With Eddard Stark's consistent example for over a decade, respect and friendliness towards the Black Cloaks had become the norm in the North, but compared to the former, the latter half of the journey felt somewhat bleak.
The further south they went, the warmer the climate became, but the colder the attitudes of the people they encountered. Approaching the Neck via Moat Cailin, the faces of the villagers and small Lords they passed already showed indifference and perfunctoriness; after leaving Greywater Watch and entering the Riverlands, no one paid any attention to Aegon and Yoren's black clothes; further south, attitudes even began to develop towards contempt and disdain, a world apart from the Northmen's respect and enthusiasm.
But this did not significantly affect the mood of the two Night's Watchmen—they were both mature adults. Yoren, having traveled extensively for years, was long accustomed to the attitudes of people in various regions, while Aegon was mentally prepared: if simply wearing a black cloak could earn the respect and preferential treatment of nobles and commoners throughout the Seven Kingdoms, how could the North still need to recruit able-bodied men everywhere to supplement The Wall? One of his long-term goals was to find a way to shed the black cloak. If the people around him didn't remind him of the true nature of the Night's Watch identity through their actions and attitudes, what motivation would he have to carry out this plan?
The only thing that bothered him slightly was that the difficulty of the task "improving the Night's Watch image" might be higher than expected.
***
Even the longest road has an end. After traveling for nearly a month with the Lannister, eating well and sightseeing, the destination was finally in sight, and Aegon's inner worries completely faded: although he had been certain since seeing Catelyn Tully had not left Winterfell, it was only when the result truly came out that everything about the Winterfell incident was truly over—despite some twists and turns, he had successfully changed the plot.
No accidents occurred, nor did any "mysterious entity" fabricate a substitute for Catelyn Tully to obstruct their journey. Tyrion successfully returned to King's Landing.
This matter itself could only be considered a plot change, but for Aegon, it had a more important meaning—he confirmed one thing through it: in this world where the A Song of Ice and Fire story takes place, major events in the original plot can be changed through human intervention; as long as you dare to act, anything is possible!
King's Landing, located on the east coast of the continent, overlooks Blackwater Bay. It is the landing place of Aegon the Conqueror, the location of the Red Keep and the Iron Throne, the capital of the Seven Kingdoms, and the largest city and political, economic, and cultural center of Westeros. Now, a transmigrator who is about to bring about earth-shattering changes to the future has arrived!
***
The anxiety of the entire journey was swept away. Aegon became as excited as if he had been injected with chicken blood. If not for reason and restraint holding him back, he would have immediately galloped along the King's Road.
...
A few miles from the city walls, shacks, tents, and other human dwellings began to appear along the roadsides, accompanied by a faint, lingering smell.
"Ha, the smell of King's Landing, it brings back memories," Tyrion said leisurely while riding his horse. "After breathing fresh air for a few months, coming back is a bit unusual."
Aegon had heard about the city's stench before transmigrating, but he never expected to smell it from so far away. If it was like this outside the city walls, who knew what it would be like inside? Although The Wall was cold and harsh, the air there was very fresh... In such a cold place, even if there was any smell, it would be frozen to the ground.
"How can the capital of the Seven Kingdoms smell so bad? Are the sewers not being cleared, or is the garbage not being cleaned up?"
"Both, but there are far from enough people. First, ensure the noble residential areas are clean and tidy, then the wealthy areas. As for the commoner areas, they just have to make do. Tsk, there are fifty thousand people living inside the city walls. How much excrement, urine, and garbage are produced every day?" Tyrion pouted. "What, Ser Adventurer, do you have any brilliant ideas?"
"No brilliant ideas. If there aren't enough people, recruit more. I see so many poor people living outside the city walls who can't even get enough to eat. Give them a good meal and a few copper coins, and they'll be happy to do some cleaning work."
"A simple and crude method, but here's the problem, who pays for it?" the Dwarf said with a grin. "Our good King owes a huge debt to the Iron Bank and my father, and there's no sign he can pay it back."
"How can he stand living in a smelly place himself?"
"Excuse me, the Red Keep is on Aegon's High Hill. The high ground and strong wind blow away all the smell of excrement and urine. The officials and nobles living there don't have to worry about the stench."
"Alright."
Aegon was truly speechless this time. Even coming from modern times, he had no idea how to solve the problem of rulers who lacked ambition themselves.
Not to mention—he himself had a pile of things to do. How could he have the time to care whether King's Landing smelled bad or not?
As they talked, the few people on horseback approached the northwest gate of King's Landing. The entrance was crowded with pedestrians, horses, and vehicles entering and leaving—some going in, some coming out. Among them were knights and freelance riders, minstrels with harps and drums, wagons loaded with hops, corn, and barrels of honey, as well as businessmen, Artisans, and prostitutes. The surging crowd made the entrance to Gods Gate extremely congested, and dozens of King's Landing City Watch Soldier in Gold Cloaks were struggling to maintain order.
"The Hand of the King's tournament," Yoren said with a sneer. Born in the North, he understood Lord Stark's temper better than most people in Westeros. "The Hand of the King must hate this tournament."
"A tournament itself is a good thing. It's activities like this that make the Kingdom prosperous. Nobles can use it to make a name for themselves and seek glory, commoners can join the fun and temporarily forget the hardships of life, and businessmen can take the opportunity to make a little money." Tyrion lowered his voice slightly but did not hide the sarcasm in his tone. "The only problem is that our good King holds them too frequently. One for a festival, one for a Prince's naming day, one for a new Hand of the King taking office, one even when he's in a good mood... Tournaments don't charge entry fees or admission fees. Participants and spectators are all happy, but the organizer ends up heavily in debt. And he borrows money in the name of the Iron Throne, not his personal name, tsk tsk. I don't know whether to call him smart or..."
The few people discussed the recently concluded tournament as they rode through the streets, gradually approaching the center of King's Landing.
The smell was stronger than outside, but human adaptability was so powerful. Within just a few dozen minutes, the few people could already tolerate the smell—it wasn't that their noses couldn't smell it anymore, but that their brains could ignore the smell and focus on other thoughts.
...
"My backside has suffered enough these past two months. Let's find a place to settle down first and then consider what to do next," Tyrion changed the subject. "I know a tavern on the hillside of Rhaenys's Hill. The terrain there is higher than most places in King's Landing, the smell is much lighter, and you'll like it."
"Don't you live in the Red Keep?" Aegon was a little surprised. The other party was the Queen's younger brother. Even if his relationship with his sister was average, he was still qualified to enter the royal family's stronghold... or at least live in the noble district at the foot of the Red Keep.
"The Red Keep is too far from my favorite brothel," the Dwarf replied. "Besides, being with a bunch of ambitious, scheming, and idiotic people makes me feel sick."
"Lord, you have already spent a lot on us during this journey. Let us handle the accommodation ourselves," Yoren was unaware of the debate and transaction between Tyrion and the high-ranking Night's Watch officials. He truly believed that Aegon had been sent to King's Landing to raise supplies. Using someone else's money all the way had already made him uneasy.
"By the Seven Gods, please take pity on this small and pathetic Dwarf, alright? If I ever want to chat with my two Night's Watch friends, do I have to huff and puff and ride a horse across half the city to find you?" Tyrion said, pretending to be angry. "Stop arguing, just follow me."
—