Thus Yuan orders that the inventor shall be executed because, while his flying machine may be a beautiful creation, the emperor sees the devastating potential for those who "have an evil face and an evil heart" and will seek to use it for purposes other than the enjoyment of flight, namely flying over the Great Wall of China and destroying it. For this reason, the inventor is executed, the flying machine is burned, and all who saw it are silenced.
As a result, Yuan decrees that the inventor will be put to death because, although his flying machine may be aesthetically pleasing, the emperor perceives its catastrophic potential and fears it will be misused by those with malicious intentions, leading to its destruction and the silencing of all witnesses.