The passage of time is like a river, flowing day and night without pause.
The Tower of Joy is a circular tower in the territory of Dorne, situated above the Prince's Pass. It lies in the northern part of the Red Mountains, north of Barrowton, and south of Nightsong.
Beneath the towering Tower of Joy, young Eddard Stark held his ancestral valyrian steel sword, Ice, and fought fiercely.
There were several people with him, including his good friend, the leader of Greywater Watch and commander of all the Crannogmen of the Neck: Howland Reed.
Earl Willam Dustin, Lord of Barrowton and head of House Dustin.
Ethan Glover, the squire to Brandon Stark, the former heir to Winterfell.
Martyn Cassel, former captain of the Winterfell guard, brother of Ser Rodrik Cassel, and father of the current captain, Jory Cassel.
Theo Wull, nicknamed "Buckets," a member of Clan Wull and brother to the clan leader, Hugo Wull.
Mark Ryswell, a knight of House Ryswell and a friend of Brandon Stark. There were seven of them in total, facing only three enemies, yet they were barely able to resist.
Those three were: the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, Gerold Hightower, known as the "White Bull"; the Kingsguard knight from the noble House Dayne of Starfall, Ser Arthur Dayne, known as the "Sword of the Morning"; and the Kingsguard, Ser Oswell Whent.
The scene was fragmented and chaotic, causing Eddard to frown.
The scene shifted rapidly. He saw that almost everyone else had fallen to the ground, lifeless.
He saw his friend Howland Reed holding a longsword in one hand and a short blade emitting a green glow in the other; the hilt of the short blade seemed to be carved from a weirwood tree.
Howland Reed was chanting strange and eerie ballads, his eyes filled with green, and the birds in the sky circled high above him.
He desperately held back the formidable Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, Gerold Hightower, but Howland Reed had also been struck by several swords and was covered in blood.
His blood spilled onto the earth, but it did not remain in the soil; instead, it sank directly into the ground beneath.
Meanwhile, Martyn Cassel and Ethan Glover fought together against the "Sword of the Morning," Ser Arthur Dayne, and the situation was not optimistic.
Eddard Stark lowered his head, looking at his blood-stained hands and the corpse of Ser Oswell Whent at his feet. A moment later, he roared and charged forward with the valyrian steel sword "Ice"...
The chaotic scene shifted again. At this point, Eddard had arrived at the room at the very top of the Tower of Joy. On the blood-stained bed lay his dying sister, Lyanna Stark, and the newborn child in her arms.
"Promise me, Ned. Promise me..."
Listening to Lyanna Stark's faint, breathless pleas, Eddard Stark felt his heart breaking. With tears in his eyes, he looked at his sister Lyanna Stark and said earnestly—
"I promise you."
With Eddard Stark's promise, the scene suddenly became blurry, then slowly turned black and white.
Following that, countless sounds overlapped—roars, shouts, chants, whispers—a series of chaotic noises flooded Eddard Stark's mind.
Finally, the memory shattered like a mirror...
Eddard Stark, lying on the sickbed, slowly opened his eyes and reached up to wipe away the crystal teardrop hanging from the corner of his eye.
For some reason, he had thought of that day from so many years ago again. It seemed like a long time had passed, but Eddard felt that everyone from that day was still clinging to him like gray ghosts.
Their memories haunted him, constantly tugging at the memories buried deep within Eddard's soul, as if reminding him not to forget them.
However, Eddard Stark knew in his heart that he was destined to never forget that day.
...
King's Landing, inside the Tower of the Hand.
"Ned, that old fool Pycelle gave you some milk of the poppy for the pain. You've been asleep for six days and seven nights. I'm so glad you're awake." As soon as Eddard Stark opened his eyes, he saw Robert's large face.
Hearing the heartfelt concern from his good brother Robert, Eddard felt a warmth in his heart. He wanted to reveal the truth he had discovered, but he opened his mouth and didn't know how to say it.
"Robert, actually I..." Eddard Stark frowned, his words somewhat indistinct.
"Whatever it is, tell me when I get back. I'm going hunting now."
Robert Baratheon was not used to people being wishy-washy, so he threw the badge symbolizing the hand of the king back to Eddard.
Because Robert had also realized: although Eddard Stark was a stubborn, iron-headed fool who often contradicted him,
Eddard was ultimately his good brother, and his intentions were good. He was the only one among this group of ministers who was truly good to him.
"You brat, you actually wanted to resign? Don't even think about it! Wait until I hunt a wild boar for you today, and we'll eat roasted meat together."
"As for that kingslayer Jaime Lannister who hurt you, I've already sent people to the Westerlands to demand him. Don't worry, I will get justice for you." After saying that, Robert turned and left.
Eddard watched Robert's tall back, then looked at the returned hand of the king badge, his expression complex.
...
"In the game of thrones, if you don't win, there is only death; there is no middle ground."
The silent and mysterious godswood was rarely visited by people, and even birds seldom set foot there. Because the faith of the Seven had already covered this place, a large number of weirwood trees had been cut down, and no one in the south believed in the old gods anymore.
However, today, someone had arrived early in this land, keeping company with the few surviving lonely trees.
Eddard Stark had ultimately made the most mistaken and risky decision for himself, which was to arrange a secret meeting with Cersei Lannister in the godswood and then lay his cards on the table.
Perhaps this was the greatest effort Eddard Stark could think of to preserve the lives of those three innocent children.
"I already know. Those three children are not King Robert's children, are they? They are bastards born of incest between you and your brother Jaime Lannister, aren't they?"
Eddard Stark's gaze seemed very firm, but he still had no bottom in his heart.
Could bloodline really be determined by hair color alone? Because in his view, Joffrey was too much like Robert—whether it was his innate strength or that heroic and unrestrained personality, he was exactly like Robert in his youth.
If Renly's appearance was that of Robert in his youth, then Joffrey's inner self was Robert's inner self from beginning to end.
Moreover, if Joffrey was not Robert's child, how could the "true dragon" blood in his body be explained? He had seen with his own eyes that Joffrey was almost completely engulfed in flames at the tournament, yet he remained unharmed.
"You're right. I love Jaime deeply. He is not just my brother; he is also my lover." Cersei Lannister shrugged and admitted it very readily.
This also left Eddard Stark stunned for a moment. He hadn't expected his guess to be true, nor had he expected Cersei to not even bother with quibbling, admitting it directly.
"In fact, Robert and I did have a child once, but that child was aborted by me before it was born. That fool Robert didn't even know of the child's existence," she continued.
"Want to know why?" Cersei laughed somewhat frantically.
"On the very night of our wedding, when we first shared a bed, he was dead drunk and stumbled onto my bed. Do you know the name he called out in my ear? He called your sister's name. Lyanna Stark. What a beautiful name."
"So you already know everything. And then? Are you going to arrest me?" Cersei Lannister put on a fearless look, but to Eddard Stark, this appearance seemed more like she was breaking the pot because it was already cracked.
"Then my son Bran..."
"I'm sorry, but who let the little guy see things he shouldn't have seen?"
Eddard Stark thought a lot at this moment. He really wanted to find Robert and expose the truth. As Robert's good brother, out of deep friendship, he had to tell Robert.
But he hesitated again because he only wanted to punish the two sinners, Cersei and Jaime; their three children were innocent.
If Robert knew the truth, with his temper, he would definitely be furious and put the heads of those three children on the walls of King's Landing. This result was unacceptable to the honor and justice in Eddard Stark's heart.
"Cersei, run. I won't tell Robert for now. Take those three children and run to the other side of the Narrow Sea, so Robert's rage might not catch up with you." In the end, Eddard couldn't bear it; he hoped those three innocent children could be preserved.
"No, I won't run." However, Cersei did not accept Eddard's kindness. She even half-undressed and looked at Eddard affectionately—this was a tactic Cersei used repeatedly.
"Now your wife is not here, and Jaime is not here. Don't you want to do something else?" As long as she could trick the other party into becoming her skirt-chaser, she could blackmail and manipulate them. She thought she understood men, but she failed this time.
"Did you seduce the old Hand, Jon Arryn, the same way?" Eddard Stark smiled sarcastically, revealing a trace of disdain. This sentence also made Cersei furious, and she even gave him a solid slap across the face.
"Lord Stark, you really are a cold-hearted person."
"This is not cold-hearted; it is my honor and justice that prevent me from doing such a thing."
"Your honor? What kind of bullshit is that?" Cersei suddenly laughed, mocking him.
"Your thick skin almost made me forget that a man of honor like you also has an honorable bastard. Would you mind telling me his name? Oh, I remember now, his name is Snow. What a name as pure as Snow, as spotless as your honor."
"You wouldn't understand." Eddard Stark did not explain much.
"No, I understand too well. In the game of thrones, if you don't win, there is only death; there is no middle ground." Cersei said this with a serious expression, ignored Eddard Stark, and walked straight out.
Eddard Stark stood there in silence for a moment, then leaned on his cane and walked out.
However, what the two did not notice was that after they left one after another, another short figure slowly walked out of the godswood and then quickly ran toward the training ground inside The Red Keep.
...
At this time, Joffrey was sitting in the pavilion of the training ground playing chess with his teacher, Borin Storm. The two moved back and forth, very happily.
Joffrey was humming a song from his past life: "The rolling Yangtze River flows eastward, the waves wash away the heroes..."
"Your Highness, I've noticed you've been fond of singing this song lately, but it is quite pleasant. I just don't know which singer created it." Borin Storm asked.
"This song is called 'The Rolling Yangtze River Flows Eastward.' It was created by two poets from Yi Ti on the distant eastern continent." Joffrey loved this song very much; whenever he sang it, his heart was filled with heroism and melancholy.
"It's a pity I've never been to Yi Ti. I heard that people there have their surnames first and their given names last." Borin Storm shook his head. He had only heard that there was a region called Yi Ti on the eastern continent, and the country within it was called the Golden Empire.
At this moment, a short attendant suddenly walked in. It seemed he had high access, as even the guards of The Red Keep did not stop him.
This person walked to Joffrey's side, leaned down, and whispered a word in his ear. Joffrey's face changed suddenly upon hearing it, and his right hand paused violently while moving a chess piece, inadvertently making a wrong move.
Borin Storm smiled when he saw this, seized the opportunity, and directly crossed his chariots to checkmate.
"Teacher, this move... it..."
"Your Highness, since you have already made your choice, why worry about right or wrong? Whether this move is right or wrong, you still have to continue walking it."
"Sigh, it really was a bad move." Joffrey sighed with complex emotions.
Who stipulated that children born to a Lannister and a Baratheon must have black hair? Just because they were all black-haired before, does it mean they will all be black-haired in the future?
He just didn't understand why he had to admit this. As long as his mother, Cersei Lannister, denied it to the death, he really didn't think his cheap father, Robert, would think he wasn't his own seed just because of hair color? Could he be angry enough to kill him?
Even the Targaryen family, known as the "true dragon" dynasty, could give birth to black-haired children. Wasn't Prince Baelor, the older brother of Maekar Targaryen I, known as "Baelor the Breakspear," a typical example?
Could it be said that Prince Baelor was also a bastard from Dorne? However, it was a fact that no one in the Targaryen family without silver hair had ever sat on the iron throne.
"I'm sorry, Teacher, let's stop here for today. I have to go handle something now."
Joffrey had no heart for chess after hearing the news. The situation was starting to get out of his control, and he had to make some preparations.
"At your pleasure, Your Highness."