The Royal Feast by the River

The whole roasted cow slowly rotates on the iron fork, and the rich aroma of the fat permeates the riverside at night.

Large dining tables were set up outside the tents, with mounds of toasted bread piled on top. The rising steam mingled with the aroma of spiced red wine, making everyone's mouths water.

Joffrey sat not far below Robert, chatting casually with Sansa.

Her gaze, however, would occasionally drift towards her father's direction.

Duke Ed got up halfway through his meal and went straight to the dining area set up for the participating knights.

His actions were so straightforward that they were almost undisguised; anyone with a discerning eye could see his intentions.

"Your Highness, who do you think will win tomorrow?" Sansa asked softly from the side, her slightly drunk eyes gleaming with a deep blue light in the campfire.

"It's hard to say." Joffrey looked away, took a sip of his drink, and said, "Tomorrow is likely to be a bloodbath."

With Barristan's unexpected defeat in the quarterfinals, several other strong Cavaliers were also eliminated.

Of the four who ultimately stood on the final stage, three were connected to the Lannisters.

The Clegane brothers, and the kingslayers.

Joffrey dug up a garlic butter snail and fed it to Sansa: "The Hound hates his brother to the core."

In a corner by the river, The Mountain occupied an entire table by himself, chugging down glass after glass of ale, with a mountain of leftover bones piled up in front of him.

Sandor asked Joffrey for leave and returned to the Red Keep early, where he should be diligently preparing for the battle.

"As for my uncle," Joffrey glanced to the other side, "some people also have high hopes for him."

Jaime was surrounded by a group of Lannister red-robed men, and he was excitedly boasting about his achievements that day.

Lord Tywin sat a little further away, the candlelight casting a cold, hard outline on his face.

After all, although James had a great reputation, he didn't have a real tournament championship.

Several years ago in Port Lannes, he split the score with Jorah Mormont.

Aside from these three, the only outsider was the "Knight of Flowers" who defeated Barristan.

Loras Tyrell of Highgarden.

Because he was a latecomer to the succession, he traveled to the seven kingdoms for many years. Despite his young age, he had more experience in martial arts than many veteran generals.

A gentle evening breeze swept across the river, carrying with it the faint sounds of commotion.

Duke Ed finally found Hugh.

The young knight stood there, still clutching half a loaf of bread, looking completely lost.

Judging from his demeanor, this should be his first formal conversation with the Prime Minister.

"Looks like Ed is a procrastinator too," Joffrey thought to himself, shaking his head.

Even though he had warned Hugh about his existence at the Prime Minister's Tower, Ed deliberately delayed until the night of the tournament before finding Hugh and asking him in person.

As for what they were talking about, you don't even need to guess to know.

It's nothing more than whether Lord Jon Snow acted strangely before his death, who he met, and whether Lady Lysa's behavior was odd.

That's why Joffrey wasn't worried.

Xiu Fu was just an insignificant servant and shouldn't have known any inside information.

Even if she did know something, the news would likely be detrimental to Mrs. Lysa.

It is precisely this ignorance that has allowed him to stand here unharmed to this day.

Cersei adheres to the principle of "better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free."

Because Joffrey orchestrated the poisoning incident ahead of time, she now has no idea what Jon Arryn was investigating at the time.

Instructing Paisell to deliberately withhold treatment was merely a convenient way for her to eliminate a potential threat.

As night fell, the king, who had drunk too much, began to ramble on.

"I'm not only going to fight tomorrow, I'm going to fight the day after tomorrow too!" He patted his chest and roared.

Lan Li walked up to him with a smile and filled his glass.

"Yes, yes, big brother, you don't just want to hit me."

"And they want to win all the championships, leaving none for us."

Robert playfully nudged him: "Remember to stick with me during the Seven's Team Battle; I'll be leading the team myself!"

In this situation, the Queen simply sat quietly and ate her meal without provoking Robert in any way.

Because the Duke Tywin is still here.

This domineering old lion has a morbid desire to control everything.

He certainly wouldn't easily agree to a high-risk, uncertain operation like "assassinating Robert during a group fight."

Cersei dared not act first and inform her father later in front of him, so she had no choice but to continue to endure it obediently.

……

The next morning, before dawn, the king's tent was already in a flurry of activity.

Joffrey's two cousins ​​were frantically helping Robert put on his armor.

"Your Majesty, this armor is too small; you won't be able to wear it," one of them said, trying his best to phrase it tactfully.

But his other hand slipped, and a piece of the neck armor crashed to the ground with a "bang".

"The seven levels of hell!" Robert cursed. "You two are fucking idiots!"

He turned to Joffrey: "Joffrey, could you ask your mother to find some smart Lannisters?"

"Don't keep stuffing idiots' heads into my bowl."

The pale morning light shone through the tent flap, and Duke Eddard and Sir Barristan lifted the curtain and entered.

Ed glanced at the sweating servant and, unusually, told a corny joke.

"Your Majesty, this is not their fault."

"You're too fat, that's why you can't wear it."

Robert's face instantly darkened.

"Too fat? Yes, too fat." He gritted his teeth.

"Stark, is this how you speak to the King?"

He then turned to Joffrey: "Joffrey, am I fat?"

Joffrey nodded calmly.

The two servants, aged fifteen or sixteen, were so frightened by what they saw that they stood frozen in place.

Suddenly, Robert burst into wild laughter, like a storm.

"Get lost! Can't you two say something nice in front of others?"

He gave each of his attendants a feint kick: "Did you hear that? The king is too fat."

"Go find the captain of the guard and get a pair of pliers to pry open the breastplate."

The servants stumbled out of the tent and began searching for the tool that never existed.

The group chuckled.

Before his laughter had even faded, Robert suddenly stopped smiling and glared fiercely at the three of them.

"What are you all standing here for? Spit it out!"

The three exchanged glances, and Ed was the first to speak.

"Your Majesty, it is inappropriate for the King to personally participate in the group competition."

"Damn it, it's still about this," Robert cursed. "You two are talking about this too?"

Joffrey and Barristan continued to nod.

Robert waved his hand irritably: "I just wanted to hit someone, why are you all stopping me!"

"Because that would make the game unfair," Sir Barristan said gravely. "Tell me, who on the field would dare to actually attack you?"

Robert took a big gulp of his drink: "Who cares who they are! If they have the guts to touch me, I'll definitely..."

"Stand until the very end," Ed calmly continued, repeating Renly's teasing from the previous night.

"And they will deliberately miss, so that you win."

Robert blushed; he clearly hadn't considered this possibility.

"They'll let me have it? What right do these cowards have to let me have it!" he roared, pacing back and forth in the tent like a wild boar locked in a cage.

"If you can't even have a fight, being a king is really boring!"

He suddenly stopped and pointed his finger sharply at the tent flap.

"Get out, get out! All of you, get out!"

Barristan and Ed bowed and withdrew, while Joffrey deliberately lingered for a while.

"Ned, stay here, I have something to tell you."

"Xiao Qiao, you should go out too."

Robert added.

Joffrey quietly returned to the riverbank and ate his breakfast.

Alas, what a pity, it's so distressing.

This is what happens if you don't accumulate enough Heavenly Will Points.

You can't even eavesdrop on key conversations.