When intelligence reached Iran that Bahram Chubin had acquired immense wealth and royal prestige at the Chinese court without hardship, King Khosrow Parviz was overcome with deep turmoil and anxiety. Gathering his highest counselors in the dead of night, the Shahanshah commanded his royal scribe to sharpen the nib of his reed pen like an arrowhead and forge a letter as sharp as a warrior's blade.
The epistle opened with grand praise for the Almighty Creator—the Sovereign of fate who adorns the sun, Saturn, and the moon, and who exalts kings upon their golden thrones. Khosrow characterized Bahram as an ungrateful, lowly bondsman whom the late King Hurmoz had raised from obscurity, only for him to turn traitor against the crown. He admonished the Khaqan for welcoming such a rogue, issuing a fierce ultimatum: bind Bahram in chains and surrender him to Iran, or face an unstoppable Iranian host that would turn the bright day of Turan into impenetrable darkness.
Upon receiving the Iranian envoy and hearing the King's haughty words, the steadfast Khaqan of China bade the messenger return at dawn for his reply. Summoning his master scribe, the Khaqan dictated a powerful response upon fine silk in musk ink. He declared his undisputed sovereignty over China, Turan, and the realms of Haytal, reminding Khosrow that such arrogant threats ill became a monarch of ancient lineage. The Khaqan swore by the Pure God that he would never break his sacred oath of sanctuary, asserting that having taken Bahram's hand in friendship, he would never betray him, and suggested that true royal greatness ought to be accompanied by superior wisdom.
Traversing the vast distance in under a month, the messenger delivered the Khaqan's sealed response to Khosrow Parviz. Upon reading the unyielding letter, the King writhed in distress and summoned his council of elders. The wise Mobads and seasoned nobles advised Khosrow against reckless escalation that might tarnish the divine Kayanid Glory. They counseled him instead to dispatch an esteemed elder—a veteran diplomat, articulate, heroic, and versed in royal lineage—to negotiate directly with the Khaqan and expose Bahram's history of treason before the alliance deepened further.