The Mountain of Ice and Fire

Chapter 414

(Update is late, and the word count isn't enough, three thousand words, sorry. Writing is slow, and editing is time-consuming.)

*

Afternoon, Hand's Tower, study.

The imp, reeking of alcohol, looked at his father, the Mountain's voice echoing in his mind: "Our father is an evil man, Tyrion Lannister. You know it in your heart, and I know it in mine."

It was ludicrous, a notorious villain of the Seven Kingdoms calling the man he referred to as his father an evil man. But Tyrion didn't find it funny; he could see the clarity in the Mountain's eyes. It felt like when he was staggering around the Wall, being mocked by all the Night's Watch, and the hundred-year-old, blind Maester Aemon Targaryen gazed into the void and said, "Tyrion Lannister, you are a giant."

Of course, the Night's Watchmen still roared with laughter, thinking Maester Aemon was mocking the imp, but the imp could feel the power, encouragement, and most sincere appreciation in Maester Aemon's words.

The people who laughed were too dull, but they didn't think they were dull!

At that time, the imp smiled with Maester Aemon. Tyrion was very embarrassed; he felt Maester Aemon had overrated him and quickly humbled himself, never daring to be presumptuous in front of the maester again, restraining much of his wildness.

When the Mountain said that, the imp could see the clarity in the Mountain's eyes. If Tyrion were to say that the Mountain might not be an extremely vicious person, no one would believe him; he would only be met with ridicule and humiliation. There was no doubt about it!

*

"Father, can I refuse to marry Sansa?" Tyrion asked, reeking of alcohol and shaking a wine glass in his hand. He had poured himself a glass as soon as he entered, his steps a bit unsteady, but he could still stand firm!

Tywin looked up sharply, staring at the imp. The imp looked directly into his father's eyes, clearly seeing the two famous golden flecks in his father's green eyes. The golden flecks in the Duke's eyes were believed to be a symbol of golden wealth.

"I just went to the Maidenvault. Sansa is still a child."

Duke Tywin continued to stare at the imp, without saying a word.

This made the imp feel a lot of pressure; he used drunkenness to alleviate the oppressive gaze of his father.

"Looking into Sansa's little girl eyes, I think I'd rather go find a whore." He drank the good wine in his glass in one gulp, and because he was too hasty, some of the wine spilled and soaked his chest.

The imp did not easily agree to do as the Mountain asked, but the Mountain finally whispered a person's name as an exchange, a name that the imp could not refuse. He felt like he had become a sword for the Mountain to use against his father, but he still had to come. He wanted to know the answer: Was his wife Tysha a whore? Or was she not? Was everything at his father's behest!

Tywin stared at the drunken Tyrion, his face expressionless.

Tyrion was sitting in front of him, spitting out the word 'whore'?

Whore?

A word the Duke deeply loathed.

A word that damaged the honor of House Lannister.

In the face of the Lannister family's honor and millennia-old foundation, everything was worth sacrificing.

The Duke said lightly, "Tyrion, from now on, I will not allow you to do two things. One is to be an alcoholic, and the other is to patronize whores. If you dare to disobey, I will make you regret it."

"Okay, I won't get drunk, and then I'll quit drinking. As for whores, I swear I'll never touch a whore again, I swear."

The Duke stared at his dwarf son, his gaze penetrating the dwarf's body, as if seeing through his ugly, lying soul.

"Father, don't you believe me?" Tyrion steadily advanced his argument, each sentence a stepping stone for the next, "I can't remember how many whores I've played with, I forget all of their faces the next day, those bitches, they're all after my money."

Duke Tywin was expressionless, but the light in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

He hated Tyrion chattering in front of him, constantly mentioning whores. Tyrion's core issue was approaching, which was dangerous, but the Duke was unaware.

"But there's one whore I can't forget..."

"Enough!" Duke Tywin shouted.

But Tyrion ignored him, pretending to be drunk: "That whore is known to Father, my older brother Jaime knows her too. That whore was found for me by Jaime, to trick me into believing that she had real feelings for me. Jaime spent a lot of money to find me a virgin whore, he said he was helping me find her on Father's orders." Tyrion stared into his father's eyes.

In Duke Tywin's eyes, there was nothing but coldness.

Tyrion didn't see the emotional fluctuations he wanted to see, but he still had a backup plan: "Father, do you remember that whore? My first whore, and also my first wife, her name was Tysha. You arranged for an entire army camp of soldiers to line up and take her, and forced me to watch from the side. You told me afterward that Tysha was after my money, she wasn't a farmer's daughter, her real identity was a whore. She knew I was a Lannister, so she deliberately approached me, for my money."

"Past, present, and future, it will always be so, Tyrion. Any woman who loves you and approaches you will only do so because of the gold in your pocket."

Tyrion's drunken eyes calmly watched the anger he had aroused in Tywin miraculously disappear.

The Duke's tone was calm, he could do this, he wanted me to marry Sansa, and he didn't want to punish me before the wedding.

"Go back and get a good night's sleep, and get married properly the day after tomorrow. I don't want any changes," the Duke said coldly.

"As you wish, Father. I will be your best and most obedient son, an ugly, base, dirty, filthy, indecent, alcoholic, gambling dwarf, but I can't forget Tysha. After that incident, where did you throw her away to?"

"Where else can a whore go?"

"But I later searched Casterly Rock and Lannisport, and never saw Tysha again. If she was a whore, she should be in a brothel."

"Are you going out yourself, or should I call the guards?"

"Tysha wasn't a whore, Father. I actually knew the truth the next day, but of course it doesn't matter anymore. I'm a dwarf, although I didn't tell her I was a Lannister, she knew I was a Lannister, she was after my gold!"

"Varys Lannister!" Duke Tywin shouted.

The Duke didn't argue, he didn't bother to argue, and there was no need to argue, but the imp understood in his heart that what the Mountain said was true, that damned blood witch prophecy was unbelievable. Nevertheless, Tyrion would verify it one more time.

Tysha was not a whore, she was his wife. When the two were together, Tysha didn't know the dwarf was a Lannister.

They were very happy together, but the time was too short!

The study door opened, and a tall guard stood at the door.

"Take Tyrion Lannister out, lock him in the woodshed, and send two soldiers to guard him. If he doesn't listen, hang him up."

"Yes, Your Grace."

"Tyrion, either you obediently marry Sansa, or I'll tie you up and marry you to Sansa, you choose."

"I choose to obediently marry, Father," Tyrion said with a hiccup. "I was wrong just now, I apologize. I choose to obediently marry, I've made my choice, Father."

He was led out of the study by Varys Lannister: "Captain, can you tell me the way to the woodshed? I can go myself, really!"

*

Night. The Red Keep. The Great Sept.

The lights were bright, and everything was beautifully decorated.

Sansa Stark, the eldest daughter of the North, and Tyrion Lannister, the second son of the West, would be married tomorrow. In addition to the palace servants, cooks, and laborers being busy, even the maids and guards of the Queen Mother and the Hand were very busy.

Late into the night, even the monks and nuns of the Sept could not rest, still busy arranging everything, to ensure the entire wedding was perfect: red candles, lamp oil, candlesticks, curtains, prayers, blessings, choirs, etc., etc., all had to be in place and 100% accurate.

The positions of His Majesty the King, Her Majesty the Queen Mother, the Hand, the Master of Laws, the Master of Ships, the Master of Coin, the Master of Whisperers, the Kingsguard, and dozens of courtiers and generals had to be memorized. These people, plus the guards, already exceeded a hundred, not including the positions of noble ladies, arranged by rank...

It seemed that the monks, nuns, and palace supervisors would be busy until dawn. After the Sept ceremony, there would be a grand banquet. The cooks and laborers in the kitchen were destined to be sleepless tonight.

The grand banquet and revelry would last until the evening, and then, at an auspicious time, they would go to the Maidenvault to consummate the marriage.

From early tomorrow morning until the bride and groom were sent to the bridal chamber, every detail mattered, and even the slightest mistake would be severely punished. The Hand attached great importance to this and had ordered that no one should slack off.

*

The Maidenvault was as resplendent and brightly lit as the Great Sept.

Sansa's bedroom was in the Maidenvault.

The night was deep, and Sansa's bedroom finally quieted down.

There were two fireplaces in Sansa's bedroom, and the firebricks in one of the fireplaces had been removed, revealing a hole. The face of the imp, Tyrion Lannister, appeared in the hole: "Sansa!" he said. The address contained both urging and reproach.

Sansa was silently crying her eyes out. Shae was sleeping with Annie in the next room. She had wanted to say goodbye to Annie, but both Gracy and Tyrion did not allow it.

Annie was very timid, and since Eddard Stark's incident, Sansa had often been the one comforting her.

Sansa had wanted to take Annie with her, but Tyrion said that the mysterious person in charge of arranging everything had only promised to rescue her alone.

Gracy Tybess pushed Sansa towards the fireplace.

Gracy Tybess—the one in the Mountain's head-patting memory, the palace supervisor Horace Kevan—Gracy Tybess, in the state of a newborn infant, was on Horace's big bed.

At the hole, the face of the imp, Tyrion Lannister, disappeared. Sansa did not look back, and she crawled in.

Watching Sansa disappear, Gracy's mind went blank... She barely held on to a breath and let it out... She felt scared... Tomorrow, Sansa's wedding, the royal family, courtiers, and generals would all be present, and the bride Sansa was missing, and the Hand would be furious...

Thanks to [Lonely 丿 Flash Star] [Lonely Observer] for the reward support, thank you, handshake!