Robb's warhorse was one of the best horses picked from a thousand, so gradually, by the time daybreak came, less than half of the fifty guards who had originally followed him were left.
"My lord, look!"
A guard pointed at the abandoned warhorse by Jon, which was foaming at the mouth, and looked at Robb.
Robb's face turned a little ugly, not because he felt sorry for the warhorse, but because in his opinion, the more Jon acted like this, the more it proved that he was a deserter.
He led the others in pursuit at a speed that almost spared no effort, and finally saw Jon's trail when there were less than ten people left.
Jon had already worn out three of his horses, and the only remaining horse around him had begun to foam at the mouth. Robb's situation was not good either, as their horses' physical strength was approaching its limit.
Robb waved his hand, signaling the others to wait where they were, and he rode his horse to a free place five steps away from Jon.
He said to Jon with a look of pity on his face: "Jon, come back with me!"
Jon took out the letter from his arms and showed it to Robb, saying loudly, "This is the certificate that Lord Commander Jeor Mormont of the Night's Watch gave me to leave the Wall! You can take a look!"
Robb took the letter, which was a little damaged because it had been kept on him for a long time, and asked doubtfully, "Is this true?"
Jon replied somewhat helplessly, "I think the news from Last Hearth said that I was a deserter, right?"
Rob nodded.
Jon continued, "Have you asked the Wall for confirmation?"
Robb retorted, "But that was my father's order!"
Jon was somewhat annoyed at being misunderstood all the time. He spread his hands and asked, "Did father say I was a deserter?"
Jon knew that it was meaningless to continue to tangle with him like this, so he said to Robb: "I swear to the gods that I am not a deserter. When you go back, you can send someone to the Black Castle to ask. If I am a deserter, I am willing to go to hell!"
Seeing Jon's serious look, Robb couldn't help but be shaken. After all, in this world, the binding force of oaths is extremely great. In order to prove his innocence, Jon swore such a poisonous oath that the letter became a little heavier.
Robb put his hand on the hilt of his sword and asked, "Can you tell me why you left the Wall?"
"To save my father."
Jon said, knowing that what he said was not convincing at all, so without waiting for Robb to continue to ask questions, he spoke again: "Robb, when you go back, hurry up and write a letter to your father. First, it is a string of secret words, Aegon, ice and fire, and a bloody bed."
Aegon was named after his biological mother, Lyanna Stark, which is Jon's real name, Aegon Targaryen. Lyanna whispered this name in Ned's ear.
As for ice and fire, they represent the combination of his biological father Rhaegar Targaryen and his mother Lyanna.
The bloody bed represents Lyanna's death due to dystocia. This was the scene when Ned saw Lyanna, and the delivery bed was soaked with blood.
The images represented by these three secret words were all seen by Ned himself, so he would immediately understand what they meant with just one look.
Jon hopes to use the secret code consisting of these three words to tell Ned that he already knows his identity, and his purpose is to make his subsequent words more credible.
Then he continued, "Second, Petyr cannot be trusted!"
This is the point that Jon wants to convey. As long as Ned doesn't let Littlefinger lead him by the nose and can delay a little more time, his chances of rescuing him will be greater.
Finally, Jon thought about it and added the last sentence: "Cooperate with the queen, at least don't conflict!"
The last point is the best option for Ned. As long as Ned is willing to recognize Joffrey, who is nominally the crown prince but is actually the illegitimate son of incest between Queen Cersei and his brother Jaime, Stark will undoubtedly gain more political benefits.
But Jon also knew that it was a pipe dream for Ned to cooperate with a slut who had no honor at all. He was a man who could not tolerate any grain of sand in his eyes, let alone two large pieces of granite.
Jon's words were very brief, but Robb was confused. He asked, "Jon, what does this secret language mean? Also, Petyr grew up with my mother, why can't he be trusted?"
In order to make Robb convey what he said and at the same time make him trust himself more, Jon had to explain to him.
So Jon asked Robb: "If a dagger can kill people, can a hammer kill people?"
Robb nodded somewhat dazedly, "Of course."
Jon continued, "Well, if a hammer can kill someone, then can a sharpened piece of iron wire kill someone?"
Robb was no fool, and he quickly realized what Jon wanted to say, so he frowned and asked, "Are you saying that the assassination of Bran was actually a frame-up?"
Seeing him say this, Jon finally breathed a sigh of relief. How can one make a person believe the conclusion he wants to tell him? That is to give him some information and let him infer the conclusion he wants to convey.
This way the other party will believe it without a doubt, because no one thinks that they will lie to them. This is also Little Finger's favorite trick.
He first showed Ned and Catelyn some suspicions pointing to the Lannisters, and then through leading questions, made Ned himself suspect the Lannisters, which eventually led to a bloody fight between the two families.
Seeing that Robb had begun to trust him, Jon said seriously: "Robb, I suspect that my father has fallen into a huge conspiracy, and the initiator of the conspiracy is Littlefinger Petyr!"
Robb is now obviously shocked by Jon's inference, and Jon decides to strike while the iron is hot.
"You know, Robb, I fought with Alliser to get that certificate. Alliser, you know he is the drill sergeant of the Night's Watch! I also broke through the pursuit of the Great Jon, as well as your encirclement. Robb, since I have risked my life, please believe me once!"
The future Young Wolf Lord was moved by Jon's determination and generosity. After all, no matter what, Robb was only a fifteen-year-old boy. In his own world, he might be in junior high school and his second-year syndrome had not yet been fully cured. Jon's words were very damaging to him!
In the end, Robb promised Jon that he would immediately deliver the news to his father after returning, and let Jon ride his horse, but Jon refused.
"No, I hope you can spread the news after you go back, saying that I fell into the river and my life or death is unknown. The fewer people who know my whereabouts, the better!"
Robb nodded, understanding his intention. Looking at Jon's back as he left, Robb felt a surge of respect and guilt in his heart.
What deserves respect, of course, is Jon's decisiveness and determination. When he found that Ned might be in crisis, he went south regardless of everything.
What made him feel guilty was that he made a rash conclusion about Jon without having accurate information, which held him back. If Jon's conclusion was true, wouldn't he have indirectly harmed his father?
As for Jon asking him to spread the news that he fell into the river, he might bear the infamy of "kinslayer" for a short period of time in the future, but what did it matter?