-52- Every place is different

Mermaid Harbor, East Pier.

Under the escort of soldiers, Lord Stannis disembarked from the ship with Ser Davos Seaworth, known as the "Onion Knight."

Duke Stannis walked around the pier for a while without riding a horse, and then walked on foot to the inner city area of Mermaid Harbor.

Stannis, silent along the way, stopped and scanned around: "Davos, tell me, what do you see?"

Davos, with an ordinary appearance and a slender figure, with brown short hair under which were a pair of brown eyes, and a dense gray beard on his face.

Ser Davos Seaworth, known as the "Onion Knight," served as the commander of the Narrow Sea Fleet under Lord Stannis Baratheon, the Master of Ships. Davos, deeply trusted by Stannis, also acted as an advisor.

Davos used to be a smuggler at sea. During the War of the Usurper, he evaded the blockade of the Redwyne fleet and delivered supplies to Stannis, who was holding Storm's End, with a small boat full of onions and salt fish.

Thanks to these provisions, Storm's End was able to hold out until reinforcements arrived. For this great deed, Stannis knighted Davos and granted him land at Cape Wrath.

After knighting Davos, Stannis added, "Good deeds cannot offset bad deeds, nor can bad deeds conceal good deeds; each deed has its own retribution."

As a punishment for Davos' previous smuggling crimes, the iron-faced Stannis had the first joint of the first four fingers of Davos' left hand except the thumb shaved off.

Davos put the cut-off joints into a leather pouch and hung them around his neck, considering them as lucky charms.

Later, Davos chose the surname "Seaworth" as his new name of his House.

...

Ser Davos Seaworth also looked around with Stannis, and said respectfully, "Lord Stannis, what I see along the way is order."

The stern-faced Stannis nodded imperceptibly: "Go on."

Davos continued, "At first, I only saw that the residents here were very disciplined, but as I followed you, I now feel that they are all following meticulous orders."

Duke Stannis nodded a bit more: "Davos, anything else?"

Davos blinked, hesitated for a moment, and said in an uncertain tone, "It's relatively clean here?"

A gleam flashed in Lord Stannis' sharp eyes: "Davos, this is no order. When the people adhere selflessly to strict laws, this is the true appearance of the kingdom."

As Stannis was about to speak, several people led by Chamberlain Hershel were hurrying towards them.

The somewhat panting Hershel, first calmed his breath before standing in front of Duke Stannis and bowing: "My lord, I am Hershel, the Chamberlain of Whispers and the Governor of Mermaid Harbor, representing House Crabb."

Lord Stannis never liked to be informed in advance when inspecting, his eyes sought only the most authentic facts. Hershel, who was supervising the progress of "Phase Two" in Mermaid Harbor, hurried over upon hearing the news of Stannis' arrival.

....

Stannis frowned, "Where is your lord?"

Stannis had recently heard of a new port called Mermaid Harbor in the straits north of Dragonstone.

A couple of days ago, cunning pirates broke through the royal fleet's vigilance and slipped into Blackwater Bay, injuring two merchant ships. Lord Stannis was very angry when he heard the news.

Stannis, burning with anger, directly went out of Dragonstone in the name of inspecting the fleet. During the inspection, he executed several captains of the royal fleet responsible for the security of the relevant area on the sea.

On the way back from the inspection, as Master of Ships, Lord Stannis remembered the newly named port called Mermaid Harbor.

The fleet is closely related to the port, and every Master of Ships will pay attention to every port, especially the ports of Blackwater Bay, which serve as barriers to King's Landing.

At that time, the ship Black Betha carrying Stannis was not far from the location of Mermaid Harbor. The direction of their voyage was changed to Mermaid Harbor under Stannis's orders.

...

The sharp inquiry from Stannis made Chamberlain Hershel's heart beat heavily, almost forgetting to breathe.

Hershel couldn't care less about the sweat beads on his forehead. "Our lord, Gallen Crabb, has been appointed as an affair officer by Her Majesty the Queen and is currently in the Red Keep."

Stannis' brow furrowed even more tightly, Lannister again...

Are the Lannisters so attractive? What they can offer, Stannis can also give. Why do those whom he deems capable all end up siding with the Lannisters!

Davos approached Stannis and whispered, "My lord, the nobles of Crackclaw Point have been oppressed by the nobles of the Vale led by Hand of the King, Jon Arryn, for more than a decade.

I heard that this young lord named Gallen is very talented commander. He defeated a coalition of twenty thousand mountain wildings with only a few hundred men, recapturing vast swathes of fertile land lost over a decade ago.

Even I can see that this Lord Gallen has an ambitious heart. I think he had no choice but to join forces with the Queen. He is seeking to use her to counter the nobles of the Vale."

Stannis looked at Davos, "I recall that after the war, Robert had already judged and punished the nobles of Crackclaw Point. What's the matter with Jon Arryn and the Vale?"

Davos shook his head. He really didn't know about this. Those big nobles were not like Stannis, possessing great integrity. Perhaps only the gods knew what those people were plotting every day.

...

Stannis waved his hand to let Chamberlain Hershel stay away and strode towards the direction of the pier. He said to Davos, "Schemes cannot govern the kingdom. Lord Arryn is putting the cart before the horse. Do you think I should continue to assist him and thus achieve a political alliance?"

Davos organized his words before replying, "Lord Arryn may have his reasons."

Lord Stannis snorted, "I hope so."

On the way, Davos saw a group of children around ten years old standing in a neat formation under the leadership of a spirited old man in the distance.

Due to the distance, Davos could only see the old man holding a bow and saying something, and faintly heard the laughter of the children from time to time.

At this moment, Stannis spoke, "Can my Dragonstone be like this too?"

Davos replied, "My lord, every place is different, I'm afraid it's not going to be easy."