came in in a hurry, and although the passages to the Mud Gate and the Red Keep were not captured by Renly's army, they were quickly defeated by the mob after the riot.

From that moment on, the Royal Fleet was unable to transport a grain of food into the Red Castle.

After holding on until now, it's time to make a decision.

After all, he was the hero of one side, and Stannis quickly regained his composure.

After slapping himself in the face countless times, Stannis spoke:

"Gentlemen, I agree with Lord Montford Velaryon's suggestion."

"Since King's Landing can no longer help us in our war, let's leave here."

“No objections will be entertained, so be it.”

Stannis's words immediately sealed the deal.

When the nobles of King's Landing saw this scene, they turned around and left the throne room without talking nonsense.

Stannis decided to break out, so they had to prepare early.

Either follow along, or find a way to survive after the mob enters the Red Keep.

They need to discuss it carefully.

The nobles who followed Stannis paid no attention to these people.

These people can't be of much help anyway.

"Monford."

Stannis named the Lord of Tideshead.

"His Majesty!"

The latter perked up and immediately straightened his stance.

"Since you made the suggestion, then you will be the pioneer."

"I'll give you three thousand men. We must kill those insurgents. Let's get out of the city through the Mud Gate!"

Now that he had decided to leave, Stannis no longer hesitated and made a big move.

Don't look at the small number of three thousand people. If you notice the total number of people Stannis has now.

These three thousand people can be regarded as Stannis's absolute main force.

Montford Velaryon immediately said loudly:

"Yes, Your Majesty! I will prepare now!"

After saying that, he strode out directly.

It takes time to assemble the troops and select the most elite assaulters.

Although, there is a mob outside, whose weapons may be wooden sticks.

But there were too many of them.

This is nothing else. The royal family can find ways to divide and disintegrate.

There is nothing to eat, and even if you talk about flowers, it will be of no use.

The only way to communicate is with the long sword.

When the other nobles had left, Stannis was once again alone in the throne room.

The king sighed, stroking the cold throne with his palms.

I really made the decision to leave, but my heart was empty and I always wanted to say something to someone.

But damn, Stannis didn't know who he was talking to.

Kings are lonely, especially one like him.

After thinking for a long time, Stannis knew who he wanted to talk to.

"Guard, go and bring that Lannister here to me."

Stannis shouted toward the door.

When the soldiers outside heard the news, they opened the door and came in to confirm with the king, and then left in a hurry.

Not long after, there was a clattering sound, and Tyrion Lannister, swaying in a pair of heavy shackles, was escorted over by the guards.

In fact, this was completely unnecessary for the guards. With Tyrion's small body, unless he was holding something similar to a crossbow, Stannis could kill him with his eyes closed.

"Your Majesty, Lannister has arrived."

The guard handed Stannis the key and bowed out.

When the door closed again, the throne room became quiet again.

Tyrion could no longer bear the weight of the shackles used by normal people and sat down on the cold floor to rest early.

Stannis looked at this guy who had no consciousness of being a prisoner at all, and said in an indifferent tone:

"Lannister, this is my palace."

Tyrion didn't even raise his head and said perfunctorily:

"Yes, yes, it's yours, Baratheon."

Before, Stannis did not strictly restrict Tyrion Lannister's freedom, so Tyrion knew exactly what the current situation was.

"Dwarf, we are ready to leave here now. I am going to tie you to the Iron Throne and let the mob outside press you on this chair and eat you alive."

Stannis continued.

Tyrion Lannister's legs were cramped by the shackles. He simply lay down on the ground, glanced at Stannis sideways, and sneered:

"Really? Then can I choose a pose I like?"

He didn't believe that Stannis would do this at all, because such a person would not say hello to him if he wanted to do this.

Shaking his head, Stannis said nothing.

This is a unique way for two people to communicate.

After a while, Tyrion Lannister raised his hand and asked:

"Hey, Baratheon, can you untie this thing for a Lannister? By the Seven, it's heavier than the girls in Littlefinger's ward weighed on me."

Stannis still said nothing, but he took out the key from his waist and threw it accurately beside Tyrion Lannister.

Panting heavily, he struggled to loosen the shackles on his body. Tyrion Lannister was like a fish returning to the water, and he was back to life.

After resting for a while and regaining his strength, he walked towards the Iron Throne.

Stannis wasn't worried about what this guy might do.

During this year, Stannis spent time with Tywin's second son, and was surprised to find that this guy known as the "little devil" was actually the only good person among the Lannister.

"Well, damn, it looks like my leg is broken."

Sitting down on the steps of Stannis's throne, Tyrion Lannister rubbed his swollen legs and complained softly.

Stannis fell on deaf ears and repeated what he had just said.

"Seriously, dwarf, I do want to leave here, but it is to break out. I will give you a chance to choose. Fight out with me, and then go wherever you like. Otherwise, hide in this cesspool and destroy yourself." Choking to death."

Tyrion raised his head, looked at Stannis who was still expressionless, frowned and said:

"Are things that bad?"

Stannis ignored this and continued:

"Give me your choice, dwarf."

Tyrion shrugged his shoulders very bachelorly:

"I choose to break out with you."

"Then what? Where to go?"

Perhaps he had already thought about this issue, but Tyrion Lannister did not hesitate at all. He said:

"I'll go back north and find Clay Mandler."

As if not surprised by the answer, Stannis nodded, and after a while, he asked Tyrion:

"Tell me what you think?"

The little devil changed into a comfortable position, touched the messy hair hanging in front of his eyes, and sneered:

"You think I have somewhere to go?"

"You know how I got here. As long as my "respected" father doesn't die, I will never return to Casterly Rock City."

"Then, I go to your brother Renly's place? What to do? To be his court jester?"

"Sorry, my sore arms may not even be able to lift the wine bottle."

"Then there's Dorne. Gee, I don't want to wake up one morning and find that my dick has been bitten off by a Dornish scorpion."

Although he is short in stature, he has the air of commanding the country.

"I know it's useless for you to keep me. You have some conscience."

"So, I have no choice but to go north to see our Majesty Clay Manderly and see if he needs a poor Lannister there. I hope he doesn't hand me over to the Mad King's daughter."

Stannis listened in silence and said nothing.

In fact, he called Tyrion Lannister here today just to let him go.

Don't talk about bargaining chips or not. Tywin Lannister himself doesn't want this son anymore, and there is no use staying with him.

I don't know how long the retreat will last.

With this kid's size, he might fall off his horse and feed the stray dogs at some point.

Rather than killing him, it would be better to let him go.

Moreover, Stannis knew that this was a capable and kind-hearted alien.

It seems that his daughter Celine is also in the hands of Clay Manderly and Daenerys.

I hope that through this Tyrion Lannister, I can make the other side not treat my daughter less harshly.

Stannis thought so.

Then, he stood up from the Iron Throne for the last time and left the empty throne room without looking back.