Aegor did not try to fool clever people with empty promises. He got straight to the point.
"I will not make pointless threats. Everyone wants to see this war end as quickly as possible. To show my sincerity, I can promise this. Any Lords of the Reach who survive the war and are willing to lay down their arms, surrender, and accept punishment, I guarantee their safety."
Guaranteeing safety? Was that not the most basic condition for surrender? Margaery crossed her arms, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. "So, what is the punishment?"
"War is no child's play. Naturally, you must take responsibility and pay the price for your choices. As for those who chose the false king's side and still expect to keep their titles and lands after the war, I have only one word for them, impossible!" Ignoring Margaery's slightly strained expression, Aegor began listing the specifics. "I have reviewed the list and regretfully found that, as of now, not a single noble house of the Reach has sworn fealty to Daenerys. This means the entire Reach chose the wrong side, and every one of them will face charges of rebellion."
Aegor's tone was full of regret and helplessness, but he was only pretending.
The fact that not a single house in the entire Reach supported Daenerys was actually something he wanted to see, something he had even helped bring about with harsh conditions.
"Among them, those whose castles and lands have been occupied by my army, whose heads of house died in the war, and who have no adult heirs to inherit the family estate, will have all lands, titles, and property confiscated, and will be removed from the ranks of the nobility."
He said this in a cold, emotionless tone. Things not yet acquired needed negotiation, but once something was in his grasp, no one could make him spit it back out. As for the people he had just mentioned, the dead could no longer resist, and those stripped of land and people had already lost their power. These two groups were naturally the easiest targets. Even if he did not squeeze them, their own people in the Reach would.
"For the remaining houses, based on their lordships, in addition to bearing their proportional share of war reparations, they must cede thirty to fifty percent of their granted lands. The exact amount will be determined by how much effort they put into the rebellion and the degree of casualties and trouble they caused my army."
"Based on their lordships" meant that Aegor would only settle accounts with the lords. How the war reparations and division of lands were shared within each lordship, and whatever chaos resulted from it, was their own business.
"House Tyrell does not have that much influence." Margaery's eyelids twitched, and she finally could not help speaking. "Land is a noble's lifeblood. Touching that, even if we mediate, will inevitably lead many houses to resist implementation through all sorts of schemes, open and hidden."
"Let me finish." Aegor was unmoved. "In theory, a considerable number of participants would have to take the black and be sent to the Wall, or even beyond the Wall, before they could be pardoned. But Daenerys is merciful and has decided to give many who were misled and coerced a chance to repent and atone. As long as each house sends elite soldiers and strong commanders, providing their own food and equipment to participate in the coming war in Westeros against the slave cities, the charge of rebellion will be completely erased. Even the punishment of land reduction and reparations can be reduced, waived, or returned based on military merit."
This was equivalent to making the entire Reach serve a term of military service for Daenerys to atone for its crimes.
That was more like it.
The Reachmen's morale had collapsed, but if they were fighting under the banner of the winning side, they still had the ability to continue fighting.
However, just as Margaery's expression softened slightly, Aegor's next sentence made her lose her composure again.
"But the prerequisite for this series of conditions is that the demands I made in King's Landing remain unchanged." He pointed across the table to the stack of lists in front of Margaery, revealing a smile whose meaning was hard to read. "Any Reach nobles on this list who have been circled in red and have not been removed after the war must accept Daenerys's invitation to move to King's Landing and live there for at least two years."
"It seems you are determined to carry out this... farce?" Margaery was somewhat exasperated. The man before her was clearly intelligent, so how could he be so unreasonable on this one point? "Then may I ask whether this operation of moving entire families to King's Landing will take place before or after the war across the Narrow Sea?"
Since this scoundrel was set on it, she at least had to clarify the key points.
Aegor grinned. As expected of Margaery, she spotted the crucial detail remarkably fast.
"Before."
"Before?" Margaery's voice rose a notch. "Meaning that throughout the entire process of the Lords of the Reach fighting this next battle for Daenerys, the wives, children, and elders of the frontline soldiers will be under your control. Whether their sacrifice and bloodshed can truly atone for their crimes, and how much of the reparations and forfeited land can be waived or returned based on their military merit, will be entirely up to you and Daenerys. Even if we have objections or grievances, we can only swallow them?"
"I guarantee on my honor that the military merits of the Reach army in fighting the slave city coalition will be judged and measured openly, fairly, and justly. Of course, if you feel my honor is not worth trusting and insist on putting it so harshly... I can only answer honestly. Yes."
Yes?
She had never met such a shameless man!
Her pent-up anger flared with a bang, briefly overriding the caution of a defeated party, but in the end, before it could reach its peak, it rapidly cooled and died away. Losing her temper in the current situation was utterly useless. Margaery slowly unclenched her fists and said coolly and calmly, "With these conditions, I fear a considerable number of houses will resist to the death and fight to the bitter end. I suggest the Hand of the Queen carefully reconsider, and cancel or at least loosen one or two of them."
Some houses would resist to the death?
Aegor almost laughed out loud. Was that not perfect?
He had been worrying over whom he should kill if the entire Reach surrendered.
Rebellion was not something you could begin and end whenever you pleased!
Naturally, he would not say such arrogant words out loud. After staring at Margaery's delicate face with a cold smile for a few seconds, he asked in return, "Lady Margaery, from whose perspective are you offering this suggestion?"
What did he mean? Margaery felt she could never keep up with Aegor's thoughts. As the eldest daughter of the Reach, coming here to negotiate with him on behalf of House Tyrell, was she supposed to consider the matter from Daenerys's perspective?
"Hand of the Queen, I do not understand your meaning."
Seeing Margaery admit it frankly, Aegor did not want to be too harsh. He snorted. "That is my fault as well. I had not finished what I was saying. Do you remember the question I asked you just now? Will you turn to dust and become the ashes of history, or open your arms and embrace it?"
"With all due respect, Hand of the Queen," Margaery once again resisted the urge to show a look of distaste, replying neither meekly nor aggressively, "your conditions truly do not inspire in me any urge to embrace anyone."
"Exactly. All the conditions mentioned above are for every Lord of the Reach except House Tyrell. For my future close allies, there is a plan tailored to them." Aegor's lips curved into a false smile carrying a hint of malice. "House Tyrell will receive no punishment. Not in titles, not in lands, and not in property. You will remain Lords Paramount of the Reach, still control the most fertile lands in the heart of this green realm, and still be the wealthiest house in all the Seven Kingdoms besides the Lannisters... and there is even a seat on the Small Council waiting for you."
In Margaery's eyes, which briefly brightened, Aegor deliberately paused for a few seconds, then picked up the kettle and poured hot water for both of them again.
"The position of Master of Intelligence has been vacant ever since Lord Varys was poisoned by villains in Winterfell. Of course, Lady Margaery, as the queen of Aegon the false king, is naturally not suited for this position, but... you can cleanse yourself by converting to the red god or taking the black, then have your father or brother nominally hold the position while you plan and assist from behind the scenes, acting as an invisible member of the Small Council. After spending a long time at court and becoming familiar to Daenerys, you might even become a female advisor with no official title, yet still capable of influencing the affairs of the realm. Would that not be wonderful?"
Mist rose from the teacup in front of her. Margaery's face remained expressionless, but her shoulders, neck, and even the back beneath her clothes were completely stiff.
Such terms, even for House Tyrell in normal times, could be called not bad, let alone at this moment, after a failed rebellion and with the enemy army at their gates, when they were on the brink of destruction.
"So, what is the price?"
"Just one thing. Sit yourself on my side." Aegor knew the sentence carried a double meaning, but he did not care. "To elaborate, it is roughly this. House Tyrell needs to take the lead in surrendering to Daenerys, provide intelligence, actively publicize the legitimacy of Daenerys's rule to the nobles and residents of the Reach, persuade as many Lords of the Reach as possible to lay down their arms and accept the peace treaty terms and Daenerys's policies, enthusiastically contribute money and supplies for the upcoming war against the slave cities, provide military loans, and even personally lead troops into battle. And when stubborn Reach nobles determined to resist to the end appear, actively persuade and mediate, then finally, when diplomacy fails, lead the army to suppress the rebels, and so on."
"Having Reachmen fight Reachmen might be a bit difficult, so do not worry. The troops assigned to the task of clearing out the remaining rebels will be drawn from the Western Expeditionary Army, including cavalry, infantry, and artillery. The number will not exceed ten thousand, but they will have everything they need. House Tyrell only needs to lend its name, carry the banner, and act as guides." Under Margaery's astonished stare, Aegor paused to take a breath before continuing. "If you cannot bring yourselves to kill, I will also accept House Tyrell capturing them alive after breaking into the rebel castles... but the cost of sending their entire families to the Wall, and their subsequent living expenses beyond the Wall, will be your responsibility."
Raise banners and gather all the Lords of the Reach to resist Daenerys's Western Expeditionary Army, then, after being defeated, immediately turn into loyal subjects of Daenerys, not only guiding her to subdue the Reach, but also raising swords against those who had just been their vassals, subordinates, comrades, and even relatives?
How would the world view House Tyrell?
After circling around for three hundred years, they would still be the Targaryens' loyal dogs. The only difference was that this time, they could enter the Small Council and gnaw on bones.
The noble circle was a vast society built on connections. Doing this was tantamount to complete social suicide, binding themselves firmly to Daenerys's chariot to draw the hatred and contempt of the entire Reach for her, making it impossible to jump off.
House Tyrell would rather share hardships with all their vassals and endure this sweeping storm from the Dragon Queen as if enduring winter together. Even if it meant jumping from the highest tower of Highgarden, they would never accept such a sordid deal, cutting themselves off from the people of the Reach and leaving behind infamy that would last a thousand years.
How Margaery wished she could point at Aegor's nose and shout these words aloud, and yet...
"If House Tyrell, with its simple sense of responsibility and noble honor, rejects this proposal, I will not be angry." Aegor put away his playful expression and finished seriously, "On the contrary, I will personally command the attack on Highgarden with reverence and respect, preside over House Tyrell's trial after the war, and after watching you take the black and join the convoy heading north to the Wall, I will then, with the same agreement, reluctantly seek out the next house, a Reach house that is not so arrogant and unyielding."
(To be continued.)
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