Elia lowered his eyes, and his long eyelashes cast a faint shadow under his eyelids.
His tone was filled with exhaustion and sincerity that could not be concealed. "----But this is all for my child."
She paused, her voice trembling.
"Rhaenys is the daughter of Rhaegar and the orphan of Targaryen. I don't want her to be sent to a church or other monastery because of her embarrassing status when she grows up, and she will be accompanied by the stone statue of Seven all her life.
She is also Sunspear, the daughter of the Martell family, so her surname can be Martell!
Rhaenys Martell deserves the honor a princess deserves and a stable life, instead of becoming a nun when she grows up!"
Hearing the name "Rhaegar" is like turning on the rage switch.
Robert I's anger surged violently, but was mostly extinguished by the subsequent words.
He stared blankly at the woman in front of him.
[Rainwood Advanced swear words that no one can bear easily]!
I actually had thoughts about this woman for a moment!
Elia is indeed born beautiful, not the kind of thrilling and glamorous people, and also different from the noble young ladies Robert has daily contact with and worked hard for.
Her pale, sickly face was so pitiful, her brows were filled with tenderness, and her temperament was so virtuous and elegant, which could easily arouse a warrior's protective desire.
No wonder old Jon and Titus would help her speak and promote this political marriage for the peace of the kingdom.
But they were all fooled!
Robert said in his heart: The old Hand of the King who lives in the Eyrie and the young famous general from Starpike were both deceived by this woman's seemingly weak appearance.
She had her own plans and turned her plans into reality.
Who would have thought that there are such sharp thorns hidden under this seemingly gentle and supple body?
Hey, Sunspear's blazing sun and halberd are really amazing!
These are small things.
In comparison, a new dynasty cannot be without heirs.
Robert was silent for a moment, and he admitted that he was not a good man, or to be more direct, he was just a playboy, but he had never been violent to any woman - no matter how drunk he was, he had never done so.
He felt that he would never do such a thing in his life.
Unless a woman is extremely stupid or outrageously mean--
The anger in his chest gradually disappeared. Robert I thought about the issue of his heir, and his mind became a little more calm. "You said you can't have children, is that true?"
The bride replied, "I have been weak since I was a child."
There was a glimmer of water in the woman's eyes, which made even a tall and tough guy like Robert afraid to look at her.
At the previous wedding, he had been secretly touched by her gentleness when she lowered her eyes, but now that he thought about it, maybe it was just her protective color?
"After giving birth to my last child, I lay on the hospital bed for several months and almost lost my life. After repeated diagnosis by Bachelor Dragonstone, it was confirmed that I had lost the ability to be a mother again."
There was real pain in her voice, and it didn't sound like she was faking it.
The hidden danger behind this marriage had already surfaced on the wedding night.
Robert cursed secretly, saying that as experienced as Jon, as capable as Titus, there are times when mistakes are made and misjudgments----
This time, he had to solve the problem on his own.
What the new dynasty needs is a queen who can give birth to an excellent heir, and the woman in front of her is obviously not qualified.
The king's male pride surged beneath his calm surface. He stared at Elia's pale but still moving face, and thought of Lyanna's name.
A trace of evil and revengeful thoughts crept into my mind like a poisonous snake.
Since she is so scheming, why not take it by force to vent her anger? Maybe she lies again and what she says is not true?
As soon as this thought arose, it was torn to pieces by his reason.
Rhaegar·Targaryen is a rapist.
But I am not.
"What do you mean by choosing to confess tonight?"
Robert suppressed the complicated emotions in his heart and asked as coldly as possible.
Martell's Elia seemed to have been prepared for this. She took a deep breath and told her plan in a calm tone, "I also know that the king needs an heir, and I don't want to keep delaying His Majesty. When the situation stabilizes, the war disappears, and the kingdom achieves peace, we can discuss the divorce.
At that time, I can live in seclusion with my daughter as a former queen.
I believe that by then, your throne will be secure, and you no longer need to worry about the threat of Targaryen—Rhaenys Martell and I will not interfere in government affairs. We only ask that you can ensure her stability for the rest of her life."
Maybe, mother and daughter will still have a chance to go back to Dorne----
Elia prayed like this in his heart.
Robert looked at her hands that were always clenching the sheets, and felt a mixture of emotions in her heart, including anger, unwillingness, and a hint of unnoticeable emotion.
Maybe this woman is not pretending to be weak, but is risking everything for her daughter?
After a long time.
He finally spoke, and his voice sounded like that of the sick beauty Elia, with a bit of exhaustion and determination coming from his status as a king. "Okay."
After a pause, Robert finally made an agreement with his bride. "In two or three years, when the entire kingdom is completely stable and there are no more changes in the border areas, you and I will discuss the dissolution of the marriage."
Yes, there is no emotion at all between them, everything is caused by damn politics.
After saying that, Robert didn't look at Elia again, turned around and went to lie down on the couch opposite the bed, with his back to her, hiding his figure in the shadow of the candlelight.
Apart from being somewhat arrogant and high-spirited, he looks like a husband who has been forced to sleep on the sofa by his wife.
The speed with which he got into the role was quite fast.
The king and queen's bedroom fell into silence again, with only the faint sound of candles burning and the breathing of the two people.
Elia looked at his back, slowly loosened the sheets from his palms, and his tense shoulders finally relaxed.
The water in her eyes no longer needed to be suppressed, it slipped quietly down and dripped onto the brocade bed, turning into small patches of wet marks.
She breathed a sigh of relief and felt confused again.
This marriage is aimed at protecting her daughter and her daughter's future.
But from her perspective, she never thought about some of the deeper issues that followed.
A crisis regarding the heir is quietly laying the groundwork in the heart of House Baratheon----
And Elia Martell - seems to be just one of the initiators of planting this seed?
After the king's wedding.
Duke Jon of Red Keep Tower of the Hand once sent a letter, trying to ask for the captured prince Lewyn.
And Titus intends to launch a revengeful war of invasion to the south. When the time comes, he will need a sufficient amount of insurance, which he always keeps in his own hands.
-In this way, he can choose when to start the war and when to end it, which is very flexible and convenient.
Therefore, of course he would not hand over Lewyn Martell, so he wrote back and declined the old Hand of the King.
During this time, his correspondence became much more frequent.
Whether he was exchanging letters with swan geese in the south and exchanging heart-to-hearts, or learning from "academic" discussions and teaching in the West, the number of times he interacted with pens was greatly increased.
Mr. Titus is sitting at his desk, with several long-opened letters spread out on the table. The "pen pals" are all bachelors from Stormlands.
Storm's End or Tarth, both available.
He kept busy in correspondence with the two maesters, covering topics ranging from celestial movements and astrology to climate and meteorological changes.
According to the star orbit observation over Storm's End:
In recent months, the "Seven Wandering Stars" have been moving frequently, and the associated star trails are spreading from a curve to a vortex----
Stannis's half-father, Maester Cressen, made a discussion, believing that this was a sign that a storm would invade the east coast of the continent. The scale might be quite large, but it was impossible to accurately predict the scope it would cover.
The bachelor of Tarth also made a lot of bronze links----Titus has reason to guess: Citadel should still have a good set of selection rules for each bachelor. For example, the bachelor of the coastal castle must have delved into the relevant knowledge before being dispatched.
Compared with astrological observation, Tarth Evenfall Hall is better at recording and analyzing weather phenomena. Through changes in ocean currents and the date and trajectory of seabird migrations, it can be inferred that a storm will hit the western continent in ten days at the latest. However, its intensity is vague and half-understood.
Obviously, both sides have their own strengths.
The latter failed to judge the size of the storm, but had his own unique insights into the time of the storm.
Under the double-blind experiment, the research conclusions of the two bachelors were surprisingly complementary, but they also left the most critical blank - the unknown size of the storm and the location where it landed. For them, that has always been an unsolved mystery.
Not so for Starpike and black Earl.
Titus, who had obtained some important information from both Storm's End and Tarth respectively, tapped his fingers on the table and distractedly thought about whether he, who connected the clues from both sides, was the last piece of the puzzle?
No matter what, he vaguely captured the full picture of this "perfect storm".
While he was deep in thought, the study door was gently pushed open.
Titus didn't look up, guessing that it was Wenda who came in. The only person who entered East Study directly without notification was his guard captain and personal secretary.
Different from Starpike's "message delivery machine" Greg's gentle steps, Lady White Eagle's footsteps are crisper and crisper, and the high heels of the knight's boots click, bringing with it a familiar sassiness and sexiness.
When the voice came to the table, Titus raised his head and saw Captain Wenda dressed in smart clothes and holding a small letterbox in his left hand.
Titus's eyes narrowed.
"Is it the news from King's Landing or Tarth?"
"Neither."
Wenda slowly shook his head, "This is what Dragonstone's naval hero gave it to Griffith."
She stood the letterbox upright and placed it firmly on the table.
Titus glanced at her across the desk and saw that the other person's pretty face was tense and serious, and she didn't seem to be hinting at anything.
The "Navy Hero" in the words of the captain of the guard is of course not the "Iron Fist" who can fly a mountain with one punch, nor can he use the "Fist Bone Impact" that wraps up his domineering power - but Captain Renafor Weiweishui who has successfully sneaked back into Royal Fleet and been promoted to the next level.
His side seems to have stabilized, and he dares to take the initiative to write to Starpike Earl.
Titus raised his hand and picked up the upright mailbox, opened the seal at the top of the mailbox, and took out a roll of slender animal skin paper.
"Captain Reinaver, who is very respectable in Royal Fleet, has indeed not wasted the contacts he has cultivated over the years."
In other words, the timing of his appearance was very lucky.
His distant relative, the former Master of Ships Lucerys·Velaryon Earl, was just at a time when he was alone and in urgent need of other support.
Sunspear: