I'm going in with the mindset that the OG never abused the kids, just glared at them a few times and was disinterested in them. At least, that's all Access mentioned she did?
OG FL did poison someone, but I'd also be pissed af if some old emperor decided to marry me off as a trophy to some man he hated just to humiliate me. I'd be stewing in that rage for awhile. A kid being upset by a glare doesn't do her image any good, but it's something that can be recovered from with effort and care.
I do hope it's like that, if they did what I thought it would be like and just glossed it over then that would be meh
The art style inconsistency plus the plot having too much protagonist halo is making this a bit too meh. If I was one of the kids, I would think she's gone crazy and distance myself more with how she changed overnight. Being treated with kindness after all of that is just going to make me over think and paranoid too.