Chapter 126 Bonfire Dinner
As the sun went down, hundreds of bonfires rose on the banks of the Trident River.
The skinned beef and sheep are slowly turning on the grill, the fat is overflowing and the aroma is tangy, the servants quickly cut the roasted meat and put it on the plate, spread spices and salt water, and serve it with some vegetable salad and cream , and finally delivered to the dining table of noble gentlemen.
"Sam, you scared the **** out of me!"
Natalie Dane carefully whispered in Samwell's ear. The little girl is wearing a sleeveless and collarless suspender dress today, revealing her fair and flawless shoulders and a pair of well-proportioned arms. Her soft long hair is tied into a simple bun, which is extremely cute.
"What scared you to death?" Samwell cut a steak for the little girl and said with a smile, "Did I talk to the king?"
"Yes." Natalie turned her eyes and looked around for a while, seeing that everyone was listening to the bard singing, she lowered her voice, "How dare you talk to the king like that? Don't you worry about him getting angry?"
"Then is he angry?"
"Uh...it doesn't seem to be."
"That's fine." Samwell shrugged, "Everyone's temper is different, like our king, he seems irritable, but as long as you can catch his eyes, you will find that he is actually very tolerant ,easy-going."
"Oh..." Natalie seemed to understand, tilted her head, and asked again, "Then how can I get into the eyes of the king?"
"What are you talking about?" Before Samwell could answer, Margaery Tyrell walked over.
This "Gaoting Rose" is also dressed very coolly. The skirt of the tulle silk dress only reaches the middle of the thigh, revealing a large area of white beauty. Her slender feet like snow jade are stepping on a pair of uniquely shaped sandals, making her look comfortable and carefree lazy.
"We are talking about our respected Majesty the King." Samwell looked at the delicate rose in front of him, his eyes flickered slightly.
He suddenly remembered that Duke Renly was secretly planning to dedicate Margaery to Robert. Could it be that he had come to greet him this time just to arrange for the two to meet?
Although in the original book, Duke Renly's plan did not succeed, it was also when Robert had never met Margaery.
Now that the plot has changed, will Robert be moved when he sees this rose from Highgarden?
"Speaking of the king, Sam, you seem to know him very well." Margaery sat down on the bench beside Samwell, her eyes full of inquiry.
"How come?" Samwell shrugged, "It's the first time I've seen His Majesty today."
"Then you are really courageous, to dare to provoke His Majesty like that."
"Because I believe His Majesty is not the kind of narrow-minded person."
"Then what kind of person do you think His Majesty is?" Margaret asked thoughtfully while sipping the wine.
"Your Majesty..." Samwell shook his wine glass and was thinking about his words when he suddenly heard a loud noise.
"Enough!" King Robert's loud voice quickly overwhelmed all voices, "Cersei, she is just a little girl, what do you care about with her!"
Samwell saw Queen Cersei standing up with her skirt in her hands, wearing a snow mask on her face, she seemed to say something to the king, and then left the table.
Afterwards, the voice of Duke Eddard, the Hand of the King, was heard, but it was a little far away, and Samwell couldn't hear it clearly. He could only vaguely hear a few words of "Arya" and "Apologize".
"Ed, needless to say! Your daughter Arya is right, Cersei is really annoying, hahahaha!" Robert's voice was clearly audible. After he comforted the Stark father and daughter, Turning to look at his son again, he reprimanded,
"Joffrey! You are my son, the future King of the Seven Kingdoms! So I don't want to see you make such small reports again! This is not what a decent person should do!"
Joffrey was so dejected by the scolding that he dared not speak.
Robert snorted again, let go of his son, and waved to everyone, "Go on, go on drinking! Go on eating!"
The banquet resumed its noise again.
Samwell noticed that Arya Stark ran out regardless of her father's call, and seemed quite unconvinced.
"What happened just now?" Natalie asked curiously.
Samwell shrugged, saying that he didn't know either, he had never seen this episode.
However, looking at Prince Joffrey with a livid face and distorted expression, he suddenly wanted to laugh.
Margaret was also curious about this, so she got up and went back to the main table. After inquiring about it, she ran over to tell Samwell and Natalie.
Only then did Samwell know that Prince Joffrey had complained to his mother just now, saying that during the day, Duke Ed's second daughter, Arya Stark, said that she hated the queen, and then the queen angrily questioned Alya Stark. Only the Duke of De had the scene just now.
"Do you know what the most interesting thing was just now?" Margaery gossiped with a smile on her face, "The person who accused Arya of speaking ill of the queen, besides Prince Joffrey, was actually her own sister, Sansa Smith. Tucker."
Samwell was not too surprised, because it really seemed like something that silly girl did.
"It seems that Miss Sansa really loves her fiancé." Samwell said meaningfully. He wanted to tease the Rose of Highgarden who wanted to be queen by the way, but thought that Natalie was also there. , I didn't say much.
Although there was this unpleasant episode, the banquet soon became cheerful again.
Several jugglers were bouncing around the bonfire, doing all kinds of difficult and dangerous moves, which caused the crowd to scream and applaud.
During the period, Samwell noticed that Prince Joffrey left his seat secretly. It seemed that after being scolded by his father, he was in no mood to stay here anymore.
Next came a gray-haired man in a red and black cloak, who seemed to be a bard, humming softly while playing the harp:
"The wives of the Dornishmen are fair as the sun,
Her kisses are warmer than Yangchun;
Their kisses are terrifying..."
The man's voice is full-bodied, with a rough and unique charm, and he interprets the song "The Wife of a Dornishman" so movingly that people even mistake him for sleeping with a Dornishman's wife, and then died in the In a duel with her husband.
“…the wives of the Dornishmen sing when they bathe,
A tone as sweet as a peach;
The swords of the Dornishmen have their songs,
Sharp and cold as a leech..."
While everyone was immersed in the singing, Samwell narrowed his eyes and stared at the "bard".
This is a middle-aged man who is not tall, with an ordinary face, hard to recognize in the crowd, with a knobby chin, covered with a short beard, his complexion is yellowish, and his small eyes are almost narrowed into narrow slits. It seems that he doesn't want people to see his heart clearly through this "window".
Samwell knew that this person might not be a bard!
“…Brother, brother, my doom has come,
The Dornishmen took my life,
It doesn't matter, mortals are mortal,
I tasted the Dornishman's wife! "
When the last tune of the ballad fades away, there is applause and cheers.
King Robert admired this person's playing very much, and specially rewarded him with a few silver stags.
The bard bowed to thank him, then retreated to the sidelines, crouched in a deserted corner and enjoyed the barbecue and honey wine.
Seeing this, Samwell also got up and left the table, walking to the man.
"I like your song very much." Samwell said with a smile, "What's your name?"
"Master, my name is Bell." The bard stood up and said respectfully.
"Bell..." Samwell curled his lips, "This is a good name, especially for bards."
really.
Legend has it that a bard with the same name was once a guest in Winterfell. Because he was dissatisfied with the Duke of the North's contempt for him, he eloped with the Duke's daughter, leaving only a winter snow rose and a legend.
"My lord, I am far worse than that Mr. Bell." The bard obviously knew who Samwell was talking about. "That Bell wrote songs that will be passed down forever, but I can only cover songs written by others. What's more , I don’t have the guts to abduct the noble lady.”
"I don't think you are timid." Samwell stared into the bard's eyes and asked again, "Are you from the north?"
"Yes, sir, I am a native of the North."
"Really?" Samwell smiled meaningfully, "A man from the north is singing the ballad of the Dorne people in the southernmost part of the continent."
"People always yearn for what they can't get. I have seen a lot of wind and snow in my life, so I have always yearned for Dorne, which has red mountains and hot deserts."
"There is some truth. However, I don't think you are from the north."
"Then where do you think I am from?" The bard said flatly.
"I think you should come from further north."
The bard's eyes finally wavered.
The northern border is further north, that is beyond the Great Wall of Desperation.
"My lord." The bard regained his indifference, at least on the outside, "Do you think I look like a savage north of the Great Wall?"
"No." Samwell shook his head, "I don't think you're just an ordinary savage."
The bard stopped talking, and stared down at the campfire.
Samwell leaned into his ear and said softly:
"Am I right? King beyond the Wall, His Majesty Mance Rayder."
For a moment, Samwell seemed to feel the severe cold from the extreme north.
But soon, it disappeared in the humid heat of the south.
It seems to be just an illusion.
Seeing that his identity had been seen through, Mance Rayder smiled freely, and did not try to deny it anymore, but said curiously:
"How did you recognize me? Besides, I don't know your name yet."
"Samwell Caesar." Samwell reported himself, "As for how I recognized you, hey, keep it secret for now."
"Since it's a temporary secret, you can tell me next time we meet." Mance said in an unquestionable tone.
Samwell smiled noncommittally, but then his tone became cold:
"Your Majesty Mance, aren't you afraid that your true identity will be exposed, and you will be caught and beheaded?"
(end of this chapter)