Littlefinger continued, "Of course, there are also Renly and Stannis's armies. Combined, they have over fifty thousand men. Although they do not recognize Your Majesty's legitimacy, the Targaryens are everyone's enemy. They should deploy their troops."
"They?" Cersei narrowed her eyes and sneered. "Those two fools are busy fighting each other. Will they listen to King's Landing?"
Petyr smiled slightly. "That depends on what Your Majesty says. We can tell them that if King's Landing falls, no one will survive. The Targaryens will not spare anyone who has ever betrayed them. No matter how much Renly and Stannis fight, they should understand this much."
"Can this succeed?"
"I cannot guarantee it." Littlefinger spread his hands. "But we can try."
Cersei was silent for a moment. "Fine. Pycelle, go arrange for the ravens. Send letters to Renly and Stannis. As for my father's side, send a few more ravens there."
She paused and turned to Joffrey. "Your Majesty, do you have anything to say?" In front of outsiders, she always wanted to give her child some face, especially since Joffrey had already become King.
Joffrey only replied with a sour face, "Hmph, you've all already decided, so why ask me?" After saying that, he stood up and left directly. Joffrey was furious that all these ministers were reporting to his mother.
Just as Joffrey was leaving, a guard happened to walk in.
"Queen Regent." He knelt on one knee. "There is a letter for... for Sansa Stark."
Cersei frowned upon hearing this and asked, "Who sent it?"
"I don't know. The letter was hidden in a vegetable delivery cart. By the time Red Keep guards found it, the delivery person had already fled."
Cersei reached out. "Give it to me."
The guard stepped forward and handed over the letter. The letter was unsealed, and Cersei pulled out the parchment inside. After a glance, her expression changed.
The letter was short, only a few sentences: "Miss Stark, your sister Arya is still alive, in Valyria. She is well and safe. You will have a chance to meet in the future."
There was no signature or seal on it. Cersei stared at the letter, her mind racing.
Arya Stark is still alive? That missing wild girl actually went to Valyria? The Targaryens now have a Stark in their hands? This is not good news.
She looked around and handed the letter to Varys. "Lord Varys, take a look."
Varys took the letter and read it carefully. A gentle smile remained on his face, but a mysterious light flashed in his eyes.
"Interesting," he said softly. "Very interesting."
"What do you think of this letter?" Cersei asked.
Varys thought for a moment and said, "In my opinion, this letter is real. The person who wrote it either truly wants to help Miss Sansa or wants to use her to do something. But regardless, the matter of Arya Stark being in the Dragon King's hands should be true."
Cersei was silent for a while, then sneered.
"A Stark in the hands of the Targaryens," she said. "Do you think the Northerners know?"
"They probably don't know yet," Varys said. "If they knew..."
He didn't finish, but the meaning was clear.
The Northerners are currently fighting Tywin in the Westerlands, under the banner of avenging Eddard Stark and rescuing the Stark sisters. If they knew Eddard's younger daughter was in the hands of the Targaryens, what would they think? What would they do?
Cersei stood up. "Keep this letter safe. It might be useful later."
She handed the letter to Petyr. Petyr took it, looked at it, narrowed his eyes, and then said nothing, tucking it into his robe.
The meeting continued for a while longer, but there was no other substantial progress. Finally, Cersei adjourned the meeting, letting everyone go about their business.
After the ministers left, Cersei sat by the throne, looking at the empty hall. Only then did she feel the immense pressure, her hands gripping the armrests so tightly that her knuckles turned white.
She remembered the stories she had heard as a child in Casterly Rock. How the Targaryen dragons burned Harrenhal and how they conquered the Seven Kingdoms. She had listened to those stories with great interest back then, never thinking that one day she would become the "villain" in the story.
Jaime saw the change in Cersei's expression, walked behind her, and placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry," Jaime said. "Father will solve these problems."
Cersei did not look back. "Father? He is currently entangled with those Northerners at Harrenhal. By the time he returns, King's Landing will have long been burned to ashes." Cersei did have some brains and could see the reality, but only a little.
Jaime was silent for a while and said, "Then I will go find Father and tell him to come to King's Landing quickly."
Cersei finally turned her head and looked at Jaime. There were complex emotions in those green eyes—anger, helplessness, and a hint of exhaustion.
After a long time, Cersei stared at him and spoke solemnly, "Jaime, if I ordered you to do something, would you do it?"
Jaime looked at her, those green eyes identical to Cersei's. "You know I would."
Cersei nodded. "Good."
She didn't say what she wanted him to do, but Jaime read something from her eyes.
"Stay in King's Landing for now," she said. "I need you."
Jaime was taken aback for a moment, but still breathed a sigh of relief and nodded.
Then he accompanied Cersei back to her bedroom; they hadn't been intimate for many days. At the final moment, Cersei leaned against the window, her gaze falling outside.
In the distant sea, some black dots could be faintly seen. That was the Targaryen fleet, patrolling Blackwater Bay, as if admiring a prey that had already been trapped.
Because of Jaime's thrusting against her, Cersei involuntarily gripped the windowsill, so hard that her nails were almost sinking into the wood.
Targaryen. Viserys Targaryen.
She remembered the boy she had met once many years ago—thin, timid, always following behind the adults. No one took him seriously back then, considering him just an ordinary prince, including her; her gaze had been on Rhaegar at the time.
To her surprise, that boy had now become the Lannisters' greatest threat, actually returning with dragons.
She took a deep breath, suppressing the inexplicable fear in her heart.
"I will not lose," she said to herself. "I am Cersei Lannister, daughter of Casterly Rock, Queen Regent of the Seven Kingdoms. A Lannister always pays his debts."
"Hear Me Roar."
A sudden thrust made Cersei unable to hold back, and she spoke the last thought in her heart out loud.
"What? What did you just say?" Jaime, behind her, heard Cersei's words but didn't hear them clearly, so he asked.
"I said for you to hurry up." Cersei couldn't help but roll her eyes at him.
Because she had just thought of Rhaegar, she instantly felt that Jaime behind her seemed somewhat dull. Compared to Rhaegar, he was truly a country boy who had seen nothing of the world.
If she had married Rhaegar back then, perhaps none of these troublesome things would have happened, the Seven Kingdoms would be stable, and Rhaegar would have smoothly taken the iron throne. And she would now be a queen envied by every woman in the Seven Kingdoms, Cersei couldn't help but think.
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