As noon approached, the red sun grew increasingly scorching.
While Greene was waiting for his next challenger, Steward Rosser hurried over.
"My lord, the next challenger insists on fighting you with a spear."
Greene's eyebrows twitched slightly as he asked, "From which family?"
"He is a member of the Klene Family, said to be the elder brother of the Klene swordsman you defeated yesterday."
Greene's brown eyes moved as he said, "For a swordsman's duel, if he insists on using a spear, he can, but it will cost more. Charge him 100 gold dragons."
Rosser nodded and then hurried away again.
… … … … … …
Not long after, a Klene spearman, who looked to be nearing thirty, walked onto the stage with a dark expression.
Standing opposite Greene, the Klene challenger pulled down his visor.
Woo woo woo ~~ The horn signaling the start of the match blew.
The Klene spearman, leveraging the length advantage of his spear, thrust it directly at Greene first.
Greene's longsword moved in his hand, and with a clang, he knocked the spear aside and charged forward.
Greene's movements were extremely swift; by the time his opponent reacted, he was already close.
With a thud, Greene's shoulder struck the Klene spearman's chest.
The Klene spearman immediately lost his balance and was about to fall backward.
With a bang, Greene raised the pommel of his longsword and slammed it hard into his opponent's visor.
After a muffled thud, the Klene spearman, whose visor was slightly deformed, lay motionless on the ground.
Greene said coldly, "Take him away!"
This was an honorable swordsman's duel, and he had to come up with a showy spear.
He just charged a little more for the challenge fee, and he dared to give Greene a dark look.
The magnanimous Greene, for the purity of the competition and even more for the honor of the swordsmen, would naturally end the battle swiftly and decisively.
No one valued honor more than Baron Green.
… … … … … …
Greene looked up at the sun and made a gesture.
Steward Rosser, receiving Greene's signal, immediately announced the end of the morning challenges.
As Greene stepped off the stage, he saw the three Tarly siblings.
Steward Rosser had already reported to Greene that the Tarly Family wanted to meet.
On the stage, Greene seemed invincible.
Off the stage, Greene's face was delicate and gentle, easily making people feel good about him.
Greene proactively placed his hand on his chest and bowed in greeting: "Good day, Lord Samwell Tarly."
Samwell, who was wide and fat and had a lot of beard, had a shy smile: "Good day, Baron Greene Kleber. This is my sister, Talla Tarly."
Talla Tarly, in the prime of her youth, had clear eyes and fair skin; her beauty was not striking but very enduring.
Greene looked at Talla Tarly and greeted her, "Good day, Miss Talla Tarly, your arrival adds a touch of brilliance here."
Talla Tarly's small face was slightly shy, and she slightly lifted her skirt, saying, "Good day, Baron Greene Kleber, thank you for your compliment."
Greene nodded slightly and turned his gaze to Samwell's brother: "Good day, Lord Dickon Tarly."
Dickon Tarly looked at Greene with sparkling eyes and bowed very properly: "Good day, Baron Greene Kleber, I admire you greatly!"
Greene's smile was humble, and he encouraged, "I believe you will also be an excellent swordsman in the future."
After completing the elaborate exchange of greetings, Greene invited the three Tarly siblings to have lunch together.
… … … …
… … … …
Red Keep, Maegor's Holdfast.
Early this morning, Queen Cersei had another big argument with King Robert.
At this moment, Queen Cersei's anger had subsided.
Queen Cersei held her wine glass, her brows furrowed, seemingly lost in thought.
She could no longer tolerate King Robert.
For Queen Cersei, King Robert's every indulgence was an insult to her.
Also, most importantly, her Joffrey had grown up.
Queen Cersei, who styled herself as the true heir of the Old Lion Tywin Lannister, wanted to prepare a foolproof plan like her father to get rid of the King Robert who disgusted her.
After calming down, and thinking for a long time, Queen Cersei still felt that there was no more reliable plan than having Jaime personally carry out the assassination.
It's best not to leave any evidence for such a matter!
Queen Cersei thought that Jaime's character was weak, and he liked to be indecisive, so convincing him would take a lot of time.
Her cousin Lancel was now King Robert's attendant… Queen Cersei curled her lips and drank the summer red in her glass in one gulp.
… … … …
… … … …
Red Keep, Prime Minister's Tower.
Master of Coin Petyr Baelish had moved his office to the Prime Minister's Tower to assist the ailing Duke Jon with kingdom affairs.
Petyr sat motionless at the table like a statue, only his gray-green eyes occasionally moving slightly.
Petyr was a person good at summarizing, and he now had to admit that Baron Green from Crab Claw Peninsula had given him a lesson in power play.
… … … … … …
The Vale, for Petyr, would sooner or later be his.
Petyr was now thinking about the issue of governance after acquiring the Vale.
Gold dragons might buy loyalty, but this loyalty was unreliable because it could turn around and stab you for more gold dragons.
Petyr often used gold dragons to bribe people he needed, so he deeply understood this point.
… … … … … …
Petyr's family was not a traditional military noble family, lacking those loyal and reliable vassal families who could fight, and also lacking troops who only recognized their own liege lord.
In Westeros, without this kind of family foundation, Petyr would find it difficult to control an army even if he had one; instead, it would be easy for opponents to bribe them.
Without the deterrence of an army, even if he obtained the Vale, he would be constrained everywhere by the Vale Nobles.
He would also have to be careful everywhere, because of conflicts of interest, of being assassinated by uncivilized nobles.
… … … … … …
This was not the outcome he wanted.
Petyr had specifically investigated in recent days that the animosity between Greene's forces and the Vale Nobles had accumulated for a long time and could be said to be almost irreconcilable.
Therefore, Greene, in dealing with the Vale Nobles, was to some extent a reliable natural ally.
Petyr was thinking that the location of Crab Claw Peninsula was just right, and he might be able to use Greene's army to checkmate the Vale Nobles.
With a checkmate, a certain balance could be achieved, and he would be able to control the situation.
In this way, Petyr would have enough time to deal with the disobedient Vale Nobles while gaining the loyalty of the Vale Nobles.
Finally, Petyr would leave behind only those Vale Nobles loyal to him, completely control the Vale, and become the true master of the Vale.
Petyr narrowed his eyes slightly; this was a large-scale transaction.
For this large-scale transaction, Petyr needed to precisely calculate Baron Green's needs and weaknesses.
Although their contact was short, Petyr believed that Greene's shrewdness was no less than his own.
Petyr felt he had to offer a condition that Greene could not refuse.