Chapter 134: Wolf Girl

The high officials looked at each other, not quite understanding the strategy Mei mentioned.

"Septon Chayle, the plan against Dustin can be implemented immediately—hehe, I will do a little military action to cooperate later—if one of the three can respond, it can also bring a little trouble to Lady Dustin. But what I want is not a little trouble, what I want is to completely overturn her. She holds the Dustin family as a daughter-in-law. Besides relying on the help of House Ryswell, I can't think of why the Dustin family and Dustin's vassals would be willing to follow her to death. I have easily defeated Bolton's retreating army on my way south. Haven't they seen it?"

Mei thought of the quick battle she participated in with Asha Greyjoy.

"Ser Mason, I remember a Bolton prisoner is still being held in Cerwyn?"

"Yes, Your Highness. Because of that battle, many prisoners are already being held in Cerwyn. The Bolton you mentioned is still there, it's just that I can't remember his name."

"Just asking." Mei rose from her seat, took the long pole, and walked toward the map. "If I were Bolton, facing defense, I would have two strategies or plans. The first plan is, if the defense of the White Knife is too tight to break through, then move north in a big way, breaking through the End River. Although the End River only has two ferry crossings, um, Brightflame Crossing and Giant Crossing, but since it is a river, as long as there are boats, it is bound to be able to find other ferry crossings. This is different from the White Knife. Even if other ferry crossings cannot be found, with the strength of House Karstark and House Umber, it is not necessarily possible to hold the ferry crossings. Therefore, the first step of the great army is to solve the defense of Hearth and Karhold as soon as possible, and arrange the southern army here. If he has learned to use foreign dogs to do dirty work for him, then these southern armies can not only cruelly clear out enemy parties for him but also hold the castles firmly—these southerners will definitely be eaten by Northerners if they walk out of the castle. Besides these, it can also keep them away from other areas of the North, preparing for the army to disperse for the winter. In short, everyone won't think that with Bolton's main force attacking these two places, they won't be able to take them down, right?"

The high officials didn't speak, so Mei continued.

"Sweeping these two castles, the northeast direction of Bolton will be stable. At the same time, it basically restores the historical territory of the Red King. Judging from the history of the confrontation between the King of Winter and the Red King, Bolton might follow the historical old path, cross Long Lake, and attack Winterfell from north to south."

"Can their supplies support such a long route?" Ser Mason Cerwyn questioned.

"No need to support. Since Stark chose passive defense, naturally they will not harass or intercept them, and they cannot resist their superior strength. Therefore, they can easily clear the strongholds and bunkers along the White Knife. As long as they break through Snow Crossing, they can let the Dreadfort coalition enter the west of the White Knife faster, easily launch an attack and siege on Winterfell from the north. And then they can continue to move south. Once they take Grey Wolf Crossing, they can station troops in a big way to form a siege on Winterfell, while greatly shortening the supply line. And even if the siege fails, as long as Grey Wolf Crossing is in hand, they can also retreat calmly and remain undefeated. On this point, perhaps I should thank Kongqi Kongdun for clearing the spies for me, otherwise, this plan might not be impossible to succeed."

"If the Dreadfort attacks Hearth and Karhold, we will naturally move troops north to block them. The Dreadfort might not be able to take Snow Crossing." Ser Rodrik spoke.

"That's not bad either. At least, he has already engaged in battle with Stark. Losing doesn't matter, his soldiers are more. But if he wins, he can drive straight down, and can also use this to hit our morale."

"However, winter siege, no matter what, is not a good strategy. Moreover, Winterfell has already cleared the spies they sent, right?"

"Of course." Can she say there are still spies in Winterfell? "Therefore, if he doesn't have the confidence to take Winterfell directly, I am afraid he will choose the second plan." Mei sat back in her seat. "The second plan is very simple. Clear all family forces that are still loyal to Stark east of the White Knife, constantly send heads to Winterfell, and then harass and destroy White Harbor, driving commoners to attack the city. I don't understand where Roose Bolton's bottom line is. I think he should not care how cruel the means are. As long as he can force Stark to fight passively, he will choose. After all, Stark's people always give the impression of being irritable and acting willfully."

There are also the third plan and the fourth plan, but they all need to cooperate with various blood magic, which is also the most difficult to explain.

"Your Highness, believe you will not act willfully."

Ser Mason Cerwyn's words reminded her of the night she killed the Faceless Man in anger. She clearly had promised the high officials to let go of the Faceless Man in exchange for Arya, but she was still furious and slaughtered the Faceless Man, which led to her having to knock on their doors one by one that night to inform them of the matter. She believed this left them with the impression that she was not "acting steadily."

"Of course not." She is not a genuine Stark.

"So you?"

"Bolton might choose to go north first and then south, east first and then west. I, hehe, we can go west first and then east, south first and then north, see whose actions are faster." If it weren't for punishing House Frey and reducing the pressure from the South, perhaps she should have acted like this long ago.

Her plan had never changed from beginning to end.

"Your Highness, go west first and then east, south first and then north, what does this mean?" Ser Rodrik stood up and walked to the map. "Could it be that we are going to attack Flint? Going to them might be further than going to the Twins. And I don't see any significance in attacking them."

"If it weren't for Bran's accident, perhaps, when I returned south, I would have taken Flint by the way."

If it weren't for Flint not issuing a warning, perhaps Moat Cailin wouldn't have been lost. As long as Moat Cailin was not lost, when Robb felt that fighting in the South was relatively difficult, he would think of continuing to conscript troops in the North—he wouldn't disdain the gold brought back by the bastard sister—at that time, perhaps it would be the time for her to exert her ability.

As for Frey, Moat Cailin was not lost, he wouldn't and wouldn't dare to do stupid things, Bolton should be the same.

If Victarion had failed to take Moat Cailin, perhaps she would already be leading a great army into King's Landing, learning from her ancestor Cregan to let King's Landing experience what a Blood Wolf Girl's wolf-time was like. In short, them leading Northern armies to roam and conquer on Southern lands would be ten thousand times better than fighting a civil war in the North as they were now.

"So, the so-called South is not Flint." Lord Roger said with a smile. "You said this, and I am relieved."

"The so-called South refers to the two rebellious earl territories mainly in the Rills and Barrowton. The so-called North refers to Bolton and his party along the coast. Hehe, historically they submitted to the Red King. Although the time of separation is long enough, this memory has not yet dissipated."

Mei just doesn't understand how many disloyal earl lords there are today because the one in charge of Stark is a woman who made this choice.

"Your Highness, you have wronged many lords." Septon Chayle took the initiative to stand out. "The reason why the coastal families rebelled, I guess, is because they are jealous of White Harbor's foreign trade and hope to restore the prosperity of history."

What a fresh reason. She was just joking about those words.

"I don't understand." Mei looked at Septon Chayle, hoping he could explain. The reason for rebellion always made her feel very interested.

"Your Highness, this has to start from the port management ability of House Manderly." Septon Chayle explained these problems with a smile. He obviously liked to explain and solve puzzles for people, perhaps this was the work habit of a septon. "Everyone knows the origin of House Manderly, so I won't go into detail. When they entered the North, they not only brought gold and supplies, but they also brought their entire family and all their vassals and knight orders, which included many river transport management talents."

"I know all these." Mei hoped he could be faster.

"Yes, Your Highness. Long before House Manderly managed White Harbor—it was called Wolf's Den at that time—there were countless foreign trade ports in the North from north to south. There were six that had scale, namely Bolton Port, Blade Port, Broken Stream Port, Widow's Watch, Long Gate Port, and Old Town Port. During Bolton's last rebellion, the King of the North completely destroyed the two ports he possessed. Therefore, the ports for foreign trade in the North were transferred to the remaining four ports since then."

"I have only heard of Widow's Watch and Old Town Port among these four ports. But when I returned to the North by boat, I never thought of stopping at these two ports. Could it be that this also has some relationship?"

"Of course, Your Highness. Many people don't remember the prosperous appearance of other ports at that time, so seeing the desolate and lost four ports doesn't have too many thoughts. This is actually wrong. After House Manderly occupied the Wolf's Den, they quickly stood firm there and united with Stark's power to reshape and unite the Three Sisters. House Manderly is indeed very capable and has invested huge energy in White Harbor, but this is not the end. What I want to say is that White Harbor itself has natural advantages. As long as the threat of pirates is removed, the river transport channel of Stark is united, and the trade needs of other families west of the White Knife are relied upon, it will naturally become a prosperous port for trade."

"Hehe, could it be that you remember, Septon? You are only forty-plus years old, right?" Mei asked with a smile.

"Your Highness, I am already forty-eight years old, only a little younger than Lord Rickard. Naturally, I don't remember the prosperous appearance of these ports at my age. But fortunately, the records in Winterfell's books record many scenes of trade at that time and the records left by the maesters. This is enough to restore the grand occasion at that time."

Mei felt she heard clearly. The youths sitting quietly on the side were even more excited. When had anyone told them these stories before?

"What does this have to do with their rebellion today? It wouldn't be because of the prosperity of White Harbor that they stand on Bolton's side out of jealousy, right?"

"Please allow me to explain in detail, Your Highness. The trade channel from Winterfell to White Harbor is becoming more and more prosperous. I just said, not only are there goods entering and exiting Winterfell, in fact, all lords west of the White Knife have chosen to trade abroad through White Harbor since then, not only convenient, but also efficient and low cost."

Glover and Cerwyn were all nodding.

"Your Highness, I don't know much about the economic laws in the field of trade, but I feel that the field of trade seems to have a rule that the strong get stronger and the weak get weaker—the more prosperous White Harbor's foreign trade is, the more prosperous it will be, while the families managing other ports on the east coast are declining day by day. Although they are envious, they have no way. In the end, these ports are declining day by day. Many ports you haven't heard of, such as Broken Stream Port, Long Gate Port, Rough Mud Port, and Duck Port, have been ruined day by day, and in the end, they can only be used as fishing boat berths. And because of disrepair, some were finally blocked by silt at the mouth of the sea, which made them even less capable of being ports."

"Even if they defect to Bolton, these ports cannot be restored." The reason is not sufficient.

"Silt can be cleaned up again, and giant stones can be fished out again. The key is the direction of logistics and trade. As long as Winterfell is the heart of the North for one day, these logistics will never turn to other ports. After all, in the North, it is impossible to find a pair like the line from Winterfell, Cerwyn to White Harbor where river transport and sea transport are so convenient. If you ask me, even if Lord Wylis was not rescued by you, White Harbor would still support you, Your Highness."

Mei had to give him a blaming look for the second half of his sentence—even if the truth is so, he cannot say it out like this.

"I still have the same question. Even if they defect to Bolton, they can't change this 'pair'."

"Under normal circumstances, it cannot be changed, unless—Winterfell is destroyed, and the center of the North shifts to the Dreadfort." Septon Chayle's tone was very firm. "The reason why the Red King could compete with the King of Winter, and why Brandon the Shipwright had to explore the west, is naturally because the Red King controlled the trade in the east. These rebellious families might have had the idea of restoring their port trade through this method."

"Even if Winterfell is destroyed, White Harbor's advantage is not so easy to break. So, I still find it very difficult to understand their choice."

"If Winterfell is destroyed, what northern supplies can White Harbor transport? Bolton has restarted Bolton Port. I am afraid he will not tolerate White Harbor continuing to maintain convenience. I suspect he will definitely destroy the tacit understanding between White Harbor and the Three Sisters. At that time, the export of northern foreign trade will easily turn to Bolton Port. Other ports will also restore their previous logistics share in this situation and smoothly restore to the prosperity of the past. As for White Harbor, I suspect it might restore to the chaotic Wolf's Den of the past."

Mei pondered silently. If the rebellion in the South was because of some inexplicable hatred for Stark, then according to what Septon Chayle said, the rebellion in the East might be for economic reasons.

What is the most indestructible alliance in the world? Naturally, it is the deep connection in the economy. What is the vicious hatred in the world? It is killing parents and cutting off wealth.

Mei basically understood the septon's meaning.

Stark and Manderly, this deep connection in the economy, as far as the actual situation is concerned, doesn't need to consider the competitive relationship, because both sides are clearly divided in political strength and status. In the North, the mainstream and branch are clearly divided in religious belief. Not to mention, Mei's cooperation with House Manderly in porcelain trade...

However, Mei felt that the families along the east coast might have considered the "possible gains" in the economy, but it was more likely that they thought of Bolton's means—they had no ability to resist Bolton at all, and Stark had no ability to provide them with protection when Bolton 'punished' them. So, comprehensively, making a betrayal decision can be considered "reasonable."

"Hey, let's go back to the North-South and East-West problems." The topic was suddenly pulled away by Septon Chayle, and she had to pull it back. "The so-called South refers to the Rills and Barrowton, which must be handled first. The so-called go west first and then east refers to, hehe, go to the Rills first and then Barrowton."

"Go to Ryswell first? Why is this?"

"There are two reasons. First, surprise." Mei scanned every child with her eyes, using her eyes to prompt them to keep it secret. "Since you didn't think we would solve House Ryswell first, I think the enemy would think of it even less. Theon that kid landed from the Stony Shore, crossed the Rills all the way, turned in Border Town, and went straight to Torrhen's Square. We can do the opposite, turn in Border Town, and go straight to the Long Creek City of the Rills."

She saw Ser Rodrik nod slightly, but he was a bit hesitant.

"The second reason is that the reason why the viscounts of the Rills accept the leadership of this widow, Barbrey Ryswell, is presumably because House Ryswell provides support behind the scenes. Therefore, I only need to defeat House Ryswell, and these viscounts might reconsider who they should be loyal to. Additionally, only by defeating House Ryswell can the plan to divide Barrowton into three be successfully implemented and not be destroyed by Lady Dustin."

"If the plan succeeds, perhaps we can solve the threats of House Ryswell and House Dustin in one fell swoop, thereby, in military strength, being able to maintain balance with Bolton again." Roger Glover clapped his hands in surprise. "Moreover, compared to House Dustin, House Ryswell is not so prosperous. Our chances of winning are not small." ===== CHAPTER 135 =====