It was ironic.
Or funny.
Or both.
One of the many subjects Chenzhou had been drilled in since childhood was public speaking. It was an incredibly important skill, according to his regent, Lord Colfax. The ability to inspire confidence in others, even when you feel none yourself.
Surprise bought him time he wouldn't have had. Most of the tribesmen were as surprised by Chenzhou's actions as he was.
Chenzhou wasn't as versed in the tribal languages as Yuze, but he could pick out enough to realize they were arguing amongst themselves and still waiting for whoever replaced Beng Shai as leader to arrive.
There was a list of possibilities, but Beng Shai's own rise was so unprecedented that Chenzhou was wary of making assumptions about his heir. He had many living siblings, most of whom probably had children of their own.
A young man snapped something at a young woman towards the front, and she turned around and snapped right back, "I know what he looks like!"
Furious whispers started up, the crowd arguing with itself as several more darted away deeper into the camp. Likely running to summon others.
As the crowd grew, several members forced their way to the front, and Chenzhou could see that many of them shared some resemblance to Bang Shai.
Except one. A young man with bright golden eyes and wild hair. He came closest, eyes narrowed as he studied Chenzhou with crossed arms.
He took a step closer. Someone in the crowd warned him against coming too close, so Chenzhou kept his hands at his side, careful not to seem threatening.
There was something unnerving about the golden gaze, and Chenzhou saw a few in the crowd shaking their heads.
Apparently, whoever this was had a reputation.
Finally, he spoke. "Are you really Lord Ye?"
Oh…
It hadn't occurred to Chenzhou that they wouldn't immediately recognize him.
Which seemed incredibly egotistical of him, when he thought about it. Chenzhou knew the leadership of every tribe and their most important immediate family members, but it was an assumption that the tribes bothered to do the same.
Or that they had the intelligence networks to gather enough information.
He had been on the battlefield in the previous war, but he'd grown since then. He'd been a child when it started, so it was possible some just couldn't recognize him. Chenzhou had suffered growing pains twice during the war and had to have multiple new sets of armor commissioned.
He took a deep breath under the suspicious eyes of the tribe. "I am. I-" He faultered, all those plans about what he was going to say deserting him in his moment of need.
Hopefully, that was a sign they'd been the wrong things and not that Chenzhou was developing the habit of crumbling under pressure.
"I am Lord Ye of the Camelia." He said again, stronger this time. "I have come to pay my respects to Beng Shai."
The man with the golden eyes sputtered, and the murmurs of the crowd grew louder in anger."Pay your respects? You're the one who killed him!"
Chenzhou's fists clenched, and he forced them open again. "I am." There was no point in denying it. "There are very few things in my life I regret more than Beng Shai's death."
"Then why did you kill him?" Golden eyes demanded, infuriated. "You started this damn war, and now you're claiming to regret it? Do your great stone buildings confuse you so? Or do they simply eat away at your conscience until there is nothing but stone left?"
Chenzhou was taken aback, not by the insult, but by the accusation. "What do you mean, we started this war? We were working towards peace with Beng Shai when our outposts were attacked."
"We attacked," The golden-eyed man spat. "After you burned our camps. Women and children run down and slaughtered. Did you think we would just forgive or forget in the face of your civilization?"
A sad realization settled over Chenzhou. So that had been Song and Snow's plan: convince both sides it was the other and watch them destroy each other.
But how did he convince them?
"On my honor, we did not burn your camps."
"There is no honor to be found in your stone cities," the golden-eyed man hissed while the crowd behind him screamed the same.
"We may be different," Chenzhou tried, pleaded. "But we would not do that. To attack women and children goes against our very oaths. We only protect, we do not conquer."
He'd never had so many people scoff in his face before, but he could hardly blame them.
"The kingdoms of Song and Snow are attempting to turn us against one another to their advantage."
In the distance, thunder rumbled.
"They want us to destroy one another to clear their path. You have been fighting them as long as you have been fighting Sorrow. You know how they fight." No one was safe once Song and Snow decided to take something. They practiced a style of warfare that typically consisted of burning a swath of complete destruction through anything in front of them, claiming the remains, and building on them until nothing that resembled the original remained.
Thunder boomed, growing closer.
The man with golden eyes and several of Beng Shai's family members drew their swords.
~ tbc