The execution day became the talk of the people. People reacted differently to the execution, and Tang Shaoyang got what he wanted from the public execution. People now would think twice or even thrice before doing something stupid. Before the game, the death penalty was hardly imposed because the world would criticize the nation that did that. The same reason as the activist who went on demonstration, the human rights.
Cao Jingyi and Li Shuang reminded him that people would look at him as a tyrant if he went for the execution for the same reason. However, he did not care what other people thought of him when it came to the empire's security. The reason he built the empire was to protect the people close to him. When the empire itself became a danger, he would not hesitate to cut the root. If not for Zhang Mengyao, Cao Jingyi, Wei Xi, and the others stopping him, he might kill the traitors' family members too.
