-32- Under Gallen's Rule

Jaime speculated in his mind about the mastermind behind the scenes, suspecting everyone.

Unable to resist, Jaime asked again, "Have you figured out who it is?"

Gallen wouldn't choose to tell Jaime the answer; revealing the answer would lead to big trouble.

"Love-brained" Jaime would choose to confront directly, while "instigator" Gallen, for safety's sake, would be forced to have deep ties with House Lannister.

During this period, Gallen's direct reason for choosing Cersei was that she could bring him power and gold dragons.

King Robert's bullying tactics could turn a spirited Lancel into a submissive youth, but this didn't work on Cersei.

Even though you've cursed at me, hit me, insulted me, I, Queen Cersei, still won't fear you. Don't give me a chance, or I'll definitely make you suffer!

Her inner hardness couldn't be broken, which was probably one of the few bright spots about Cersei.

As long as King Robert and his hand remained at the Red Keep, House Crabb, as a former exemplary follower of House Targaryen, would always be on edge.

He also had to worry about the day they might suddenly decide to end the still weak Gallen.

Being weak was Gallen's disadvantage, but also an advantage.

If Queen Cersei was willing to shelter Gallen, the Red Keep wouldn't directly offend the queen for the sake of the "weak" Gallen, as they wouldn't consider it worthwhile.

This was the narrow space where Gallen could survive and thrive.

...

Jaime is the closest and most trusted person to Cersei, and his favorability cannot be ignored.

Gallen originally thought that Jaime's favorability could be indirectly influenced by Tyrion.

Judging by Jaime's attitude when they first met, it was evident that Gallen's attempt to build rapport from afar had failed.

In the future, Gallen's relationship with Tyrion should not be too close, because Cersei hated Tyrion.

Gallen always had enough patience and attention to untangle these interpersonal relationships one by one.

Gallen was clear that he wanted to borrow Queen Cersei's ship, not board the Lannister's ship.

...

Gallen rubbed his brow and said, "There's no evidence. So, everything is just our suspicion, Ser Jaime. Baseless suspicion would only make more enemies."

Jaime felt a sense of powerlessness: "You're right. I have to behave normally, or else I'd be helping the enemy."

Gallen nodded in agreement: "Ser Jaime, you already know about the conspiracy. It's only a matter of time before you catch the rats in the gutter as long as you keep your eyes peeled. Once a conspiracy is exposed, it's no longer a threat as long as you remain vigilant."

Jaime's face relaxed a lot: "You seem to be very good at exposing conspiracies?"

What kind of question is that? Gallen felt that he and Jaime were truly incompatible.

Gallen thought that Jaime inherently disliked conspiracies, so he relaxed a bit, but then began to doubt his character again?

Gallen actually misunderstood Jaime's intention.

Jaime admired Gallen's keenness, but also worried that the still young Gallen, would become obsessed with conspiracies due to his intelligence. "Old Experienced Knight" Jaime felt obligated not to let this fine young man go astray.

The two were simply not on the same wavelength, indeed, they were incompatible.

The magnanimous Gallen could only pretend not to understand Jaime's words, with a faint smile on his face, saying, "It may be due to my life experiences. I have a keen sense of danger. My mother told me that, for the survival of our family, she had to carry me, who had just been born, away from our ancestral home. The journey was fraught with danger, and whenever danger approached, I would cry out loud and it was damn useful."

Gallen shook his head with a smile: "If it weren't for Lord Eddard Stark of Winterfell speaking up for us, House Crabb might have been extinct over a decade ago."

Without a doubt, we'll have to go north to fight the zombies.... Strategic Gallen took the opportunity to inform Jaime in advance of Lord Eddard Stark's favor to House Crabb.

...

After seeing Jaime off, Gallen refreshed himself and began to busy himself again.

The Queen's District mainly relied on five passages for outward connections. Gallen assigned 50 Lannister guards brought by Jaime, 10 in each group, divided into five teams, to establish roadblocks, each responsible for guarding one intersection.

That day, the entire Queen's District was closed off under the pretext of preventing the spread of disease.

The remaining Lannister guards and Crabb soldiers were stationed at Gallen's command post, ready to be dispatched at any time.

Once the blockade was complete, Gallen, in the name of the queen, began to uniformly isolate and treat the sick individuals.

To ensure the cooperation of the patients with Gallen's arrangements, Gallen provided free food and medical treatment to the patients in the isolation zone.

There were fewer patients with diseases than Gallen had imagined, only a little over 400, less than 500. Gallen added a zero and publicly claimed that there were 5,000 patients with diseases, intentionally causing panic in the Queen's District.

Most of the physicians in the Queen's District were also concentrated by Gallen in the isolation zone.

Gallen directly had a bag of gold dragons thrown over, coupled with the guards' shiny long swords, and the physicians were very cooperative.

Surlana's son, Leyton was mainly responsible for propaganda work, and the head of the "Atmosphere Group" created by Gallen, was led by him.

With Gallen's sensational propaganda, the residents of the Queen's District panicked and felt threatened.

With everything arranged, on the following night, Gallen smoothly enforced a curfew, prohibiting anyone from moving around in the Queen's District after sunset.

.........

The Queen's District under Gallen's rule, fifth day.

Gallen sat in the command post, furrowing his brow as if hesitating about something.

So far, 200 people have been conclusively proven guilty, and these 200 people can be killed without any injustice.

Gallen's hesitation was whether he was killing too many people at once, and whether he would end up with titles like "Lord Executioner" or "Lord Headsman" in the future.

Gallen suddenly smiled. Faced with such a situation, how could he think of cherishing his face?

Gallen's hesitation only lasted for a short while.

Let the heads roll; King's Landing would sooner or later become his own domain. It's time to distribute benefits to the residents of King's Landing in advance. By disposing of these villains earlier, their days will be a little better.

.........

Under Gallen's manipulation, a new security office was established in the Queen's District.

Gallen's chief guard, Fori, was appointed as the chief constable of the security office, and Leyton was appointed as the chief clerk of the security office.

The original fifty or so constables had already been controlled by Gallen, and there was not a single innocent person among them.

At the same time, another 100 constables were recruited in the Queen's District and handed over to Fori and Leyton, restoring security management and patrols in the Queen's District.

If this security office is recognized by the Red Keep in the future and Gallen's personnel arrangements remain unchanged, King's Landing's Queen's District will be under Gallen's control. If the new security office is not recognized by the Red Keep, Gallen has no reason to feel regretful.

Gallen is now using special means such as disease panic to suppress the entire Queen's District. The effect is significant in the short term, but it is by no means a long-term solution. Over time, there will be a rebound and chaos.

Gallen has neither the talent nor the energy to deeply cultivate the Queen's District. If it can be controlled by Gallen, it is only a pleasant surprise. Perhaps Gallen will only regard the Queen's District as a chip in his hand. Everything is still unknown.