"Petyr?" Jon's brow furrowed at the name, and he looked at Sansa and Arya, who were sleeping close together.
He patted Sansa's shoulder. Sansa shivered, 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 sept still seemed to make his voice echo.
Sansa nodded, woke up a sleepy Arya, and the two left arm in arm.
Then Jon turned to the Soldiers and said, "Go tell Petyr that I'm sleeping. Tell him to come in quietly, and I'll wake up soon."
"Understood, my Lord." The Soldier nodded and left the sept.
In Jon's view, Petyr's late-night visit was not hard to guess; he was likely preparing to go to Dragonstone to represent the House Tyrell in peace talks. As for stopping by to see him, it was probably for his own consideration.
After all, the House Tyrell possessed the rich The Reach and a vast army, while he, Petyr, was merely a minor noble from the border of the Vale.
Such wavering behavior would inevitably incur Stannis's displeasure. Like the Frey Family, he needed Jon's endorsement to safely navigate the change of dynasty.
Furthermore, Jon also thought of one thing: since Littlefinger dared to come see him, he must have believed that Jon did not know about his secret plot to harm Eddard.
But Jon did not intend to expose him now, nor did he plan to kill him. After all, Petyr was currently also the House Tyrell's representative. The top priority was to restore peace to the Seven Kingdoms and gather strength to deal with the Long Night.
When it truly became necessary to kill him, a Faceless Man could be hired with a Dragon egg.
As for now, he naturally had to find a way to make him cough up some gold. This fellow had borrowed over three million gold Dragons from the Iron Bank on behalf of the royal Family, and it was impossible for such a large sum to pass through his hands without some of it being embezzled.
Moreover, he himself ran the second largest brothel in King's Landing, so not killing him was actually more cost-effective.
Jon pushed the three siblings' cushions together, lay on them, and pretended to sleep. Soon, a somewhat slender figure entered the sept's courtyard.
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 somewhat accelerated heartbeat, then softly called out to the figure seemingly hidden in the shadows: "Jon?"
Jon — — — — — — Jon. — — — — Jon — —
Petyr called out once, but was startled by the echo in the sept. He slowly approached and saw Eddard's former clothes laid out in the coffin.
Petyr remembered those clothes; they were what Eddard was wearing when he was arrested that day. He had held a dagger to his neck and said, "Didn't I tell you not to trust me?"
On that day, at that moment, Petyr had never imagined that his entire life and fortune would depend on Eddard's bastard.
At this moment, Petyr noticed Jon standing by Eddard's remains, his back to him.
Petyr looked at the tall young man, hesitated for a moment, but decided to wake him. He had to quickly get a guarantee from Jon and then immediately head to Dragonstone as the House Tyrell's peace representative; there was no time to waste.
But just as he reached out to pat Jon's shoulder, something unexpected happened!
The young man in the shadows had a fierce look in his eyes, like an alarmed wolf. He suddenly flipped over, pressing Petyr to the ground with a speed that left only an afterimage.
The next second, a cold dagger pierced Petyr's clothes and entered his flesh. As the dagger was about to go deeper, Petyr quickly shouted, "Mercy! Jon! It's not what you think! These were Cersei's orders! All Cersei's orders!!!"
At the brink of death, in a moment of crisis, Petyr desperately tried to exonerate himself. His voice echoed in the sept, almost immediately attracting the attention of the guarding Soldiers outside.
He found that the young man suppressing him was not only agile and swift but also incredibly strong, giving him no chance to resist.
At this moment, Jon appeared as if just waking from a dream, his fierce expression replaced by one of surprise.
"Who are you?"
"Ah?"
Petyr was stunned for a moment, then woodenly stated his identity.
"Ah, it's Ser Petyr. My apologies, truly my apologies." Jon said, helping him up.
"Ser Petyr, that Soldier is a new attendant I just hired. He doesn't know my habits yet and let you in. I like to kill people in my dreams, so no one approaches me when I'm sleeping." Jon comforted the shaken Petyr, reaching out to bandage his wound.
Listening to Jon's explanation, Littlefinger couldn't believe he had been injured due to such a misunderstanding.
But now was not the time to dwell on it, and he was the one asking for a favor. Furthermore, they were right beside Eddard's remains, so Petyr naturally kept repeating that it was fine and not a problem, trying to steer the conversation to the main topic.
"Jon, Jon, actually, that day I was always trying to get Eddard to take the black. I also knew he was innocent and that it was unfair to him, but I was just a small Master of Coin. I did everything I could—" Petyr looked at Eddard's remains, weeping remorsefully. His acting had reached a near-perfect level; if Jon hadn't known the truth, he would have almost believed him.
"I understand. I heard from Lady Catelyn that you helped a lot when Lord Eddard was investigating the death of the former Hand, Lord Arryn. You are Lord Eddard's friend, and I am willing to believe you." Jon also grasped Petyr's hand and said gratefully, then pulled him in front of Eddard's remains: "Lord Petyr, you must have a lot to say to my father. Please, go ahead."
With that, Jon stepped aside.
But Petyr now couldn't say anything. He only felt the wound on his chest bleeding, soaking his undershirt.
But Jon was watching him from behind, so he dared not refuse.
"Eddard—it was my incompetence, I couldn't save you—Eddard, you have a good son. He avenged you. Soon, the true and legitimate King will inherit the iron throne. You can rest in peace, Eddard—"
Jon looked at Petyr with a playful expression, knowing that Petyr was lucky to even save his life now. It was impossible for him to be granted the Lordship of Harrenhal and then effectively control the Vale through marriage to Lysa, as originally planned.
However, Petyr still had a huge influence over Lysa, that love-struck woman who would murder her husband for her lover, and still had the ability to sway the Vale's choices.
As long as he remained sufficiently wary of him, temporary cooperation could still bring great benefits to himself.
Soon, Petyr finished his lamentation, and he spoke to Jon about the Battle of King's Landing that day.
He stated that when he learned Jon was defending the city, he was very anxious, but there was nothing he could do. He had been ordered to represent the Lannister and House Tyrell alliance, so he couldn't disobey orders.
"Jon, you are the smartest young man I have ever met. The House Tyrell chose to ally with the Lannister because their interests naturally aligned. When King Robert rebelled, the House Tyrell was excluded from the central government because they sided with the Targaryen. Taking this opportunity, they were finally able to increase their influence and come to the forefront. My role was merely that of an intermediary." Petyr downplayed his role as a 'matchmaker' in front of Jon and emphasized his helplessness.
"Ser Petyr, I naturally understand that." Jon expressed understanding, but then changed the subject, saying, "But Lord Petyr, even so, as people, we should have our own principles and bottom lines, shouldn't we? We shouldn't just go with the flow, should we?
Perhaps my words are a bit harsh, but look at you now. What you're doing, isn't it no different from a three-surname bastard?"
"Three-surname bastard?" Petyr didn't react for a moment, but with his clever mind, he quickly realized how unpleasant Jon's words were, yet he couldn't refute them.
His obedience to Cersei's orders was 'forced,' and now that the situation was unfavorable, he wanted to pledge allegiance to His Majesty Stannis. Adding his own surname, Baelish, he naturally became the 'three-surname bastard' Jon spoke of.
Although Jon now clearly stated his intention to support Stannis, when the Northern and Riverlands nobles had supported Robb that day, he was the one who explicitly opposed it, so he naturally had the right to criticize Petyr.
Facing the 'criticism' from this young man, who was almost twenty years his junior, despite his resentment, he still had to nod in agreement, indicating, "Jon, you are right."
In reality, he lowered his head, hiding his expression in the dim light, his eyes full of disdain.
But unexpectedly, Jon became more and more engrossed in his scolding, lecturing him for nearly half an hour until his mouth became somewhat dry before finally stopping.
Seeing that Jon finally seemed to have had his say, Petyr then spoke, "Jon, everything you said is right. Although you are younger than me, your Dao and honor are far superior to mine. However, I am now in mortal danger. If I cannot overcome this difficulty, I will never be able to atone for the mistakes I made before." Petyr put on a pitiful expression and began to speak.
"The House Tyrell now wants to re-pledge allegiance to His Majesty Stannis. Let's be realistic: His Majesty Stannis will certainly not refuse such a powerful Family, and the House Tyrell will not be retaliated against for their previous alliance with the Lannister. But I am different. I am just a minor noble from the Vale, and my fief is barren and small. I am worried that His Majesty Stannis will punish me, Jon. For your father's Face, please help me."
"How can a person be so shameless?" Jon scoffed in his heart, while also marveling at Petyr's thick skin, which was astonishing.
"Lord Petyr, you did help my father, so I will naturally help you too. How about this, I'll write you a letter to take with you, as if I'm speaking on your behalf." Jon patted his shoulder and said.
He wasn't worried at all that Stannis would think he was forming factions or anything like that. The groundwork laid with Davos and Melisandre earlier was enough.
At most, Stannis would think he was naive and misled by a scoundrel.
Soon, Jon wrote several pages of a letter and handed it to Petyr. Petyr carefully treasured it, his joy evident.
Jon also took the opportunity to state his request: "Lord Petyr, I've done you a favor. Can you also help me?"
"Jon, just say it, as long as it's something I can do." Petyr assured Jon with a serious expression.
"I'd like to borrow some, uh—to be precise, I'd like to raise some money from you." Jon said.
Jon used the excuse that the Soldiers needed rewards, that he was short on funds, and that he was worried about the Night's Watch's defense and supplies, hoping Petyr could provide some money.
Petyr indeed did not refuse, immediately stating that he would raise at least one hundred thousand gold Dragons for Jon.
With Jon's guarantee, Petyr left King's Landing that very night. He had not come alone; he was also taking the nobles captured during the Battle of King's Landing that day to Dragonstone to hand over to Stannis.
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