“一个不错的计划，如果你想要北境的每一只手举起来反对你。一半比没有强。安柏家对波顿家没有好感。如果妓魇加入了那个私生子，只能是因为兰尼斯特家扣留着被俘的大琼恩。”
“A fine plan if what you want is every hand in the north raised against you. Half is more than none. The Umbers have no love for the Boltons. If Whoresbane has joined the Bastard, it can only be because the Lannisters hold the Greatjon captive.”
“那是他的借口，不是他的理由，”歌德利爵士断言。“如果侄子在囚禁中死了，那些叔叔们可以宣布他的领地和权力属于自己。”
“That is his pretext, not his reason,” declared Ser Godry. “If the nephew dies in chains, these uncles can claim his lands and lordship for themselves.”
“大琼恩有儿有女。在北境，死者子女的继承权仍然排在他叔叔的前头，爵士。”
“The Greatjon has sons and daughters both. In the north the children of a man’s body still come before his uncles, ser.”
“除非他们死了。无论在哪儿，死孩子的继承权都排不上号。”
“Unless they die. Dead children come last everywhere.”
“建议说给莫斯·安柏听，歌德利爵士，你会对死亡有更新的认识。”
“Suggest that in the hearing of Mors Umber, Ser Godry, and you will learn more of death than you might wish.”
“我杀死过一个巨人，小子。为什么我要怕某个盾牌上画巨人浑身跳蚤的北方佬？”
“I have slain a giant, boy. Why should I fear some flea-ridden northman who paints one on his shield?”
“巨人会逃跑。莫斯不会。”
“The giant was running away. Mors won’t be.”
大个子骑士面红耳赤。“在国王的顶楼里你可以口吐狂言，小子。到院子里去我会让你吐鲜血。”
The big knight flushed. “You have a bold tongue in the king’s solar, boy. In the yard you sang a different song.”
“哦，别说了，歌德利，”朱斯丁·马赛爵士说，一位四肢柔软，肥胖的骑士，让你随时感觉到他在微笑，有一头蓬松凌乱的亚麻色头发。马赛是‘骑错方向’的游骑兵中的一位。“我们都知道你有一把‘巨’剑，我确信。不需要你气势汹汹地再耍一次。”
“Oh, leave off, Godry,” said Ser Justin Massey, a loose-limbed, fleshy knight with a ready smile and a mop of flaxen hair. Massey had been one of the wrong-way rangers. “We all know what a big giant sword you have, I’m sure. No need for you to wave it in our faces yet again.”
“这里唯一耍着的是你的舌头，马赛。”
“The only thing waving here is your tongue, Massey.”
“安静，”史坦尼斯厉声地说。“雪诺大人，加入我。我在此逗留原本期望，野人会蠢到再一次向长城发动攻击。当他们不再是威胁，是时候处理我其他的敌人了。”
“Be quiet,” Stannis snapped. “Lord Snow, attend me. I have lingered here in the hopes that the wildlings would be fool enough to mount another attack upon the Wall. As they will not oblige me, it is time I dealt with my other foes.”
“我明白。”琼恩的语气很谨慎。他要我做什么？“我对波顿或是他的儿子都没有好感。但守夜人不能拿起武器反抗他们。我发誓禁止——”
“I see.” Jon’s tone was wary. What does he want of me? “I have no love for Lord Bolton or his son, but the Night’s Watch cannot take up arms against them. Our vows prohibit—”
“我知道关于你的誓言的一切。省省你的正直吧，雪诺大人，没有你我也有足够的兵力。我想向恐怖堡进军。”当他看到琼恩的惊愕表情，他笑了。“你意外吗？很好。另一位雪诺会更意外。波顿的私生子往南走了，带着哈泽尔·安柏和他一起。对此莫斯·安柏和阿诺夫·卡史塔克的意见一致。这只代表一件事，袭击卡林湾，打通道路，好让他的领主父亲返回北境。那个私生子想必认为我忙于应付野人不会去找他的麻烦。也好。那个男孩向我露出了喉咙。我打算捏碎它。卢斯·波顿可能重返北方，但当他回来了，他会发现他的城堡、畜群、和收成都属于我。假如我出其不意地拿下恐怖堡——”
“I know all about your vows. Spare me your rectitude, Lord Snow, I have strength enough without you. I have a mind to march against the Dreadfort.” When he saw the shock on Jon’s face, he smiled. “Does that surprise you? Good. What surprises one Snow may yet surprise another. The Bastard of Bolton has gone south, taking Hother Umber with him. On that Mors Umber and Arnolf Karstark are agreed. That can only mean a strike at Moat Cailin, to open the way for his lord father to return to the north. The bastard must think I am too busy with the wildlings to trouble him. Well and good. The boy has shown me his throat. I mean to rip it out. Roose Bolton may regain the north, but when he does he will find that his castle, herds, and harvest all belong to me. If I take the Dreadfort unawares—”
“你不能，”琼恩脱口而出。
“You won’t,” Jon blurted.
好像他拿棍子捅了马蜂窝。一位王后的人大笑，一位吐口水，一位小声诅咒，其他所有的人七嘴八舌同时讲话。“这小子的血管里流淌的是奶水，”巨人杀手歌德利爵士说。斯威特勋爵气呼呼地说，“这个胆小鬼看到歹徒躲藏在一每片草叶子后面。”
It was as if he whacked a wasps’ nest with a stick. One of the queen’s men laughed, one spat, one muttered a curse, and the rest all tried to talk at once. “The boy has milkwater in his veins,” said Ser Godry the Giantslayer. And Lord Sweet huffed, “The craven sees an outlaw behind every blade of grass.”
史坦尼斯举手示意大家安静。“解释你的意思。”
Stannis raised a hand for silence. “Explain your meaning.”
从哪里开始？琼恩移到地图边。蜡烛被放在地图的四角以防止羊皮卷边。一注温暖的蜡泪汇聚淌过海豹湾，慢如冰川。“要到达恐怖堡，陛下必须沿着国王大道南下渡过末江，由南转向东并穿越独山。”他指出。“这些都是安柏的领地，在那里他们熟悉每一棵树和每一块石头。国王大道沿着他们的西部地区延伸了一百里格。莫斯会把你的军队拦截成一断一断的，除非你满足他的条件并赢得他的支持。”
Where to begin? Jon moved to the map. Candles had been placed at its corners to keep the hide from rolling up. A finger of warm wax was puddling out across the Bay of Seals, slow as a glacier. “To reach the Dreadfort, Your Grace must travel down the kingsroad past the Last River, turn south by east and cross the Lonely Hills.” He pointed. “Those are Umber lands, where they know every tree and every rock. The kingsroad runs along their western marches for a hundred leagues. Mors will cut your host to pieces unless you meet his terms and win him to your cause.”
“那好吧，譬如说我这么做。”
“Very well. Let us say I do that.”
“你会顺利抵达恐怖堡，”琼恩说，“但是，除非你的军队能跑得过一只乌鸦或一组烽火，城堡会获悉你的驾临。拉姆齐·波顿将轻而易举地切断你的退路，使你远离长城，没有食物和藏身之处，被你的敌人所包围。”
“That will bring you to the Dreadfort,” said Jon, “but unless your host can outmarch a raven or a line of beacon fires, the castle will know of your approach. It will be an easy thing for Ramsay Bolton to cut off your retreat and leave you far from the Wall, without food or refuge, surrounded by your foes.”
“只有当他放弃围攻卡林湾 。”
“Only if he abandons his siege of Moat Cailin.”
“在你到达的恐怖堡之前，卡林湾就会沦陷。一旦卢斯伯爵和拉姆齐会师，他们的兵力将是你的五倍。”
“Moat Cailin will fall before you ever reach the Dreadfort. Once Lord Roose has joined his strength to Ramsay’s, they will have you outnumbered five to one.”
“我哥哥在更糟的逆境下赢得了战斗。”
“My brother won battles at worse odds.”
“你认为卡林湾会迅速沦陷，雪诺，”朱斯丁反对，“但铁种是勇敢的战士，我听人说过，卡林湾从未被攻陷过。”
“You assume Moat Cailin will fall quickly, Snow,” objected Justin Massey, “but the ironmen are doughty fighters, and I’ve heard it said that the Moat has never been taken.”
“从南面。驻守卡林湾的一小队人马会击溃任何沿着堤道向北进攻的军队，但这座废墟的北面和东面是薄弱环节。”琼恩回头望着史坦尼斯。“陛下，这是一个大胆的举措，但风险——”守夜人不卷入纷争。我对拜拉席恩和波顿应该一视同仁。“如果卢斯·波顿和他的主要兵力在他的城墙下堵住了你，你的一切都将结束。”
“From the south. A small garrison in Moat Cailin can play havoc with any army coming up the causeway, but the ruins are vulnerable from the north and east.” Jon turned back to Stannis. “Sire, this is a bold stroke, but the risk—” The Night’s Watch takes no part. Baratheon or Bolton should be the same to me. “If Roose Bolton should catch you beneath his walls with his main strength, it will be the end for all of you.”
“打仗哪有不冒风险的，”里查德·霍普爵士断言，这名精瘦的骑士有着一张严重损伤的脸，他的夹层紧身上衣上描绘着骨头与灰烬上的三只骷髅飞蛾。“每一场战斗都是一次赌博，雪诺。什么也不做的人照样冒风险。”
“Risk is part of war,” declared Ser Richard Horpe, a lean knight with a ravaged face whose quilted doublet showed three death’s-head moths on a field of ash and bone. “Every battle is a gamble, Snow. The man who does nothing also takes a risk.”
“多重的风险，里查德爵士。这个……它太多，太仓促，太遥远。我了解恐怖堡。它是一座坚固的城堡，全部由石头建造，有厚实的墙壁和巨大的塔楼。冬天来了你会发现它食物储备充足。几百年前，波顿家族起兵反抗北境之王，哈伦·史塔克围攻恐怖堡。他花了两年时间把他们饿出来。对于有任何希望拿下这座城堡，陛下需要攻城车，攻城塔，攻城撞槌……”
“There are risks and risks, Ser Richard. This one … it is too much, too soon, too far away. I know the Dreadfort. It is a strong castle, all of stone, with thick walls and massive towers. With winter coming you will find it well provisioned. Centuries ago, House Bolton rose up against the King in the North, and Harlon Stark laid siege to the Dreadfort. It took him two years to starve them out. To have any hope of taking the castle, Your Grace would need siege engines, towers, battering rams …”
“如果需要，攻城塔可以架起来，”史坦尼斯说。“如果需要撞锤，可以砍倒树木做撞锤。阿诺夫·卡史塔克的信上说，在恐怖堡里剩下不到五十个男人，其中一半是仆人。强大的城堡弱小的守卫。”
“Siege towers can be raised if need be,” Stannis said. “Trees can be felled for rams if rams are required. Arnolf Karstark writes that fewer than fifty men remain at the Dreadfort, half of them servants. A strong castle weakly held is weak.”
“城堡里面的五十个人顶在外面的五百个。”
“Fifty men inside a castle are worth five hundred outside.”
“这取决于人，”里查德·霍普说。“守军会是些老人和没长大的男孩，那个私生子也不认为这样的兵适合作战。我们自己的人经受过黑水河战役血的考验，而且他们是由骑士来率领。”
“That depends upon the men,” said Richard Horpe. “These will be greybeards and green boys, the men this bastard did not deem fit for battle. Our own men were blooded and tested on the Blackwater, and they are led by knights.”
“你看到过我们是怎样冲垮野人的。”朱斯丁拢回一绺亚麻色的头发。“卡史塔克家发誓在恐怖堡加入我们，我们还会有我们的野人。三百名成年男人。当他们经过大门时，哈伍德勋爵清点了人数。他们的女人同样能打仗。”
“You saw how we went through the wildlings.” Ser Justin pushed back a lock of flaxen hair. “The Karstarks have sworn to join us at the Dreadfort, and we will have our wildlings as well. Three hundred men of fighting age. Lord Harwood made a count as they were passing through the gate. Their women fight as well.”
史坦尼斯瞪了他一眼。“不是为我，爵士。我还不想早死。女人会留在这里，和老人、伤员、孩子们一起。他们将作为人质以确保他们的丈夫和父亲忠诚。男野人将组成我的先锋。马格拿将指挥他们，由他们自己的酋长当长官。不过首先，我们必须武装他们。”
Stannis gave him a sour look. “Not for me, ser. I want no widows wailing in my wake. The women will remain here, with the old, the wounded, and the children. They will serve as hostages for the loyalty of their husbands and fathers. The wildling men will form my van. The Magnar will command them, with their own chiefs as serjeants. First, though, we must needs arm them.”
他想抢劫我们的军械库，琼恩意识到。食物和衣服，土地和城堡，现在是武器。他让我每天越陷越深。言语可能不是利剑，但剑就是剑。“我能找到三百支长矛，”他不情愿地说。“还有头盔，如果你要老旧生锈有凹痕的。”
He means to plunder our armory, Jon realized. Food and clothing, land and castles, now weapons. He draws me in deeper every day. Words might not be swords, but swords were swords. “I could find three hundred spears,” he said, reluctantly. “Helms as well, if you’ll take them old and dinted and red with rust.”
“铠甲？”玛格拿问。“板甲？锁子甲？”
“Armor?” asked the Magnar. “Plate? Mail?”
“当唐纳·诺伊去世，我们失去了我们的武器师傅。”其余的琼恩留下没说。给野人盔甲，他们对王国的威胁会翻倍。
“When Donal Noye died we lost our armorer.” The rest Jon left unspoken. Give the wildlings mail and they’ll be twice as great a danger to the realm.
“熟皮甲就够了，”歌德利爵士说。“一旦我们尝试了战斗，幸存者可以掠夺死者的。”
“Boiled leather will suffice,” said Ser Godry. “Once we’ve tasted battle, the survivors can loot the dead.”
能活那么久的少数人。如果史坦尼斯让自由民当先锋，大多数会很快的死掉。“用曼斯·雷德的头骨喝酒也许令莫斯·安柏满意，但看着野人穿过他的领地则不会。从黎明纪元起自由民就袭击安柏家，穿越海豹湾掠夺黄金、绵羊、和女人。其中之一被抢走的是鸦食的女儿。陛下，把野人留在这里。带着他们只会让我父亲大人的封臣反对你。”
The few who live that long. If Stannis placed the free folk in the van, most would perish quickly. “Drinking from Mance Rayder’s skull may give Mors Umber pleasure, but seeing wildlings cross his lands will not. The free folk have been raiding the Umbers since the Dawn of Days, crossing the Bay of Seals for gold and sheep and women. One of those carried off was Crowfood’s daughter. Your Grace, leave the wildlings here. Taking them will only serve to turn my lord father’s bannermen against you.”
“在任何情况下，你父亲的封臣似乎都不喜欢我的事业。我必然认为他们把我看成……你们叫我什么来着，雪诺大人？又一位难逃一死的觊觎高位者？”史坦尼斯盯着地图。一时间，唯一的声音是国王在磨牙齿。“走开。你们所有的人。雪诺大人，你留下。”
“Your father’s bannermen seem to have no liking for my cause in any case. I must assume they see me as … what was it that you called me, Lord Snow? Another doomed pretender?” Stannis stared at the map. For a long moment the only sound was the king grinding his teeth. “Leave me. All of you. Lord Snow, remain.”
粗暴的散会，朱斯丁·马赛还没坐稳，但是他别无选择只好微笑并退出。霍普打量了琼恩一眼后，跟着他出去。克莱顿·萨格斯喝干了酒杯，对哈伍德嘀咕些什么，使那位更年轻的人大笑。‘男孩’是会议的一部分。萨格斯是一位新晋雇佣骑士，粗鲁又强壮。最后一个离开的是叮当衫。在门口，他嘲弄地给琼恩鞠了一躬，咧嘴而笑，露出一口棕色破碎的牙齿。
The brusque dismissal did not sit well with Justin Massey, but he had no choice but to smile and withdraw. Horpe followed him out, after giving Jon a measured look. Clayton Suggs drained his cup dry and muttered something to Harwood Fell that made the younger man laugh. Boy was part of it. Suggs was an upjumped hedge knight, as crude as he was strong. The last man to take his leave was Rattleshirt. At the door, he gave Jon a mocking bow, grinning through a mouthful of brown and broken teeth.
你们所有的人似乎并不包括梅丽珊卓女士。国王的红色影子。史坦尼斯叫戴冯拿更多的柠檬水。当杯子满上后国王喝下，说，“霍普和马赛都渴望你父亲的座位。马赛还希望娶野人公主。他曾是我的哥哥劳勃的侍从，养成了他对女性肉体的欲（和谐）望。如果我命令，霍普会娶瓦迩为妻，但战斗才是他渴望的。作为一名侍从他梦想能披上白袍，但瑟曦·兰尼斯特讲了他的坏话，劳勃忽视了他。也许不无理由。里查德爵士太喜欢杀戮。你要哪一位当临冬城领主，雪诺？笑面虎还是杀人魔？”
All of you did not seem to include Lady Melisandre. The king’s red shadow. Stannis called to Devan for more lemon water. When his cup was filled the king drank, and said, “Horpe and Massey aspire to your father’s seat. Massey wants the wildling princess too. He once served my brother Robert as squire and acquired his appetite for female flesh. Horpe will take Val to wife if I command it, but it is battle he lusts for. As a squire he dreamed of a white cloak, but Cersei Lannister spoke against him and Robert passed him over. Perhaps rightly. Ser Richard is too fond of killing. Which would you have as Lord of Winterfell, Snow? The smiler or the slayer?”
琼恩说，“临冬城属于我妹妹珊莎。”
Jon said, “Winterfell belongs to my sister Sansa.”
“我已经听够了兰尼斯特夫人和她的要求权。”国王把杯子放在一边。“你可以把北境带给我。你父亲的封臣会支持艾德·史塔克的儿子。甚至胖的骑不上马的领主。白港会成为我现成的补给来源和困难时我能撤退的安全堡垒。纠正你愚蠢的行为，还不太晚，雪诺。跪下一只膝盖把杂种剑放在我的脚边宣誓，作为琼恩·史塔克站起来，临冬城主和北境守护。”
“I have heard all I need to hear of Lady Lannister and her claim.” The king set the cup aside. “You could bring the north to me. Your father’s bannermen would rally to the son of Eddard Stark. Even Lord Too-Fat-to-Sit-a-Horse. White Harbor would give me a ready source of supply and a secure base to which I could retreat at need. It is not too late to amend your folly, Snow. Take a knee and swear that bastard sword to me, and rise as Jon Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North.”
他会让我说多少次？“我的剑向守夜人宣过誓。”
How many times will he make me say it? “My sword is sworn to the Night’s Watch.”
史坦尼斯一脸嫌恶。“你的父亲也是一名固执的人。他称之为荣誉。好啊，荣誉有它的代价，当艾德公爵尝到了他的苦果。如果这能给你任何安慰，霍普和马赛注定要失望。我更倾向于将临冬城授予阿诺夫·卡史塔克。一位不错的北方人。”
Stannis looked disgusted. “Your father was a stubborn man as well. Honor, he called it. Well, honor has its costs, as Lord Eddard learned to his sorrow. If it gives you any solace, Horpe and Massey are doomed to disappointment. I am more inclined to bestow Winterfell upon Arnolf Karstark. A good northman.”
“一位北方人。”卡史塔克比波顿或葛雷乔伊更好，琼恩告诉自己，这想法只给了他一点安慰。“卡史塔克家把我哥哥丢给了他的敌人们。”
“A northman.” Better a Karstark than a Bolton or a Greyjoy, Jon told himself, but the thought gave him little solace. “The Karstarks abandoned my brother amongst his enemies.”
“在你哥哥砍掉瑞卡德勋爵的头以后。阿诺夫远在一千里格之外。他体内流着史塔克的血。临冬城的血。”
“After your brother took off Lord Rickard’s head. Arnolf was a thousand leagues away. He has Stark blood in him. The blood of Winterfell.”
“不比北境半数其他家族的更多。”
“No more than half the other Houses of the north.”
“那些其他家族没有宣布支持我。”
“Those other Houses have not declared for me.”
“阿诺夫·卡史塔克是一位弯腰驼背的老人，即使在他年轻时，他也从未像瑞卡德勋爵那样是一名战士。严酷的战役完全可能杀了他。”
“Arnolf Karstark is an old man with a crooked back, and even in his youth he was never the fighter Lord Rickard was. The rigors of the campaign may well kill him.”
“他有继承人，”史坦尼斯打断他的话。“两个儿子，六个孙子，一些女儿。如果劳勃曾留下几名嫡子，他会虽死犹生。”
“He has heirs,” Stannis snapped. “Two sons, six grandsons, some daughters. If Robert had fathered trueborn sons, many who are dead might still be living.”
“陛下有鸦食莫斯的支持会做得更好”
“Your Grace would do better with Mors Crowfood.”
“鸦食将证明这个。”
“The Dreadfort will be the proof of that.”
“那么你打算前去进攻？”
“Then you mean to go ahead with this attack?”
“不顾伟大的雪诺大人的劝告？是的。霍普和马赛也许野心勃勃，但他们没有错。我不敢坐视卢斯·波顿的星光闪耀而我的变得暗淡。我必须出击，向北境展示，我仍然是一位不惧任何风险的男人。”
“Despite the counsel of the great Lord Snow? Aye. Horpe and Massey may be ambitious, but they are not wrong. I dare not sit idle whilst Roose Bolton’s star waxes and mine wanes. I must strike and show the north that I am still a man to fear.”
“梅丽珊卓女士从她的火中看到的那些旗帜里没有曼德勒的男人鱼旗，”琼恩说。“如果你有白港和威曼伯爵的骑士……”
“The merman of Manderly was not amongst those banners Lady Melisandre saw in her fires,” Jon said. “If you had White Harbor and Lord Wyman’s knights …”
“‘如果’是傻瓜用的词。我们没有收到戴佛斯的信。也许他从未到达白港。阿诺夫·卡史塔克的信上说，风暴已席卷了狭海。即使这是真的。我没时间悲伤，也不侍候太胖的伯爵。我必须考虑白港败给我。没有临冬城的儿子站在我旁边，我只能希望靠战斗赢得北境。这需要从我哥哥的书本里取经。并不是说劳勃曾经读过一本书。我必须给予敌人致命的一击，在他们知道我对付他们之前。”
“If is a word for fools. We have had no word from Davos. It may be he never reached White Harbor. Arnolf Karstark writes that the storms have been fierce upon the narrow sea. Be that as it may. I have no time to grieve, nor wait upon the whims of Lord Too-Fat. I must consider White Harbor lost to me. Without a son of Winterfell to stand beside me, I can only hope to win the north by battle. That requires stealing a leaf from my brother’s book. Not that Robert ever read one. I must deal my foes a mortal blow before they know that I am on them.”
琼恩意识到他的话白说了。史坦尼斯将拿下恐怖堡或死于进攻。守夜人不卷入纷争，一个声音说，但另一个回答，史坦尼斯为王国而战，那些铁人为了奴隶和掠夺。“陛下，我知道你在哪里可以找到更多的士兵。给我野人，我会很乐意告诉你地点和方法。”
Jon realized that his words were wasted. Stannis would take the Dreadfort or die in the attempt. The Night’s Watch takes no part, a voice said, but another replied, Stannis fights for the realm, the ironmen for thralls and plunder. “Your Grace, I know where you might find more men. Give me the wildlings, and I will gladly tell you where and how.”
“我给你叮当衫。满意了吧。”
“I gave you Rattleshirt. Be content with him.”
“我要他们全部。”
“I want them all.”
“你自己的一些宣誓兄弟让我相信你是半个野人。是真的吗？”
“Some of your own Sworn Brothers would have me believe that you are half a wildling yourself. Is it true?”
“对你来说他们只是些箭靶子。在长城上我能更好地利用他们。像我希望的那样把他们给我，我会告诉你在哪里可以找到你的士兵……还有胜利。”
“To you they are only arrow fodder. I can make better use of them upon the Wall. Give them to me to do with as I will, and I’ll show you where to find your victory … and men as well.”
史坦尼斯按摩后颈。“你像个卖鳕鱼的老太婆似的讨价还价，雪诺大人。奈德·史塔克干了某位渔妇生下的你？有多少人？”
Stannis rubbed the back of his neck. “You haggle like a crone with a codfish, Lord Snow. Did Ned Stark father you on some fishwife? How many men?”
“二千。也许三千。”
“Two thousand. Perhaps three.”
“三千？都是些什么样的人？”
“Three thousand? What manner of men are these?”
“骄傲、贫穷、刺头的。重视荣誉，作战勇猛。”
“Proud. Poor. Prickly where their honor is concerned but fierce fighters.”
“这最好不是某个杂种的把戏。三百名士兵换三千？对，我会的。我不是十足的傻瓜。如果我离开留下那位女孩和你在一起，你能保证，密切监视我们的公主吗？”
“This had best not be some bastard’s trick. Will I trade three hundred fighters for three thousand? Aye, I will. I am not an utter fool. If I leave the girl with you as well, do I have your word that you will keep our princess closely?”
她不是公主。“如您所愿，陛下。”
She is not a princess. “As you wish, Your Grace.”
“我需要叫你在一棵树前宣誓吗？”
“Do I need to make you swear an oath before a tree?”
“不需要。”这是个玩笑？对于史坦尼斯，这很难说。
“No.” Was that a jape? With Stannis, it was hard to tell.
“那么，成交。现在，那些人在哪儿？”
“Done, then. Now, where are these men?”
“你会在这里找到他们。”琼恩在地图上张开他烧伤的手，国王大道以西，新赠地以南。
“You’ll find them here.” Jon spread his burned hand across the map, west of the kingsroad and south of the Gift.
“那些山区？”史坦尼斯表示怀疑。“我没看到那里标有城堡。没有道路，没有城镇，没有村庄。”
“Those mountains?” Stannis grew suspicious. “I see no castles marked there. No roads, no towns, no villages.”
“我父亲常说，地图不是土地。人们千百年来一直生活在高山谷地和山地草原，由他们的氏族首领统治。你会称他们为小领主，不过他们自己之间不会使用这样的称号。氏族勇士手持巨大的双手巨剑战斗，同时普通人掷石头猛击另一名挥舞着山灰树木棍的人。必须得说，一群好争吵的人民。当他们不相互战斗，他们照料他们的牲畜，在寒冰湾打渔，培育你会骑上的最耐劳的坐骑。”
“The map is not the land, my father often said. Men have lived in the high valleys and mountain meadows for thousands of years, ruled by their clan chiefs. Petty lords, you would call them, though they do not use such titles amongst themselves. Clan champions fight with huge two-handed greatswords, while the common men sling stones and batter one another with staffs of mountain ash. A quarrelsome folk, it must be said. When they are not fighting one another, they tend their herds, fish the Bay of Ice, and breed the hardiest mounts you’ll ever ride.”
“你相信他们会为我而战？”
“And they will fight for me, you believe?”
“如果你请求他们。”
“If you ask them.”
“为什么我要乞求本应服从我的人？”
“Why should I beg for what is owed me?”
“我说的是请求，不是乞求。”琼恩收回了手。“派遣使者不好。陛下需要亲自前往。吃他们的面包和盐，喝他们的啤酒，听他们的风笛，称赞他们的女儿漂亮、儿子勇敢，你将得到他们的支持。自从托伦·史塔克弯曲了他的膝盖，部族还没有见到过一位国王。您的驾临是他们的荣誉。如果‘命令’他们为你战斗，他们会面面相觑，说，“这个人是谁？他不是我的国王。”
“Ask, I said, not beg.” Jon pulled back his hand. “It is no good sending messages. Your Grace will need to go to them yourself. Eat their bread and salt, drink their ale, listen to their pipers, praise the beauty of their daughters and the courage of their sons, and you’ll have their swords. The clans have not seen a king since Torrhen Stark bent his knee. Your coming does them honor. Command them to fight for you, and they will look at one another and say, ‘Who is this man? He is no king of mine.’ ”
“你说有多少氏族？”
“How many clans are you speaking of?”
“四十，有大有小。燧石、瓦奥、诺芮、利德尔……争取到老燧石和大水桶，其余的会跟随。”
“Two score, small and large. Flint, Wull, Norrey, Liddle … win Old Flint and Big Bucket, the rest will follow.”
“大水桶？”
“Big Bucket?”
“瓦奥。他有全山区最大的肚皮，和最多的人。瓦奥家在寒冰湾打渔并吓唬他们的孩子，如果他们不听话铁人会来抓走他们。无论如何，要到达他们那里陛下必须经过诺芮的领地。他们靠近新赠地居住，一直是守夜人的好朋友。我可以给你几名向导。”
“The Wull. He has the biggest belly in the mountains, and the most men. The Wulls fish the Bay of Ice and warn their little ones that ironmen will carry them off if they don’t behave. To reach them Your Grace must pass through the Norrey’s lands, however. They live the nearest to the Gift and have always been good friends to the Watch. I could give you guides.”
“可以？”史坦尼斯强调。“还是会？”
“Could?” Stannis missed little. “Or will?”
“会。你会需要他们。还有一些稳健的矮种马。那里的盘山路和羊肠小道差不多。”
“Will. You’ll need them. And some sure-footed garrons too. The paths up there are little more than goat tracks.”
“羊肠小道？”国王眯起了眼睛。“我说兵贵神速，你让我在羊肠小道上浪费时间？”
“Goat tracks?” The king’s eyes narrowed. “I speak of moving swiftly, and you waste my time with goat tracks?”
“当那位年轻的龙征服多恩时，在骨路他利用羊肠小道绕过了多恩的瞭望塔。”
“When the Young Dragon conquered Dorne, he used a goat track to bypass the Dornish watchtowers on the Boneway.”
“我也知道那则故事，但戴伦在他自吹自擂的书里写得太多了。战船赢得了那场战争，不是羊肠小道。橡木拳头打破了普兰奇镇并席卷一半的绿血河，同时多恩的主力军队被王子的进军牵制住。”史坦尼斯用手指敲击着地图。“这些山地领主不会拦我的路？”
“I know that tale as well, but Daeron made too much of it in that vainglorious book of his. Ships won that war, not goat tracks. Oakenfist broke the Planky Town and swept halfway up the Greenblood whilst the main Dornish strength was engaged in the Prince’s Pass.” Stannis drummed his fingers on the map. “These mountain lords will not hinder my passage?”
“只会大摆宴席。每个人争先恐后地热情招待。我父亲说他从未像巡视氏族时吃得那么好。”
“Only with feasts. Each will try to outdo the others with his hospitality. My lord father said he never ate half so well as when visiting the clans.”
“为了三千名士兵，我想我可以忍受一些笛子和麦片粥，”国王说，尽管他的语气嫉妒味十足。
“For three thousand men, I suppose I can endure some pipes and porridge,” the king said, though his tone begrudged even that.
琼恩转向梅丽珊卓。“女士，坦率的提醒。旧神在那些山区有影响力。氏族人不会容忍冒犯他们的的心树。”
Jon turned to Melisandre. “My lady, fair warning. The old gods are strong in those mountains. The clansmen will not suffer insults to their heart trees.”
这似乎逗她发笑。“不要害怕，琼恩·雪诺，我不会打扰你的山地蛮人和他们的黑暗之神。我呆在这里与你和你的誓言兄弟们在一起。”
That seemed to amuse her. “Have no fear, Jon Snow, I will not trouble your mountain savages and their dark gods. My place is here with you and your brave brothers.”
这是琼恩·雪诺最不希望的事，但在他反对之前，国王说，“如果不对抗恐怖堡，你认为我领导这些忠实拥护者该去哪儿 ？”
That was the last thing Jon Snow would have wanted, but before he could object, the king said, “Where would you have me lead these stalwarts if not against the Dreadfort?”
琼恩扫了一眼地图。“深林堡。”他用一只手指轻敲。“如果攻打铁人对波顿来说很重要，那么你必须这么做。深林堡位处一片茂密的森林之中，是一座山寨，容易出其不意地悄悄爬上去。一座木制的城堡，靠土堤和一道木栅栏防御。诚然，翻越群山进军会比较缓慢，但是在那里，你的军队可以悄无声息地移动，几乎突然出现在深林堡的大门前。”
Jon glanced down at the map. “Deepwood Motte.” He tapped it with a finger. “If Bolton means to fight the ironmen, so must you. Deepwood is a motte-and-bailey castle in the midst of thick forest, easy to creep up on unawares. A wooden castle, defended by an earthen dike and a palisade of logs. The going will be slower through the mountains, admittedly, but up there your host can move unseen, to emerge almost at the gates of Deepwood.”
史坦尼斯揉搓他的下巴。 “当巴隆·葛雷乔伊第一次反叛的时候，我在海上打败了铁人，在那里他们是最凶猛的。在陆地上，打他个措手不及……好。打败野人和他们的塞外之王，我已经赢得了一场胜利。如果我能同样打败铁人，北境会知道又有了一位国王。”
Stannis rubbed his jaw. “When Balon Greyjoy rose the first time, I beat the ironmen at sea, where they are fiercest. On land, taken unawares … aye. I have won a victory over the wildlings and their King-Beyond-the-Wall. If I can smash the ironmen as well, the north will know it has a king again.”
而且我将有一千名野人，琼恩想，而且没办法喂饱哪怕是一半的人。
And I will have a thousand wildlings, thought Jon, and no way to feed even half that number.