Stannis's Reward
Sunlight shone on Stannis's Flaming Stag Banner, which fluttered in the wind like a real flame.
The thick fog on Dragonstone has dissipated, bringing a rare period of good weather.
Just days before, Stannis's ministers had been frowning and looking worried, but now they were gathered in the Stone Drum Tower for a heated discussion, with Stannis and his queen Selyse sitting at the head of the table.
Members of the King's faction Queen's faction crowded the Stone Drum Tower, while Davos, Melisandre, and others were at the very front.
Even Alester, who was previously suspected of treason, was released and temporarily assumed the Hand of the King until Stannis found a suitable replacement.
Stannis had very few capable men around him, but thanks to the House Florent's closer blood ties to the House Gardener, he could at least cause some trouble for Tyrell.
At this point, the main topic of discussion was the issue of rewards, and when it came to discussing rewards, Jon was the most important person who could not be ignored.
Without Jon, they would have had to leave Dragonstone sooner or later and form a court in exile.
Furthermore, Jon's reward must be substantial; otherwise, how could these defeated generals have the audacity to demand a reward from Stannis?
Meanwhile, Stannis, sitting high on his throne, was unsure what kind of reward would be appropriate; at least for now, a Earl's reward seemed rather low.
Davos and Melisandre returned from King's Landing and both spoke highly of Jon, especially Davos, who said Jon Snow was practically Eddard reborn.
He is impeccable in both morality and ability.
Granting Jon Stark the surname to legitimize him was a "cherry on top" reward, absolutely not a proper conferment, otherwise he, as king, would be a laughing stock.
"Your Majesty, I believe that Harrenhal should be granted to Jon, bestowing upon him the title of Lord of Harrenhal." The speaker was none other than Alester, who had just been released.
Harrenhal's castle is large enough, and it is next to God's Eye, with fertile land, making it a good fief.
But soon someone raised a contrary opinion, it was Davos: "Your Majesty, Harrenhal is indeed a good place, but it is truly an ominous Harrenhal. The extinction of three families there is really unworthy of Jon's merit."
Davos had the highest regard for Jon of all the people on Dragonstone, so he wanted to secure Jon a good fiefdom so he wouldn't have to think about returning to the Wall all the time.
"Then where do you think he should be rewarded?" Stannis asked.
Although Davos and Melisandre both acknowledged Jon, with Melisandre even stating that Jon was a wise and valiant general sent to him by the Lord of Light, Stannis still could not fully trust Jon and was even less able to accept the advice of his subjects.
"Your Majesty, I—" Davos stammered, unable to finish his sentence.
Jon's bestowal of titles was no easy feat; at the very least, a castle of considerable size was required. With the entire Stormlands now loyal to Stannis, it was impossible for him to strip a family of their castle and valuable lands and give them to Jon.
The North of Riverlands are still in the hands of Winterfell.
The Reach was even less likely; Stannis wasn't crazy enough to drive the Tyrell, with their 70,000-80,000-strong army, into rebellion just to reward Jon.
There was nothing they could do; he had suffered a military defeat, and the Westerlands was no longer under their control. Now, they had reached a point where their number one hero was left without any reward.
"Should we give him Dragonstone?" Stannis dismissed the idea; after all, Dragonstone was the Targaryen's stronghold.
There seem to be Targaryen remnants plotting a restoration across the Narrow Sea, and I cannot possibly relinquish such a crucial location to others.
Stannis finally made his decision. He said, "Let's put the matter of the fiefdom aside for now. I will bestow upon Jon Snow the Stark name, and I will personally knight him. Once he becomes a knight, I will at least make him a duke."
Now that Stannis had spoken, the crowd stopped arguing about it. At this moment, Queen Selyse suddenly spoke up, "Your Majesty, perhaps we should also consider bestowing a marriage upon Jon."
"A marriage decree?" Stannis turned to look at his wife, and although Selyse's voice was not loud, many people heard it.
Compared to bestowing gifts, arranged marriages seem to have a greater impact on their interests.
If Jon were to be betrothed, the bride would have to be chosen from among Stannis's vassal families.
Stannis's vassals are divided into the "King's faction" and the Queen's faction." No matter which side Jon joins, it will greatly enhance the power and influence of that party, and he may even become its leader.
Selyse carefully observed Stannis's expression; their relationship wasn't actually that good, it could even be described as somewhat cold.
Stannis never allowed Selyse to be affectionate in public. Even at a public banquet, when Selyse tried to take his arm, he immediately rebuked her, saying, "Let go of my hand! Woman!"
Selyse believed this was because she couldn't give Stannis a son, and the daughter she gave birth to was born with Greyscale.
Therefore, in every interaction, Selyse was very careful and even tried to please Stannis. Melisandre was the one she introduced to her husband.
Seeing that Stannis did not object, he continued, "Your Majesty, my family has quite a few girls of marriageable age, perhaps—"
"Forget about the girls in your family. Have you forgotten your cousin?" Stannis said sarcastically without even looking at Selyse.
Upon hearing Stannis mention her cousin, Selyse immediately felt her cheeks burn.
It turns out that on their wedding night, Selyse's sister and Robert had a passionate encounter on their wedding bed, and Robert ejaculated, resulting in Selyse's sister giving birth to a bastard child for the king, who was raised in Storm's End.
He was a healthy and strong boy.
Both men believed that the illegitimate child should have been born to Stannis from Selyse, but they dared not blame Robert, so they could only label Selyse's cousin as "indecent".
Stannis wasn't stupid; the House Florent bore at least half the responsibility for the Battle of the Blackwater.
Both he and Davos had asked Imry to send a scout fleet to check for traps on the Blackwater, but the guy was too complacent and arrogant to do so.
Not to mention that Alester had recently planned to make peace with the Lannister, and Stannis was already extremely disgusted with his wife's family.
It's impossible, and I don't want Jon to have any conflict with the House Florent.
He not only wanted to reward Jon, but Jon himself was a reward.
Meanwhile, Stannis ' other vassals were also trying to arrange marriages with Jon. The Queen's Queen's faction and the King's faction were not willing to give way to each other, each believing that their family's daughters were more beautiful and worthy of Jon.
Stannis grew annoyed as his courtiers began to clamor again. Just then, a servant rushed in to report, "Your Majesty, the House Tyrell has sent messengers, and some of our captured lords have also been returned."
"Tyrell— " Stannis thought that if it weren't for Tyrell, he might have been able to storm King's Landing —he clenched his fist, finally suppressing his anger, and ordered, "Let him come."