Littlefinger's Grand Performance
"Petyr?" Jon frowned slightly upon hearing the name, glancing at Sansa and Arya, who were sleeping close together.
He patted Sansa on the shoulder, Sansa flinched, then looked up and relaxed when she saw it was Jon.
"Sansa, take your little sister to the back room first. I need to meet someone here." Although his voice was very soft, the empty Great Sept seemed to still make it echo.
Sansa nodded, shook the sleepy Arya awake, and the two left arm in arm.
Then Jon turned to the guard and said, "Go tell Petyr that I'm sleeping, and to tell him to come in quietly. I'll wake up soon."
"Understood, sir." The guard nodded and left the Great Sept.
In Jon's view, Petyr's motive for coming to see him late at night was not hard to guess. He was probably on his way to Dragonstone to negotiate on behalf of Tyrell, and his stopover to see him was probably for his own benefit.
After all, Tyrell possessed a wealthy Reach and a large army; Tyrell was merely a minor nobleman on the edge of the Vale.
This kind of back-and-forth behavior was bound to arouse Stannis's disgust. Like the House Frey, he needed Stannis's endorsement to safely weather the change of dynasties.
Jon also realized that since Littlefinger dared to come to see him, it must mean he thought Jon didn't know about Littlefinger's secret plot to murder Eddard.
But Jon doesn't intend to expose him now, nor does he intend to kill him. After all, Petyr is now a representative of Tyrell, and the most urgent task is to restore peace to the entire Seven Kingdoms and gather strength to deal with the Long Night.
If it really comes down to killing someone, you can simply bribe a Faceless Men with Dragon Egg to do it.
As for the present, the natural thing to do is to find a way to make him spend some gold coins. This guy borrowed more than three million Gold Dragon from the Iron Bank on behalf of the royal family. It's impossible that he didn't line his own pockets with such a huge amount of money.
Moreover, he himself runs the second largest brothel in King's Landing, so it would actually be more worthwhile not to kill him.
Jon put the cushions of the three siblings together, lay down on them and pretended to sleep. Soon a somewhat thin figure arrived in the Great Sept.
Dozens of candles flickered, like the ghosts of the dead recounting their past grievances, which sent a chill down Petyr's spine.
He took a deep breath, calming his racing heart, and then softly called out to the figure that seemed to be hidden in the shadows, "Jon?"
Jon ------ Jon. ----Jon --
Petyr called out, but was startled by the echo in the sanctuary. He slowly approached and saw the clothes Eddard had once worn laid out in the coffin.
Petyr remembered the clothes Eddard was wearing when he was arrested. He held a dagger to Ed's neck and said, "Didn't I tell you not to trust me?"
At that time, Petyr never imagined that his entire life and fortune would be tied to Eddard's bastard son.
At that moment, Petyr discovered that Jon Snow was standing beside Eddard's remains, his back to him.
Petyr looked at the tall, slender young man, hesitated for a moment, but decided to wake him up. He needed to get a guarantee from Jon as soon as possible, and then he had to go to Dragonstone to act as Tyrell's peace negotiator. Time was of the essence.
But just as he reached out to pat Jon on the shoulder, something unexpected happened!
The boy in the shadows had a fierce look in his eyes, like a startled wolf. He suddenly flipped over and, with a speed that left only a blur, pinned Petyr to the ground.
The next second, the cold dagger pierced Petyr's clothes and plunged into his flesh. As the dagger was about to continue its advance, Petyr cried out, "Spare me! Jon! It's not what you think! It's all Cersei's orders! It's all Cersei's orders!!!"
In a life-or-death moment, at the last second, Petyr frantically tried to exonerate himself. His voice echoed through the sanctuary, almost immediately attracting the attention of the guards outside.
He discovered that the boy who was suppressing him was not only agile and swift, but also incredibly strong, and he had no chance of resisting at all.
At this moment, Jon seemed to wake up from a dream, and the fierce look on his face turned into a surprised expression.
"Who are you?"
"Ah?"
Petyr paused for a moment, then blankly revealed his identity.
"Ah, it's Ser Petyr. I'm so sorry, so very sorry," Jon said, helping him up.
"Ser Petyr, that guard is my newly recruited squire. He doesn't know my habits yet, so he let you in. I like to kill in my dreams, so no one comes near me when I'm sleeping." Jon comforted the still-shaken Petyr and reached out to bandage his wounds.
Listening to Jon's explanation, Littlefinger couldn't believe that he had been injured because of such a ridiculous misunderstanding.
But now is not the time to pursue the matter, and he is the one who needs something from him. In fact, the two of them are right next to Eddard's remains. Petyr naturally keeps saying that it's okay and doesn't matter, trying to steer the conversation to the main topic.
"Jon, Jon, I was actually trying to persuade Eddard to wear the black robes that day. I knew he was innocent and it was unfair to him, but I was just a lowly Master of Coin. I did everything I could—" Petyr looked at Eddard's remains, tears streaming down his face. His acting was so convincing that Jon would have almost believed it if he hadn't known the truth.
"I understand. I heard from Lady Catelyn that you helped Lord Eddard a great deal in investigating the death of the former Hand of the King, Lord Arryn. You were a friend of Lord Eddard, and I trust you." Jon said gratefully, holding Petyr's hand. He then led Petyr to Eddard's remains. "Lord Petyr, you must have many things you wanted to say to my father. Please, come in."
With that, Jon stepped aside.
But Petyr was no longer able to speak; he could only feel the blood flowing from the wound in his chest, soaking his shirt underneath.
But with Jon watching him from behind, he dared not refuse.
"Eddard —it was my incompetence that prevented me from saving you— Eddard, you have a good son, he has avenged you, soon the true rightful king will inherit the Iron Throne, you can rest in peace, Eddard— "
Jon looked at Petyr with a mocking expression, knowing that he was lucky to be alive now, and that it was impossible for him to be made Lord of Harrenhal and then take actual control of the Vale through a marriage with Lysa, as he originally had.
However, Petyr still wields considerable influence over Lysa, who is driven by love and capable of murdering her husband for her lover, and still possesses the ability to sway the Vale's choices.
As long as one remains sufficiently wary of him, temporary cooperation can still bring significant benefits.
Soon after Petyr finished his mourning, he told Jon about the Battle of King's Landing.
He said he was very anxious when he learned that Jon was the one defending the city, but there was nothing he could do. He had been ordered to represent the Lannister in forming an alliance with the Tyrell, and he couldn't disobey orders.
"Jon, you are the smartest young man I have ever met. The Tyrell chose to ally with the Lannister because their interests align. When King Robert rebelled, the Tyrell were excluded from the political arena because they sided with the Targaryen. Taking advantage of this opportunity, they were finally able to increase their influence and step into the limelight. My role was merely that of a middleman." Petyr downplayed his role as a "connector" to Jon and emphasized his helplessness.
"Ser Petyr, of course I understand," Jon said, showing his understanding. However, he then added, "But Lord Petyr, even so, as human beings, we should have our own principles and bottom lines, and not just follow the crowd, should we?"
Perhaps my words are harsh, but look at yourself now, isn't what you're doing no different from being a slave who serves three masters?
"A traitor?" Petyr didn't react for a moment, but with his clever mind, he quickly realized how offensive Jon's words were, yet he couldn't refute them.
Although he was forced to obey Cersei's orders, now that the situation is not good, he has to pledge allegiance to Stannis. In addition, given his surname "Baelish," he is naturally the traitor Jon described.
Although Jon has now clearly stated that he wants to support Stannis, he was one of the first to oppose Robb when the Riverlands nobles of the North supported him, so he naturally has the right to speak against Petyr.
Despite feeling resentful, he had to nod and agree, saying, "Jon, you're right."
In reality, he kept his head down, hiding his expression in the dim light, his eyes full of disdain.
But Jon got more and more carried away, berating him for almost half an hour until his mouth was dry before he finally stopped.
Seeing that Jon seemed to have finally gotten to the point, Petyr then spoke up, "Jon, you're right. Although you're younger than me, your morality and honor far surpass mine. But now my life is in danger, and if I can't overcome this crisis, I'll never be able to make up for the mistakes I made before." Petyr put on a pitiful expression as he spoke.
"The House Tyrell now want to pledge allegiance to King Stannis. Let's be realistic; King Stannis certainly won't refuse such a powerful family, and the House Tyrell won't be retaliated against for their previous alliance with the Lannister. But I'm different. I'm just a minor nobleman in the Vale, with a poor and small fief. I'm afraid Stannis will punish me. Jon, for your father's sake, please help me."
"How can a person be so shameless?" Jon scoffed inwardly, while also marveling at Petyr's astonishingly thick skin.
"Petyr, you did help my father after all, so naturally I will help you in return. Here's what I'll do: I'll write you a letter, take it with you, as if I'm pleading on your behalf," Jon said, patting him on the shoulder.
He wasn't worried at all about Stannis's concerns about him forming cliques or engaging in favoritism; the groundwork laid with Davos and Melisandre had been enough.
Stannis would at most think he was naive and had been deceived by a villain.
Soon, Jon wrote several pages of a letter and handed it to Petyr, Petyr carefully treasured it, his joy evident in his expression.
Jon seized the opportunity to make his own request. "Lord Petyr, I did you a favor, could you do me one too?"
"Jon, just say the word, as long as it's within my power," Petyr assured Jon with a serious expression.
"I'd like to borrow some—well, to be precise, I'd like to ask you for some money," Jon said.
Jon used the excuse that his soldiers needed rewards and that he was short of money, while also worrying about the defenses of the Wall and supplies, to ask Petyr for some money.
Petyr did not refuse and immediately offered to raise at least 100,000 Gold Dragon for Jon.
With Jon's guarantee, Petyr left King's Landing overnight. He did not come alone; he also brought with him the nobles captured in the Battle of King's Landing that day, to Dragonstone, to be handed over to Stannis.