Some people say that political struggles are dirty, and that no one who participates in them, whether they are successful or losers, is innocent.

Today, as the loser of the palace coup, Duke Eddard Stark is brought to the pulpit of Baylor's Grand Sanctuary, ready to confess the false treason in full view of the public, in exchange for a reconciliation between the Starks and the Lannisters to avoid the outbreak of war.

To this day, he still doesn't understand why he failed, why so many people would rather choose the queen who committed ugly crimes, rather than pay attention to principle and honor.

Of course, none of this matters now, because according to the agreement, after the sentence is over, he will give up all titles and rights, put on black clothes, and go to the Great Wall of the North to spend the rest of his life as a night watchman.

Looking at the citizens around him who were constantly pointing fingers and even scolding, Ed suddenly felt that he had made a mistake, he should not have come to King's Landing in the first place, let alone accept the position of Prime Minister, because in this game of intrigue and betrayal, he did not even have anyone by his side who could be trusted.

Ironically, even the commoners now consider him a traitor, a careerist who seeks to spy on the royal power.

Zhang Cheng stood in the crowd, silently staring at the pulpit, watching the upcoming scene, and suddenly asked without warning: "Blanco, what do you think our King Joffrey will do with Eddard Stark?"

"Uh...... I think it's going to be exile, or sending the Wall to join the Night's Watch. After all, he is the leader of the Stark family, the guardian of the North, and if the punishment is too severe, it is difficult to guarantee that it will not cause war. The old mercenary replied in a tone of uncertainty that was not very sure.

"Hehe, your judgment is good. Normally, the Lannisters would have to face attacks from Lanley and Stannis next, so a peace deal with House Stark was a smart choice. But what if someone deliberately gets in the way of the lion and the wolf fight first, don't forget, our new king is not in a normal state of mind. ”

With that, Zhang Cheng raised his head again, looking up at the crimson comet in the sky that was getting closer and closer, his eyes were full of curiosity and longing.

Just as Blanco opened his mouth to say something, a deafening shout suddenly erupted from the crowd, followed by Joffrey in front of the pulpit in the distance, raising his right hand, not knowing what was announced, and the former magistrate, Ilyin Pine, drew a huge two-handed sword and raised it high above his head.

Next Second......

Burst!

A blinding bright red erupted, and Eddard Stark's head rolled to the ground, turning into a headless corpse.

Because the whole process was so fast, Queen Cersei didn't have time to react, and by the time she stood up to stop her son's stupidity, it was too late.

At this moment, everyone in the room was clearly aware that with Eddard's death, war between the Lannisters and Stark was inevitable, and that turmoil and chaos would continue until one side was victorious.

Branche stared at the bleeding pulpit, and after a few moments exclaimed in disbelief, "O the Seven! This is madness! I seem to see in Joffrey the shadow of the Mad King Aerys Targaryen." ”

"Hmph, Mad King? No, he's far worse than Mad King. Let's go, there's nothing left to see here. Zhang Cheng sneered disdainfully, and made his way through the crowd of people who had fallen into a frenzy and headed down a wide street.

As he walked, he asked without looking back, "How did the task I gave you going?"

"Rest assured, sir, I have already converted the entire thirty-five thousand into food, as you requested, and kept it secretly in an obscure old warehouse in the city. Even if King's Landing is under siege for more than a year, we don't have to worry about running out of food. The old mercenary assured.

As they spent more and more time together, he became more and more glad that he did not hesitate and made the most correct choice directly.

Because he found that his young master was almost like a prophet, he was always able to know the development of the situation before anyone else knew it, and even before anyone knew that the war was coming, he began to hoard food and recruit mercenaries early.

Don't think that a few hundred mercenaries can't play a decisive role in a battle of thousands at every turn.

On the contrary, since no one is aware of the existence of this mercenary force for the time being, once the battle is deadlocked, they will immediately become the decisive force between victory and defeat.

Hearing that the food was ready, Zhang Cheng nodded with satisfaction: "Good job! By the way, there is nothing wrong with those mercenaries, right?"

"Uh...... There won't be any problems yet. But I have to warn you that they should always be kept in hiding in caves, maybe for a few weeks to a month or two, but not for too long, otherwise the consequences of a rebellion would be devastating. Blanco didn't mean to hide it, and generously voiced his concerns.

He wasn't sure what these bastards would do if they didn't vent their energy for so long.

"Okay, I see, go get your hands on it. Zhang Cheng waved his hand disappreciatively.

Perhaps others did not know how long the rebellion lasted, but he remembered it very clearly.

According to the timeline given in the story, Eddard Stark died at the end of Aegon 298, followed by the defeat of Ranley, Stannis, and Robb the following year.

This means that important turning points, including "Blood Wedding", "Battle of Blackwater", and "Tywin's Death", will all take place in the next few months.

According to the historian's point of view, the year 299 of the Aegon calendar is definitely a vigorous year.

Zhang Cheng will also participate in the game of thrones in a real sense this year, confronting all kinds of players in the story and competing for the fruits of victory together.

The only difference is that he has a general grasp of the situation and knows when to make a move to bring the greatest benefit to himself.

With the expectation of chaos coming, Zhang Cheng walked through the lively streets and soon came to the door of the house.

But before he could knock at the door, a petite figure suddenly emerged from the corner, grabbed him by the sleeve, and said in a low voice, "Sir Mason, you said that if one day I was in trouble, I could come to you for help, right?"

"Are you...... Alya?!" Zhang Cheng quickly recognized the dirty girl, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

According to the original plot, "Erya" should follow the night watchman's recruiter, Yuren, on the road back to Winterfell.

But now, because of his intervention, there has been a serious deviation, and this deviation is precisely the last thing he wants to see at the moment......