King's Landing, in the meeting hall of The Red Keep.
"Joffrey, my purpose this time is to receive Eddard Stark from the dungeons of King's Landing."
Kevan Lannister sat in a chair and spoke to Joffrey Baratheon, who was wearing a crown nearby.
His attitude was rigid, and his words were ruthless.
"Tell me, are you requesting this of me, or notifying me? Is this your intent, or Tywin's?"
Joffrey smiled slightly, looking with dangerous eyes at this stout great-uncle of his, Kevan Lannister.
It seemed that the two brothers, Tywin Lannister and Kevan Lannister, didn't hold him in any regard at all.
"My brother is your grandfather; how can you address him so directly by name!"
To Joffrey's surprise, Kevan Lannister exploded the moment he heard him address Tywin by name.
"Fine, fine, then is this my good grandfather's intent?" Joffrey waved his hand, too lazy to bicker with him over such trivialities.
"This is the intent of House Lannister." Kevan Lannister calmed his anger and replied impassively.
"Then please tell our Lord Tywin that I want the Knight of Flowers, Loras Tyrell, who is in his hands. Otherwise, don't bother talking!"
Since they didn't look at him with respect, Joffrey felt there was no need to give them a pleasant look.
"What! Joffrey, my brother, Lord Tywin, is your grandfather! We are all family; do you not want your Uncle Jaime's life?"
Seeing Joffrey's sudden shift to a tough stance, Kevan Lannister immediately changed his tone, intending to use family blood ties to pressure the other party.
Kevan Lannister was still somewhat surprised; he keenly sensed that the Joffrey Baratheon before him was definitely not as insane and incompetent as the legends claimed.
"My good grandfather needs to trade Eddard Stark to get back his son, Jaime Lannister. My demand is that you bring Loras Tyrell to exchange for the Eddard Stark I hold."
"Besides, I have another uncle; if nothing else, I can just enfeoff Casterly Rock to him later." Joffrey Baratheon shrugged, looking unconcerned.
Even if Eddard Stark were gone, House Stark still had Robb Stark and the others to shoulder the burden.
But if Jaime Lannister were gone, Tywin would truly have nowhere to cry; Tywin absolutely did not want to pass Casterly Rock to Tyrion Lannister, the dwarf son he despised.
Kevan Lannister understood the logic instantly, so he lowered his head to weigh the pros and cons.
Kevan thought: What is going on? Why is this Joffrey different from what his brother and Tyrion described? And why is he so fearless? Something is wrong, very wrong.
As Kevan Lannister thought, his peripheral vision inadvertently swept over the Gold Cloaks standing on both sides of the meeting hall, and he discovered that he did not recognize these people at all; they were all new faces.
Even the members of House Lannister they had deliberately planted could no longer be found. He hadn't expected that while they were at war, this newly enthroned His Majesty the King had not been idle either.
Joffrey perhaps noticed Kevan Lannister's vigilance, and instead smiled very calmly, saying:
"When my father, Robert Baratheon, was here, he said he was truly sick of the flashing gold around him, so to soothe his heart, I specifically replaced all the gold in The Red Keep. I have to say, it looks much more pleasing this way."
Kevan Lannister looked at Joffrey's green eyes, which belonged to House Lannister, and the golden crown on his head, and said earnestly:
"Your Majesty, please do not forget that you are also golden. No matter where you are, no matter how high your status, please remember: Family is the most important thing."
"I did indeed bring Loras Tyrell with me this time, and I can take it upon myself to hand him over to you. I hope you can keep your promise and hand over Eddard Stark to me as well."
"After all, this concerns whether your Uncle Jaime can return alive."
Before Kevan Lannister arrived, he had been specifically instructed by his brother, Tywin, that if Cersei Lannister did not agree to give them the hostage, they should use the Loras Tyrell they held to make the exchange.
He hadn't expected that before even seeing Cersei, he would be intercepted by this kid, Joffrey Baratheon.
"Hahahaha, we are all family, why speak as if we are two separate houses? Uncle Jaime's life is of course the most important. Is it not just Eddard Stark? Ser Jeslyn Beesbury!"
Upon hearing Kevan Lannister agree to the exchange, Joffrey immediately became amiable.
"Your Majesty." Ser Jeslyn Beesbury stepped out.
"Go and assist in handing over Eddard Stark to my great-uncle, Lord Kevan Lannister. Remember to be polite."
"Yes, Your Majesty." After Ser Jeslyn Beesbury bowed and accepted the order, he turned and led the guards of House Lannister toward the dungeons.
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Kevan Lannister smiled.
Although Kevan Lannister maintained the proper etiquette on the surface, behind his smile, his heart was constantly scrutinizing the King, Joffrey, before him.
He believed that Joffrey Baratheon was cruel, cunning, cold-blooded, decisive, selfish, and lacked any sense of family honor or responsibility. In the future, he would definitely become a major threat to his brother, Lord Tywin, in taking control of the Small Council.
It seemed he would have to go back and warn his brother.
King's Landing, inside the Tower of the Hand.
At this moment, Eddard Stark already knew that he would be used as a bargaining chip by Tywin Lannister to exchange for his son, the kingslayer Jaime Lannister, but he did not show much expression.
He had long since lost the upright and unyielding temper he had at the beginning; now he only hoped that his children could be safe.
However, when he heard that his eldest son, Robb Stark, had captured Jaime Lannister alive, he felt genuinely happy for Robb. This child could already leave his protection and strike out on his own to achieve something.
Creak~ The sound of the door opening rang out. Eddard Stark turned his head to look and realized it was his daughter, Sansa Stark, coming to see him.
Ever since the day Eddard Stark declared before The Great Sept of Baelor that Joffrey Baratheon was the rightful king of the iron throne, he had been released from the dungeons by Joffrey and kept under house arrest in the Tower of the Hand.
However, it was only a restriction of freedom; his standard of living had risen by several grades, and even his daughter, Sansa Stark, could come to visit him.
Today, Sansa Stark was wearing a pale green dress, which, paired with her reddish-brown long hair, made her look even more beautiful and moving.
"Father, I heard that you can go home in a few days."
Sansa Stark trotted forward like a little girl and hugged her father tightly; she looked very happy.
Because now that her father, Eddard Stark, had not only saved his life but could also return home as a hostage for the exchange of the kingslayer Jaime Lannister, it seemed this war was finally coming to an end.
But compared to the simple-minded Sansa Stark, her old father, Eddard Stark, was not so happy.
Because although he was going back, his daughter was still left in King's Landing; this was obviously a hostage left behind by House Lannister.
Now, Eddard Stark's younger daughter, Arya Stark, had escaped King's Landing with Borin Storm and should be arriving at Stannis Baratheon's location by now.
Regarding this, Eddard Stark was not too worried, because his old friend, Borin Storm, was still reliable.
The only thing Eddard Stark was worried about now was his eldest daughter, Sansa Stark, who was blinded by the songs and stories of chivalrous knights; this made him feel very helpless.
He feared his foolish daughter was still hoping to marry Joffrey Baratheon one day and become the Queen.
Eddard Stark sighed helplessly. Although he could see that Joffrey Baratheon really liked Sansa Stark, he always felt that Joffrey was not a person to be trusted.
Through his observations during this period, he also saw that Joffrey Baratheon had no sense of justice or honor; he was a person born selfish and cold-blooded. Once someone lost their utility, Joffrey would very decisively discard them.
But now Eddard Stark had no other choice; the matter of Sansa Stark would still need to be properly planned upon returning to Winterfell.
"Father, I..."
Seeing her father's sudden silence, Sansa wondered if she had done something wrong and upset her father.
But then, Sansa saw the love in her father, Eddard Stark's eyes.
Eddard Stark stroked Sansa's hair and said in a calm tone:
"Sansa, you are very brave and very strong."
"Sansa, my daughter, you must take care of yourself. Do not trust others easily in King's Landing, do not speak carelessly, and you must be careful."
"I will remember, Father."
Father and daughter embraced each other, as if they had endless words.
At this time, Joffrey Baratheon, wearing a crown, opened the door and walked in.
He saw this heartwarming scene and did not immediately step forward to interrupt; instead, he stood at the door and waited for a long time, only walking up after the two finished talking.
"Uncle, the time has come. You should set off for the Riverlands. I wish you a safe journey."
Joffrey Baratheon stepped forward and gave Eddard Stark a hug. His feelings for Eddard Stark were very complicated.
If possible, Joffrey Baratheon truly hoped that Eddard Stark could serve as his hand of the king and govern the court for him. Unfortunately, fate was cruel; they were not on the same path and were destined to stand on opposite sides.
However, Joffrey quickly got over it. Although the two could not be close, at least he had changed Eddard Stark's original tragic ending, which was not bad.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"However, before you leave, I want to hear your true thoughts. Uncle, what kind of king do you think I am?"
At this moment, Joffrey Baratheon suddenly had a mischievous whim; he wanted Eddard Stark, a person of justice whom he acknowledged, to evaluate him.
"Your Majesty, I think you are a king like Maegor the Cruel and The Mad King Aerys."
Upon hearing this, Eddard Stark remained impassive and still straightforwardly spoke his true thoughts.
"Hahaha, I didn't expect you to be so direct." Joffrey was not angered by him, but laughed heartily and openly.
"But you also possess the wisdom of 'Daeron the Good'."
"Can I take that as a compliment?"
"That is my true thought."
After finishing, Eddard Stark suddenly changed the subject.
"Your Majesty, promise me. You must take good care of my daughter, Sansa; this is my only request."
He pleaded with Joffrey to protect his daughter. Joffrey put away his smile and replied earnestly: "I promise you, Uncle."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Before leaving, Eddard Stark turned back to look at Joffrey and said one more thing: "Your Majesty, you must be careful of Varys."
Eddard Stark had a special intuition; he believed that Varys was very likely related to Robert's death. He even suspected that the gradual estrangement between the former "Mad King" Aerys and Prince Rhaegar also had Varys's instigation involved.
Moreover, Eddard Stark still hadn't figured out Varys's true stance; Varys's lies made it difficult for him to distinguish which words were true and which were false.
The early morning King's Landing was shrouded in night, with only a few stars in the sky flickering with faint light.
Inside a slum dwelling, two people were sitting opposite each other. They did not light a candle; they dared not even light a single spark.
They spoke in low voices:
"Valar Morghulis."
"Valar Dohaeris."
"Speak his name."
"Eddard Stark."
Under the moonlight, a pair of grey-green eyes flashed with dangerous light in the darkness.