"What about you? Aren't you coming to King's Landing?" Lynd turned to Margaery and asked.
"Do you think it's appropriate for me to go?" Margaery raised an eyebrow, displeased, and said.
It was no wonder Margaery was upset; she was originally engaged to Joffrey, but the engagement was broken, causing her to lose face completely. This led to her later engagement with Renly, and subsequently the title of 'Husband-Killing Witch.' The source of all her misfortune was the engagement to Joffrey, so how could she possibly be willing to attend the ceremony in King's Landing?
Lynd said with a regretful expression, "What a pity. I feel that many interesting things will happen in King's Landing this time. It would be a shame to miss them."
"Interesting things?" Margaery showed a thoughtful expression, then lifted her skirt and ran towards her room, saying, "Wait for me, I'll go change."
"Lord Lynd, do I have to go too?" Shireen asked timidly.
Lynd squatted down, stroked Shireen's head, and said, "Of course you do. You will be the Duke of Storm's End in the future, so of course you should meet the lords of the Seven Kingdoms."
Sansa also squatted down and said to Shireen, "Don't worry, Lord Lynd will protect us. Those bad people won't dare to do anything to us."
Shireen looked at Sansa, then turned her head and asked, "Lord Lynd, can I bring Patchface with me?"
"You can." Lynd nodded, looking at Patchface who was peeking from outside the door, and said.
Shireen no longer resisted and ran out joyfully, holding Patchface's hand, and went back to her room to get ready.
Sansa watched Shireen's retreating figure and murmured, "What a terrifying person. I never thought Shireen would become close to someone like that."
After Shireen was brought back to Summerhall Castle, Patchface was also brought along. His strange appearance and behavior made everyone feel extremely odd, even Margaery, who had seen many court jesters, couldn't stand him, let alone Sansa, who rarely saw court jesters.
Originally, Lynd planned to send Patchface to Black Hollow for Malora and his team to study the power of an ancient entity within Patchface. However, he soon discovered that the mysterious power within Patchface remained so stable entirely because of Shireen.
As soon as Patchface left Shireen, the mysterious power within him would gradually become agitated, so Lynd could only arrange for him and Shireen to be together.
However, this made Lynd's research easier, because when he needed to test the mysterious power within Patchface, he didn't need any particularly complex methods; he just needed to take Patchface away from Shireen.
"You go get ready too! We're leaving today." Lynd turned to Sansa and said.
"Yes, Lord Lynd." Although Sansa had a strong aversion to King's Landing, as it was the source of all her nightmares, she still endured the discomfort and responded calmly.
Lynd did not plan to ride a dragon to King's Landing this time. Instead, he chose to travel with a retinue along the Rose Road to King's Landing, like other noble lords of the Seven Kingdoms. However, among his retinue, there was a special group composed of Redemption Sisters and Silent Monks. Their mission was to bring Queen Mother Cersei back to the Redemption Sanctuary after the wedding.
It was unclear if it was a coincidence, but on their way to King's Landing, they encountered the Highgarden contingent at a small town where Tumbleton Avenue and Rose Road converged. The Highgarden contingent included not only Duke Mace and his wife and the Queen of Thorns, but also Allie Tyrell, who was acting as Margaery's stand-in.
Duke Mace and the others were surprised to encounter Lynd, but what was even more surprising was that they didn't know Margaery was with Lynd.
When they saw Margaery, dressed in knight's armor, remove her helmet and walk out from Lynd's retinue, they were all stunned.
It turned out that when Margaery came to Lynd, Margaery thought Lynd would notify Highgarden, and Lynd also thought Margaery would notify Highgarden. Both sides misunderstood, and neither notified Highgarden, which ultimately led Highgarden to believe Margaery was missing and they had been secretly searching for her.
While the family was reunited and shedding tears of joy, Duke Mace and his wife, the Queen of Thorns, and others began to look at Lynd with a strange expression. They seemed to have misunderstood something, especially when they heard Margaery state that she would continue to reside in Summerhall and not return to Highgarden. Their gazes at Lynd were like looking at a married man seducing an innocent maiden.
For this, Lynd had to explain the situation and ask Sansa to testify. He didn't want any misunderstandings to reach Nymeria.
Although Duke Mace and the others believed Lynd's explanation, they didn't fully believe it.
However, they did not force Margaery to return to Highgarden; instead, they thought it was good for Margaery to stay with Lynd.
They were well aware that although Highgarden was still nominally Lynd's liege lord, the power gap between them had become immense. For instance, in this war, Lynd did not deploy a single soldier, acting merely as an observer, yet he gained Storms End and Dragonstone after the war. Furthermore, various signs indicated that Winterfell would also come under his control due to Sansa.
Thus, the Stormlands, the Crownlands, and the North were almost all under his influence. Moreover, it was rumored recently that the fleet from Sunspear in Dorne had been incorporated into the Miracle Fleet, indicating that Dorne had also integrated into Lynd's sphere of influence. It was no exaggeration to say that if Lynd wanted to sit on the Iron Throne now, it would not be impossible.
Although the relationship between Highgarden and Summerhall had always been good, it was merely good. No matter how much Duke Mace looked down on Lynd's origins, he still hoped to foster a good relationship with Lynd, perhaps even a closer one.
Margaery's presence now perfectly filled this void. Even if she couldn't become Lynd's woman, working by Lynd's side was still very good. At the very least, she could be the first to know about Summerhall's actions, allowing Highgarden to prepare in advance.
Along the way, Lynd could sense the change in Highgarden's attitude, especially Duke Mace's, towards him. He guessed what Highgarden was planning, and he simply responded with a smile, giving Duke Mace and the others no concrete promises.
So, when their party arrived in King's Landing, Lynd earned the nickname "Mudfish" among Duke Mace's household when they chatted.
When the party arrived in King's Landing, Lord Tywin personally led people to the Godswood Gate to welcome them, with solemn and proper etiquette, leaving no room for fault.
Upon meeting, Lynd led Sansa and Shireen to Lord Tywin.
When Tywin saw Sansa and Shireen, no matter how composed and steady he was, he could hardly conceal a trace of apprehension. Nevertheless, he still greeted Sansa and Shireen with great propriety, showing no sign of animosity.
Compared to Sansa, who could barely hide her fear and hostility upon seeing Tywin, Shireen's demeanor was more composed, which surprised Tywin.
After entering the city, Lynd had his subordinates take their luggage to his official residence in the city, while he himself, along with Shireen and Sansa, went with Duke Mace to the Prime Minister's Tower in the Red Keep to attend a meeting of the Seven Kingdoms to discuss post-war affairs.
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