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Chapter 21 Bluffing

　　Illyrio, who is covered in jewels and gems, would be like a piece of fish belly if he were to go to a remote place.

　　But his bodyguards are not vegetarians.

　　The coachman driving his horse and the guards following behind the carriage were no ordinary people.

　　Especially the guard in the brown coat, even through the clothes, the outline of his broad chest can be seen.

　　With a well-proportioned waist and strong thighs, you can tell at first glance that she is an expert.

　　Illyrio was an assassin in the past, and the people present were all knowledgeable about the subject, and they quickly made a relatively accurate evaluation of each other.

　　"Your Highness Viserys."

　　With the help of the guards, Illyrio got off the carriage and walked towards Viserys with a smile on his face.

　　"Lord Illyrio."

　　"You are becoming more and more like His Highness Rhaegar."

　　Long Erge's father, Ilis, was known as the 'Mad King', so it would be somewhat impolite to say that he was similar to Ilis.

　　But even after his 'affair', Rhaegar still had a pretty good reputation.

　　So Illyrio chose to use Rhaegar to flatter the second brother of the dragon.

　　It's still unclear whether this guy has ever seen the second Rhaegar, but Viserys has no intention of exposing it.

　　"Ha, you are joking. I am no match for my brother. You are lucky. Knowing that you are coming, the thick fog in Braavos has dissipated a lot."

　　The two complimented each other and walked towards the living room.

　　It took only a brief contact for Illyrio to realize that Viserys was now very different.

　　Although Viserys used to be considered polite and considerate in social situations, his every move was a bit stiff.

　　The second brother Long is now more casual and confident. Even though the place he lives in is not as good as before, his demeanor makes the place look stylish.

　　As he passed by the yard, Illyrio saw the dummies and weapon racks in the yard.

　　The fact that the weapons rack was very clean did not mean much; perhaps the servants wiped it regularly.

　　But there were indeed dense sword marks on the dummy target, which seemed to indicate that Viserys had not slacked off in his martial arts.

　　Soon they arrived at the reception room.

　　The furnishings here are rather ordinary, and at first glance, only the number of lampstands is acceptable.

　　These were all sent by Morel.

　　However, one thing caught Illyrio's attention: there were several overly large 'chairs' placed in the living room.

　　Illyrio sat down and found it soft and comfortable, as if his whole body was lifted up.

　　With the intuition of a successful businessman, he immediately realized the value of this thing.

　　"Is it a new product from Braavos? No, if Braavos had such a thing, how could I not know about it!"

　　"Could it be that this 'chair' was made by that guy?"

　　Illyrio temporarily suppressed his curiosity and focused his attention back on the second brother Long.

　　"I heard that Your Highness has been doing some lending business recently?"

　　"Ha, yes, I can only support my sister."

　　Viserys generously recounted how he entered this "industry", and his frank attitude made him look at him with new eyes again.

　　He knew that once some nobles "fell to earth", they would all be overambitious.

　　They don't want to do this or that and would rather be poor.

　　Businessmen all have pragmatic instincts, and Long Erge's attitude is very much in line with his temper.

　　However, if Brother Long Er really intends to live like this for the rest of his life and has no desire to restore the country, the value of his investment will be greatly reduced.

　　So he decided to attack it indirectly.

　　"I wonder what plans your Highness has for the future?"

　　The corners of Long Erge's mouth slightly raised, and he did not directly answer his question, but asked back:

　　"Do you think Robert's rule is stable?"

　　Illyrio's eyes widened a little, and then he said thoughtfully:

　　"When Robert started his army, he had the support of the North, the Vale and the Riverlands. He and Ned Stark, the Lord of Winterfell, were both adopted sons of Arryn, the Lord of the Vale, and they were as close as brothers.

　　Later, he gained support from the West and married Cersei.

　　Under such circumstances, Highgarden also expressed its willingness to pledge allegiance. As for Dorne...it is really a little weak."

　　Viserys knew what he meant.

　　When the Targaryens were just destroyed, Dorne even came to Viserys to make a marriage contract.

　　But he has also publicly declared his allegiance to Robert.

　　And what Dorne did was also for his own benefit.

　　As Robert's rule became more secure, their desire to contact Viserys had greatly diminished.

　　Illyrio's meaning was obvious, he was telling the second brother, 'You don't stand a good chance.'

　　And use this to test his reaction.

　　Viserys nodded his agreement, but then he said:

　　"Sir, I believe that the fate of Westeros may be determined by women."

　　"What do you mean?" Illyrio asked with interest.

　　"Take Robert for example, all the Baratheons have black hair and blue eyes, except for his three children who have blonde hair and blue eyes.

　　There were rumors in the early years that Littlefinger Baelish always boasted that he slept with Lord Tully's daughter Catelyn, but the one he was really in love with was Tully's other daughter Lysa.

　　And you know the situation that Lysa is in now, marrying a man who can be her father.

　　Little Finger's rise to prominence in the court was possible only because of her advice. "

　　Merchants love information, and Viserys's secrets interested him greatly.

　　"Do you know Ned's illegitimate son?" Brother Long Er said mysteriously.

　　Illyrio nodded, wondering if there was something unknown about this matter.

　　"It is said that it is very likely Diana's child."

　　"Diana? Diana!"

　　Illyrio's eyes suddenly widened and he thought, how is this possible!

　　But on second thought, nothing is impossible. Everyone in the Seven Kingdoms knows about Rhaegar and Diana!

　　This was one of the reasons why Robert launched the rebellion.

　　But this is a bit too much.

　　"This is the benefit of time travelers."

　　The second brother Long thought proudly, and at the same time felt sorry for his eldest nephew in his heart.

　　But Illyrio quickly activated another instinct of his - to verify.

　　"Your messages..."

　　Viserys still did not say it clearly, but said mysteriously:

　　"Varys."

　　It's not surprising. It's not surprising.

　　When it comes to intelligence, no one can match Varys.

　　Illyrio had not expected that anyone could be in touch with Viserys.

　　This person is even inside the Red Keep.

　　His eyes brightened as he looked at Viserys.

　　No wonder he was able to recover from the blow of the "Crown Banquet", it turned out that he had found a powerful figure.

　　But when did Varys contact him? Why didn't he know?

　　Before he could figure it out, Brother Long changed the subject:

　　"I recently heard a very philosophical saying, which is that good luck doesn't favor fools, but opportunities are reserved for those who are prepared."

　　"A good knight always keeps his sword sharp, waiting for the right moment."

　　"Practicing martial arts, studying, and even saving money, these are what I need to do and what I am doing."