Margaery's Self-Awareness

Margaery, heavily pregnant, walked through the garden, accompanied by her maids Sola and Falia, and several guards.

Surrounded by these people, he looked incredibly imposing!

Margaery arrived at a courtyard, which was surrounded by dozens of guards so tightly that not even a bat could fly in. This was the place where she had imprisoned Alester.

"Lady."

Two guards in blue armor stood outside Alester's door and saluted Margaery when she arrived.

Margaery left the others outside and took only Sola inside, with a crossbow hidden in Sola's waistband just in case.

When Alester saw that it was Margaery, his face immediately darkened, turning almost black.

"Ah, it's Lady Casterly Rock, the Highgarden Rose has arrived." Alester's voice was laced with barely suppressed anger.

At first, when Alester was under house arrest, he was quite foul-mouthed, but after eating unpalatable food for a few days, he became much more obedient.

"Hehe, Your Lord Hand is too kind. You are not only the Hand of the King, but also an elder. There is no need for so much formality," Margaery said with a smile. Despite her modesty, she still found a seat and, with Sola's help, gracefully took her own.

Seeing Margaery's arrogant demeanor, Alester said with displeasure, "Margaery, do you know what it means to offend the Hand of the King? You are committing treason!" After finishing his meal, Alester's tone became firm again.

"Harm? Your Lord Hand is exaggerating. Everything is going smoothly at the front, all thanks to your excellent command as commander-in-chief. My husband is serving His Majesty at the front, while I am responsible for taking care of your daily life in Casterly Rock. Everything is in good order, and there are people loyal to His Majesty everywhere. So where does your accusation of treason come from?"

Margaery's confident manner infuriated Alester, who then suddenly remembered something and asked, "Has Jon already captured Pyke?"

"Yes." Margaery nodded reservedly, but her bright brown eyes held an undisguised pride. "It's not just about conquest. Balon is dead, and Jon even personally beheaded Euron. The House Greyjoy is reduced to a single woman who will soon be heading to distant Gogossos. Jon will annex the Iron Islands Iron Islands and use their lands to house the Free Folk of the Beyond the Wall —a double win."

Now Alester understood; no wonder Margaery dared to come and see him.

With the Iron Islands in hand, the Westerlands was essentially free of worries, and the North, now free of Wildlings Beyond the Wall, was also free of its only threat.

Before long, trade in the Sunset Sea will flourish like never before, and the ties between Winterfell, Riverrun, and Highgarden will become even stronger.

They have already gained the ability to challenge the Iron Throne.

Moreover, Margaery merely placed herself under house arrest; there was no other substantial evidence.

Stannis would never risk provoking such a behemoth for his own sake.

Although the Westerlands have just changed hands, they are now stronger than at any time in the past thousand years.

Having figured this out, Alester suppressed his anger.

"What does Lady Margaery want? Could it be that Jon is planning to become king?" Alester said with a hint of sneer and sarcasm.

"Your Lord Hand is joking," Margaery said, instinctively clutching her stomach. "Jon wouldn't be where he is today without His Majesty's trust. How could he possibly do something so usurping and presumptuous?"

Although Margaery vehemently denied it, she had actually considered it, as becoming queen was a great temptation for someone with such a strong desire for power.

Although Jon is capable and a good fighter, his social standing and background are still insufficient.

There is no precedent in Westeros for a bastard to become king. Although the Westeros lords supported Blackfyre's fight for the Iron Throne more than once during the Blackfyre Rebellion, House Blackfyre is a branch of the Targaryen and has Targaryen blood.

If Jon also had Targaryen blood, then Tyrell could help him contend for the Iron Throne, but if he was merely a bastard of the House Stark, then he wouldn't qualify.

Furthermore, no matter how far back the House Stark goes, they have no connection to the Targaryen, which is a lack of prior knowledge, and there's really nothing that can be done about it.

Margaery has resigned herself to her fate. Perhaps after several more decades of accumulation, her son or grandson will be able to become king and lead the Reach Westerlands from the control of anyone.

But now, they need to create a situation with Stannis that involves competition without outright conflict. This is also Jon's intention.

"My husband has been fighting for His Majesty Stannis ever since he left the Wall, and he hasn't stopped since. The Crownlands and the Stormlands both rely on His Majesty's direct rule. After such a long campaign, it's time to let the people rest. What do you say?" Margaery said with a smile, but in reality, she was conveying a message to Alester: Jon hoped that both sides could maintain the status quo and asked Stannis not to make too many demands.

Alester knew that Stannis would definitely not agree; Shireen was frail and sickly, while he, though in his prime, was growing old day by day.

Although news has come from King's Landing that Stannis and Selyse have resumed intimacy, it's uncertain how long it will take for her to conceive.

It's even more uncertain whether the baby will be a boy or a girl, not to mention that Stannis and Selyse are both nearing forty.

Margaery's situation is different. She's as young as Jon, so it doesn't matter whether her first child is a boy or a girl; she can get pregnant again within six months anyway.

Moreover, according to the judgment of the new maester of Casterly Rock, Maester Thomp, Margaery is very likely pregnant with a boy, a view shared even by the maester who accompanies her.

Jon is only seventeen years old; he will grow stronger day by day over the next ten years.

In terms of age, power, and successor, Jon is ahead in every aspect.

In other words, time was not on Stannis's side.

As Florent is currently a staunch supporter of the Iron Throne, the reason Jon and Margaery don't make things difficult for him is because Alester and his allies offer each other a way out.

If something happens to him, it will be like a complete falling out.

"Okay, I understand. I will write to His Majesty." Alester's attitude softened somewhat. Although he still disliked Margaery, he could only accept the current situation.

Especially the fact that he was being held captive by Margaery meant that not only could he not use this to get justice from Stannis, but he also had to speak on Jon's side.

Now he needs to bring Stannis's army back intact; any further action must be postponed.

To show that he wouldn't pursue the matter, Alester began to steer the conversation in a lighter direction.

"Lady Stark, Jon has been in Casterly Rock for over half a year now. I wonder what the Stark of Casterly Rock use in their native language? Is it still 'Winter Is Coming '?"

Margaery felt a little helpless about this, as her husband was exactly like a Stark, always reminding her of the Winter Is Coming.

Under his influence, both Casterly Rock and Highgarden stockpiled large quantities of grain, far exceeding the necessary limits.

With such a large-scale absorption of grain, the grain supply in all Seven Kingdoms has increased considerably, and merchants from Free Cities have even traveled great distances to sell easily stored grain to Casterly Rock.

"We haven't discussed this, but as you know, Jon is a typical Stark. Even though he's in the relatively warm Casterly Rock, he's always complaining about the cold winter winds and insists I strengthen Casterly Rock Casterly Rock's reserves. Now the granaries are almost overflowing, and I'm wondering if he even had enough to eat on the Wall." Margaery's words weren't just a complaint and a joke; they were also a form of protest.

This is telling Alester that the Stark of Casterly Rock are now well-prepared and unafraid of any challenge.

Although Alester was sometimes arrogant, he could still understand the underlying meaning in Margaery's words. Compared to Casterly Rock, Stannis's financial situation was not healthy.

The total foreign debt exceeded 1.5 million Gold Dragon, even after the Lannister fell and half of the debt had been forgiven.

In addition, the Royal Fleet needs to be rebuilt, the Targaryen in Slaver's Bay need to be guarded against, Jon is growing increasingly powerful, and now winter is coming, leading to reduced food production.

In short, the current situation is very unfavorable to them, and they really shouldn't go to war with Jon.

After chatting with Alester for a few more minutes, Margaery said goodbye and left, lifting the house arrest on Alester before she left.

"Madam, won't this Lord Hand complain to his King?" Sola asked, leaning closer to Margaery.

"Not now, but who knows what might happen in the future."

"Oh? What should we do then?"

"Want to know?"

"Hmm." Sola nodded. She had known since childhood that the King was the strongest person in the entire Seven Kingdoms, and she was also worried about Jon.

"Then tell me, what did our Lord Jon find on Hidden Fire Peak?"

Sola was no match for Margaery. After just a few rounds, Sola considered Margaery her best confidante and wanted to tell her everything.

Margaery had already laid bare everything about her, including how she and Jon met and what they went through together.

Sora kept their trip to Firemount a complete secret, refusing to tell Margaery Jon what he had found there.

In fact, Margaery had already guessed that it was Dragon Egg, but she wasn't sure.

Jon climbed Hidden Fire Peak no one had been able to ascend for centuries, and even found the Dragon Egg that had disappeared in Westeros.

Margaery had a vague feeling that there must be some arrangement of fate behind this.