Chapter 2: Catelyn Stark

The weather was foggy, and the air outside the room was icy, as if drilling into the bones. Catelyn had never liked the environment of the North, but in fact, her hometown in the Riverlands was already the closest to the North compared to other southern regions, but it was completely different once she crossed the Neck. Here, it seemed to be winter forever, and what was even more terrifying was that their house words were still "Winter is Coming." What would a real winter look like? This was already the ninth summer.

As a Tully, she could overcome these harsh environments, not to mention that she had her beloved husband and children here. She had 5 children, three boys and two girls, and without a doubt, every one of them was healthy.

She silently counted her children in her heart.

The courageous Robb, the clever and beautiful Sansa, the lively and witty Arya, and the children Bran and Rickon.

To this day, she had nothing to be dissatisfied with, perhaps she could look forward to a better tomorrow. Robb would become the Lord of the North, Sansa and Arya would marry noble lords, Bran would also become a lord under his brother, or according to his own dream, become a Northern knight, become a Northern Kingsguard. As for Rickon, he was still really too small, she couldn't imagine his future yet.

She didn't want to continue counting. As a Tully, she only had five children, but as the mistress of Winterfell, she had to continue counting two more. They were also Ned's children, a pair of twins, a boy and a girl. The boy's name was Jon Snow, named after Ned's foster father, Jon Arryn. The girl's name was Mei (Maege) Snow, named after Maege Mormont, the Countess of Bear Island.

Now the girl's name was Mei Stark. She had been legitimized by a royal decree. According to the laws of the kingdom, her right to inherit Winterfell was still before Sansa and Arya.

Fortunately, Robert hadn't lost his rationality. If he had legitimized her twin brother, it would have been disrespectful to the Lord of the North, who was also his sworn brother, and a provocation to her Catelyn as a Tully, and a rude challenge to the rights of the Riverlands. Robert didn't dare to do so; he knew the consequences of doing so. He might not lose two allies, but this would definitely cost Jon his life.

Yes, as long as he dared, the price would be Jon's life. I would tell him why the Tully house words are "Family, Duty, Honor."

However, as a tourney champion, a girl who crowned herself the Queen of Love and Beauty in front of thousands of people, the King could act willfully according to the expectations and observations of thousands of people, and legitimize her bastard status according to his own wishes. But this was still disrespectful to the Tullys.

I must express this to Robert. This is a red line, this is my protection for my children, I must make him see this clearly. But I will endure the existence of Mei Stark, a bastard daughter, even if legitimized, her inheritance rights will be ranked behind my three sons. At the right time, I will advise Ned to marry her off far away, Riverlands, Reach, Stormlands, Westerlands, even Dorne, there is always a place suitable for her. She will never have the chance to touch the rights of my children.

She walked out of the hall to welcome Mei Stark, who was said to have returned from overseas.

As the mistress, I don't need to welcome her, but since she is already a Stark, I need to show the proper demeanor and give her an appropriate response.

Her mood was extremely complex and chaotic. Mei had left Winterfell on her own at thirteen, and now, three years later, she had returned, reportedly bringing with her miles of wagons and supplies. She herself now had a guard of nearly fifty people and an untold number of servants. This was already the style of a king or a great lord. She was only two or three years older than Sansa; looking at Sansa now, she could not imagine how such a girl could have won a championship in the lists, or how she had sailed out to sea on an adventure and returned safely.

Everyone understood the risks at sea; if one's luck was not good, one would sink into the endless sea forever and lose one's life. The young lion who adventured overseas, who was the younger brother of Tywin Lannister, went and never returned, with no more news. If she hadn't raised her by hand until she was ten or so, she wouldn't believe that there would be such a girl in this world.

She heard that after winning the tourney in King's Landing, when Robert Baratheon learned of her identity, he didn't hesitate, drew his own sword, and personally knighted Mei Snow, who was not yet fourteen, as a knight. After the knight's declaration ended, he promised in front of thousands of people, "I don't care who your mother is, although I might have seen her, and might guess correctly, but when you stand up as a knight, you are a Stark." Everyone knew that Robert not only personally knighted her but also gave her the surname Stark. Her legitimized status proceeded happily amidst the cheers and laughter of thousands of people, without the need for a certificate issued by the royal family, and no one could tamper with it anymore.

What was even more magical was the story behind it. Catelyn even thought that this was not a simple story, but a myth and legend from the Age of Heroes. The news she heard was that she used the prize money won from the tourney to buy ships, recruit sailors, and explore along the Narrow Sea. What happened later, she had no way of knowing, but she knew that when Ned learned that this girl had gone to sea alone, he had released ravens, scolding Robert for his lax discipline of his children. Robert's reply letter explained a lot, but it was still slightly apologetic. This was what Catelyn knew.

Now Robert could boast about his discipline in front of Ned.

Catelyn thought of this and revealed a slight smile. But there were still things that made her, as the mistress, feel difficult.

Mei brought back a large amount of material vehicles, many people and livestock, which was something the previous ravens hadn't made clear.

She came out from the main castle, passed the corridor, saw the empty school grounds, went down from the city tower of the South Gate, walked across the drawbridge, and saw the crowded crowd and vehicles outside the city wall. The people coming and going around made way and saluted her. She was there, talking and laughing with everyone she might still recognize.

She saw Mei, and the other party also saw her, and then stepped forward to salute.

"My lady."

Compared to 3 years ago, she was completely like an adult woman. The wind and frost had completely separated her from the greenness and immaturity of a little girl. Catelyn smiled and looked her up and down. She was tall, full of strength, with the typical appearance of a Stark, worthy of being called beautiful, and there was an indescribable heroic spirit flowing in this girl.

This is not an ordinary girl, I should treat her seriously.

She returned at a slightly bad time. After Ned received the raven's letter, he was very happy. When predicting that she would soon return to Winterfell, he took his guard and his nearly adult sons out hunting, saying it was to prepare prey for his daughter whom he hadn't seen for years. Catelyn couldn't understand this approach. So, today's reception could only rely on her, this poor Tully.

"Mei, you are back."

She wanted to say, to express more appropriate language and actions suitable for a mistress and a noble lady, but in the end, they were just these dry words.

"Follow me into the city. This is also your home. How can we let you wait here? I can't wait to hear the stories that happened to you in these few years. The ravens and people coming and going from the north and south have brought all kinds of news in these few years, and everyone was worried to death."

"Okay, my lady. I have prepared gifts for my family. I request 7 guard captains to escort the supplies and follow me into the city, and the rest will stay temporarily in the Winter Town, where there are still many empty rooms."

Seven people, this was of course fine, as long as not all of them entered.

"Sister!"

Catelyn didn't doubt her little daughter's excitement.

"Arya, you are really so light!"

Arya rushed past Catelyn and hugged the sister she hadn't seen for a long time, but was hugged by her sister, making her look like a little bear climbing on a tree trunk.

"Did you really win the championship in the tourney, get the garland of love and beauty, and put it on yourself?" She hung on the girl and asked eagerly.

"Yes, yes, if you were also at the tourney, Arya, I would definitely put it on you myself!"

"How did you do it? I heard you defeated Barristan the Bold?"

"Arya, come down quickly, let's talk after entering the city. Mei has been traveling for a long time, let her enter the city and rest."

Catelyn knew that Mei had now replaced the Rhoynar heroine Nymeria as Arya's idol, and the later lady's education would probably be even more difficult. If there was a sister who could achieve such a dazzling success and could walk out of the path of an ordinary noble lady, then why couldn't Arya? They now even had the same surname.

I have to think of words to stop her from using Mei to defend herself.

Catelyn didn't say much to Mei, but there were three or four hundred vehicles entering the city.

No matter what was inside, Winterfell could always hold them. Some things would wait until Ned returned at night to talk about in detail.

In the afternoon, the hunters entered the city from the Hunter's Gate, dragging all kinds of prey. Inside the city, whether it was the groom, the blacksmith's helper, or the servant, everyone was happy. Every year, except for some festivals and distinguished guests, every day was ordinary. The castle was quiet and peaceful. It was time for everyone to be relieved and encouraged together. Most importantly, for Eddard, today was a day to be with all his family.

The attendants and cooks happily carried the prey into the kitchen. They were going to use these prey to make dinner to celebrate Mei's return.

"Perfect, Cat, no one was injured, we caught two deer, two wild boars, a roe deer, and..."

"Alright, alright, I saw the prey was rich, no one was injured is even better. Today we can have a lively gathering in the hall, and by the way, listen to the stories of Mei and their attendants. The children can't wait."

"Tonight, Rodrik, Jory and their children, Mikken, Haris, Hulun, Fran..."

"Okay, okay, I will arrange it, my Lord Eddard. Tonight, no matter what, everyone will chat happily."

Catelyn could imagine that this family gathering would definitely have countless questions thrown at Mei from everyone. She might have to tell everyone how she became a mystery knight, how she won the tourney championship, how she got the garland of love and beauty, how she was knighted, and became a true Stark. Besides this, there would definitely be what Catelyn was most interested in: how she sailed overseas and what moving stories she had experienced there.

If Arya heard these, she would definitely be even crazier. Seven gods, how to educate her?

In addition to the various heads of Winterfell invited to attend, there were also seven captains who came with Mei. The seven captains were by no means young people born in summer; each of them had the temperament of fighting on the battlefield. She had a deeper impression of two of them. One was a young man with grey curly hair, good-looking, but a knife scar remained on his cheek, from thick to thin. This didn't affect his appearance, but added a few points of toughness. She remembered the name was Will. The other was a tall, strong man, with grey hair, a serious face, not smiling, and a painted red beard. He didn't look like a Westerosi, but it could be seen that he was a captain Mei relied on. The name was Credo. From the way they addressed each other, it seemed there was a nickname, called the Hongse Yongshi.

She wanted to write down the names of the rest, but she was far away and couldn't hear clearly. Each of them wore leather armor, and their attire was almost the same, like warriors walking out of the barracks. She knew that these were all people loyal to Mei, but it looked like the possibility of being knights was very small.

They sat separately from the instructors of Winterfell, so that every side had a stranger from Winterfell to chat with them.

Mei sat on the right side of Eddard's seat, followed by Arya, Bran, and Jon. On the left were Robb, Sansa, Luwin, and Theon.

The second girl loved this sister to death.

Eddard toasted for everyone. Then, everyone started their focus, like sharing a sumptuous feast. The cook kept serving the roasted prey, and multiple servants cut them up and put them into the bowls of everyone present. The rest were placed on the table according to the portion. Catelyn ate a piece of venison and sipped half a glass of golden wine from the Arbor. She knew that there would be stories of Mei over the years immediately. Everyone in Winterfell was looking forward to it, especially Arya.

"My good sister, I have many stories, but my glass is already empty."

Catelyn smiled. Mei was like teasing her little wolf dog to tease this girl who admired her.

"Wait, immediately."

Arya was like a little monkey, jumping down from her seat, running fast in front of the hall, as if a hungry wolf was following her butt. She grabbed the wine pot from the servant and ran back to Mei with it, stumbling to fill the wine for her beloved sister. Everyone was amused by her cleverness and flattery. Robb and Jon laughed even more heartily.

Even the Hongse Yongshi stretched his mouth.

"Say it quickly, Mei, I have already filled your wine. Don't laugh, listen to my sister tell stories."

"What story do you want to hear?"

"I want to hear your story of going to the Free Cities, I want to hear your story of fighting pirates."

Catelyn also wanted to know what Mei had experienced overseas in these few years and how she had become what she was today.

"Okay, okay, I will start immediately, my good sister, exciting stories."

Catelyn watched Mei take a sip of the wine filled by Arya, and heard Mei tell the story of how she bought a ship in King's Landing and then went to the Free Cities after she crowned herself the Queen of Love and Beauty.

"The new ship was named 'Love and Beauty.' Oh, I originally wanted to name it Arya, but Arya hasn't been to sea."

"I will go to sea in the future, but you can name it Mei, or Nymeria."

"You won't go to sea, haha!" Robb laughed loudly, which caused Arya's strong dissatisfaction, "I will, I will, I will!"

This stubborn noise made the whole table laugh, but she didn't forget the previous words, and asked, "Is it Nymeria or Mei?"

"No, no, no, ships named after these two names can line up from King's Landing to White Harbor. I can only choose a name that is not common. However, Arya, you interrupted me like this, I won't be able to finish the story even if I get drunk today."

"It was you who mentioned 'Arya,' this has nothing to do with me, but say it quickly, what happened later?"

Later, later she crossed the Narrow Sea. The first stop was Braavos. She saw the Titan of Braavos.

She said that her first thought when seeing the Titan was how to occupy this city.

Catelyn knew that there were countless ambitious people who wanted to cross the Narrow Sea and conquer this Free City. But now the opposite was true. Braavosi merchants had slowly controlled Westeros through the Iron Bank. In this situation, she didn't know whether Westeros was dangerous or Braavos was dangerous.

When she entered Braavos, she hit a wall. There, the price of Arbor wine was cheaper than in King's Landing. She couldn't pay the voyage expenses of the crew, and couldn't purchase various supplies needed for long-distance voyages in Braavos. She actually stubbornly refused to sell the wine at a low price, which almost made her go bankrupt.

Catelyn sighed. Most of the Arbor wine in King's Landing was transported by sea. Entering King's Landing, it had to go through the kingdom's taxes and the special tax of Redwyne to the Iron Throne, so the price was naturally high. And now the strait was still calm, and Arbor merchants could directly send the wine they produced to Braavos, exempt from all taxes. Compared to this, the wine in Braavos was naturally cheaper.

It turned out that she wasn't able to handle everything easily.

Catelyn continued to listen to Mei's narration of how she acted in such a difficult situation.

"I convinced the crew, telling them that the supplies on the ship could successfully support them to Pentos. I was willing to pay their wages with Arbor wine."

But the later storms almost blew your ship apart in Kahor.

"The sails of 'Love and Beauty' were blown to pieces by the gale, and the flagpole was also blown off. We could only drift on the sea. Oh, a few crew members lost confidence in the future and started to be naughty, so I threw them into the sea."

Hope Arya doesn't ask why the crew would be naughty.

"Just when we were desperate, we saw a larger ship approaching us. I knew we were saved. Although my crew seemed even more desperate, because it was a pirate ship. We were drifting on the sea, but our supplies were still enough, not to mention that there were a few fewer naughty ghosts."

"In order to make these pirates think that we had completely lost our combat ability, I ordered the crew to lie on the ship one by one, pretending to be starving. Later I knew that this performance was in vain. They had been following from Braavos, and had already done things to the ship's sides and sails in advance. And it took them a long time to find us drifting in the sea. I captured the pirate ship, but helplessly, there was no way to move my Arbor wine over, so I had to let the crew change ships, letting 'Love and Beauty' drift on the sea with the grape wine. Maybe it is still galloping in some corner of the sea now."

Seven gods, this was just the first step of going to sea.

"The supplies on the pirate ship were much richer, all kinds of gold coins, all kinds of goods, and each one was a boutique, most importantly, the ship was faster."

"What about those pirates?" Arya asked.

"I originally wanted to learn from my father and cut off their heads one by one, but I didn't want to make it bloody, so..."

Threw them all into the sea, I know.

The children were all surprised. But Eddard, Rodrik, and the others started to become serious. And her captains, not half surprised, clearly, they must have participated in this kind of thing.

If the later stories were not suitable for children's ears, I would take them all down.

"This pirate ship was renamed 'Hope' by me, and we arrived in Pentos safely with hope. There I met 'Bull' Robs, who taught me a lot of knowledge about navigation. Arya, sometimes we need to learn knowledge and master skills from many people around us."

Clearly, Robs was also sitting here. He had a very thin beard, young and strong, but couldn't see any characteristics of recklessness, nor could he see that he had enough navigation knowledge to teach others.

"This Robs is the nephew of 'Bull,' and has the same name as his uncle. His uncle later disappeared on a sea trade trip and didn't return." Mei added.

"On the pirate ship, I obtained many gold coins and rare items. In order not to repeat the mistake of King's Landing, I hired an experienced bankrupt merchant, Mill, who taught me what goods to buy in Pentos to sell in other cities like Lys. So I used the gold coins in my hand to pay off his debts. Although he was very enthusiastic and I trusted him very much, I still insisted on him traveling with me. Do you know why, Arya?"

When you found out he was deceiving you, it was convenient to throw him into the sea. Yes, this might not be honorable, but this is what a leader should do.

Eddard's brow was already furrowed, Catelyn noticed.

But it was Robb who spoke.

"It's because you don't trust him enough. If he lived with you for many years, you could naturally leave him to go to sea alone."

"Robb, I shoulder the lives of a ship of people, so I can't bet these lives on trust. Moreover, trust is just a feeling, not reality." She revealed a smile, "However, for Mill, I just felt he was untrustworthy and wanted to take him with me to verify it."

"Pentos is very beautiful. I stayed there for a while and re-assembled the manpower," Mei pointed to the young man beside her, "Shale got on the ship at that time."

Catelyn looked at this young man named Shale, brown hair, medium build, looking only twenty or so, like a lively and kind young man.

"Eldest Miss, you should talk about your great achievements in Pentos." Shale smiled, making this experience mysterious.

Catelyn knew that the story of Pentos wouldn't just be summarized by staying for a while; there must be many details here.

"Hahaha, the Horse King of the Dothraki also stayed in Pentos at that time, accepting the offerings of this city. But I had a conflict with them."

"What conflict happened?" Arya pursued.

"The conflict itself is not important. There, another tourney happened. Only the winner didn't have 40,000 gold dragons, only a string of hair with bells hanging on it. I defeated the leader of the Horse King, that is, the Khal. Their leader is called Khal, just like some wildling leaders are called Magnar—they put a bell on their hair every time they win, but if they lose, they have to cut their hair."

Catelyn knew the risks involved.

"In Pentos, I also met an old friend, Father, you know this person."

Jorah Mormont of Bear Island.

"Ser Jorah Mormont spent all his gold and silver there, and his Hightower wife, I heard, also became the mistress of some rich merchant. He could only sell his life in a mercenary group to survive."

Catelyn knew Eddard's evaluation of this person, but Mei's slow talk also shocked her. Honor like the children of the Hightower family would actually fall to this point.

She had seen this woman once in Winterfell, and she empathized with the cold and desolation of the North with her. Catelyn hoped to convince the other party to gradually endure the cruel environment of the North with her own experience, but judging from this piece of news brought back by Mei, she clearly didn't succeed.

This was a vivid piece of news, but it would be better if Mei could report it to them alone. The stains of Bear Island and Oldtown shouldn't be talked about here in front of so many people.

Clearly Mei knew this point and immediately continued.

"After leaving Pentos, we encountered pirates again. This time I took the initiative to bring the ship close, very unfortunately, only captured one merchant ship, while the other escaped. Gold coins, goods, and wine were even richer. At that moment, I understood the house words of the Theon family more deeply. How can hard work be as fast as strong taking and violent snatching?"

Is this kind of truth suitable for telling in front of the children in this hall?

Theon laughed on the side, not caring.

"Later, we arrived in Volantis, stepped into the Summer Sea, carefully bypassed the lost land of Valyria, arrived in Ghis, and in the Sorrowful Bay, captured three more pirate ships. We became a fleet with 5 ships. We went to Slaver's Bay. The cities here possess a large number of slaves. The Unsullied of Astapor, the sex slaves of Yunkai, the slaves of Meereen, their rulers call themselves Good Masters, Wise Masters, and Great Masters." Hope the pirate ships were really pirate ships.

"What are Unsullied, what are sex slaves?" Arya pursued.

Castrated slave warriors.

"Arya, don't interrupt."

"I sold the goods I didn't need there, because of the newly added ships, I continued to recruit crew members there. Karl got on the ship at that time."

"Eldest Miss, meeting you is the luckiest thing in my life." Karl was medium build, but lean and powerful, with a darker skin tone, and special marks on his face. He was a person who looked very reliable. Catelyn noticed that his Common Tongue was not fluent.

He might have been a slave, with rusted tattoos on his face.

"I recruited crew members there, replenished supplies, and then left quickly."

Catelyn noticed her tone, the experience there might not be pleasant.

"I prepared to continue sailing east, but on the way, a ship named 'Valyria' rebelled and ran away. For them, they had already sailed too far, and the trade gains were very rich, so they were unwilling to continue sailing east. In the Ghis Strait, we encountered a pirate fleet again. This time I lost a ship. Those crew members who had just gained freedom stayed in that sea area forever, but I captured two new ships. However, by the time we reached Qarth, only two ships remained. 'Hope' didn't persist until then."

"Qarth is a very large city. The merchants in the city say they are in the middle of the world, communicating east and west. The facts are indeed so. If there is a chance, I will introduce it to you in detail later. There I sold all the goods, added a flagship, I named it 'Discovery,' Gashar and Qarthos were the ones I met at that time, this is Gashar, Qarthos couldn't sit here today."

"Eldest Miss, I am very honored to follow you."

Catelyn looked at this young man named Gashar, brown hair, medium build, skin very white, looking only twenty or so, like a lively and kind person, but his Common Tongue was very good.

"I recruited crew members there, hired translators, and then set off for the Jade Sea. In that sea area, there was no wind for thirteen consecutive days. We had to drift quietly on the sea surface like jade. At that time, I understood why that sea was called the Jade Sea. We sailed along the coast, passed Punk City, Hael City, and finally reached Asshai, and together with the guard, stepped on the land of the Shadow Lands. The Shadow Lands are now in war and turmoil. The news I heard is that war is happening everywhere. In order to avoid trouble, we returned from Asshai, loaded with silk and porcelain from Asshai and all the rare items I could distinguish. This time I didn't need Mill, I could judge it myself."

Catelyn listened very carefully. She had never thought that Mei, who was sixteen, was a strange person who had sailed to Asshai and the edge of the world like the Shadow Lands.

"Mill?" Catelyn knew that this Mill must have some problems.

"Mill was on the Valyria at that time. He should have enough wisdom to save his life."

"Perhaps he was the one who planned the mutiny." Robs was very angry.

"Whatever. We almost returned the same way, encountered many pirates and storms, but all overcame them, safely returned to the Free Cities, safely returned to Westeros. On the way, I defeated many self-righteous pirates and looted their ships. By the time I reached King's Landing, I already had 5 warships, 13 merchant ships, 8 pirate speedboats, and 10 rowing ships. Some of them were parked on the Three Sisters Islands, and some were parked in White Harbor."

The evening banquet lasted for a long time, until everyone was satisfied with eating and drinking, and Mei also finished her overseas journey. Catelyn knew that she should give Eddard and Mei, father and daughter, some time to communicate some special things. Marriage, future, fleet, former Count of Bear Island, etc., he still had many detailed overseas situations that needed to be obtained from Mei here.

After explaining some things, Catelyn turned into Eddard's study, and Mei was also there. After nodding in tribute, Mei continued to speak. Catelyn walked away and prepared hangover tea for Eddard and Mei respectively.

"Lynesse left him when he went out to fight, becoming the mistress of some rich merchant. I didn't pay much attention to Lynesse. When I was in Winterfell, I knew she was a stupid lady from the South. If it weren't for her, perhaps Ser Jorah wouldn't be like this."

Stupid lady from the South, am I also a stupid lady from the South in your heart?

Catelyn couldn't distinguish. She had seen Lynesse. Lynesse might not be stupid, but she was undoubtedly a vain little girl.

"He failed the expectations his father had for him. In short, he was the culprit." Eddard locked his brow, very unhappy, "If the Old Mormont of the Wall knew his current situation, I fear he would be even more disappointed."

"I have been paying attention to his news. When I returned from Asshai, I found that he had been hired by the Targaryen prince, and the prince's sister, Princess Daenerys, had married the Horse King of the Dothraki, and they went to the Dothraki together. I inquired about the situation of this pair of Targaryen siblings. It turns out they have been turning between the Free Cities, avoiding Robert's pursuit, but they always turn bad luck into good luck. Just a Narrow Sea, there should be someone informing them of news and providing shelter."

"Have you seen this pair of siblings?" Eddard mused and opened his mouth. He might want to denounce Robert's dishonorable behavior, but didn't make a sound.

"I have no chance to see them. When I returned to the Free Cities, they had already left. If not, I would have had the opportunity to offer wedding gifts to them."

"Mei, don't mention them again in the future, and don't mention it to anyone. Don't even talk nonsense about offering wedding gifts. You might get into trouble." Eddard became more and more serious.

"Mei, your father is also for your own good. There is no need to participate in this kind of thing at all." Catelyn understood Eddard's worry.

"Understood, my lady. I was just thinking at the beginning, I am a knight personally knighted by Robert, my father is the Lord of the North, no one can do anything to me, but now thinking about it, the more such an identity, the more I should stay far away from them." Mei drank a sip of hangover tea, "I paid attention to inquiring about their situation. Rumor has it that Prince Viserys is a young, handsome, and wise person, like his brother Rhaegar, brave and fearless, a natural king. But the prostitutes in Pentos don't think so. Their consistent tone is that this is a mean and arrogant beggar prince, a desperate and resentful teenager."

"Seven gods, for this news, what exactly did you do?" Catelyn felt dizzy.

"Just spent money to inquire about news. However, I heard that his sister Daenerys is a real beauty, not old, but her personality is relatively timid."

"Still older than you." Eddard was helpless.

"Generally speaking, if it is for restoring the country, people like Daenerys naturally shouldn't be easily married. The marriage with the Horse King, I think, is to borrow troops. Robert Baratheon should worry about this."

"Do you have any thoughts?"

"None. Their marriage was introduced by Illyrio, the rich merchant governor of Pentos. I heard that he sent dragon eggs to Daenerys at the wedding, later according to himself, they were fossilized dragon eggs formed millions of years ago."

"Himself?" Catelyn was surprised.

"I bought a courtyard in Pentos. Coincidentally, the owner of this courtyard was this governor. Perhaps he heard some news, so we met. Of course, I think this is because I defeated the Khal, which aroused his interest." She drank a sip of hangover tea, "In general, he has his own purpose for the Targaryen siblings. He should have other collaborators in Westeros."

"Who would be the collaborator?"

"Dorne? Or others willing to restore the Targaryens? Or, Varys, he came from overseas, who knows? In Pentos, I didn't have the power to investigate a governor. In King's Landing, I didn't have the ability to investigate a royal minister."

"They are still very young, and they are on the other side of the ocean, and they have to travel far to the Dothraki Sea. They may not return to Westeros to claim their father's power, not to mention, they don't have dragons anymore." Catelyn felt there was no need to continue the topic of this pair of siblings.

"Yes, my lady. Father indeed doesn't need to waste energy on them. It is King's Landing that will have some situations." Mei looked at Catelyn.

"Does it have anything to do with me?" Catelyn's heart suddenly became nervous. She hated this unknown feeling and hated the insecure breath.

"After returning to King's Landing, I was invited by the Hand to be a guest at the Hand's Tower and saw your sister and her child Robin. The Hand Arryn's body is still okay. What worries me is your sister, my lady. I will just say it directly, her mental state is not very normal, very sensitive, very panicked, extremely nervous about Robin's safety. How old is Robin? Now still breastfed by her. I think she can no longer be considered a normal person. Sigh, if an ordinary person goes crazy, it might only hurt herself, but she is the Hand of the King, the wife of the Warden of the East, and has the conditions to hurt the people around her."

"It's Robert Arryn. He is one year younger than Bran. At this age..." Catelyn couldn't go on.

"This child suffers from epilepsy. If he gets excited, he will have an attack. His temper is now very perverse, really making people unable to love him. My lady, not all children are as sweet and cute as Bran."

Catelyn recalled the bits and pieces of the past, both sad for her sister's misfortune and grateful for her luck. And Mei didn't seem to want to continue talking about Lysa Tully's affairs.

"In King's Landing, I encountered an assassination. Fortunately, the method was clumsy, and I was safe and sound." Mei said this kind of thing coldly.

"Seven gods, you are just a girl who has just reached adulthood, who would go to assassinate you?"

"I guess it's the Queen." She saw Eddard's expression, "Er, Father, don't worry, I didn't tell anyone else about this guess. Um, in King's Landing, I think, the only one I could offend is the Queen."

Yes, crowning herself the Queen of Love and Beauty, favored by the King, and still a beautiful and heroic woman, judging from the rumors of the Queen's personality, it is also very reasonable. Catelyn believed Mei's guess.

"I won the tourney championship as a mystery knight. The King might be able to knight me, but in the absence of anyone proposing, he legitimized a bastard like me, but this is not normal." Mei sighed, as if she wanted to say something, "Father, do I look very much like Aunt Lyanna?"

The thought like a spark jumped into her heart, but she quickly suppressed it. Eddard rarely talked about this sister who disturbed the internal chaos of the Seven Kingdoms with his family, and others never took the initiative to mention Lyanna to him.

Eddard stared at the fire, muttering without speaking, not knowing how to speak. Catelyn didn't have the luck to see Lyanna. In the rumors, she was a free and beautiful young woman. Yes, if she wasn't beautiful, how could she make Prince Rhaegar infatuated and commit stupid things? If he hadn't done this, perhaps I could have successfully married...

"Yes, in appearance, in some places, in temperament, there are also similarities. But those who are familiar will know that you are two completely different people. Robert will never treat you as her."

"It seems that I have already suffered a danger because of Aunt Lyanna!" All three laughed.

Eddard was laughing bitterly, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were deep, squeezing his face even smaller.

"Mei, for the future, what plans and thoughts do you have? I will never agree to you going to sea again. Brandon the Shipwright had several successful voyages, but later he went and never returned, losing his trace. I hope you don't learn from him."

"I have no plans to continue sailing, Father."

"Then, how about I arrange a marriage for you? I believe that with your identity as the Queen of Love and Beauty, a great navigator, and a Stark, many great nobles will flock to you. Not to mention, you are also a rare beauty." Catelyn knew that Eddard had never arranged marriages for his children, and the tone at this time was actually a bit pleading.

Catelyn thought Mei would directly refuse, and this might also be the state Eddard guessed.

"Father, what nobles can be arranged?"

Catelyn saw Eddard grinning, "The nobles of the whole North, you can almost choose at will. If you want to go to a warmer place, if the faith can be consistent, you can consider the Royce family of the Vale, the Blackwood family of the Riverlands. If you don't consider the faith, there are also many choices. I will always find a suitable and perfect husband's family for you."

"Father, there is no perfect husband's family. Let's pick slowly. On the contrary, Robb, he has now reached the age where he can be married. How did you arrange it?"

This is not a problem you should consider. "As for Robb, we have our own arrangements." Catelyn looked at Eddard and replied immediately, but as soon as the words came out, she felt the tone was a bit stiff. Fortunately, neither Eddard nor Mei had any abnormalities.

Ho, Mei shouldn't be my opponent, Catelyn.

"You have 3 sons, my lady, you will have trouble and trouble in the future."

Eddard shook his head and laughed.

"The one who worries me the most now is the youngest daughter." All three laughed. ===== CHAPTER 3 =====

"This is not a matter for you to consider," she said. "As for Robb, we have our own arrangements." Catelyn looked at Eddard, momentarily speechless, and spoke out, but as soon as the words left her mouth, she felt her tone was a bit stiff. Fortunately, neither Eddard nor Mei seemed to notice anything unusual.

"Ho, Mei shouldn't be my opponent, Catelyn."

"My lady, you have three sons; you will have plenty to worry about and trouble yourself with in the future."

Eddard shook his head and smiled.

"The one who worries me most right now is my youngest daughter." All three of them laughed.