"That is indeed a problem," Jiang Gan pondered upon hearing this.
"Sir, I have an idea. Tonight, I will invite them both over. During the gathering, I ask you to persuade them to submit to His Grace together. If anyone among them disagrees, I'll give them this!"
As Bloodbeard spoke, he made a chopping gesture with his hand.
"Hmm, I think that works. But will they dare to come? You just said you clashed with the Long Lances," Jiang Gan nodded in approval first, then asked.
"Perhaps I can pose as an envoy from the Iron Bank, claiming to bring a new round of funding for all three of your companies, with the intention of having you set aside past grievances and unite against the enemy. That way, they might not be suspicious," Jiang Gan asked and answered his own question.
Bloodbeard naturally had no objections. With his brain, coming up with "inviting guests to dinner" was already quite an achievement.
As for harming guests, Bloodbeard didn't care at all. Leaving aside the fact that he wasn't a noble yet, even if he were, in his simple understanding, wouldn't it be fine as long as he didn't offer the guests bread and salt?
Jiang Gan was politely escorted by Bloodbeard's aides to a neighboring tent to rest temporarily.
Bloodbeard immediately sent men to the camps of the Long Lances and the Stormcrows respectively, inviting them to a banquet that evening.
Things went surprisingly smoothly. Gylo Rhegan and Daario Naharis, without much suspicion, each brought twenty or thirty trusted men and arrived at the Company of the Cat's camp on time that evening.
As soon as he entered Bloodbeard's tent, Daario glanced around and felt something was slightly off. There were too many people in the tent.
A full twenty-something people were seated in two rows, and the way they looked at the two of them gave Daario an ominous feeling.
Daario instinctively looked back. The men he brought were currently shut outside. If Bloodbeard wanted to make a move on the two of them, it would be effortless.
Gylo Rhegan, on the other hand, looked completely unconcerned.
Behind him stood the thousand brothers of the Long Lances. Although Bloodbeard commanded three thousand men, they were all infantry. His Long Lances might only have a thousand men, but among them were a full six hundred cavalry.
His Long Lances had suffered a hidden loss that night, but if both sides drew up their formations and fought pitched battles, Gylo Rhegan was confident he could crush the Company of the Cat's three thousand men head-on!
Relying on his powerful strength, Gylo Rhegan simply didn't take the host here seriously.
Acting out of character, Bloodbeard invited the two to take their seats with a look of hearty generosity.
But both men ignored him. Gylo had a grudge against Bloodbeard, and Daario cut straight to the chase:
"Where is the envoy from the Iron Bank?"
He wouldn't stay in danger just to save face knowing something might be wrong with Bloodbeard. Right now, Daario just wanted to get the money and leave the Company of the Cat's camp with his men.
Seeing the two giving him no face, Bloodbeard dropped the pretense immediately and clapped his hands.
Jiang Gan then appeared before them.
"You are the envoy from the Iron Bank? Please hand over the gold quickly. My boys are getting impatient waiting," Gylo looked at the newcomer carelessly and said.
Jiang Gan smiled but did not answer.
"Envoy, rest assured. When the crisis comes, our Long Lances will naturally act. You know, cavalry must always strike at the critical moment to inflict maximum casualties on the enemy."
Seeing the envoy remain silent, Gylo thought the other party was dissatisfied with their inaction, so he offered reassurance.
Of course, deploying troops was out of the question; the Long Lances were his capital.
Anyway, Braavos was so rich, maybe they had already hired the Golden Company. In short, Gylo didn't believe the Dragon Army really had the ability to fight into Braavos, which sat on the Iron Bank.
Since his life was not in danger, Gylo planned to take the employer's money without doing the work.
Like the ambitious Bloodbeard, Gylo also planned to make a fortune, then recruit soldiers and horses to dominate a region after the war.
He almost loved this war to death. Thanks to the Iron Bank's money, his Long Lances had been able to absorb several small mercenary groups, expanding their force to a thousand men.
If the fighting continued, maybe his Long Lances could expand even more. Hmm, those few small mercenary groups he couldn't come to terms with these past few days, wasn't it just a matter of money? Now that the Iron Bank had sent gold, he would go find them again.
While Gylo was still fantasizing about his Long Lances becoming bigger and stronger and creating new glory, Jiang Gan opened his mouth and burst the bubble called fantasy.
"I am the envoy of the rightful King of the Seven Kingdoms, Protector of the Realm, King of Pentos, King of the Flatlands, King of the Velvet Hills, the Resurrected Conqueror, Descendant of the True Dragon, and the sole rightful heir to the Iron Throne, His Grace King Viserys III Targaryen."
As soon as Jiang Gan said this, the smile on Gylo's face instantly froze.
Gylo, realizing what was happening, tried to stand up immediately, but several key officers of the Company of the Cat, who had been watching his every move, sprang up and pressed swords against his neck.
The well-prepared Daario, however, moved nimbly to rise and avoid the encirclement, even tripping a giant man at least eight feet tall with his bare hands.
Jiang Gan smashed the cup he was holding onto the ground. Immediately, a dozen mercenaries armed with crossbows rushed into the tent, all aiming at Daario.
Facing over a dozen crossbows and a group of hostile Company of the Cat elites, even the confident Daario dared not make another rash move.
"Gentlemen, this is the envoy of His Grace King Viserys. This sinking ship of Braavos is clearly about to go under. If you don't think for yourselves, you should think for your brothers and submit to the True Dragon sooner rather than later."
Bloodbeard took a war blade handed to him by a subordinate, a blade stained dark red with blood.
His meaning was simple and clear: agree, and everyone is happy; refuse, and become a ghost under his blade.
Gylo swallowed hard, his expression fluctuating.
"Gylo, I'll ask you first. Do you submit to the True Dragon or not?" Bloodbeard strode up to Gylo, gripping the war blade with both hands, looking ready to chop off his head if the answer was wrong.
"With your three thousand men of the Company of the Cat as insiders, you don't need us." Gylo didn't want to wade into this muddy water. He could help whoever won, but the Targaryens hadn't won yet.
His Long Lances had won many battles against overwhelming odds.
"I'll ask you one last time. Do you submit to the True Dragon or not?" Bloodbeard raised the war blade slightly, and Gylo turned his head away from the pungent smell of blood on the blade.
Damn it, I'm screwed this time!
"I... I submit!"
Gylo answered.
"Good. Commander Gylo, please send someone back to your camp immediately to summon the key officers of the Long Lances. Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures, please understand. When my King conquers Braavos, he naturally won't mistreat you."
Jiang Gan smiled and stepped forward, standing beside Bloodbeard.
"Daario, do you submit to the True Dragon or not?" Bloodbeard turned his head to look at Daario.