Thanks to the efforts of He Yunxiao, Fan Ziruo, and others, the peace factions of Qi and Yan were finally able to sit down together to discuss important matters.

After several days of discussion, the peace factions in both countries largely reached a consensus.

That is, exchange Luoyue Pass for a valley in the northeast corner of Hexi County.

The selection of this valley was a result of discussions among the people of Qi. Firstly, the valley was not large, with limited narrow paths for people and horses to travel through. Secondly, the terrain was open, offering little opportunity for concealment. Thirdly, it was not far from Yinjing, meaning that if the Yan army dared to show themselves here, Yinjing's superior forces could be used to directly block them back. Choosing this location for the exchange was undoubtedly foolproof.

If things go smoothly, all that's needed is to persuade the pro-war factions on all sides, or to win over enough centrists, and a peace agreement between Qi and Yan can be reached.

However, He Yunxiao felt that things wouldn't go so smoothly.

The King of the Southwest will at least try to cause trouble.

The main venue for the peace talks between Qi and Yan was in the courtyard of the Honglu Temple in Yan.

Every time Ruobao went into a meeting, He Yunxiao would wait for her outside the Court of State Ceremonial. Since He Yunxiao also held an official position in the peace negotiation team, he would sometimes sneak into the group to listen to their bickering. Peace negotiations were truly an ear-wearing job.

Around noon, Fan Ziruo and a group of officials walked out of the courtyard.

He Yunxiao hurriedly went to greet him, "How is it?"

Fan Ziruo breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Let's talk in the car."

Once in the car, He Yunxiao couldn't wait to ask, "Has the peace agreement been reached?"

"No."

He Yunxiao reassured him, "That's true. The King of the Southwest isn't so easy to persuade. Even if an agreement is reached, we still need to work on our persuasion."

Fan Ziruo remained calm and gently shook her head.

He Yunxiao asked in surprise, "Not the King of the Southwest?"

"No." Fan Ziruo looked at He Yunxiao and said with a wry smile, "There are spies among the pro-peace faction who met with us."

"Huh? How is that possible?"

"At today's peace meeting, we were just about to steer the conversation toward the general policy when the King of the Southwest revealed the 'result' in detail."

"This...this is impossible...Aren't all the people we contacted in favor of peace talks and a ceasefire? Moreover, before meeting with the pro-peace faction in Yan, did we already discuss things separately with them and reach a consensus on their needs?"

Fan Ziruo was not surprised by the existence of the "spy".

She said, "Logically speaking, if we had truly addressed the needs of the pro-peace faction in Yan, they certainly wouldn't have gone back on their word, leaked information about the secret meeting to the pro-war faction, and deliberately sabotaged the peace negotiations. Therefore, the existence of 'spies' can only be one of two possibilities. First, we misunderstood the needs of some of the pro-peace faction in Yan and did not truly reach an agreement with them. Second, the information was not leaked by the Yan side, but by our own people."

He Yunxiao thought for a moment and said, "I think the latter is unlikely. The people who went to the small meeting, besides you and me, were Minister of Rites Li Gongqin and others. They are all, cough cough, all confidants of Her Highness the Princess. It's unlikely that they would deliberately sabotage the peace talks, right?"

Ruobao said, "What if the eldest princess instructed them to sabotage it?"

He Yunxiao shook his head decisively, "Impossible."

"Why are you so certain of the Princess's feelings, my husband?"

He Yunxiao scratched his head awkwardly, unable to think of a good way to put it, so he could only say humbly, "Given the current state of Qi, Your Highness is a wise man and will surely make peace."

Ruobao's eyes lit up, and she praised, "I never imagined that my husband could see things so clearly."

Looking at Ruobao's smiling face, He Yunxiao breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he guessed correctly. Otherwise, if Ruobao had pressed him for details, Mengbao's identity would probably have been exposed.

Fan Ziruo added, "Since it's unlikely that the eldest princess instructed them, the only person who leaked the peace agreement results is from the Yan Kingdom."

Similar to Mengbao's situation, the pro-peace faction on the Yan side were basically Li Xiangjun's subordinates.

"Husband, you often say that Miss Li is controlled by her grandfather. Have you ever actually been to the Li family?"

He Yunxiao understood Ruobao's unspoken meaning; she suspected Li Xiangjun.

"No," He Yunxiao replied honestly.

"My husband, you must not trust other women too easily."

“But, Miss Li… I think she’s quite good.” Ruobao’s words always made sense, and He Yunxiao subconsciously lost some confidence when defending Li Xiangjun.

Fan Ziruo smiled and said, "Ziruo didn't say it was definitely Miss Li's problem. It's also possible that some of them were spies planted by others to be by her side, and just happened to be sent by Miss Li to negotiate peace."

...

Although Ruobao didn't say it explicitly, He Yunxiao could still see her concerns about Li Xiangjun.

Logically speaking, He Yunxiao felt that Ruobao's concerns were valid, but emotionally, perhaps there was a filter of Mengbao's influence on him, and He Yunxiao was unwilling to believe that Li Xiangjun was the villain.

He Yunxiao came to Tingfeng Tower alone to find Nangong Yu'er.

After explaining her purpose, Nangong Yu'er stared at He Yunxiao in astonishment.

"Young Master, you've gone too far in secretly investigating the Yan Emperor."

"Can't Tingfeng Tower do it?"

"Not really. It's just that this is the first time Yu'er has heard of such a request."

He Yunxiao nodded, "Then I'll trouble you, miss. The price is negotiable."

"No need for money. I just ask you to keep this a secret for me, young master," Nangong Yu'er said earnestly to He Yunxiao.

"Keep what a secret?"

"Please wait a moment, young master."

He Yunxiao watched as Nangong Yu'er got up, walked quietly outside with graceful steps, and then her footsteps gradually disappeared. After a while, her footsteps gradually resumed until she pushed open the door and entered.

When Nangong Yu'er returned, she was carrying a small animal skin bag.

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