The Mountain of Ice and Fire

“Your Majesty, perhaps we should first hear the opinion of your Hand, Tyrion Lannister. He has spent many days with the Mountain and should have some better suggestions for you.”

“Of course!” Daenerys looked to the sky. “Before we sit down, Arianne…”

“Your Majesty, give me a little time to consider, please.”

“Very well!”

Daenerys raised her hand to the sky. “Mountain, welcome to negotiations. Come down.”

“Your Majesty, we will talk on your flagship.” The Mountain's voice rumbled across Dragonstone's low sky like thunder. He lightly patted the dragon's head, and the dragon flew towards the Queen's flagship in the harbor.

The Mountain spoke with no room for discussion, directly deciding the matter!

The dragon flew over the harbor, its pressure like a mountain, overwhelming all. The soldiers on the warships were uneasy.

“Queen's flagship, move out of the harbor, into the open sea,” the Mountain commanded decisively.

The Mountain and the dragon's fierce power, both tangible and intangible, made the soldiers on the harbor warships look at each other in dismay. Before Her Majesty could even give an order, hundreds of warships slowly separated, and the Queen's shipmaster ordered the oarsmen to slowly row the flagship out of the channel.

The dragon's outstretched wings covered the entire harbor, blocking all sunlight from above, as if dusk had arrived early.

On the city walls, Arianne Martell said to Daenerys, “Let's go, Your Majesty, to the flagship.” She issued a dragon-riding command to Viserys: “Lower yourself, Viserys.”

Viserys obediently lowered himself, his dragon eyes flashing with light, like gemstones. Arianne stepped onto the dragon's back, looking at Daenerys: “Your Majesty, let's go.”

“Arianne Martell, does the Mountain fear I have an ambush in Dragonstone? Something that would be detrimental to him?”

“The Mountain is a cautious man, Your Majesty. He does not trust you.”

“Does he trust you?”

“He is always cautious!”

So cautious?!

Does this caution mean he believes, or does not believe?!

Caution might mean suspicion, might mean scheming, might mean political maneuvering.

This was the first time Daenerys had officially dealt with the Mountain, and her impression of him was that of a cunning viper hiding in a cave, peering out.

“Your Majesty, should we go to the harbor first?” Barristan Selmy asked. He and Jorah Mormont both had their hands on their sword hilts, watching Daenerys.

Daenerys nodded, and Barristan, Jorah, as well as Aggo and Rakharo, led the Kingsguard off the city walls, mounting their horses and galloping towards the harbor.

“Drogon!” Daenerys called.

Drogon, who had been circling in the low sky, immediately flew down to the city walls.

“Lower yourself!”

Drogon lowered his body, and Daenerys flipped onto the dragon's back. “Fly.”

Drogon glided out, skimming over the heads of the Dothraki riders. Rhaegal followed closely behind the Dragon Queen. Viserys gave a soft cry, flapped his wings, and kept up with his two brothers.

Three dragons, two beautiful women, flew towards the Queen's flagship in the harbor.

*

The Mountain was unwilling to negotiate with Daenerys in Dragonstone. Daenerys had many fierce generals by her side, whose martial skills were no worse than the Clegane's generals. The Mountain had no guards, and no navy as backup on the sea. He never overestimated himself. Be careful, and then be even more careful, it was never wrong.

Despite his image of recklessness, the Mountain's heart was as meticulous as a hair, and he was very thick-skinned, never caring about so-called knightly honor or bravery. So-called heroes were short-lived, and obsessed with romance. The Mountain never considered himself a hero. In terms of safety, it was better to be a bear than a hero.

If Daenerys wanted to laugh at his lack of courage, then let her laugh!

If Daenerys's generals wanted to spread the word about his cowardice, that he didn't dare enter Dragonstone for negotiations, then let them spread the word!

Strategically, never trust your enemy!

With the Mountain's size, entering Dragonstone would be inconvenient if a fight broke out in the narrow spaces, and escape would be even more difficult. Even if the Thieving Sheep was invincible, his size would prevent him from entering the halls and towers within Dragonstone. If a suicide attacker were to take the Mountain down with them, the Mountain would truly be honored.

It was more comfortable to have fate in one's own hands than in someone else's!

*

In the map room, Bran Stark watched all of this from behind the curtains, without saying a word. His face was calm, and no one knew what he was thinking. But his Three-Eyed Raven was jumping around restlessly. The Mountain's caution once again made Bran feel an unprecedented sense of difficulty. The Mountain came to negotiate, but was unwilling to enter Dragonstone. This was something that Bran and everyone else had not anticipated.

You could laugh at the Mountain's cowardice, but negotiating on the flagship at sea was indeed the best place for the Mountain, who only had two people. If there were any changes, at sea, if the Mountain could not escape unscathed, then Daenerys and her elite guards would also have a hard time escaping with their lives.

Both sides were in the same advantageous position! No one would have more advantages. On the flagship, Daenerys had the advantage of soldiers and generals, but the Mountain had the advantage of the dragon. The Thieving Sheep only needed a breath of dragonflame to ignite the flagship into a large fireball. Even if they jumped into the water, who could hold their breath for long? In the end, no one could escape the Thieving Sheep's pursuit, and no one would have a chance to escape.

Thinking of this, the Mountain's meticulousness made Bran feel a chill in his heart. Bran, who possessed all of Bloodraven's experiences, once again felt a sense of powerlessness. Even when facing the Blackfyre Rebellion and the pursuit of the White Walkers, Bloodraven had never had such inner turmoil. Fierce as cold iron, cruel as black fire, they were all just Bloodraven's defeated opponents. As bloodthirsty as the Night King, the White Walkers he sent to hunt down Bran were always one step behind him... The iron and blood of past events flashed before Bran's eyes, and countless outstanding and remarkable enemies were reduced to ashes in front of Bloodraven, but this Mountain actually had a layer of mist that the Green Prophet's eyes could not see through.

This was the second time the Mountain had given Bran a sense of powerlessness!

Bran's gaze passed through the curtains and looked towards the harbor. His Three-Eyed Raven calmed down and began to peck at corn on the table. After a while, the corn was gone, and the Three-Eyed Raven flew out of the window, flying towards the northeast of the sea. At the end of the northeast, there was a Free City: Braavos!

Braavos had two places that even the world's bravest knights, the most intelligent strategists, and the most powerful monarchs dared not underestimate: one was the Iron Bank, and the other was the House of Black and White. The Iron Bank issued high-interest loans to governors, kings, dukes, and princes all over the world, and no one dared to default; and the House of Black and White had the world's most powerful assassins: the Faceless Men.

*

Queen's flagship.

Daenerys faced the Mountain up close for the first time. As tall as Barristan Selmy, as strong as Jorah Mormont, they both seemed as small as children in front of the Mountain. And Tyrion Lannister in front of the Mountain was like a small human-shaped doll toy.

The Mountain's arms were as thick as tree trunks. His body was like a wall.

He carried a giant sword on his back, his eyes flashed with a fierce light, and the contours of his face were like rocks. Daenerys had never seen such a fierce giant.

This guy couldn't be considered a human at all. He was a beast in human skin.

Bloodriders Jhogo and Rakharo stared at the Mountain with wide eyes, their mouths unable to close! They could hardly believe that there was such a fierce man in the world. Their former leader Drogo also was a giant, but compared to the Mountain, his size was too small.

They had to look up at the Mountain, as if they were just half-grown children.

The Mountain was majestic and invincible!

He sat on a huge chair, and the chair made a slight groan, as if it would shatter in the next moment.

The Mountain spoke, his voice booming. He didn't shout, and he didn't roar at all, but his voice was like suppressed, low rumbling thunder, intimidating people. “Your Majesty, I have brought you snow salt from the Westerlands.”

The Mountain took out several bags of salt, opened them, and his rough fingers were like a child's arms, looking clumsy, but his movements were extremely nimble.

The salt bags were opened, revealing snow-white fine salt.

Tyrion Lannister and Arianne Martell together placed the several bags of salt in front of Daenerys.

Daenerys saw salt as fine as river sand for the first time. The salt was snow-white, without the pale yellow color that Daenerys was used to.

“Westerlands snow salt, without any residue of dirt or stones, or dust, and without any bitterness. This is the most delicious seasoning in the world. The roasted meat I feed the dragons is marinated with snow salt, and then coated with the finest edible spices from the East,” the Mountain said politely.

No wonder Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserys were unwilling to eat salted meat anymore. It turned out that this fierce guy was actually using exquisite snow salt and the best edible spices to barbecue food for the dragons. The finest edible spices from the East were something that Daenerys herself had not enjoyed many times. They were worth a fortune. She had traveled a long way, from Slaver's Bay to the Dothraki Sea, from the grasslands to Pentos, and then to Dragonstone, and had not had the opportunity to sit down and enjoy life.

If the Queen was like this, how exquisite could the three dragons' delicious food be? Daenerys had thought that marinating meat with sea salt was the best she could do!

Dragons were gluttonous, proud, picky, and enjoyed luxury. After they had eaten the Mountain's snow salt and spiced grilled meat, unless they were extremely hungry, they would no longer eat Daenerys's salted meat. It was too rough!

Although the Mountain's words were very polite, his body, eyebrows, and voice still gave Daenerys the feeling of a barbaric savage.

“Thank you, Mountain!” Daenerys sat up straight, raising her snow-white neck. The Queen was dignified and solemn, but unfortunately, in front of the Mountain, her body was too petite, and she could not show the Queen's aura in front of the Mountain.

“Your Majesty, if this snow salt were sold to the East, to Slaver's Bay, to Qarth, would it fetch a good price?”

Daenerys frowned slightly. Was the Mountain here to talk about this?

“I think so, Mountain.”

“Your Majesty, I have another gift to give you.”

The Mountain took out a delicate gift box. The surface of the gift box was carved with dragon-shaped reliefs. When opened, the box contained a snow-white object. Daenerys had never seen this thing before. It was rectangular and pure white.

The Mountain held this object in both hands and placed it in front of Daenerys.

“What is this?”

“It's paper!” Tyrion Lannister said.

“Paper!” Daenerys was surprised. She had never seen such paper.

The paper that Daenerys was familiar with was made of sheepskin or other animal skins. These papers would undergo major changes with the humidity and dryness of the weather.

“This is paper made from bark, grass, bamboo strips, etc., beaten into pulp, and then made through various small processes. I only have one such book. In order to make this sample, my family's maids spent a lot of time. Your Majesty, you know, Westeros has been in civil war for years, and I simply haven't had any free time.”

Daenerys stood up, stroking the paper with her hand. The paper felt smooth and delicate, like beautiful jade.

How could there be such exquisite paper in the world?!

“Did you make it?”

“My wife came up with the idea, and my family's maids tried to make it. It took them more than half a year, and now they can produce samples, but they cannot produce them on a large scale, all because of this damn war. But this sample can be even better. This color is not white enough, and the surface is not smooth enough.”

This was a rough version in the eyes of the time-traveling Mountain, but in Daenerys's eyes, it was a miracle.

Daenerys opened the paper. The paper was very thin, as if it could transmit light.

She had never seen such wonderful paper. It was flat and thin, and there were no bumps when she touched it.

“How do you write on it?”

“Quills, twig pens, oracle bone pens can all be used to write on it. You can write lightly,” Tyrion Lannister took out a quill, unscrewed the cap, and gently placed the ink next to Her Majesty's right hand.

Daenerys picked up the quill. She felt her excitement. This gift surprised her and opened her eyes. She wrote her name and a long string of titles on the paper. The nib wrote continuously and lightly on the paper, without any clumsiness or stagnation. It was indeed very different from the thick, difficult-to-write parchment.

“Your Majesty, if this kind of paper is promoted all over the world, I think even poor children can buy very cheap books. If there is no war and you and I can achieve peace, I hope to promote this kind of paper to be sold all over the world.”

“Is the cost very expensive?”

“Bark, trees, grass, or bamboo. These things are common and not expensive.”

“Is the process complicated?”

“Crushing, pounding, frying, baking, sifting, spreading, filtering, etc. It's simple once you're familiar with it.”

“Your wife is truly a genius.”

“Your Majesty, Lady Jeyne also invented the P-trap, a bend that can be used in toilets to seal off the upward flow of odors. This is the blueprint.” Tyrion Lannister took out the blueprint for the P-trap and spread it out in front of Daenerys.

Barristan, Jorah, Aggo, Rakharo, and the others looked at each other, completely not understanding what these guys were negotiating. Negotiation, wasn't it supposed to be a military confrontation and bargaining?

Tyrion's eloquence was first-rate, and he quickly made Daenerys understand the function and manufacturing method of the P-trap. This made the surprise in her heart even stronger.

The Mountain's wife was a genius inventor!

“Your Majesty, the three cities in Slaver's Bay can use P-trap sewage, and there will be no more odors flowing back into the rooms or the ground through the sewage pipes. Ordinary people can also live a clean and hygienic life like nobles,” the Mountain said.

Daenerys raised her head and looked up at the Mountain: “Mountain, are you here to talk business? Or are you here to talk military matters?”

"Business is war, Your Majesty. I've also brought you Westerling noodles. These are the finest noodles made with the best flour, with added eggs, edible spices, and snow salt. Your Majesty has certainly never tasted anything like it."

The Mountain gestured, and Arianne Martell produced a bundle of Westerling noodles. The noodles were wrapped in white paper at the waist, tied with a golden ribbon in the middle.