Upon hearing the final words, Yang Yi pursed his lips and looked down at the ground. After a moment, he said, "If I could, I wouldn't necessarily have to be a Yang."
"Yi Yi, hold your tongue." The Empress gently stopped him, "I've yet to forgive your father for what happened in Huzhou, but setting that aside, his contributions to the world and to the Great Zhou cannot be denied. We don't have to speak like this."
Yang Yi took a deep breath, "Had I been truly this willful, I would have stopped being a Yang long ago. But if you want me to acknowledge him again, that is utterly impossible."
