The king on the Great Wall

"Lord Karstark is right." Robb sincerely agreed with this proposal, and he nodded, "I will send someone to inform the mountain tribes later: they are people from the north, and I am glad to come to the Great Wall to help defend them, but Now that you are here, you must follow the laws of the night watchman like the night watchman, and you must not work for someone just because you are taking money from someone else, regardless of whether it is right or wrong... There is no such thing as arbitrarily gathering and mobilizing troops to plot rebellion I will personally intervene!"

Robb felt that this was the last chance he could seize—to warn Iger and make him understand that he was serious—and when he said the last two sentences, he was already trying to be stern: "And you, send someone immediately Go back to Castle Black, tell your people to retreat to Houcrown Town, and don’t use any more brains! Let’s talk about the public statement and apology later!”

Binding his own hands and feet, this is considered to have hit Iger's key point, but this rule is reasonable, strictly speaking, he took advantage of the loopholes earlier.He was doing a full set of acting, so naturally he couldn't object at this juncture, he could only put on an obedient appearance of completely admitting his mistake and accepting the punishment, nodding repeatedly without any objection.

***

It was all expected, he would now honestly follow what Robb said, and send someone back to Castle Black to order the troops to withdraw...and the ordered subordinates would also pack up their things and leave quickly.But... the next thing after leaving Icescar City will be a bit different from what the northern nobles thought: the messenger team will not rush day and night like Eon Royce, they will walk a few miles Take a breath, and rest for a while at a stronghold... There will be people falling and hurting their stomachs on the road... In short, various accidents occurred, which delayed the trip.

Based on Arya's accurate information, he resolutely gave up the speech he had prepared on the spot, but he didn't need to make any changes to the route he had already arranged.

The order to withdraw troops will be communicated to Castle Black in two to three days, and the siege troops will take a day to withdraw, and the most elite of them, who have the status of night watchman, will set off for Eastwatch under the leadership of Jaime Lannister— —To reinforce the "grain unloading team" that has already moved into the fortress and controlled the port.

Even if Carter Pike got up and returned to his home ground as soon as the siege of Castle Black was lifted, Iger would have held him back for at least a week...as long as the first batch of loan grain was successfully unloaded during this period and shipped to the nearest East Watch The mountain people's fortress was stored in the warehouse, even if I didn't toss in vain.

It is true that when I return to Castle Black later, I will probably have to make a public explanation and apology... Ordinary people will probably feel that "bow your head and apologize to your opponent" is a shameful thing-of course, it is indeed a bit-but: He mobilized his own troops to surround the headquarters of the Night Watchman, but forced the experienced defenders of Castle Black to dare not fight. They have not received any substantial punishment afterwards, nor were they forced to withdraw from the election of the Night Watchman Commander-in-Chief.

Anyone with a brain should know who won.

……

All the trouble was over when the guards of the inspection team had breakfast, and the team assigned by Iger to send the withdrawal order hurried on the road under the supervision of Sir Rodrik sent by Robb... and the meeting was held to replace him who made a mistake " After wiping their buttocks, the northern nobles also started their inspection of Icescar City as originally planned after finishing their meal.

The new land grant people, the Seven Kingdoms are used to calling them "wildlings", but they call themselves "free folk".However, the group facing the nobles of the North now looks neither savage nor free - most of the boldest, strongest or murderous have lost their lives fighting the White Walkers or following Mance Rayder's attack During the process of the Great Wall; among those who survived, the young and strong with a little sense and responsibility also went to Houguan Town early to seek work for the survival of the ethnic group... The rest are basically the old, the weak, the sick and the disabled... No , not even old, sick, or disabled, only women and children and a small number of left-behind soldiers.

They are ragged and hungry. With the hard work of the night watchman's logistics department, they can barely maintain the status quo of "neither freezing nor starving to death".The nobles of the five families in the northern region were fully armed——Especially put on their helmets, and carefully went to visit this group of "dangerous" visitors from outside the Great Wall, but what they saw was a group of hungry people who were timid and unable to even talk to them .

That look of fear, numbness and hopelessness, Robb had heard from his father's stories: in the cold of winter or in war, when the food stocks were about to run out, and spring or peace did not come, shrinking The people in the territory who were sheltering from the winter outside the city of Winterfell basically saw this scene in their eyes.

(The so-called savages, without the veil of distance and rumors, are nothing more than a group of farmers living outside the Great Wall.)

More than one northern noble felt this way, and this was exactly what Iger wanted.However, this time everyone is acting in their true colors, without any falsehood-what Iger did was to convey a message that is not a lie to these new land-grant residents in advance to stimulate this state: once If the nobles of the northern border find that they are restless and obedient, they will drive them all back to the north of the Great Wall.

To defend the Great Wall and fight against the White Walkers, of course it is impossible to rely on these poor bastards... But the leaders of the major families in high positions know that although the world is not dominated by the common people, it cannot be separated from the composition and support of the people at the bottom.If the entire group of people outside the Great Wall can have the status of the residents of Icescar City, it may be a feasible choice to use them to fill the donated land and support the real defenders of the Great Wall.

……

The tour of the Great Wall is not over halfway yet, so naturally we are not in a hurry to draw conclusions, and we are busy with our own affairs. The short daylight in the northernmost border of the Seven Kingdoms is fleeting, the sky is dark, and the kitchen smoke is rising again soon. In the night that slowly shrouded the earth, a new visitor arrived in Ice Scar City.

He also came from the west, and was also dressed in black... But unlike Jon Royce, the Commander of the Shadow Tower was not alone, nor did he appear to be in a state of travel and dust. He was in good physical and mental condition.

Dennis Mallister packed his bags and left Castle Black decisively at the beginning because he judged that the conflict between Carter and Iger would cause trouble sooner or later, so he stayed away from right and wrong as soon as possible, for fear of being involved in it.Facts proved that he guessed right, and the mess was far bigger than he had imagined before, to the point that... he had the idea that "he might be able to profit from it".

On the day that Castle Black was besieged by the army of Houguan Town, he learned the news through Raven, and quickly selected his manpower, planning to send east along the Great Wall to search for the northern nobles and report the news.If this news can anger Robb Stark and bring down Igger West, then he will be the next commander-in-chief without any suspense.

Coincidentally, on the same day, a new piece of heavy news came from the direction of Deepwood Castle, which further strengthened Mallister's intuition that "win or lose depends on one move"... Now, he couldn't sit still anymore , personally led people on the road.

They didn't rush like Jon Royce, and their speed was a bit slower than the former with a longer distance, but they finally arrived at Icescar City before it was completely dark today, so they didn't have to think about tomorrow's itinerary up.

***

Dennis dismounted, handed over the reins to his subordinates, and stood in front of the courtyard of Ice Scar City, looking around.

The moisture exhaled from the mouth formed bursts of white mist when it was cold. Judging from the northern soldiers everywhere, he had arrived at his destination—the election of the next commander-in-chief had been delayed for too long, but in the end it would be replaced by an external accident. It is really unpredictable in the world to be persecuted to such an extent that immediate results must be produced.

He took a deep breath—whatever the outcome, things would end tonight.

Soon there were soldiers approaching to inquire and interrogate. After some questions and answers, Dennis unexpectedly learned that someone from Castle Black had already sent the news first. Robb probably already knew the details of this land-grant mutiny, and maybe they discussed it. The processing result is out.

"Tsk—"

Dennis frowned, pondered for a while, and planned to go to his old friend to find out the news before deciding on the next move.

He quickly changed his plan, and after asking about the residences of the princes in the north, he headed to the main castle with a clear goal, entering the living area of ​​the Karstark family first.

……

"Hey, Dennis!" Rickard Karstark exclaimed in surprise, "Why are you here?"

It's hard for outsiders to imagine that a rough guy like Earl Karstark, who is heroic, righteous, and straightforward, would be so close to Dennis Mallister, who is sleek, sophisticated, cautious and never makes mistakes... But it was exactly what he said: The gentleman is harmonious but different, and the difference in personality between the two has not affected their relationship at all.In fact—as early as 40 years ago, before Dennis joined the Night Watch, they met and became friends at a tournament.

Dennis Mallister took off his helmet to protect against the cold, and said with a smile, "I miss my old friend and come to visit. What reason do I need?"

"Haha, no need, no need, the Great Wall is the territory of the Night Watchmen, you, the commander, can go wherever you want, and it's not my turn to force you." Earl Karstark smiled roughly, and quickly remembered something, With a wave of his hand, he drove away the servants and juniors in the house, and sat down in the chair again after the door was closed: "If you are here to report what happened in Castle Black, then you are late, and you have an appointment in the morning." Ann Royce has made it all clear."

"I heard that he is the first night watchman to set foot on the land north of the wall again in several months. He rushed from Castle Black to Icescar City abruptly in one day and one night. He really deserves to be Bronze Jon. He still insists that Iger West killed his youngest son, his temper is as tough as his body." Dennis shrugged helplessly, and couldn't help complaining. "How did Robb Stark react?"

"Of course I was very angry at first, but then... well, it's a long story, you sit down first, drink something warm to warm up, and I'll explain slowly."

Hearing that things didn't go in the direction he expected, Dennis frowned and sat down, took the warm red wine from Karstark, and listened patiently.

Rickard Karstark is a rough man with average narrative ability, but after all, he is a nobleman who has received some education. He picks and chooses without losing focus. Xingshi questioned the crime and gave it back to Dennis.

"The relationship between Iger and the Stark family is really good, Robb can't be cruel to him at all, and there is a guy like Roose Bolton who is instigating...even such a big thing, he is safe Get away with it." Karstark sighed, "I'm afraid you will run away in vain when you come back."

Good luck?Dennis didn't think so. Although he didn't come to the scene in person, he could basically imagine what was going on... Turning a big problem into a small one, it's really a good means of crisis public relations, and he had to accept it.

It's just that I don't know how Iger persuaded Roose Bolton to help him?

"I will never run in vain. Don't worry about that. If it's just to help Carter and the others sue, how can I run away in person? That's too cheap." If you are late, you are late. It is useless to talk, Dennis slowly Shaking his head, "I have another important thing to do on this trip - to pass on the urgent military information on the west coast of the North. The Ironborn, led by Euron Greyjoy, once again invaded the Stony Coast and the Streamland, and they have already surrounded Flint's Finger threatens Deepwood Castle again, and the northern border is in a hurry."

"What, these sons of bitches, come again?!" Kahuo City is thousands of miles away from the west coast, and Karstarks naturally don't worry about their own family being in danger, but the northern princes have always been united, and whoever's family is in trouble Everyone has to help, this will consume food resources, and the next winter will be very sad, so he is naturally nervous. "Didn't these bandits go to plunder the River Bend before? Why did they come back? What attracts them to this poor place in the northern border?"

"This is not something we should consider. There are only Ravens flying from the Shadow Tower and Castle Black on the other side of Deepwood Motte. Castle Black is besieged. This news can only be forwarded to Robb Stark by me... and once the Guardians of the North are captured If we hear the news, we will definitely suspend our current inspection of the Great Wall, and take you to the west coast to lead the army against the Ironborn, and at that time, there will be no one who can hold the ground to give land.”

"Once we leave, no one will be able to suppress Iger." For the lord, protecting the vassals is naturally a higher priority than investigating the land grant, and Robb Stark's reaction is no need to guess.Although Karstark was rough, he quickly figured out the key point: "It's a pity that he didn't seize the opportunity to bring him down this time when he caused such a big incident, and there will be no chance later..."

"Did you find any problems during your inspection along the Great Wall?"

"There are a lot of problems, but none of them are major issues. You have to admit that Iger, this kid, has really made the land grant resettlement plan look good. So far, Robb's understanding of Houcrown Town, Long Night Fort and Ice Scar City The situation of the land-grant is still satisfactory—no, forget it, I won’t go around in circles with you, to be honest, the fact is that the land-grant situation is far better than Robb expected, and he is very satisfied.” Karstark said with a bitter face, “ Although I don't like Iger, after all, I can't make trouble with my conscience, not to mention - both Glover and Amber are inclined to him, and the old Roose Bolton is desperately trying to replace him like taking the wrong medicine. When he talks, even if I have the heart, I can't control Robb's thoughts with one against three."

I rushed to Icescar City full of expectations, but I haven't even seen Robb's face, and the hope of turning things around has been shattered... Even with Dennis' self-cultivation, he couldn't hide his regret.He let out a long breath, his expression changed a few times, his eyes drifted away for a few minutes, and when they converged into one point again, his expression became firm.

"I basically understand the situation, thank you, Rickard." Dennis Mallister stood up from his chair and bid farewell to Earl Karstark: "Now, I am going to speak frankly with the future commander-in-chief of the Night Watch Corps Talk to me and end this damn campaign -- tonight."

"Are you planning to surrender?" Karstark asked in amazement, "This is not like you. What Iger did this time will cause his approval rating in Castle Black to plummet. You still have a chance."

"If the ironborn don't come and disturb the North, and your inspections continue, I still have a chance, but now...why lie to myself? I tried my best, and maybe I could delay the election for another few months or a year, but So what’s the point of doing harm to others and not yourself, if the White Walkers take the opportunity to attack and cause catastrophe?” Dennis said as he put on his coat again and walked towards the door without hesitation, “I left the Shadow Tower the day before yesterday, riding a horse The moment I left the gate, I made an oath in my heart: I would never go back as a candidate for the commander-in-chief. If Iger can use the fact that Iger sent troops to surround Castle Black to overthrow him this time, I will use the words of "do not stop the land grant resettlement plan after being elected." 'Conditions, persuade Iger to give up the election and support me. Or, withdraw from the election and persuade him to accept my conditional support...The fact now is that he launched a mutiny without telling the guardian of the north, and he was able to survive No loss, I thought I didn’t have the ability. Since I’m not the opponent, why not take advantage of the fact that he still doesn’t know the news of the ironborn’s attack and I still have the chip in my hand, and try to get more benefits?”

-

Chapter 308 "Gentlemen's Agreement"

The power of the logistics department enveloped every newly activated fortress.

As early as when Dennis Mallister was still obtaining insider information from Rickard Karstark, Iger learned from his eyes and ears that another night watchman had arrived in Icescar City.

However, he didn't care about this matter, and he didn't know that it was the Shadow Tower Commander himself, and he didn't expect that the other party would come to him so soon.

"Sir Mallister!" After a moment of astonishment, Iger had a warm smile on his face: "Your presence really makes Icescar City flourish. I wonder if you have business to do, or are you also curious about the new gift?" The living conditions of the local residents, do you want to come and visit and give guidance?”

"Official business, and it's related to you." Dennis stood at the door calmly, looked at the night watchman industry employees who were gathered around the room, who were discussing some big plans: "Master Chief Logistics Officer, it is convenient for you to discuss privately." talk?"

Iger had already guessed what the other party was going to talk about. The basic etiquette and upbringing made him hold back his smug smile. He deliberately waited for three seconds before nodding his head and signaling all his subordinates to go out.

All the people in this room are Iger's confidantes. Not only do they know the ins and outs of the matter, they even discussed together a moment ago that a messenger arrived in the Shadow Tower.When I saw Sir Mallister at this time, I didn't need to think about the reason why he came here - to file a complaint but found that it was too late, so I didn't want to waste my time, so I just came to negotiate.

Although everyone obeyed Iger's order and filed out of the house, many of them couldn't help but glance at him with contempt or mocking expressions when they passed by the old man.

……

Dennis let the door open without any fluctuations in his heart. After the people inside were cleared and the door was closed, he walked towards the table where a group of people had a meeting before: "I have to say, the younger generation is really Not to be underestimated, I have to say a word of admiration for your method of handling the crisis this time."

"Means? I'm sorry. I'm just telling the truth. In the end, I won the forgiveness of the nobles in the north with my sincerity." Without Arya's tip-off and Bolton's cover, I would never have gotten away so easily this time. Cleared, but this kind of secret behind it is naturally impossible to tell outsiders—especially opponents: "I don't know why Sir Mallister is here to visit?"

They are still rivals, and the old knight fully understands Iger's out-of-the-ordinary and defensiveness at this moment. While looking at the furnishings in the house, he walks towards Iger, getting close to the distance where he can hear each other's words clearly without any effort: "This election is a waste of the night watchman. Too much time for the Legion, and I'm here to end this shit."

"It's worth spending some time in order to choose the right person." Iger asked knowingly with a smile, "I don't know Sir Mallister, how do you plan to 'end this shit'?"

"Talk about a deal—you promise me a few conditions, I withdraw from the election of the commander-in-chief of the night watchmen, and instruct the night watchmen of the Shadow Tower to vote for you."

"I respect you, Sir Mallister, and I am eager to get your support...but not in this way." The smile on Iger's face disappeared instantly, and he lowered his face, with a firm expression of rejection: "I prefer to go the right way and rely on my ability to get what I deserve, rather than through some behind-the-scenes, dirty exchange of interests."

If it hadn't been for several battles and a certain understanding of the young man in front of him, Dennis would have been almost ashamed by Iger's righteous appearance.But now, Dennis is very clear: this deal will definitely be concluded tonight, and the opponent's appearance is just to create and strengthen the atmosphere of the seller's market, trying to completely gain the upper hand from the very beginning, with a better bargaining price .

With a certain chance of winning, he is indeed qualified to show off.

"I'm old, Iger." Dennis shook his head with a smile, put his coat on the hanger by the wall, and sat down in a chair without being invited: "--the brain is not flexible enough, and I can't communicate with you." You're having a good debate about worldviews or morals and ethics... There are no outsiders here, please allow me to take off my 'clothes' for a moment." He said with a pun, and then said something surprising. "I believe that anything in the world can be traded, honor, chastity, loyalty, respect... given the right time and the right price. Instead of talking about 'dirty' or 'clean' shit, why not listen first What can I offer you?"

Iger couldn't have imagined that a person who cherishes feathers like Sir Mallister can let himself go to such an extent.This kind of rebellion is extremely unreasonable, like the lines of the villain in the story, you can think about it in your heart, but say it...

He's such a frank person, it's not easy for Iger to continue acting for a while.As the other party said, there are no outsiders here, so why not tear off the disguise once in a while and have a hearty and frank negotiation?

The other party was sitting and standing, and his posture was at a disadvantage. Iger showed a smile without acting skills, and sat down too: "Okay, I would like to hear more about it."

"Before you mobilized troops to surround Castle Black, you had won more than half of the votes in the election, more than me and Carter combined. Victory is imminent. Once this happens, your approval rating in Castle Black will fall off a cliff. One fall... But considering that most of the [-] votes were cast by staunch supporters of the reformist faction, or simply by people you got into the Night Watch Corps, it is conceivable that no matter how serious the situation is, you will not get any votes. It will fall below one-third. No matter how hard Carter and I struggle, you are invincible, and it is only a matter of time before you become commander-in-chief."

Iger nodded: "Yes, that's my judgment too. But this is my bargaining chip, what can you offer me?"

Dennis raised his right hand and stretched out three fingers: "Elected a few months in advance, a loyal Shadow Tower commander, and a chance to avoid risks directly."

***

"Elected months in advance".The meaning is self-evident-when Iger decided to take the risk of launching a mutiny, one of the important goals was to use this "big move" to deter the still hesitant neutrals and speed up the campaign. What I didn't expect was... before even a single weed was blown, the big fish Dennis Mallister was shaken out first.As the commander of the Shadow Tower, in charge of the second largest fortress along the Great Wall, the influence of Dennis' change of faction is immeasurable - if he can no longer vote on behalf of the 236 night watchmen of the Shadow Tower, he can even Allow yourself to win the election directly, regardless of Castle Black's loss of votes.

"A loyal Shadow Tower commander".It's easy to understand-even as an opponent, Iger still has no doubts about Dennis Mallister's character.If he has made up his mind to support himself, he will never make small moves after the fact—it doesn't matter whether they are close to each other, as long as they execute orders and don't follow orders, they can be considered loyal.

As for "a chance to avoid risk directly"?After thinking about it for a while, Egger probably understood what Dennis was referring to.

***

Iger straightened out his thoughts in one breath, and seeing that the other party looked like he hadn't finished speaking, he nodded to signal the other party to continue.

"I heard the news that the loan grain is about to arrive at Eastwatch. I believe that while you are blocking Castle Black, you have also made arrangements for the only port of the Night's Watch."

"That's right, although I don't often lead troops into battle, I do have at least some basic military knowledge. The operations of Castle Black and Eastwatch were carried out on the same day, with both front and back. People from the logistics department have already moved into Eastwatch. , put the port under surveillance." In this frank atmosphere, Iger admitted unceremoniously: "But this is a 'grain unloading team', there is no large number of weapons, and the process of entering East Watch is also very peaceful. I think This daily activity within the Night's Watch requires no reporting or explanation to anyone."

"Indeed." There was no clash of swords and soldiers at East China Sea Watch. Even if Robb knew about it, it would be impossible for him to ask Iger to question him again. Dennis nodded in affirmation of the other party's statement, and then changed his voice: "But the loan from Donghaiwatch hasn't arrived yet, right?"

"Well, it hasn't arrived... To be precise, I haven't received the news of 'arrived' yet."

"That means it's not here yet—at least you have to be prepared for it." Dennis showed an obvious smile: "In case after the siege of Castle Black is lifted, Carter Pike takes people back to Eastwatch directly, and then finds that the family You live with a bunch of people you don’t know who take orders from you, guess what will happen?”

"I've arranged—"

Dennis interrupted Iger: "Yes, I believe you must have countermeasures, but you should know: the perfect plan only exists in the imagination, and things don't always go 100% as expected-instead of taking responsibility for the East Sea Watch side At the risk of another mess, consider another possibility. With my support, you were elected Lord Commander of the Night's Watch. At that time—whether it was to let Carter stay in Castle Black, or to cross the He ordered the defenders of East Sea Watch to cooperate with the logistics department to receive the loan from the Iron Bank. As a direct superior, you have thousands of ways to deal with him. Even if he disobeyed, there was still a conflict with your people at East Sea Watch. When you send troops again, you will put down the civil strife among the Night Watchmen in an upright manner, and with the power you have now, there is no risk at all."

……

Iger can figure this out without Dennis talking about it.

To be honest-it is tempting to be elected commander-in-chief a few months in advance, but this alone is not so attractive to Iger that he will take the initiative to negotiate terms with people. The reason is simple: the focus of his care is not mere The night watchman army of more than 1000 people does not listen to its own orders, but has land donations from tens of thousands of residents, and the development of the night watchman industry.

And this kind of development can still be carried out even if the position of commander-in-chief is vacant.

But—in addition to the fact that the loan and food have not yet been settled, and the conservative opponents are still looking at ways to destroy the good situation of the land grant resettlement plan, this makes him a little uneasy.

In fact, even if Dennis Mallister didn't come to see him today, Iger would most likely take the initiative to talk to him after sending off the northern inspection team.

The party who proposed the negotiation was born in a weak position. In this regard, Mallister's visit was indeed a surprise. Although it was not a timely help, it also helped a lot.

Iger raised his legs and didn't pretend to think about it: "Your conditions."

"The same three." As old as Dennis, his skin was irretrievably pale and slack, but the arm with three fingers raised in the air was quite steady: "One, Carter Pike and I are still in charge of the shadow tower. and the commander of East Sea Watch, and the personnel changes of middle and high-level officers in the two fortresses need to be approved by both of us; second, you must not settle accounts with anyone—including Jon Royce, to the death; third, you After taking office, there must be reforms, but changes to land-grant laws must be discussed with me and approved by me."

Although the first two conditions are a bit uncomfortable, except for letting Carter continue to serve as the commander of East Sea Watch, the rest were originally Iger's plan-but only the third point touched his bottom line.

"The first two points, no problem, the third, impossible." Iger said firmly, this time not pretending: "I want to do too many things, and there are a lot of rules that I want to change. If everything has to be consistent with You discuss, wrangle, and probably do so by letter instead of face to face, and the back and forth is exhausting."

Asking prices all over the place to pay back the money on the spot, since it is a transaction, bargaining is inevitable.

"Well, maybe it's really too much, so let's take a step back and narrow the scope of the law that needs to be discussed." Dennis was not surprised by Iger's reaction at all: "With serious night watchmen—that is, those who have sworn— — Directly related laws. For example, if you want to change the status of the night watchman from lifelong to resignable... such changes, you need to discuss with me, how about this?"

Iger has drawn the big pie of the night watchman's withdrawal mechanism for many people, and it is normal for news to leak out... I didn't expect Dennis to come here for this, Iger thought.

On the surface, the other party did take a step back, but in fact... the nature of the matter remained unchanged.He endured the first two conditions and passed them. After all, he doesn’t care whether the night watchmen really love and support him: Men in black, as long as I guard the Great Wall for me, I don’t expect you to rebel for me. Conquer the world.Not to mention that Iger doesn't have that idea yet, even if there is one in the future... In the night watchman industry, the logistics department, and the land grant people, there are plenty of passionate and motivated people who can accompany him, not bad for these three melons in the night watchman Two dates.

But different from the first two points, even the third condition after making concessions is still a challenge to the commander-in-chief's high degree of centralization, and will accompany Iger for a long time.That is - as long as Dennis Mallister is not dead, Iger will be constrained by him to make any amendments to the internal laws of the Night Watchman. God knows how long this old man can live?Although the average life expectancy in this world is extremely low, examples of longevity like Maester Aemon are right in front of us.

Although Iger didn't mind very much, he was clear: Once he agreed, he would be an "incomplete" commander-in-chief of the night watchman if he was restrained by this rule.

Iger was about to refuse, but after a turn of his mind, he decided to change to a tactful way.

"Yes, but I have additional conditions." He stared into Mallister's eyes and said with a smile: "If you can get me more than two-thirds of the votes before Carter Pike leaves Castle Black, I will win the election." agree to all three conditions."

……

The team sent to Castle Black to deliver the message has already set off and should arrive in two or three days.It's already dark today, the ravens can't fly anymore, and Castle Black's daily election voting starts at dawn-this means: Even if Dennis Mallister is now determined to withdraw from the election and fully supports Iger, he can't affect tomorrow's voting results.

Besides, there are only over 200 people in the Shadow Tower, although there are many, but in the current situation where one person has one vote and not everyone will obey the commander's wishes, the situation cannot be reversed instantly.

In Iger's expectation, things will likely develop like this: the news of Dennis' withdrawal from the election reaches Castle Black, and then the Shadow Tower also has a large number of votes for him the next day, allowing him to still occupy the position despite losing a large number of votes from Castle Black. Absolute advantage...Under this situation, the night watchmen who had changed their minds before began to vote for themselves one after another...Voting is done once a day, so slow, it will take five or six days at the earliest, the election Only then will we find out.

By then, Cotter Pyke had definitely left Castle Black long ago.

This additional condition is an almost impossible task. Since it is almost impossible to complete, it is equivalent to not agreeing to the third transaction content.