The officials below remained kneeling, and the grand hall fell into silence.
Prime Minister Gao had wanted to stir up trouble, but his bravado diminished after learning the Emperor had decreed Ye Qianning could not be buried in Beili. Now, he was clearly leaning toward punishing Consort Yuan's faction.
Although the Emperor had a mind to protect her, he was the sovereign; the infamy wouldn't fall on him. If he persisted, however, the eternal shame would fall upon the Gao family.
If the Emperor were compassionate, bearing such a stain might be acceptable, but the Emperor was heartless. He could cast aside glorious military achievements in the blink of an eye, so how could he be expected to remember a trivial matter like the Gao family's tarnished reputation?
The consequences were not worth the risk.
'There's so much evidence of Consort Yuan's treason. She can't be saved. There's simply no saving her.'
