Duke Jon's cloudy eyes changed, becoming extremely sharp.
Facing Duke Jon's intimidating gaze, the confusion on Glynn's face only deepened.
In Duke Jon's line of sight, the handsome Glynn looked harmless, his confused expression seemingly very curious.
Did I misjudge?
In just a moment, Duke Jon discarded that ridiculous thought.
No noble from Crab Claw Peninsula was not warlike; warlike equaled bloodthirsty.
According to the intelligence provided by Varys, the young man in front of him had not only recovered his family's Old Territory but had also been constantly conquering the Mountain Barbarians tribes in the eastern part of Crab Claw Peninsula.
How could these half-barbarian nobles easily let go of the Seagull Town merchants who dared to insult their surname without shedding blood?
Duke Jon's gaze softened considerably: "Regarding the Meaka family matter, everyone knows it was your doing."
Glynn had roughly guessed Duke Jon's intention; he wanted Glynn to personally admit to being the culprit.
What was the purpose? Glynn speculated that Duke Jon wanted to expel him from King's Landing.
Why expel Glynn? Glynn thought of Lannister.
What Glynn had not seen clearly before, was now clear.
… … … … … … … …
Glynn had no interest in answering Jon's interrogation; instead, he retorted: "Duke, I've always been curious, the war had already concluded 15 years ago, why did you deliberately create animosity between the Vale and the Peninsula?"
As soon as Glynn finished speaking, the atmosphere in the study suddenly became solemn.
Duke Jon's gaze became even sharper, staring at Glynn without speaking.
Glynn continued: "Fortunately, Crab Claw Peninsula has no ships and is separated from the Vale by a strait."
The small half-barbarian Baron was offending his authority, and Duke Jon was uncharacteristically angry.
While Duke Jon was angry, he also felt puzzled. The young man in front of him was definitely not a simple-minded brute, so why did he dare?
Duke Jon sighed inwardly that his mental energy was insufficient; he was truly old.
Duke Jon did not forget the purpose of specially meeting Glynn today: "Young man, are you trying to evade your crimes by asking other questions? That is cowardly."
One of Glynn's eyebrows twitched.
Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon were both Duke Jon's adopted sons; Duke Jon personally nurtured them.
Seeing Duke Jon at this moment, Glynn found the main reason why Eddard Stark and Robert Baratheon were both politically naive.
No wonder Petyr was not satisfied after cuckolding him, and even dared to covet his power.
Duke Jon's various glorious titles only forged his superficial strength.
Moreover, in face-to-face contact, the already keen Glynn could feel Duke Jon's aging even more.
… … … … … … … …
Glynn sighed softly and respectfully said: "Respected Duke, you keep mentioning 'crimes,' which confuses me. Forgive my ignorance, but could you tell me specifically? For example, the details of the incident and evidence of my crime?"
"…"
Duke Jon stared at Glynn silently for a while, a clear disdain flashing in his eyes: "Do you still remember the honor of being a noble?"
Glynn was unmoved: "Because I am a minor noble, I must admit to a crime?"
Duke Jon suddenly remembered the small, prickly animal from the North that young Eddard Stark had told him about, what was its name…
Duke Jon almost fell into reminiscence.
Duke Jon suppressed his fatigue: "I can waive the Kleber Family's debt."
Glynn's ears twitched; that was 7,500 gold dragons.
Glynn's brown eyes moved: "Then I… thank the Duke for his generosity?"
Glynn's strange expression actually made Duke Jon smile: "You should leave King's Landing."
Was this the condition for waiving the Kleber Family's debt?
Glynn spread his hands: "Duke, the land in Crab Claw Peninsula is barren. For survival, everyone is a hunter. The Vale Nobles' continuous blockade against us for over a decade has caused hunters to shed blood daily in their struggle for limited resources."
"The old and weak have no place to survive in Crab Claw Peninsula, Duke. I don't want you to misunderstand, the hatred in Crab Claw Peninsula frightens me too."
"One hundred thousand hunters are born warriors. As long as someone with ill intentions incites them, I too will be forced."
"As long as I am not in Crab Claw Peninsula, no one else has the charisma to rally the forces of Crab Claw Peninsula. This is why I came to King's Landing."
Glynn's explanation was very calm and sincere.
Aside from the number of one hundred thousand being debatable, Duke Jon received the young Baron's goodwill.
Including the threat of war hidden beneath the young Baron's goodwill.
Duke Jon couldn't help but feel puzzled. Was the young Baron truly from Crab Claw Peninsula? He seemed more like a noble from the South.
Duke Jon's next sentence confirmed to Glynn that Duke Jon was indeed worthy of being the foster father of Duke Eddard and King Robert.
"Young man, the Lannister influence in King's Landing is already too strong. You should not side with Lannister."
"…"
Was it too direct? Glynn was speechless for a moment.
Duke Jon was also applying the right remedy to the "special" Glynn.
Duke Jon's lips curled slightly: "But what you said is not without reason. Sending you back to Crab Claw Peninsula now would waste your good intentions."
Leaning back in his chair, Jon tilted forward slightly: "I can enfeoff you as Guardian of Crab Claw Peninsula, governing the entire Peninsula."
Indeed, one's position shapes the person. Having been in a high position for many years, Jon's political ability might be naive, but his political insight would not be poor.
Jon immediately grasped the key point, something that would definitely make Glynn's heart stir.
Glynn shrugged: "That certainly won't be easy."
Duke Jon wore a "benevolent" expression, and his tone returned to its initial kindness: "In the past, you were too loyal to Targaryen. Although Targaryen has disappeared, without an opportunity, it is difficult for the current Red Keep to establish mutual trust with you."
Glynn secretly despised the old man.
After coming to Duke Jon's study today, Glynn had confirmed the fundamental reason why the Baratheon Dynasty had always suppressed Crab Claw Peninsula.
The fundamental reason was that Crab Claw Peninsula had a tradition of loyalty to the Queen, and the Queen of the Baratheon Dynasty had the surname Lannister.
When Cersei became Queen, Lannister was already too powerful to be suppressed, only restricted.
Therefore, suppressing Crab Claw Peninsula was to curb the growth of Lannister's influence.
Fortunately, Duke Jon's continuous suppression for over a decade had achieved significant results, weakening Crab Claw Peninsula to everyone's satisfaction.
It was weakened to the point that even if Glynn became Queen Cersei's steward, it did not make Duke Jon uneasy.
No rush, it could be resolved slowly, Duke Jon was at ease.
Glynn's words also had an effect. Duke Jon also realized that the animosity in Crab Claw Peninsula needed to be slightly diffused, otherwise, it could easily be exploited by ill-intentioned individuals to cause war.
The Vale Nobles were the vanguard in suppressing Crab Claw Peninsula. If war broke out, the Vale would inevitably be the first to face the hatred of the Crab Claw Peninsula barbarians.
Duke Jon still remembered the combat power of the Crab Claw Peninsula people during the War of the Usurper, and what was most impressive was that the Crab Claw Peninsula people had no concept of surrender; they fought to the last man, to the last moment.
To be precise, they had no concept of surrendering to anyone outside of Crab Claw Peninsula.
Duke Jon added: "Of course, loyalty is a virtue, and it is still commendable."