Game of Thrones: I became a crown prince for a day.

Chapter 499: Hostility between Sister and Brother
evening.

Director's Hall.

The memorials on the desk piled up into a small mountain. Emond had a blank expression on his face and was working hard.

The dim sunset glowed down, turning her long hair into a dazzling silver-gold color.

On both sides of the table, a pair of siblings were busy with their own things.

Helena rested her chin on one hand and fiddled with a sapphire without much interest.

I glanced at the door from time to time, and became more and more bored looking at the closed door.

Aegon moved to his desk and sat alone, legs spread wide, doing whatever was comfortable for him.

During this time, the maid brought dinner.

Aegon held the little maid's hand tightly and talked about this and that with an ambiguous look on his face.

"Why is there no veal? Is the food at Red Castle so poor?"

"..."

Imond was used to it and didn't bother with this idiot.

Helena looked unhappy and waved to the maid who asked for help, signaling her to leave.

"Thank you princess."

The maidservant shook off Aegon's dirty hands as if she had been pardoned, and ran away with the plate in her hands.

boom--

The maid had just run to the door when it was pushed open from the outside.

"slower."

Rhaegar spoke softly, and as he opened the door handle, he helped Rhaenyra walk slowly.

Rhaenyra nodded slightly and walked in carrying the baby.

Compared to this morning, my complexion has improved significantly.

Not only did she change into a blue dress, she also washed and dressed up.

"His Majesty."

The maid was startled and slipped out the door sideways without even raising her head.

Rhaegar narrowed his eyes slightly, and when he saw Aegon's lazy attitude, a hint of danger flashed in his eyes.

Aegon felt as if he had been drenched in cold water when his gaze swept over him. He quickly stood up and offered his seat to Rhaenyra: "Didn't Rhaenyra just give birth? Why is she here?"

Seeing that he was so sensible, Rega retracted his gaze and said calmly: "The servants kept urging me, so I came here specially to take a look."

As she spoke, Helena put down the small ornament and came forward to help Rhaenyra: "Sit down quickly."

Rhaenyra sat down, adjusted the swaddling clothes in her arms, and said, "It's okay. The maester said that it's better to move around after giving birth. It will help recovery."

As he spoke, he swept across the desk without leaving a trace.

Aemond stopped writing, looked up at his brothers and sisters who were busy running around, and slowly put the sapphire on the table back into his eye socket.

"Is everything going well?"

Aemond asked quietly, his one eye keeping an eye on the tiny swaddle.

Rhaenyra smiled. "Good, it's a girl."

"Let me take a look."

Aegon came forward, scratched the baby's face, and groped around in his arms.

Soon, he took out a ruby ​​necklace and said proudly, "It's a birthday gift for my niece. It's a specialty from Volantis."

"I thank you on behalf of Visenya."

Rhaenyra smiled and placed the necklace in the swaddling clothes.

"a piece of cake."

Aegon patted his chest, looking quite wealthy and powerful, and did not forget to wink at Aemond provocatively.

My brother is rich.

When Aemond saw it, he looked away with disdain.

The Stone Steps Islands occupy a good location and earn generous shipping fees every year.

With the investment from Mill and Rees, two small docks were built on Bloodstone Island and Grey Gallows Island to attract additional cargo ships to anchor and rest.

Aegon built only a few brothels and emptied the sailors' pockets.

Rega ignored the two brothers' comparison and said directly: "The tax on the Stone Step Islands will be increased this year, from the original 30% to another 15%."

"what?"

Aegon was shocked and quickly protested: "Thirty percent is not enough. I am almost starving."

Rhaegar sneered: "Myr's tax rate is 45%, and Lys's is 50%. Do you have any objection?"

After years of development, the three free trade cities are connected with the shipping routes of the Stepstone Islands, the Dorne Sea, and the Summer Sea.

The increasing profits nourished the entire royal family.

Aegon wanted to protest, but he held the words back.

Thinking of the cellar full of fine wine in the Twin Castles, he gritted his teeth and agreed: "It will go up, but only this time."

If the price goes up any further, he won't be able to live his life of extravagance any longer.

Wouldn't he end up as poor as Emond in the future?

Rhaegar said nothing, but his playful eyes said it all.

Helena added: "The highest tax that can be collected from the Stone Steps Archipelago is 65%. The Imperial Council has already discussed this."

Aegon: ...

My heart aches so much, and I suddenly don’t want to stay in King’s Landing anymore.

Rhaegar was too lazy to pay attention to him. The tax had to be paid sooner or later. Stonehelm's trade was not prosperous, but it still had to pay 35% tax.

He propped himself up on the chair with his hands, looked at Emond, and got to the point: "Is there any problem that cannot be solved?"

As soon as the words came out, his aura became majestic.

Rhaenyra paused and pulled Helena to look at the baby.

Aegon was unable to get a word in, so he walked to the balcony and sat down, looking up to mourn the impending loss of taxes.

Emond handed over the memorial that was pressed under him: "News from Tidehead Island, about the inheritance rights of the sea snake."

"sea snake?"

Rhaegar groaned. "Isn't he leading the fleet patrolling the disputed lands?"

In recent years, Volantis has often entered the disputed land under the banner of an ally, secretly sending a large number of stowaways and pirates out.

As one of Rees's councillor families, Sea Snake serves as Admiral of the Navy to fight crime.

Aemond's one eye was deep and deep, and he said: "You'd better take a look for yourself. The sender is the nephew of the sea snake."

"Tsk!"

Rhaenyra curled her lips and emphasized, "It's the issue of succession again. Velaryon is really endless."

Rhaegar took it and flipped through it, also a little displeased: "Marentin Velaryon, this is the nth time you have tried to stir up trouble."

This man is Sea Snake's cousin and is already quite old.

Yet he is still so naive and unwilling to give up.

Emond leaned back in his chair and crossed his legs: "What should I do? Or ignore it?"

Rhaegar glanced at him and said calmly, "Send a message to Aunt Rhaenys. I will take the children to visit Tidehead in a few days."

Some things will be resolved sooner or later.

Aemond nodded and looked at Rhaenyra, who was coaxing the child. "She can go?"

Rhaenyra frowned and answered for Rhaegar, asking in return, "I can't go?"

"As you wish." Aemond shrugged casually. Rhaenyra handed the swaddling clothes to Helena and looked at her unkindly: "Instead of worrying about me, you should have married Cassandra earlier and taken on the responsibility of marriage."

"I have my own plans. Storm's End will be mine sooner or later."

Emond spoke calmly, responding sharply.

Aegon had a surprised expression on his face, glancing around behind him to watch the fun.

It was known throughout court that Rhaenyra and Aemond were not on good terms.

Whenever Rhaenyra appeared, Aemond was absent.

But it is still rare to see a head-on confrontation.

Rhaenyra stared at Aemond, inexplicably thinking of Alicent imprisoned in the Sept of Harrenhal, and opened her mouth to retort.

"Okay, let's check on Visenya first."

Rhaegar put his hand on her shoulder and whispered in her ear: "The children have grown up. We must respect them."

Although he was trying to lower his voice, his voice was heard by everyone present.

Rainier gritted her teeth and suppressed her anger.

Rhaegar gently rubbed her shoulders, then turned his gaze to Aemond and said calmly, "Rhaenyra is right. You have already completed your coming-of-age ceremony. Do you still want me to hold a tournament for you to add to the excitement?"

Facing the irresistible gaze, Imond felt as if a thorn was on his back. He awkwardly crossed his legs and returned to his normal sitting position.

In his heart, Aegon, Helena and others have always been his closest blood relatives.

Rhaegar is the eldest brother, whom he admires and recognizes from the bottom of his heart.

The only thing he couldn't get close to was his half-sister, Rainier.

Rhaegar treated it coldly, but eventually stopped criticizing him too much.

The relationship between Rhaenyra and Aemond had already been apparent, and it was pretty good in the past few years.

It was not until three years ago that Rhaenyra proposed that Myr and Lys jointly fund the construction of a dock for Aegon's Stepstones.

Because of favoring one side and neglecting the other, the relationship between the two sides gradually became rigid.

But there is nothing we can do about it.

Stonehelm has its own dock, so no investment is needed.

In terms of geographical location, it is not as important as the Stepstones. It is located alone on the coast of the Sea of ​​Dorne and has poor trade circulation.

Sighing, Rhaegar slowed down his tone and said, "You really should marry Cassandra. Father has been urging me to do this."

Aemond turned his head away and said, "Then you should really take care of the guy behind me. He has been married for several years and has no children."

Aegon was stunned when he heard this, and said dissatisfiedly: "Now I'm talking about you!"

"Quiet, say he didn't say you were, did he?"

Rhaegar looked at the two brothers with a look of disappointment and said, "Including Visenya, I already have six children. Can't you live up to your expectations?"

"Hmph!" Aegon said indignantly.

Rhaenyra glanced at Rhaegar, then lowered her head and continued to coax her daughter.

Helena said silently: "Seven."

Hearing this, Rhaegar looked at her in surprise.

Helena said nothing, took her niece's pink hand, and shook it gently with a gleam in her eyes.

Rainier glanced sideways, her expression slightly complicated.

Aemond's one eye flashed with suspicion, and he changed the subject: "Well, after my trip to Tidemark, I will return to Storm's End to deal with this matter."

"You should have done this earlier."

Aegon smacked his lips, thinking Helena was talking nonsense.

Rhaegar's eyes flickered, and he took over the conversation: "Get ready, the sea snake will be back soon."

After saying that, they each left.

……

Seven days later, Blackwater Bay.

"Hiss-"

Several giant dragons fly side by side, soaring above the vast sea.

The Glutton flew in the front, its pitch-black wings covering a large area of ​​sea, its huge body gliding close to the water.

On both sides of it, there is a giant dragon that looks like it is made of gold.

Each one was over thirty meters long, barely one-fifth the length of the Glutton.

The sky is blue and the clouds are floating.

"Hiss!"

A skinny mud dragon was agile and nimble, crashing through the clouds and mist like a cunning villain.

The mud dragon is not slow, and with a pair of brown wings spread out, it can also sweep up the fishy and salty sea breeze.

call--

Above the clouds, a strong wind was blowing.

A giant dragon with light blue scales flew by quietly. Its huge body easily overshadowed the mud dragon as it soared leisurely.

Among the dragons, it ranks second in size.

The Glutton, second only to the strongest, was faintly over a hundred meters in size.

Under the escort of the dragon group, a three-masted sailing ship with a flag of three red dragons drifted in the wind.

Faintly, you can hear the roar of the young dragon.

The sailors on the ship were busy running around and those who knew the rules avoided the deck.

Since your majesty ascended the throne, Westeros has been changing quietly.

The most obvious point.

Whenever the royal family travels, they are always accompanied by a dragon.

……

Chaotou Island.

Hull town, port.

Several giant dragons flew by, heading towards Climax City.

The royal ship docked at the port, and the Kingsguard were the first to disembark.

Wuwuwu——

At this moment, a striking and heavy horn sounded.

Outskirts of the port.

A huge, majestic, ferocious warship flying the seahorse flag slowly sailed in.

"It's the Sea Serpent!"

"This is the adults' boat, come quickly!"

"..."

As soon as the warship appeared, it immediately caused a commotion in the port and patrol soldiers swarmed in.

Except this ship is the lord's ride.

Moreover, the warship is unusual.

The ship's planks were charred black and most of the flags were burned, as if it had been involved in a series of battles.

Even from a long distance away, you can smell the blood and burnt smell.

(End of this chapter)