Chapter 12

[ Dear Miss Margaery ,

I apologize for disturbing you again, but I must confess that I am out of money once more. This time, it's not because of random spending, but for a reason.

As you know, I am not the favored son of my father.

He left me with only a long sword and a warhorse, and nothing else. Now that we are approaching the Red Mountains, I feel it's necessary to upgrade my equipment for the impending battle. Moreover, how can a knight not have armor? If this gets out, people might think that the Tyrell family treats their vassals harshly.

Fortunately, we encountered a caravan of the Hightower family near Highland City, and they happened to have what I needed. So, I spent generously.

Of course, I kept your previous advice in mind and chose the cheaper chain armor over expensive plate armor.

Additionally, I bought a pair of leather armor for each of the recruits. I understand this might make you angry, but these brave and fearless people have followed me for thousands of miles to explore the Red Mountains and I couldn't bear to let them go to battle without protection.

I believe that you, the beautiful and kind Miss Margaery , would understand.

Sincerely, your most faithful knight

Samwell Caesar ]

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"Hmph!" The beautiful and kind-hearted Miss Margaery crumpled the letter paper and gritted her teeth in anger.

But the next moment, she suddenly laughed again, as if thinking of something funny. "What's the matter?" Madam Olenna looked at her granddaughter, who was both angry and smiling, and asked curiously.

"It's Samwell. He actually wrote me asking for money again!"

"Give it to him," said Madame Olenna, lightly.

Facing her grandmother's casual response, Margaery's eyes widened. "But, Grandma, this is the second time he's asked for money. I think he's deliberately wasting it. If I give it to him again this time, I'm afraid he'll soon squander it again..."

"Are we short of money?" Madame Olenna interrupted, laughing.

Margaery shook her head, but she was still resentful. "Although we're not short of money, we can't let him ask for it like this. Practically he's extorting us!"

"He spent it on soldiers," Madame Olenna said.

"Ah?" Margaery, who had been angry just a moment ago, hesitated when she heard the words. "But...but Grandma, in this case, will Samwell be able to open up smoothly? And besides, aren't you still planning to use him to deal with Dorne? Are you just going to give up like this?"

Madam Olenna smiled and said, "He knows that, which is why he dared to blackmail you shamelessly."

Margaret sighed, stepped forward and hugged Madam Olenna's arm. She said coquettishly, "Grandmother, teach me. What should I do in this situation?"

Madam Olenna patted her granddaughter's hand affectionately and did not answer her question but asked back, "What kind of person do you think Samwell Tarly is?"

"I don't think he's the same as the rumors, um - except that he's really fat. It's said that he's timid and cowardly, but I think he's brave enough that he dared to blackmail the Tyrell family."

"He's not only brave enough to blackmail us, but he also killed Todd Flowers' servant, Carter."

"What?" Margaery was taken aback.

"You heard me right," Madam Olenna explained. "I also just received a letter from Todd Flowers, saying that Samwell killed Carter on the grounds of 'threatening nobles with a sword'."

"He... How dare he kill Carter? Didn't Todd stop him? Also, isn't he worried that the soldiers will hold grudges because of it?"

Madam Olenna took a letter from her sleeve and handed it to Margaery. "This is Todd's letter, read it yourself."

Margaery took the letter, glanced at it, and said in surprise, "This fat man is quite scheming and decisive... It seems that the rumors are really unbelievable."

Madam Olenna spoke with a deep voice, "Actually, what surprised me the most was Samwell's military training ability."

"That's right... In just over a month, he was able to turn a group of dock laborers into well-trained soldiers, which is simply unbelievable."

"Randyll Tarly is a good father." Madam Olenna sighed, and then expressed doubts, "Bold, decisive, scheming means, and excellent military ability... Samwell has fully possessed the qualities that a lord heir should have. But such an outstanding son, how can Randyll throw him? Why was he so dissatisfied? Even to deprive him of his inheritance?"

"Maybe because he thinks Sam is too fat."

"Isn't your father also potbellied? But does this affect him from becoming the Duke of Highgarden?"

"This is different." Although she was used to her grandmother's thorny tongue, Margaery was still a little embarrassed when she heard her mocking her father. "The Tarly family language is 'First in battle,' so maybe Earl Randyll only wants an heir who can lead the charge."

"Hehe, do you think Randyll Tarly is a muscle brain?"

"Of course not. Lord Randyll is one of the best generals in the Reach. How can he be brainless? I just think that Earl Randyll prefers to charge forward on the battlefield rather than engage in some conspiracy behind his back."

"You still think Randyll is a brainless fool." Madam Olenna mercilessly pierced Margaery's whitewashing words, and then continued without waiting for her to explain, "Randyll doesn't know how to conspire? Trick? Haha. During the War of the Reavers, Robert Baratheon rebelled against the Targaryen family. He won three victories a day at Summerhall and was unstoppable. In the end, he met Randyll Tarly at Ashford and flew north after a disastrous defeat. Afterwards, the armies of the Reach marched into the Stormlands and surrounded Storm's End. Do you remember how long the siege lasted?"

"I remember more than a year."

"Yes, more than a year! In the end, it was still not captured." Madam Olenna looked at her granddaughter's brown eyes, and the corners of her mouth slightly raised. "Then do you still remember why this siege fell short in the end?"

Margaery nodded. "It was Davos Seaworth who successfully drove his smuggling ship full of onions into the port of Storm's End, which solved the crisis of food shortage in the city and allowed Storm's End to persist until the moment when Duke Eddard came to support. Because of this incident, Davos was also canonized as a "Onion Knight."

Madam Olenna had a mocking smile on her face and asked again, "Have you ever thought about it? The Arbor Island fleet at that time with more than 200 warships surrounded the harbor of Storm's End. How did that 'onion knight' drive his smuggling boat in? Can he fly?"

Margaery frowned, as if realizing something.

Madam Olenna's eyes narrowed and she said, "I'll tell you a secret. During the siege, Randyll Tarly wrote me a letter, saying that the food in Storm's End had been exhausted." Margaery was stunned when she heard this, and then became confused. "My grandmother didn't go to the battlefield at that time, so why did Earl Randyll write a letter to his grandmother far away in Highgarden to report this incident?" But thinking of the "Onion Knight," she suddenly realized something.

Madam Olenna smiled gratifiedly when she saw her granddaughter's reaction and said, "That's right. I wrote a letter to Paxter after I received Randyll's letter."

[END]