The confrontation at Castle Black this morning caused quite a stir. Although the accusing letter was intercepted by Aegor, paper cannot wrap fire, and this kind of news cannot be completely hidden from the Lord of the North. He will find out sooner or later. What Aegor needs to do now is seize the initiative and make sure Robb Stark hears about it from him first. By preempting his perception, he can ensure that the subsequent developments of this matter will be beneficial to him, or at least harmless.

Aegor had just personally experienced the power of “first impressions.” He wanted to strike while the iron was hot and exploit this weakness in human nature.

They slowly ascended the steps along the well wall back to the surface. Robb instructed the Flint men to cover the wellhead and set guards, then left the old kitchen and began inspecting the houses and tents in the Nightfort filled with the mountain clans.

Since everything had been arranged beforehand, the castle was naturally prepared in the same way as Crown Town during its inspection.

It was just as prosperous and orderly, but compared to the “Capital of the Gift” and the headquarters of the Logistics Department, the Nightfort’s newly built walls, towering spires, omnipresent guards, and sentries every few steps along the Wall… all gave this ancient fortress, brought back to life, an additional sense of heavy vigilance.

It looks somewhat like guarding the Wall itself, Robb thought to himself. He did not say it aloud, but he secretly approved of it in his heart.

Aegor was not idle either. As they walked, he briefly reported to the Lord of the North about the incident that had just occurred at Castle Black.

According to him, the instigator was not Jaime Lannister acting without authorization, but a small faction within the Night’s Watch who were stubborn and resented the people of the New Gift. To achieve their goal of driving away the Free Folk, they even planned to murder the former King-Beyond-the-Wall, create an uproar, and force the Free Folk, who were gradually integrating into the Gift, to rebel.

Fortunately, the conspiracy of these ill-intentioned people was thwarted before it could succeed. Several high-ranking officers and Maester Aemon came forward with men in time to stop their violence.

—

Aside from admitting that “a small conflict occurred within the Night’s Watch at Castle Black this morning,” the story Aegor told removed nearly all information that could be detrimental to him.

He first cleverly changed the cause and effect of the incident, pushing responsibility onto the extreme conservatives who opposed the Gift resettlement plan. At the same time, he did not mention the identities of those involved, only saying it was “a small group who disagreed with the majority of the Night’s Watch brothers,” so as to prevent Robb’s personal impressions of specific individuals from influencing his view of the matter itself. Obviously, between Kingslayer Jaime Lannister and the Commander of Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, Yohn Royce, who was both a former ally and an elder, Robb, as a typical Stark, would naturally favor the latter. Finally, he also praised the three Chiefs and Maester Aemon, who in reality had only stepped forward reluctantly at the last moment to smooth things over. Aegor did not want to push the neutral parties or “moderate conservatives” completely to the opposing side. If he described everyone who disagreed with him as bad, he himself would not be able to escape the suspicion of “slandering and framing colleagues.”

The same matter, with a change in how it is told, can completely alter the listener’s perception. After hearing Aegor’s account, Robb Stark’s brows were already furrowed. “How can they be so reckless? They have no regard for the stability of the Wall and the Gift! Have the troublemakers been captured? Who are they?”

“They were mainly a few brothers from Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. Since they were discovered in time, their conspiracy failed. They only managed to cause a disturbance under the tower where Mance Rayder’s family lives. No one was hurt. As you know, many men of the Night’s Watch wear black because they were criminals. Aside from military law, no other institution or department is responsible for punishing members of the Watch who make mistakes. We cannot arrest our sworn brothers for a crime not yet committed and weaken the Watch’s defensive strength. We can only try to prevent such things,” Aegor said, with a tone that carried a hint of suggestion. “Here, I would like to request to move Mance Rayder’s family to Crown Town to prevent them from being harmed by impulsive brothers.”

“Shouldn’t this sort of thing be decided internally by the Night’s Watch? Why apply to me, an outsider?”

“Confining Mance Rayder’s family to Castle Black was the order of Commander Mormont. A new Lord Commander has not yet been chosen. We need someone who is both neutral and commands respect to arbitrate.”

Robb was at that moment being pestered by Arya, who was asking about what was at the bottom of the well. Hearing this, he nodded without much hesitation. “If changing their location can ensure their safety, then let’s do that. At this critical moment, the stability of the Gift and the Wall must be unconditionally prioritized.”

“Of course,” Aegor nodded. “In that case, I will send messages back to Castle Black and Crown Town, instructing them to begin the transfer at once.”

“Mhm.”

Robb’s expression was serious, but Aegor smiled lightly in his heart. With just a few words, without any effort, “transferring Mance Rayder’s family” had been transformed from his backup emergency measure, an originally irregular unauthorized action, into a stability-maintenance measure officially endorsed even by the Lord of the North.

Although in truth he had acted first and reported later, and Jaime Lannister might already be close to escorting them to their destination by now. But in this backward world without instant communication, for events happening in two places dozens of miles apart… with the raven communication between the numerous castles on the Wall under his control, who could clearly explain the exact order and cause of events that happened within a single day if it came down to an argument later?

After finishing their tour of the Nightfort and looking at the snow atop the Wall, the sky over the northernmost reaches of the Seven Kingdoms darkened. Robb, tired of the cold wind, waved his hand and dismissed everyone. The Flint men began arranging dinner and accommodations for the northern guests, while Aegor, after a day of travel, finally found time to handle the more important matters that he had not yet addressed.

Besides the accusing letter from Castle Black, which had been handed to him upon arrival and was immediately burned, there were also several letters from Crown Town and other newly activated castles. These were not urgent but could not be ignored and needed to be opened and dealt with.

They were all trivial matters concerning food supplies, price adjustments, and the next phase of construction for the Logistics Department headquarters. Although troublesome, his two capable subordinates in Crown Town had attached alternative solutions for all the issues. Aegor only needed to review them and decide which plan to adopt, which would take less than half an hour. Therefore, he first received a Night’s Watch Industry employee who had hurried from Crown Town and had been waiting in the hall for a while.

“Thank you for your trouble.” Good news would not arrive in such haste. Aegor felt uneasy and asked with apprehension, “What is so urgent that it could not be said in a letter and required you to rush here in person?”

“It is not that it could not be said in a letter, my lord, but Yam’s letter to you this morning used the last raven flying to the Nightfort. This news only arrived from Eastwatch-by-the-Sea this afternoon. We are not sure when the raven will return, but this matter cannot be delayed, so I changed horses several times and galloped all afternoon to report to you in person.”

“I see.” Aegor nodded. “What matter cannot be delayed?”

“The delegation from Braavos has arrived by ship at Eastwatch-by-the-Sea and will soon be stationed at Castle Black and Crown Town to supervise us as we guard the Wall. Their leader informed us that the first batch of grain ships is following closely behind their fast ship and will arrive within days. He requires either the Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch or the Chief Logistics Officer to personally go to the port to receive the loan grain.”

…

So that was it. The listener breathed a sigh of relief. It was not bad news after all.

By decisively sending troops south to assist the North in driving out the Ironborn, the Gift resettlement plan had continued precariously, sustained by the grain support from the northern lords as a thank-you gift, barely avoiding collapse, and finally enduring until support from across the Narrow Sea arrived.

When the Night’s Watch Industry was mortgaged to the Iron Bank in exchange for a one-hundred-thousand-gold-dragon loan, the contract had been signed by both Jeor Mormont and himself. Now the other party was requiring the signatories to be responsible for receiving the goods. It was perfectly logical.

Unfortunately, Jeor Mormont had died unexpectedly, and he himself was busy both receiving the inspection tour from the North and trying to win the election for Lord Commander. How could he possibly spare the time to personally receive the grain?

With a wry smile, Aegor began considering someone who could go in his place. But a few seconds later, his body stiffened, and he suddenly realized his focus was wrong. Not having time to go himself was not the biggest problem. The most troublesome part was that the Night’s Watch only had one port, Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, capable of receiving grain shipments from across the sea, and the Commander of that coastal fortress, for various reasons, was now his opponent.

Of course he knew that Eastwatch-by-the-Sea was the only port controlled by the Night’s Watch, but when he had represented the Night’s Watch in negotiating loans and grain purchases with the Iron Bank, how could he have anticipated Jeor Mormont’s accidental death? And when he had rushed back to Castle Black not long ago to furiously berate the two Commanders and offend them, it was already a critical moment. Where would he have had time to consider the future?

At the time, it had felt good to vent his anger, but offending people always comes with consequences. At least now, the backlash Aegor should face had arrived.

“Damn it…” Aegor’s expression gradually changed from relief to solemn. He slammed the table. “Grain is good, but it has come at the worst possible time!”

At Castle Black, he had indeed made Cotter Pyke suffer several setbacks and gained the upper hand. While the difference in cunning and calculation was certainly a major factor, the fact that the other party had left his “home ground” and lacked sufficient manpower and resources was also key. And this morning, Jaime had publicly—and not figuratively—slapped his face at Castle Black. In such a situation where he was completely unable to retaliate, this Commander would very likely choose to return to his home turf. And once Cotter Pyke returns to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea at this critical juncture, and just happens to encounter the Braavosi grain ships arriving and requesting entry into the port, what will he do?

Will he repay grievance with virtue and cooperate with receiving the grain, disregarding past grudges, or will he play tricks to cause trouble for Aegor?

Anyone could figure it out without much thought.

The first batch of Grey Area Citizens recruits has completed training and sworn their vows to the Night’s Watch. Their votes have secured Aegor’s victory. After the second batch of recruits completes training, his votes are expected to approach two-thirds. Even by the most conservative estimate, the third batch of recruits will ensure his victory with an unstoppable advantage. This entire process will take at most one month.

The grain in Crown Town is more than enough to last a month. In other words, with the North as a backer, Aegor is not afraid of the Braavosi loan grain arriving late. What he fears is that the grain ships will arrive at Eastwatch-by-the-Sea just before he is elected Lord Commander, and then be seized by Cotter Pyke and turned into a means of retaliation against him. Simply refusing the grain ships entry into the port would not be too bad. What he fears is that the ships will be allowed into the port, and then some “accident” will occur, burning them to ashes. That would be truly disastrous.

How could it be such a coincidence? Aegor thought irritably. But complaining is the behavior of the weak. What the strong must do is control the situation even when things happen to be this coincidental.

…

“Can the grain ships be notified to delay for a while and unload the grain after the Lord Commander has been elected?”

The messenger clearly did not understand why this was necessary, but he still thought carefully for a few seconds. “That might not be a good idea. I heard there are several ships, and they are all large… Having them wait, with the ships and the crews, would cost dozens of gold dragons a day, right?”

“The cost of waiting will be borne by the Night’s Watch Industry,” Aegor said through gritted teeth. He did have money, but the Night’s Watch Industry had to support the enormous undertaking of the Gift resettlement plan and also build Crown Town. The leaves on this money tree had almost all been picked. Perhaps this time he would have to find a way to ask Tyrion, far away in the Westerlands, for some money to get through this difficulty.

But the Westerlands were also riddled with holes from the fighting and were undergoing postwar reconstruction…

“No, wait,” the reporting soldier interrupted Aegor’s thoughts with a frown. “The most crucial thing doesn’t seem to be money. It is the weather and sea conditions… I heard the Iron Bank employee living in Crown Town say that the colder the weather, the more frequent and fierce the storms on the Narrow Sea become. To cross it, seven parts depend on the sky, two parts on the ship, and only the remaining one part is decided by people. For large-scale shipments like this, the fleet commanders will pay handsomely for experienced weather forecasters, choose a day to depart when there won’t be major storms for several days, sail at full speed throughout the journey, and pray to arrive before the weather changes. Reaching the destination is a blessing from the gods, but arriving and then drifting at sea without entering the port? I am afraid no captain would agree to that. No matter how much money, getting lost in the winter storms of the Narrow Sea or being buried at the bottom of the sea means no chance to enjoy it!”

(To be continued.)

***

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