"What are you worried about? You won't be sent to the battlefield, just treat it as a trip." Tyrion shrugged and comforted him, "If you don't climb mountains and just enjoy the scenery, the Vale's landscape is quite nice... Are you afraid Robert will lose? At worst, it'll be a draw."
"I'm not worried about my personal safety, it's just... our business is currently in its initial growth phase, and if one of the two giants behind the Night's Watch Industry suddenly leaves, it will definitely have a negative impact!"
"Two giants? Pfft... thanks!" Tyrion rolled his eyes. This guy always managed to make even flattery unique; he admired that skill. "With me here in King's Landing, there won won't be any major problems. As for you, it's the King's command, so it's best not to think about outwardly complying while inwardly disobeying. Just go on this trip obediently and do whatever you're told. When you return, the factory will definitely be bustling, and maybe I'll even help you form an entire interest group. Then, with just an introduction from me, you'll instantly become one of the influential and well-connected people in King's Landing, the 'background' in others' eyes, and the 'higher-up' in the minds of Night's Watch Industry members."
"Sigh... Alright, I guess I'll have to trouble you then."
"You're welcome, I have to live up to your compliment of 'giant'. Sign a statement announcing that you entrust me to handle all matters of the Night's Watch Office during your business trip, leave a seal behind, and leave the rest to me. Go and enjoy your trip to the Vale."
Aegon decided to act as Tyrion suggested. Being unable to help oneself was probably like this. He wasn't actually thinking about what would happen to the Night's Watch Industry without him—his partner was a rare "peerless talent" level existence in the entire Seven Kingdoms. Besides his knowledge, professional expertise, and height and build being inferior to Aegon the transmigrator, his level of skill, mind, and connections were far above Aegon's as an ordinary person. With the biggest financial crisis safely weathered, the sky wouldn't fall without him... And given Tyrion's character, there was no need to worry about being cut out to work alone in his absence.
Aegon wasn't scared, but rather depressed. Tyrion didn't know that this war, in a sense, could be said to have been caused by him... A few months ago, when he watched Bran fall from under the Keep in Winterfell, he had the illusion that fate and the plot were unchangeable. But only today did he realize that the plot could not only be changed but was also very easy to change.
As long as you could find the crucial point that could move a thousand pounds with four ounces, a light touch would make the subsequent plot cascade like dominoes and become completely unrecognizable. Now, he had not only lost the advantage of knowing the plot but the effects of his flapping wings had also come back to affect him.
This feeling wasn't pleasant. There was a word that perfectly described this situation, what was it called... Right, "backlash"—he had been backlashed by the rumors he himself had spread.
The order came from the King. Aegon was "in principle" not under his command, but it seemed that for now, Eddard Stark was the only man on the Westeros Continent who could openly defy Robert Baratheon and remain unharmed, not to mention that finance required the ruling class's approval and even participation to Keep functioning. No matter how he thought about it, this trip to the Vale was unavoidable. There were still a few days before the Crownlands army set off. All Aegon seemed able to do was use this time to quickly communicate his plans to Tyrion or give instructions, and then hope that his partner and others under him could complete the tasks well.
There was still a month until the next time he would "deliver ransom" or rather, provide supplies to the Night's Watch. Aegon had originally planned to tamper with this batch of goods to pave the way for his plan: in addition to the items on the Commander's list, he would also voluntarily "contribute" some supplies—the food at The Wall was generally poor, so he would arrange to include thousands of pounds of meat and several barrels of alcohol with each supply delivery to improve the brothers' diet; the Night's Watch, apart from officers, generally only had one set of cold-weather clothing and shoes and socks, and if they got wet or were washed, they would have to huddle in their rooms shivering while waiting for them to dry. He would gradually provide the brothers with spare cold-weather clothing.
As long as this cycle continued, the Night's Watch would quickly see a phenomenon: every time the Logistics Department supplied The Wall, the Night's Watch would get to eat and drink well for a few meals, and receive new clothes, trousers, shoes, socks, and even hats—with these tangible benefits, the new department he created would have an explosive sense of presence... The best part was that compared to food and military supplies, these things were actually incredibly cheap. Spending a little money to gain popularity was definitely not a loss.
He wouldn't just provide these things; when providing them, he would clearly label the boxes or bags indicating that these items were from the Night's Watch Logistics Department, collected and provided by Aegon Westerling—lest those guys far away at The Wall enjoy the generous meals and warm clothing he provided for them while remaining completely ignorant of his efforts.
The plan had originally received high praise from Tyrion, but Aegon calculated the days and realized that this time there was a high probability he wouldn't be in King's Landing when the next batch of supplies was delivered. There was no way around it—the meat and alcohol were given to the merchant introduced by Tyrion. As for where he procured them and sent them to The Wall, that was up to him, as long as the items eventually reached The Wall and didn't make people sick. As for the clothing... Aegon found Nina and asked her to organize this matter for him: not only should she prepare a batch of black, thickened warm items, but each item should also be embroidered or marked in various ways that were difficult to remove with phrases like "Night's Watch Logistics Department," "Supervised by Aegon Westerling," etc.
Nina's family was originally in the textile and clothing-related industry, so this wasn't difficult for her. It also provided an opportunity to test the girl and see if, besides being intelligent, she was also efficient in handling matters.
Hopefully, these intelligent people around him wouldn't disappoint him. Being in the safe rear, it was impossible to compete for credit and prestige with the frontline Commanders, but gaining some presence and having the brothers remember him favorably should still be achievable.
The redemption of the bonds was nearing its end. Those who hadn't come to collect their money by now had either forgotten or simply didn't care about the hundred golden dragons. In the end, over twelve hundred golden dragons out of two thousand were redeemed—right between the originally set important boundaries of fifty and seventy percent. Three days after being personally appointed by the King to accompany the army, Aegon packed his things, took the young attendant named Casey whom he had recruited in King's Landing, and left the city to head towards the assembly point of the Crownlands army.
The horses ran, the metal rings on the reins and bits jingled, bathed in the morning sun. The Chief Logistics Officer and his attendant rode out through Gods Gate, quickly leaving the walls of King's Landing and its stench behind. Still some distance from the assembly point, Aegon saw the smoke from the army encampment. Immediately after, various sounds surged over the farmland on both sides of the road, hazy and indistinct, like the call of the distant sea.
The closer they got, the stronger the noisy human voices became. As they climbed a dirt slope, the sounds instantly became clear, and the tents scattered across the hills under the summer sun immediately caught their eyes: countless campfires filled the air with a pale mist. Neatly arranged horses stretched for miles. The surrounding forests had been cleared to make long poles for carrying banners. Some siege engines, difficult to rush before the war, were lined up on the ground along both sides of the King's Road, some with wheels taller than a man. Countless spear tips glinted red in the sunlight, and the tents of lords and knights were scattered everywhere like mushrooms after rain, big and small.
Countless soldiers moved among these "mushroom", some on horseback, some carrying spears, some wearing swords, some holding bows... Around the camp, there were also busy carters pulling goods, and laborers feeding livestock...
Noisy and chaotic, the clanging of metal weapons, the neighing of horses, and the noise created by humans and poultry mixed together to form a disorganized symphony, interspersed even with the unique laughter of children... The air also carried whiffs of food and the smell of excrement and urine, much "fresher" than in King's Landing, but still a stench nonetheless. People gathered together, needing to eat, and then needing to relieve themselves—thus, Robert's mobilization order, here north of King's Landing, formed what was now before them: a massive army assembly point composed of lords and soldiers, as well as the accompanying servants, merchants, and surrounding populace who served the former.