It may seem pretty harsh but we really can't judge them with today's western standards because this behavior was a) normal for ancient China, and b) it's literally they or them. Living in that royal palace/harem environment was brutal af. Everyone was scheming and spinning court/palace intrigues against each other. Why do you think Jing Shao met the end he did in his 1st life? Either they are putting an end to it now and show anyone not to mess with them or they die again later on. Harsh and horrible but neccessary if they want to survive this time around. (Ofc the wrong person got sentenced to death, but it's more accurate this way.)
It may seem pretty harsh but we really can't judge them with today's western standards because this behavior was a) normal for ancient China, and b) it's literally they or them. Living in that royal palace/harem environment was brutal af. Everyone was scheming and spinning court/palace intrigues against each other. Why do you think Jing Shao met the end he did in his 1st life? Either they are putting an end to it now and show anyone not to mess with them or they die again later on. Harsh and horrible but neccessary if they want to survive this time around. (Ofc the wrong person got sentenced to death, but it's more accurate this way.)