First, over a hundred members of the Deer Gate Marquis's and Wei Changxian's families donned hemp mourning clothes and knelt outside the Chu King's Palace, demanding a thorough investigation into their deaths and severe punishment for the murderer.
Next, the King of Chu ordered Fang Yun to return to Jingzhou to report on his duties and give a personal account of the Five Barbarians War.
Then rumors sprang up throughout the Chu Kingdom and on the Discourse Ranking. Many suspected Fang Yun of colluding with the Barbarian Race, claiming that the dead Barbarian Kings and barbarians were all fakes. Some even said that, even if the deaths were real, they might be part of the Barbarian Race's Self-Injury Stratagem.
Fang Yun sat in the Marshal's Office, holding his official seal and reading the message containing the royal command.
After a long deliberation, Fang Yun replied that, to guard against errors in the transmitted message, he would wait until the original royal command arrived through the relay stations before addressing it.
Yet that very night, a Hanlin Academician from the capital who had placed first in the imperial examinations rode Walking the Blue Clouds thousands of miles, entered the Marshal's Office directly, and personally delivered the original royal command to Fang Yun's desk.
The King of Chu's great seal was clearly visible.
Fang Yun looked at the Hanlin Academician, then at the document, without saying a word.
After a long while, Fang Yun opened the document. Its contents were identical to the transmitted royal command: he was ordered to return to Jingzhou.
Fang Yun stared at the Hanlin Academician until the man's skin crawled, then said, "To prevent a demon barbarian counterattack, I will remain in Pearl City. When a general is in the field, there are sovereign commands he need