But that melancholy lasted only a moment.
The past could not be amended, but the future could still be pursued. Regret was useless!
Taiping swiftly regained her composure. She was Great Tang's Princess Taiping Who Guards the Nation, a woman who could stand unshaken in the court of Wu Zhou and seize power during the restoration of Li Tang. She had never sat idle, waiting for fate to bestow what she wanted.
"Jinghong."
Taiping's voice returned to its customary steadiness, but now carried an unquestionable force.
"At your service, Your Highness."
"Do three things. First, ask Lady Guizhou to go to the Spirit Pivot Institute immediately and oversee matters there. If he can handle it, give him full authority. If he uncovers anything, order the Plum Blossom Guards and Lady Guizhou to assist him. Whoever is implicated, whoever stands behind them, once the evidence is confirmed, kill without mercy!" Those final words brimmed with murderous intent.
That clearly included Gao Jian.
Jinghong's heart jolted. "Yes, Your Highness."
"Second, fetch that [Millennium Snow Jade Ginseng] from the storeroom and deliver it to the Spirit Pivot Institute shortly. Tell him it can rapidly replenish his vital energy, so he need not spare it. He may use it without concern."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Third..."
She paused, her voice dropping a little. "Once this matter is settled, have the little study beside the water on the western side of Yao Light Hall tidied up. In the future, whenever Mr. Lu has time, invite him there to take my pulse. It is... quieter there."
That little study had been her favorite place to sit alone in her youth. It held many of her private treasures from before her marriage, and she had never allowed any man to set foot inside.
That place belonged to Li