Jiang Luoluo put down her teacup, gave him a sweet smile, and then waved her little fist at Xie Yizhi. Xie Yizhi understood and also waved his fist to gently bump it against Jiang Luoluo's fist.

Jiang Luoluo boasted shamelessly, "Having gone through life and death with Your Highness, we shall be allies from now on!"

Xie Yizhi's cold expression softened, and a slight smile appeared at the corner of his lips. "Alright!"

As the afterglow of the setting sun spilled onto the windowsill, Xie Yizhi looked at Jiang Luoluo's radiant smile. For a moment, he felt that Jiang Luoluo was the Fairy Zixia who had come to greet him riding on auspicious clouds of seven colors.

Jiang Luoluo picked up a large four-happiness meatball, took a bite, and although it wasn't made of meat, it had the fragrance of lotus root and mushrooms, and the taste was in no way inferior to meatballs.

She nodded with satisfaction, "Your Highness has excellent taste; the vegetarian dishes at Liuyun Pavilion are truly exceptional!"

Xie Yizhi used serving chopsticks to pick up a piece of vegetarian koi for her. "Try this. The vegetarian dishes at Liuyun Pavilion are specially supplied to Yuanhua Temple and the Imperial Palace for vegetarian banquets."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Luoluo paused slightly with her chopsticks in her hand. Yuanhua Temple, that old bald monk!

However, Jiang Luoluo quickly composed herself and tried the vegetarian koi. It had the fragrance of taro and tofu, and the texture was not soft and mushy, but rather crisp and bouncy, somewhat like her favorite crispy pork.

Xie Yizhi asked tentatively, "Miss Jiang has only been in Yunchuan for two or three days, so how could she have accurately identified Liu Dayong as a spy?"

"Because my father had previously sent Liu Dayong to Jiaozhou to investigate, and he brought back a kind of poisonous insect, and my parents' illnesses were caused by that poisonous insect."

Jiang Luoluo didn't hold back and told Xie Yizhi everything she knew, "When I was at the manor, I happened to see an introduction to this poisonous insect in an ancient medical book."

Xie Yizhi nodded. "In Miss Jiang's opinion, who is behind this?"

“Jiaozhou!” Jiang Luoluo said succinctly and confidently, “It is indeed a bit puzzling that someone who has eaten meat for 45 years would suddenly switch to a vegetarian diet.”

Xie Yizhi frowned slightly. "Miss Jiang and I are of the same mind. During the interrogation, Liu Dayong didn't reveal any information. He only said one thing: he is the chosen one, and you can't defeat him!"

For many years, Xie Yizhi had been sending people to keep an eye on the movements in Jiaozhou, but everything was calm and there was no action at all. On the contrary, this calm before the storm made him suspicious.

"But this time, the assassination attempt in the valley used a double-winged arrow with a spine. Does Your Highness have any leads?" Jiang Luoluo asked casually as she picked up her coconut chicken soup and took a sip.

Xie Yizhi's slender fingers slowly caressed the rim of the glass, his movements elegant, yet he seemed to exude a chilling aura. "All the evidence points to..."

He paused, as if he had made a great decision, and then squeezed out the words "Royal Brother" heavily from between his teeth.

Jiang Luoluo's brow twitched. Although Xie Yizhi had expressed his trust in the emperor with absolute certainty in front of Gu Boyuan that day, the seed of doubt had always been planted in his heart.

Jiang Luoluo's hands fumbled for the soup bowl again, and unconsciously, she picked it up and took another sip. She was thinking about how to guide Xie Yizhi in the right direction.

She can't just say directly, "Your mother isn't your biological mother, neither you nor your brother are her biological children, and your mother conspired with outsiders to kill you, not your brother."

If such royal secrets were to come out of Jiang Luoluo's mouth so openly, she was afraid she wouldn't live to see the sunrise. Besides, she and Xie Yizhi were only newly allies and hadn't reached such a level of intimacy yet.

But if a rift develops between the brothers, the strength of their allies will be weakened, and how will they be able to fight the protagonist in the book in the future?

Jiang Luoluo tentatively said, "His Majesty the Emperor and Your Highness grew up together and have a deep bond. If Your Highness wants that position, the Flying Eagle Army in your hands is enough. There is no need to wait until this time to obtain the military seal of the Flying Feather Army. His Majesty the Emperor should know this."

Jiang Luoluo observed that Xie Yizhi's expression did not become any colder, and she continued with trembling courage, "The Flying Feather Army is something that others would love to do more than anything."

However, Your Highness described it as a hot potato, yet you disregarded the doubts of the court officials and still went to Yunchuan. This alone is enough to demonstrate your loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor.

Slowly, a smile began to creep onto Xie Yizhi's lips. Though not cold, it was hardly warm either. He asked, "Then, according to Miss Jiang's opinion, who was responsible?"

Jiang Luoluo took another sip of soup to hide her anxiety, fearing that Xie Yizhi would see through her expression that she was hiding something.

After much deliberation, Jiang Luoluo finally tentatively uttered a few words, "In my humble opinion, who in this capital hates His Highness the most? That is the one who did it."

Xie Yizhi's gaze fell on Jiang Luoluo. She seemed to like drinking soup so much that she had taken several sips. Jiang Luoluo's words seemed to have a hidden meaning, but it also seemed to be just her unfounded speculation.

Xie Yizhi vaguely sensed from her words that Jiang Luoluo was hiding something from him, and Jiang Luoluo did not intend to explain it clearly. He looked away and glanced at the bustling street below.

A faint, bitter smile appeared on his lips. Jiang Luoluo didn't trust him enough. Xie Yizhi felt that at this moment, he was indulging Jiang Luoluo with a sense of helpless resignation.

His eyes were deep and unfathomable. "There are far too many people in the capital who hate me!"

Jiang Luoluo knew the sorrow behind those words. She raised her eyes and met Xie Yizhi's desolate gaze. Her eyes sparkled as she comforted him, "Your Highness, you still have me, your capable ally."

"Rest assured, no matter how many people in the capital harbor ill intentions towards you, I will always stand by your side."

At that moment, Xie Yizhi saw his own reflection in Jiang Luoluo's eyes. In those eyes that shone like a galaxy, there truly was a place for him.

He dared not look any longer, fearing he would become too deeply involved. He quickly picked up his teacup, took a sip, and asked casually, "Why didn't Miss Jiang directly petition the Emperor to hand over the military tally to Gu Boyuan, instead of bypassing him and sending a message to me from afar?"

After all, Gu Boyuan was a member of the Flying Feather Army, and also the son-in-law and prized student of General Weiyuan. With this connection, it was most appropriate for him to take control of the Flying Feather Army's military command, and the emperor would agree.

Jiang Luoluo was surprised that Xie Yizhi would directly ask about his doubts. After thinking it over, she came up with an excuse, "Because he is a heartless man, and I want to get revenge on him!"

Xie Yizhi chuckled, "That means Gu Boyuan still holds a significant place in your heart."

Jiang Luoluo had no choice but to go along with the conversation and nodded helplessly. She couldn't very well say that the military seal couldn't be given to Gu Boyuan if Gu Boyuan were to take command of the Flying Feather Army.

The male protagonist in that book is practically a tiger with wings; it would be even easier for him to raise an army and rebel, and then all of our lives would be over.

When Xie Yizhi saw Jiang Luoluo, he nodded solemnly. His heart felt as if it had been cut by a dull knife, a dull pain. He stopped talking and drank the tea like it was wine, taking several sips in a row. Women really are big pigs.

As Jiang Luoluo ate, she belatedly realized that something was off about the atmosphere. For some reason, Xie Yizhi seemed to be cold all over.