It's a toss-up, really, who's more surprised. The Court of the Camelia or Kai Low.
They both had the same mouth-open, wide-eyed expressions. They were both silent in shock.
They both thought him insane.
Chenzhou braced himself, and they didn't disappoint. Nearly every one of them burst into outraged arguments, including Kai Low.
Chenzhou hadn't been sure if he was taking the position of Ambassador seriously, given his complete lack of interest in showing his face since his arrival. He'd stayed locked in his rooms or wandered off alone, only speaking to a few guards and maids and making a game of ducking any surveillance Henri tried to put on him. He hadn't visited the library or requested a meeting or any kind of information on anything.
He hadn't even been caught trying to sneak into the Vault or any locked room.
Chenzhou wasn't sure why he'd been chosen or why he'd accepted the damn position if he wasn't going to do anything.
"Lord Ye, this is not wise." Lord Crusoe, a short, compact man who was mostly made of muscle, pounded his fist on the table. "He is an outsider, a Bandri. What does he know our ways?"
"Do they even conduct investigations?" Lady Valient sputtered. "Do they care for such things?"
"Giving an outsider such access is far too dangerous," Lord Yin shook his head. He looked sad to be so doubtful.
Lord Wen glared across the room at Kai Low, who'd leapt to his feet, knocking his chair over in the process. "It is preposterous! It is an insult to our people to elect a tribesman for such an important task. He will never be able to carry out such a duty correctly."
Somehow Kai Low heard him over the rucuss and spun from yelling refusals at Chenzhou to snarl at Lord Wen. "And what does some pompous, soft-handed lord know of duty? You sit on your fatass all day and tell other people to be dutiful instead of doing it yourself!"
"How dare you!" Lord Wen roared, face red as he leapt to his feet.
Lady Yang leapt to her own feet and clamped a hand on his shoulder. "Remember yourself." She snapped. "He is a child, and you are an adult."
"I'm not a child!" Kai Low shrieked, not doing much to prove his point.
"This is ridiculous!" Lady Valient yelled. "Everyone, be quiet! This is no way to discuss Lord Ye's choice." Unfortunately, she was a small woman, petite in every way, including her voice, which was easily drowned out by the rest.
Chenzhou let them all yell for another moment; it was better to let them vent enough to actually be quiet through the rest of what he had to say. It was a tactic he had learned from watching the parents in the Camelia dealing with their small children, and it had yet to fail him.
Eirian shifted next to him, struggling to control her temper. Mingzhe was stiff on his other side, but wise enough not to speak. Chenzhou wanted nothing more than to offer him comfort, but it was far too dangerous for both of them. A single moment of perceived favoritism could be enough to ruin both of them.
Finally, "ENOUGH!" Chenzhou roared, and the room fell silent in surprise once again. "Enough." He said again, voice level and calm. "Please, take your seats."
They did, chairs scraping across the stone floor as they righted themselves. Kai Low turned his glare on Chenzhou and sat down with more force than necessary.
"Thank you," Chenzhou said, once they were all still. He took a deep breath, centering himself before he continued. "I realize this seems strange. If not outright against our practices. But that is exactly why I am doing it. We are in a period of great change. We have a new king. We were moved like pawns into a war at the hands of another land." They shifted, uncomfortable at the reminder. "We are working towards a peace that is unprecedented in our time. In our parents' time. In our ancestors' time. There is no guide or rule or law for us to follow, because it has simply never been done before."
Lord Helian, the broad-shouldered archer whose family most often served in the Crimson Army's legal department, nodded reluctantly.
"There is no right way to do this, because it has not been done before. There is nothing we can be sure of, but one thing." He paused, ensuring all their eyes were on him. "That we are in this together. Sorrow and the tribes. We are not separate forces across a battlefield anymore, and peace will not last if we continue to act the way we always have." He turned to Kai Low. "I know you are not familiar with our ways. That you probably have little care for them." Kai Low snorted. "But I would ask you this as a favor. You are the only one here who is completely unconnected from all of us. You are the only one who does not have any preconceived notion, idea, or belief that could affect the investigation."
"But does he even know how to invest-" Lord Wen burst out, nearly vibrating in his chair.
Chenzhou silenced him with a glare that was second only to the furious look Lady Yang gave him. "An investigation is simply asking questions and evaluating the answers." Chenzhou snapped and then took several breaths to get himself back under control. "Ambassador Kai Low was a trusted and recognized commander of Beng Shai. Such a task is no doubt in his skill set." He glanced at Kai Low, who was glaring at Lord Wen.
"It is." Kai Low was still glaring as agreed and somehow still managed to sound displeased about it. "You are not the only ones who seek to learn things. To understand the motivations of others. It's not like it's hard." He sneered.
"It cannot be ignored that any investigation into one of us will be tainted if it is carried out by any of us. No matter how honorable it may be, it is simply not possible to answer all the doubts that would come. I can request an investigator from the capital, but the same concerns will arise with them as well as the same concerns that arise with the Ambassador. Someone from the capital is not one of us and does not understand the estate and how it works. But they will undoubtedly have some connection to someone on it that will cast doubt. Worse, those connections may lead to…decisions motivated by something other than honesty."
A few of the lords and ladies shared concerned looks. As isolated as the Camelia had been over the years, there were some families that maintained personal connections to the capital, and that would be enough to bring any investigation conducted by the capital into question.
"The unfortunate truth is that there is no perfect answer, but there must be an investigation. These rumors must be put to rest before we can truly move forward." Chenzhou fell silent to let them digest his words. He wasn't sure who would speak first. He hadn't spoken of the idea to anyone prior to the meeting because it had only come to him as he had seen Kao Low sitting among them. While the idea had only taken seconds to come into existence, Chenzhou's conviction was rock solid.
It was the right choice.
He just needed the court to agree.
Surprisingly, it was Lord Yin, famous for holding his tongue during court meetings, that broke the silence. "I will acknowledge Lord Chenzhou's concerns. And all of ours." He nodded to his brethren. "Lord Ye is correct. There is simply no perfect answer, no matter how long we debate it." He fell silent and then said, "I will support Ambassador Kai Low's nomination."
~ tbc