Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 25

[ Episode 25 Gapjin Gyeongjang (甲辰更張) (3) ]

Episode 25 Gapjin Gyeongjang (3)

The second plate is the Hojo Panseo (戶曹判書) and Lee Jo (吏曹) Gongjo (工曹). They were centered around editors.

“Don’t you think you’ll need to bring a writing utensil after five days?”

Judge Lee Jo stroked his beard as he heard Judge Hojo’s words.

“Do I even need a writing utensil?”

“It’s a must have.”

“Isn’t this the political opinion of a nine-year-old child?”

In response to Judge Lee Jo’s rebuttal, Judge Hojo explained the reason.

“Of course, the Crown Prince’s reign is only nine. Thanks to. Some say that His Majesty the Lord is behind all of the crown prince’s actions and remarks. But I don’t think so. “The crown prince is a genius sent from heaven, and that is something to be amazed at.”

“Is there any reason to think so?”

When Judge Lee Jo asked about the reason, Judge Hojo’s eyes looked into the distance.

“There are a few things. First of all, do you remember the day when His Majesty the Prime Minister was caned by His Majesty the Crown Prince?”

“How could I forget that?”

“The fact that His Majesty the Lord heard the cane means that the crown prince’s extraordinary behavior was unprecedented. That is why he was so angry.”

Judge Lee Jo immediately refuted Judge Hojo’s words.

“You might think so. But isn’t it unreasonable to say that all other cases were the crown prince’s independent thoughts? Think about the age of the crown prince. It’s only nine now. Wouldn’t it be more reasonable to think that what happened that day happened by chance?”

“It would be easier to think that way if you didn’t know. But have you been to the famous study of the East Palace?”

“I haven’t been there. “What about the captain?”

“There was a time when the Crown Prince asked me to get a book and told me to take a list. While I was there, I went into the study and looked at the books, and they were all covered in scratches, and there were red lines hanging down from passages that I thought were important. That’s not all. In one book, there was paper inserted, and the paper had a lot written on how to apply it when it was introduced to our Joseon Dynasty. And that handwriting was not Joo Sang’s.”

Judge Lee Jo’s face became serious after hearing Judge Hojo’s words.

“That means…”

“We are looking at someone truly scary. “He is intelligent, has the ability to execute, and even has power on his back.”

“Huh…”

At Judge Hojo’s words, Judge Lee Jo let out a groan, unable to tell whether it was admiration or lamentation.

The third group was the young officials of Saganwon and Saheonbu.

“What do you think?”

“Shouldn’t you just go to sleep and file an appeal right away? The Crown Prince is only nine years old! What is national government? It’s about moving the country. Government affairs are such a heavy burden, so what does a nine-year-old know? “This is the lord lord playing a trick on our subjects!”

“But as you can see from this golden pen, shouldn’t we admit that the crown prince’s abilities are outstanding?”

“What I regret most is this golden pen! I should have opposed the mass production of these golden pens! Because of that, everyone, from the chief priests above to the chambong below, is only thinking about wealth, so I can’t help feeling sad! How is this different from omens? “Why did Joseon come into power?”

Everyone nearby seemed to agree with the sight of the young official shaking his fist as if he couldn’t hold back his anger.

“Let’s go! “I have to hurry up and write an appeal!”

“That’s right!”

As the young officials moved around, a small number of young officials gathered together behind them. Most of them were officers belonging to the Chunchugwan (春秋館), which recorded historical records.

“What do you think, Lee?”

“Jang, I don’t know. From what I’ve seen so far, I can’t find anything wrong with what the crown prince said…”

The officer next to him intervened in the conversation between the officers who had just changed their shifts at the front line.

“Isn’t the behavior of the Saheonbu and Saganwon something we’ve always seen? It’s still the same now. They just think that finding fault with things like that will increase their name value. Let’s move quickly. Don’t you have a lot of work to do? “If you think about the five days ahead, you have to prepare in advance.”

“Let’s do that.”

The officers who were criticizing the officials of Saheonbu and Saganwon quickly moved to Chunchugwan.

And the eunuchs and court ladies were quietly watching.

* * *

The reactions of the subjects were conveyed directly to King Sejong through his internal officials.

“Good work.”

King Sejong, who praised the merchant, let out a long sigh.

“Whoa~. “How come there are so many people who are so stuck?”

King Sejong deeply lamented while listening to the reactions of his ministers. Now, the new officials were openly protesting.

‘If he had actually moved, we would have met outside the palace. Very secretly!’

The merchant ship, who saw that King Sejong’s complexion was not good, quickly took care of him.

“There are quite a few people who show favor.”

King Sejong smiled bitterly at Sang-seon’s words.

“Are you saying it’s a good thing? “There are many times when even Gwain finds it difficult to believe that the crown prince is nine years old…”

Sejong, who was smiling at the excellence of the fragrance, let out a long sigh again.

“Whoa~. The young officials were so inflexible…”

What was most disappointing to King Sejong was the rigidity shown by the young officials of Saganwon and Saheonbu.

The Yeonguijeong faction also had a rigid mindset, but based on their past experience, they were able to move flexibly to some extent when necessary.

But the problem was those young officials. They were people who blindly believed that Neo-Confucianism was everything to them.

They thought that only thinking Neo-Confucianism and living Neo-Confucian life was the right path. In their view, everything promoted by the incense could be enough to be called an apostle.

In reality, they were talking like that.

“The country is going backwards! You value commerce! Why was the omen so ruined? “Have you forgotten the end of action?”

“Whoa~.”

King Sejong let out another long sigh and lamented.

“There is no talent. “There is no talent.”

It had been five years since he had abdicated from Taejong, and more than half a year had passed since Taejong’s death, but Taejong’s shadow was still dark.

As soon as he inherited the throne, he partially reorganized the cabinet, and the ministers followed suit. However, King Sejong knew well that he was still seen as a child in the eyes of his ministers. In the end, King Sejong needed a talented person who would follow his instructions well.

“It’s still too early to call them…”

The ‘they’ that King Sejong thought of were Hwang Hee and Maeng Sa-seong.

Hwang Hui and Maeng Sa-seong were talented people that even King Taejong recognized. However, both suffered a crisis as they were caught up in King Taejong’s plan to strengthen his royal authority. Although he eventually returned to central politics, the justification was weak to elevate him directly to the core of power.

“The problem is whether they alone can control those childish brats…”

Sejong placed his hand on his forehead as he thought of the young officials with a rigid mindset.

“My head hurts.”

Hearing Sejong’s words, Sang-seon looked full of worry.

“Should I ask a medical doctor to come?”

“Not to that extent. “You’ll get better if you rest for a while.”

Sejong, who dissuaded the merchant ship from calling for a royal doctor, turned his attention to the documents and appeals that had not yet been resolved.

* * *

When King Sejong was suffering so much, Hyang also heard a similar story through an internal official.

“With this, to what extent has the division between pros and cons increased? By the way…”

Hyang, who was speechless, tapped the book with his fingers and muttered softly.

“It’s still the early days of Joseon, but it’s already at the Taliban level….”

“Low? “What did you say?”

“I’m talking to myself. “Never mind.”

“Yes sir.”

Hyang, who covered the eunuch’s mouth, pounded on Xi’an and fell into deep distress.

‘Shit! What if we are already at Taliban level! ‘How should we deal with these people whose heads are as hard as the cornerstone of Gyeongbokgung Palace?’

The thought of dealing with young officials, especially Saganwon and Saheonbu officials, made me feel distant.

After thinking about this and that, Hyang finally came to a conclusion.

“Please leave the inner office.”

“yes?”

“I have something I need to sort out on my own.”

“… Yes, Your Majesty.”

Hyang sat alone in the room after sending out the eunuch and clenched his fists.

“Shit! Solve everything without paying attention! Our King Sejong will be able to choose well among them! Starting with that, I will put the rest into action the moment I ascend the throne! If you can’t catch up, you can just replace them all! “If you grind what needs to be done and roll what needs to be rolled, it will take care of itself!”

After coming to a conclusion, Hyang unfolded a blank sheet of paper.

“Hmm… where should we start?”

How long has it been since the scent was switched on? The eunuch standing outside the door spoke loudly.

“Your Majesty, please come!”

When she heard that King Sejong had arrived, Hyang got up from her chair, looked at her clothes, and politely greeted King Sejong.

“Are you here? “Abama.”

“It’s late at night and you still haven’t slept? not good for health.”

“Is sleep a problem when you have work to do? And Abamama’s health is more important than the children’s health.”

“Son…”

Sejong, who was pleased with Hyang’s answer, lightly tapped Hyang’s shoulder and turned his head to Seo-an.

“Can I read it for a moment?”

“yes.”

However, before Hyang could respond, Sejong picked up the papers and began to read what was written.

At that sight, Hyang pouted her lips and grumbled inwardly.

‘Why are you asking if you’re going to read it before you even answer? Regardless of whether they are high-ranking people…’

Sejong, who was carefully reading the sentences written on the paper, whether he knew Hyang’s feelings or not, asked Hyang a question.

“Seja. The ‘?’ written next to these sentences. me ‘!’ What are the signs?”

“These are the punctuation marks of the Westerners. ‘?’ ending in a curled ‘?’ means a question and ends with a straight ‘!’ In the case of , it means admiration or surprise.”

“Hoo? The meaning of a sentence becomes clearer with just one simple sign! Hmm… I see, I see….”

After learning what the punctuation marks meant, Sejong examined the papers more carefully.

“Abama. “How about sitting down and watching?”

“My legs still hurt a little, so I guess that’s okay.”

Sejong sat down on the chair, appreciating Hyang’s words.

‘You idiot, lose weight! Why do I still have a pyramid body shape when I jump rope like that?’

Hyang, who grumbled inwardly as she looked at Sejong’s obese body, sat across from him.

Sejong, who had spread out the papers on the desk and was going back and forth to look at the contents, crossed his arms and glared at the papers.

“Administrative organization reorganization, division of local officials, Jo Yong-jo’s reform, land system reform… Isn’t this a simple announcement of political views?”

“My political views are very simple. This is the ‘Hongik Ingan’ that Hwanung (桓雄) spoke of long ago. Don’t the words of the sages, such as the golden and jade birds, ultimately mean the same thing?”

“You are right about that.”

Sejong nodded widely as if he agreed with Hyang’s words. Although it was called royal politics, the conclusion was simple.

‘Let us live in peace, from the king to the people.’

“In order to actually implement such principles, the current system leaves many shortcomings. “My dream is to fix and fix these shortcomings and create a Joseon where the royal family and people can live in peace.”

“It’s a good dream. To be honest, just looking at what you wrote makes me want to adopt it as a policy right away. However, since you are only nine years old, there will be many people who find fault and refuse to listen properly.”

Hyang shrugged his shoulders at Sejong’s point.

“Isn’t that wrong? It is true that I am now nine years old, and it is also true that because I am young, my life cycle has also passed.”

Sejong clicked his tongue at Hyang’s answer.

“Tsk! It is not the will of the sage to give priority to age and experience when discussing the way and discipline…”

“Isn’t there some help in this?”

“help?”

“Wouldn’t it be easier to identify those who will truly be of help to Abama?”

“I see!”

As they spoke, Sejong and Hyang smiled. It was a nice sight to see the father and son laughing together, but if the ministers had seen it, it would have been a scene that would have made them break out in a cold sweat.

Sejong, relieved by Hyang’s response, stood up.

“Stop sleeping. “Children need to go to bed early to grow well.”

“Yes Abama. Abama, too, please eat it when you are fully immersed. “Only when Abama is strong will Joseon be at peace.”

“Of course.”

Sejong, who was about to go out with a smile, stopped and looked back.

“ah! Now I remember! At your presentation, the observers will call not only the Dang Sang-gwan (Jeong 1st rank to Jeong 3rd rank Sang-gye) but also the Cham Sang-gwan (Jeong 3 rank Lower class to Jong 6 rank). “Prepare well.”

“yes.”

“Rest.”

After sending Sejong out, Hyang frowned.

“Shit!”

The scale was larger than expected.

[Episode 25 Gapjin Gyeongjang (甲辰更張) (3) ] End

ⓒ Gukbbong

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