In the original book, when Ned Stark went south, Tywin Lannister had already planned several future actions.
As soon as Catelyn captured Tyrion, Tywin gathered an army to prepare for a raid on the Riverlands. As soon as Jaime, who had escaped from King's Landing, arrived, he led the main force to advance in two groups.
If he had assembled his troops so quickly after receiving the news from Jaime and Tyrion, it would have been impossible for him to assemble his troops so quickly, so his main force must have been assembled and started training before.
Tywin's strategy is simple: capture the Riverlands before Robb Stark can take any action, thus eliminating all resistance and being in an extremely favorable position for peace talks.
Houses Tyrell, Baratheon, Martell and Arryn will not be involved in this war at all.
To ensure a quick victory, Tywin released his marauders Gregor Clegane, Amory Lorch and Varg Hot into the Riverlands to slaughter and pillage, forcing Ned Stark to take action.<
/p>
If everything goes according to Tywin's plan, Ned will personally take action to stop the Mountain. Unexpectedly, he is injured by Jaime and has to send Beric Dondarrion to do it for him.
However, the development of the situation soon proved that this was not a problem, because although Eddard was not captured at the Red Fork, he was imprisoned in King's Landing. In short, he fell into the hands of the Lannister.
At the same time, the plunder plan was also going smoothly, which distracted the attention of the river lords' army and weakened their defense, so that the war could enter the next stage.
The Kingslayer led 15,000 men from the Golden Tooth City, smashed the 4,000-man defense of Lord Vance stationed there, and marched straight to Riverrun. Edmure had no choice but to summon the troops of his lords to rush to fight.
But it was too late. Jaime defeated Edmure, captured him and many other lords, and besieged Riverrun.
At the same time, Tywin marched to the south of the Red Fork, capturing castle after castle, and controlling most of the Riverlands before the Starks gathered their forces at Moat Cailin.
All the armies of Harrenhal were defeated at the foot of Riverrun. Now it is an empty city, and only the city has been abandoned and surrendered.
Tywin thus effectively blocked all roads to the south.
Jaime besieged Riverrun and monitored the enemy forces in the north, forcing the retreating river lords into a desperate situation.
Tywin sat behind the walls of Harrenhal and blocked the Red Fork.
However, after that, things no longer developed according to the Lannister family's plan.
Robb Stark is far more cunning than the arrogant Tywin initially expected.
His alliance with the Freys resulted in the Lannisters no longer controlling all crossings in the area.
Then, Tywin fell into Robb's trick of dividing his forces into two groups, thinking that all the Stark forces had gone south to the Green Fork. In fact, he encountered only the infantry led by Roose Bolton, who tried to minimize losses.
Holding Tywin back.
When he learned that the main force of Robb's cavalry had crossed the Green Fork south to attack Riverrun, Tywin led his troops on a rapid march there.
However, when he learned about the Battle of the Whispering Forest that day, it was still a day's journey away, which made all his efforts come to nothing.
This outstanding victory for the Lannister family belied the crisis they faced before the Battle of the Blackwater.
If Tywin crosses the Red Fork and Edmure blocks it behind him - the Lannister will lose King's Landing and control of the Iron Throne.
If Tyrion had not sent Petyr Baelish to negotiate with Loras Tyrell, they would not have won so easily in King's Landing.
If not for what Tyrion had done to consolidate the city's defenses, Tywin and Tyrell would have been captured by Stannis before they even reached King's Landing.
Maybe they can still win, but the price will be much heavier.
But now, Tywin has been led by Gao Bin. When he led his army to the port along the Western Territory, Gao Bin had already secretly sent 20,000 troops to the Riverlands, and with the help of the Tully family, they reached the Western Territory.
The boundary position.
This is also thanks to Caitlin and her nominal grandfather.
The sigil of the Tully family is a silver trout, with a red and blue background. Two silver wavy lines make the fish seem to jump out of the river, echoing the Tully family's territory, the Riverlands.
The Riverlands is as fertile as the territory of the Tyrion family, but it lacks the defense of the first priority terrain, so it naturally becomes a battleground for military strategists, sandwiched between Winterfell and King's Landing.
To the west is the Castle of Casterly Rock of the Lannister family. In almost every major war in Westeros, the Riverlands has no other choice but to become the battlefield.
This treasure land has always been a thorn in the side of Westeros. They will follow whoever comes to power. They bear the brunt of enemy invasion.
Of course, they also learned to survive through strategic alliances, especially marriages. The Stark children were born as Tully children and demonstrated their family characteristics when trying to help their son Robb Stark negotiate with his army. p>
Since the army in the north wants to use the road, there is no reason why the Tully family should not let them pass.
Nonsense, if you don’t let me go, what if people from the north take action directly?
Look at that team of soldiers, with black steel armor, disciplined orders and prohibitions, and murderous intent permeating the entire team. When did the North have such a powerful army?
The people of the Tully family are puzzled!
But this is not important. The Tully family and the Stark family are natural allies, and it is good for themselves when their allies are strong.
The most important thing is that the Tully family also discovered the cavalry regiment among the 20,000-strong army. Although the number was small, it looked like there were only more than 2,000.
Looking at their energy and chilling aura, you can tell that this cavalry regiment is not simple. It might become a sharp blade that can penetrate directly into the heart of the enemy.
It was Robert who led the 20,000-strong army southward. This was his first time leading an army alone, but this also proved Gao Bin's trust in him.
Although Rob is the leader of Young Wolf on the surface, Gao Bin's presence is too strong, and Rob complains a lot in private:
"You are the real Young Wolf master, right? I'm just a foil."
"Man, if you think so, I would rather go to the Great Wall and be a night watchman." Gao Bin said half-jokingly and half-seriously.
If the North can't accommodate him, where else can he go? The Night Watch is the best place to end up.
I wonder if Snow will spit on his face after hearing his thoughts:
"Didn't we agree to go south together to kill the enemy?"
Fortunately, Snow didn't know, otherwise she might have fallen out with him.
By the way, Snow didn't follow in Rob's footsteps, but followed Gao Bin, serving as both bodyguard and younger brother.
After being surrounded by Gao Bin's army for half a month, King Balon finally gave in. Nonsense, if this continues, everyone will starve to death.
He sent people to Gao Bin's phalanx and tried to have face-to-face communication with Gao Bin.
It's a pity that Gao Bin didn't give him this chance. It was already interesting enough that he didn't kill the envoy.
"Go back and tell King Balon that within three days, I will see Theon Greyjoy become the sole heir to the Iron Islands, otherwise..."
King Balon, the protruding bone at the back of his head can trip people up, and he betrays the king.
But he is the most typical Ironman: stubborn, fearless, and competitive.
He also made no compromises when dealing with internal family affairs and enthusiastically believed in the ancient ways.
Balon has always been thin. After the Greyjoy rebellion was suppressed, he became even more haggard. His face was angular, as if hewn out of flint, with a pair of sharp black eyes and long gray hair hanging down from his thin back. He is the eldest son of Lord Coron Greyjoy and his wife of House Sandry.
Balon learned navigation skills at an early age and became an experienced captain.
When he was ten years old, he climbed up the Flint Cliff and entered the Blind Lord's Ghost Tower.
When he was fifteen, he went to the Stepstone Islands with Dagmer "Cleft Palate" to participate in the summer plunder.
There, he started the killing spree and brought back his first two salt concubines;
At the age of seventeen, Balon owned his own longship.
Since then, Balon often sailed around in long ships to plunder, and his bravery and fearlessness were unknown to everyone.
King Cologne died during a plundering expedition.
After Balon inherited his father's throne and returned to Pyke Island, he learned that his brother Urgang was accidentally injured while practicing finger dancing and died of infection at the age of fourteen.
The bachelor once tried to use his medical skills to save Ur, but instead it cost him his life.
Balon cut off the maester's hand and ordered him to use the same method to heal himself. The maester died soon after, and Ur's biological mother also died in childbirth.
As a fanatical believer in the "Old Road", he firmly believes that the revival of the Ironborn can only be achieved by following the survival tradition of sailing and robbery.
When the Targaryen dynasty was overthrown by Robert Baratheon and the political situation changed, Balon thought the time was ripe and immediately proclaimed himself king and launched a rebellion.
At the beginning of the war, the Ironborn used a cunning plan to burn Lannisport and once gained the upper hand.
However, under the joint suppression of the three armies, the Ironborn were finally defeated, and Balon's first rebellion ended in failure.
His eldest son Rodrik and second son Marron died in the war, and his third son Theon was taken as a hostage by Eddard Stark.
Alanis was devastated by the loss of her three children, and she and Baron became strangers and parted ways.
After the war, Balon's second brother Euron seduced the wife of his third brother Victarion.
To avoid fratricide, Balon banished Euron and ordered him not to return to the Iron Islands during his lifetime, otherwise he would be killed.
Victarion killed his wife in order to protect his honor.
Although he failed in the first rebellion, Lord Balon never gave up his ambition to become King of the Iron Islands.
When the War of the Five Kings finally broke out, the opportunity came to him.
When news of Robert Baratheon's death reached the Iron Islands, Balon heard the news and began to gather troops to prepare for a surprise attack.
During this period, Robb Stark, King of the North, used Theon, son of Balon, as his envoy to invite the Ironborn to form an alliance with the North to fight against the Lannister family.
But Balon not only failed to respond to his proposal, but instead launched a rebellion, proclaimed himself King of the Iron Islands and the North, and sent troops to the Neck, cutting off Robb's retreat in one fell swoop, who was fighting in the Riverlands and the Westerlands.
Later, under the leadership of Asha, Theon and Dagmer "Cleftpalate", the Ironborn led their ships northward and plundered the coast of the Stark family's northern territory.
Since most of the vassals in the north followed Robb southward, their territories were not protected. Some cities, including Deepwood Motte, Torrhen Square, and even Winterfell, the home base of the Stark family, fell to the Ironborn one after another.
Hand.
Needless to say, King Balon is indeed very capable and very daring. If it had been someone else who had failed a few times, he would have already had a psychological shadow.
King Balon is different. He has a strong heart. He will give in when he loses and start over from scratch.
Just like now, he is willing to surrender to the army in the north.
Although he still doesn't understand why the North is besieging the Iron Islands at this time, he knows that he must meet Gao Bin's request, otherwise the Ironborn will die!
It was precisely because he saw through Gao Bin's determination that Balon was so timid and decisively declared Xion as his first and only heir.
At the same time, more than 20 warships were cleared and ready for use by the northern army.
However, the army in the north remained still and made fires to cook every day. Those who didn't know better thought they were collectively trying to survive in the wilderness.
Balon can no longer see through the intentions of the North.
For this reason, he specially called Theon, who didn't like it, to satisfy his curiosity.
"In fact, the person in power in the North is not Rob at all, but Gao!"
"High?"
"Yes, my second brother!" God knows what kind of emotion Xion felt when he said this.
"He is very powerful?"
"It's very impressive. Almost every step was taken by him." A fanatical side flashed in Xion's eyes.
He is actually quite contradictory. On the one hand, the villain gene in his blood is at work, and he has to give Gao Bin a backstab to be satisfied.
On the other hand, he has an absolute admiration for Gao Bin.
Because he had been suppressed and wronged for more than ten years, Gao Bin easily pushed him to the throne of the Iron Islands. I cannot help but admire this ability.
Why Gao Bin doesn't understand is because he is waiting for a reply.
There has been no news about the marriage request that Catelyn sent to the Tyrell family before. Gao Bin thought that the other party did not have such intention, and was still focused on siding with Renly as in the original novel.
Until a few days ago, a handwritten letter from Margery gave Gao Bin renewed hope.
It turns out that the Tyrell family is indeed planning to bet on Renly.
But at this time, Margaery calmly believed that eggs cannot be put in the same basket, and only by betting on both ends can one have a chance to obtain stable income.
Therefore, she mentioned in her reply:
"...I will go to the north and try to meet Gao."
This side is just like an interview, everyone would be nervous.
The previous letter did not give an accurate time for the visit, and the letter Gao Bin was waiting for must have an appointment between the two parties. No, don't waste everyone's time when it comes to the appointment. They are all very busy.
Not sure of the time, he couldn't start the next step. If a war broke out, Gao Bin would definitely not go back to Winter City just to meet his blind date.
Therefore, it is better to do some things as early as possible. He will not be delayed in a few days.
Besides, Balon has given up, and Gao Bin is not afraid to stay here for a few more days.
The most important thing is that he can welcome his father and his party here.
In any case, you have to go through the Riverlands and the Neck to return to the north. It's okay for Gao Bin to wait for Ned here.
The Iron Islands were surrounded by Gao Bin, which made people panic.
Why can't Balon stand up? If he can really speak his mind, he can have a better and more effective solution.
It's a pity that he isn't. He thinks about stealing other people's hometowns all the time, but forgets his own hometown. The Ironborn are more rebellious than the last!
At the same time, Robert, who led his army to take root in Riverrun, received a warm welcome from the Tully family and their vassals.
Riverrun is a solid triangular castle, although it is not particularly huge.
The castle faces the river on both sides, and there is a large man-made trench on the third side to the west. When attacked, the sluice can be opened to fill the entire trench with water, turning the castle into a small island, surrounded by water on three sides, and indestructible.
The castle has a sandstone wall rising from the water. The battlements on the wall have battlements and arrow holes. The firepower of the tower can cover the other side.
There is a fortress within the city. Under normal circumstances, Riverrun's supplies can sustain people and horses for up to two years.
Most of the time, a guard of more than 200 people is redundant for Riverrun.
Robb visited the main castle, which, like Riverrun itself, is triangular in shape. The Duke's room in Riverrun is also triangular in shape, with a balcony protruding to the east and accessible through a spiral staircase.
The Great Hall, where meetings are held and the high seat of House Tully.
There is a separate room above the hall, containing a ducal throne and a bell to call the servants.
Then we went to the dungeon, where there were no windows and the heavy doors were made of wood and steel, making it difficult for prisoners to escape.
There is a huge waterwheel in the waterwheel tower, which is driven by the rushing water of the Tengshi River.
The top of the tower is covered with ivy. Every time the water wheel turns, the water is finally brought to the "Water Gate".
The Watergate has a wide arch and a heavy steel portcullis, with red rust covering the lower part.
It is so named because it is immersed in water all year round and people have to take a boat to cross it.
Many boats are tied to the "Water Gate" and fixed by iron rings on the wall.
From the "waterfront stairs" you can reach the lower level outside the castle.
The godswood is a bright and refreshing garden with redwoods, flowers, streams and nesting birds.
In the center is a slender weirwood tree carved with a human face.
House Tully has dominated Riverrun and has ruled the surrounding fertile lands for thousands of years.
During the Andal invasion, Yaser Tully served one of the Andal warlords, and as a result, he was granted a large area of land between the Tumblestone River and the Red Fork River.
He built this red castle - Riverrun - between the two rivers.
The strategic role of Riverrun made House Leigh highly valued by the rulers of the Riverlands, because they needed Riverrun to resist the invasion of the Kingdom of Casterly Rock in the west.
To be honest, in terms of the appearance of the castle alone, Riverrun looks more imposing than Winter Castle, but at the same time it is beautiful, especially under the sunset, it has a steely romance.
Rob was a little jealous, it would be great if this was his territory.
It's a pity that he can only think about it. Not to mention that this is his mother-in-law's house. Before coming, Gao Bin specifically asked him not to get into trouble.
Apparently, in Gao Bin's opinion, Rob has a mindless impulse and is prone to bad things.