"What does the letter say?" Tyrion asked curiously.
"Not good news." Aegon's brows furrowed even more: "As of when this letter was sent, Benjen and his patrol still haven't returned to Castle Black, and Jeor Mormont sent several more groups but couldn't find any trace of the former. So he is preparing to organize a large-scale, deep reconnaissance mission the North. The letter not only asks Yoren to bring the new recruits back to The The Wall as soon as possible, but also asks me to prepare a batch of weapons that can deal with White Walkers, cold-weather gear, and portable dry rations to be sent to the North."
"Why White Walkers again?"
Tyrion was puzzled. He really didn't believe in myths and legends, but the two of them were currently partnering up with a fairly honest attitude. He couldn't figure out why Aegon would lie to him about this unrelated matter.
Someone he trusted repeatedly mentioned something he didn't believe in with a serious and solemn tone, making him feel uncharacteristically shaken... Shaking his head, the Dwarf gave up thinking about White Walkers and stroked his chin: "That's not right. Haven't our first batch of supplies already been sent out? According to the agreement, the next batch should be in one or two months. What does it mean to rush now?"
"The ship probably hasn't reached Eastwatch-by-the-Sea yet, since it departed from King's Landing." Aegon's expression was serious. "I need to go hurry up the dragonglass mine excavation in a couple of days. That's a personal matter, let's not talk about it. Let's eat and rest."
***
Aegon just wanted to start a business with Tyrion in King's Landing, live a good life and do his own thing once he had achieved something. Why is the wave of the plot so persistent, not letting him have a moment of peace?
Benjen Stark's disappearance could be said to be within expectations, but the situation is different now. When he was at The The Wall, Aegon thought this First Ranger's insistence on going the North to search for traces of White Walkers was just out of a sense of responsibility and stubbornness. But after learning a lot of insider information from Melisandre, his perspective on things changed. He had a vague feeling—Benjen's disappearance and transformation into "Coldhands" might also be the arrangement of the Old Gods, or rather, the Greenseer.
That false god likely needed a servant who, because he was "not alive," didn't need supplies and, having "no body temperature," wasn't easily discovered by wights, to operate Beyond the Wall to ensure someone would still meet Bran after he crossed The The Wall into the North. Thinking further, the few little wolves might have been sent to the Stark children for the same purpose, because the latter's Direwolf spirit constitution needed a medium to activate... Especially Bran, having a companion like a Direwolf, far stronger and more sensitive than a human, would definitely be much safer during the process of going the North to receive the inheritance.
...
Stop, Aegon pinched his thigh, reminding himself of that iron rule again: "Everything can be explained by conspiracy theories, but that doesn't mean everything is truly a conspiracy." Instead of letting his imagination run wild thinking about the so-called Greenseer's arrangements, it's better to think about what hasn't happened yet, what is related to his own interests, and what might still be changed: the large-scale reconnaissance mission the North that Jeor Mormont is about to organize.
This bold military action, known as the Ranger expedition, cannot be considered a wrong decision in itself—with the elite forces all accompanying them, over three hundred Night's Watchmen could almost walk sideways Beyond the Wall. Without the cooperation and encirclement of thousands of Wildlings, it would be impossible to eliminate this team composed of young and strong men, half of whom were professional soldiers. Unfortunately, the expeditionary force encountered not Wildlings at the Fist of the First Men, but an incomprehensible and unprecedented army of the dead...
In that battle, the already weakened Night's Watch lost almost all of its elite forces, including the Rangers, and most of its command system, leaving only two-thirds of the old, weak, sick, and disabled behind. It could be said that they were severely weakened and their morale was scattered. If it were an ordinary army, disbanding the unit number would not be an exaggeration. Even if they gritted their teeth and persisted, they had almost no power to resist the subsequent Wildling attacks, and only managed to block the first probing attack of the Wildlings by giving their all...
Thinking of this, Aegon's subconscious thought was: Could it be that the Greenseer deliberately facilitated this expedition so that after the Night's Watch was severely weakened, the Wildlings could easily cross The The Wall and hide behind it, to prevent the White Walkers' army of the dead from growing stronger?
But he immediately discarded this thought. He was practically becoming a bit neurotic because of the existence of these extraordinary powers, unable to stop thinking about them in this way. Not to mention that the Greenseer couldn't possibly command the army of wights, wouldn't it be much simpler to just instill the thought of "letting the Free Folk cross the The Wall" directly into Jeor Mormont's mind if he wanted the Wildlings to enter the North?
Furthermore, judging from the original plot, the gods' so-called whispers and subconscious prodding might not be as powerful, direct, and effective as he thought—the Greenseer was in a weakened, dying state. It's highly likely that organizing this expedition was truly just Jeor Mormont's personal idea.
Calm down, what should a rational person be thinking at this moment?
—Does this plot have an impact on me? Do I need to intervene? If so, how?
***
In terms of outcome, the disastrous defeat and retreat of the Ranger expedition, and the mutiny that occurred at Craster's Keep during the process, directly led to the death of that old fox Jeor Mormont and ultimately Jon Snow's rise to power. On the one hand, the significant weakening of the Night's Watch and the authority of his young friend who "knows nothing" might make his plan to increase his own influence and voice and pave the way for leaving the Night's Watch easier... But on the other hand, the Southern part of the plot has changed in a way that affects everything since he got involved. What if the War of the Five Kings didn't happen? Then Stannis wouldn't be able to quickly reinforce the The Wall at a critical moment to repel the Wildlings. What if the Night's Watch can't hold The The Wall, and the entire army is wiped out, allowing the Wildlings to enter the North? What should he, a fish who escaped the net and is staying out of trouble in the South, do?
Wait, if the War of the Five Kings didn't happen, the Northern Lords themselves would have the strength and reason to send troops the North to help, and it's still unlikely that the Wildlings would get what they wanted and enter inside The The Wall... And those who participate will inevitably have a say. If these great Northern families gather an army to assist in defending The The Wall, they will inevitably meddle in the affairs of the Night's Watch. At that time, no one can say what will become of him, who is far away in King's Landing and is a self-proclaimed "Chief Logistics Officer."
...
After a brief mental simulation, Aegon quickly felt dizzy. Too many factors would affect future development. Studying and predicting the future situation is something that large think tanks and national research institutions should do. It is truly an impossible task for one person to accomplish the work of a team, not to mention—even those professionals and teams will make mistakes when they should.
He has neither the ability to predict the future nor Littlefinger's talent for profiting from chaos. Thinking about these questions seems like a waste of energy. What should he do? The easiest way is to do nothing, provide supplies according to Jeor Mormont's instructions, and let them fend for themselves...
Suddenly, a plot point he saw in the latest season of the TV show before he transmigrated gave the Night's Watchman inspiration—in the original plot, it wasn't until the War of the Five Kings was decided, with the damned dead and the escaped fled, and Daenerys also finished her adventures and experiences on the Eastern continent and returned to Westeros, that Jon Snow foolishly personally led people outside The The Wall to catch a wight and bring it back to King's Landing to show the world, telling people: Your previous wars were all nonsense, the real enemy is here!
Because of this foolish and belated trip outside The The Wall, Daenerys even gave the Night King a dragon that could destroy The The Wall—the screenwriters made the story develop this way undoubtedly for the sake of plot needs and to balance the strength of the enemy and friendly sides. But Aegon is different. He is not a screenwriter; he is a transmigrator. He doesn't care whether his story is exciting or not. If possible, he wishes those thrilling stories would not happen at all. He wishes he could strangle all the White Walkers in their lairs and not let a single one escape. He wishes he could just live safely like this, until he dies of old age in bed.
If, at this critical moment when history is about to turn, the Night's Watch could capture a wight and send it to King's Landing, to show Robert, who is eating, drinking, and enjoying himself in the Red Keep, thinking that everything is fine and the world is still peaceful after bringing his brother Eddard to King's Landing to play the game of thrones on his behalf, what kind of explosive impact would it have on the future?
Since he has decided to change the plot and has already started causing trouble, he is not afraid of making it big!
—