Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 4
[Episode 4 Who is your father? (2) ]
Episode 4 Who is your father? (2)
Although there was a little confusion due to the unexpected doljabi, the first birthday party continued.
“ha ha ha!”
“Great! “Take a drink!”
“Have a glass of Daegamdo!”
Those who attended the party continued to have a good time, smiling and giving and receiving drinks.
“It’s great to see your nephew so clever!”
Prince Chungnyeong responded to the crown prince’s compliment with a smile.
“My wife said that she smiles every time she hears me reading a book.”
“ha ha ha! “The rich man is truly a talented person!”
“Seeing outstanding children is all Hongbok. “Congratulations, Chungnyeong.”
“thank you. older brother.”
While good words were exchanged between the brothers, Hyang was held in the crown prince’s arms. It was after I touched the Crown Prince’s earrings. As she continued to be held in the crown prince’s arms, Hyang continued to daydream on her own.
‘It would be a good idea to sneak in the idea of Hangul, which will be created anyway. Because my range of activities can expand even if I only come out in the middle of the term rather than the latter half of the administration. After that, I’ll work on the firearms…’
Hyang, who had been making plans on her own, grumbled inwardly as she suddenly felt drowsy.
‘Ah, this poor physical strength! Since my physical strength was so poor, I went straight to the goal after three years of training!’
As he was grumbling, not realizing that his body was that of a child who had just turned one year old, a subtle discrepancy began to occur where the crown prince and his brothers were sitting around.
The first birthday party was also slowly coming to an end. Those who participated in the feast were shaking their butts, but were only paying attention to the crown prince who was sitting at the head of the table.
“How about you go back now? “Shouldn’t you show up early tomorrow too?”
“Shouldn’t the Crown Prince return to the palace as well?”
“I need to talk to my brothers some more. “Please go first.”
“Then…”
At the crown prince’s order to congratulate the guests, those who attended the banquet said hello one by one and began to leave.
* * *
“It’s a bit stuffy.”
As all the guests – even Hyang’s maternal grandfather and maternal grandmother – left their seats and no one could see, the crown prince, probably feverish due to the intoxication, released Dopo’s pus. As soon as the pus on his coat and the jeogori he was wearing inside were sloughed off, Chungnyeong immediately came forward to stop him.
“Brother, please dress properly.”
“What’s the problem? “People should be comfortable.”
“Brother, you are the national model of this country. “You must not forget this.”
“Fufu~.”
In response to Chungnyeong’s restraint, the crown prince let out a sigh full of alcohol and immediately got dressed.
Seeing the crown prince following his words, Chungnyeong bowed his head and expressed gratitude.
“Thank you for listening to this Emperor Wu. older brother.”
While pouring alcohol into a glass, the crown prince opened his mouth to Chungnyeong.
“Chungnyeong.”
“yes. older brother.”
“I said this to my mom. Chungnyeong says you are not an ordinary person. At that age, aren’t academic achievements already belonging to ordinary people? “This brother-in-law can’t even estimate your level.”
“That’s too much praise. It’s just that my brother wasn’t close to the scriptures. “If you put in just a little bit of effort, you will quickly surpass this Brother Wu’s meager achievements.”
At Chungnyeong’s answer, the crown prince burst into laughter as if he was in a good mood.
“ha ha ha! “Chungnyeong had a knack for flattering you too!”
“It’s not flattery. “If you get a little closer to the scriptures…”
“Chungnyeong, are you also advocating for virtue and royal politics?”
“Isn’t that the right way?”
The crown prince shook his head in response to Chungnyeong.
“It is just a utopia. Our Joseon and that famous country are now in the era of defeat. “Once you ascend to my throne, I will restore the actual territories of the old Samhan and make this Joseon into the Joseon Dynasty.”
“older brother!”
Chungnyeong, who was frightened, warned him, but the crown prince was confident.
“Don’t worry. “When I ascend to the throne, I will definitely achieve a great cause.”
Chungnyeong continued to argue with the confident words of the crown prince.
“Brother, it’s a bunch of people! Ming is a great country! This is an inevitable defeat for Joseon’s national power! “You must not forget why King Taejo had to retreat from Wihwa Island and why Abama had to punish Sambong Jeong Do-jeon!”
“Are you the prince of a famous kingdom?”
“no! It’s impossible with Joseon’s current capabilities! We need to increase our capabilities!”
The crown prince responded to Chungnyeong’s point by lightly raising his right hand.
“iced coffee. I know that too. I also have no intention of starting a big business right away. “I think of 10 years as a preparation period.”
“10 years is too short!”
“10 years is enough! Generals such as Qi Ra-seong (綺羅星) who were with Zhu Yuanzhang almost all disappeared due to Zhu Yuanzhang’s purges and old age, and the remaining generals were all lost in the civil war waged by Yongle, the emperor of Tang Jin. And the generals raised by the current emperor, Yongrak, disappeared due to civil war and conquest. Therefore! Again, 10 years is enough!”
Perhaps frustrated with the crown prince’s answer, Chungnyeong jumped up from his seat.
“Ah! older brother! Do you have thoughts or do you not have thoughts? Have you forgotten how many troops were mobilized to suppress the remnants of Yuan after Yeongnak came to power? 500,000 won, 500,000! There wasn’t just one subjugation, and every time there was a subjugation, at least thousands or as many as tens of thousands of people were killed or injured, resulting in losses, but the subjugation continued with a full 500,000 men! It’s scary to mobilize troops like that, but what’s even scarier is the administrative and supply system that made such mobilization possible! But what about our Joseon Dynasty? The household survey has not been completed properly and the transfer project has not even started! But 10 years is enough? Wake up from your dream!”
“You bastard! One year for yangjeon and one year for hukou is enough! And considering Abamama’s reign, 10 years after I take over the throne, all the generals of that famous country will have disappeared!”
“You didn’t even think that middle-level officers who had gained experience through subjugation wars would fill the positions of those old officers, right? If you think about the point at which even they step back, it will take 30 years! That’s assuming the next emperor of Ming doesn’t start a war!”
The crown prince and Chungnyeong, who suddenly stood up from their seats, continued their war of words, creating an acrimonious atmosphere on the verge of being grabbed by the collar.
As soon as the atmosphere became dangerous, Hyoryeong quickly took a step back, holding the incense, and emptied her teacup with a sigh.
“Whoa~. They say you can’t lie about bloodlines… I wonder if they are the children of military commanders…”
Amid Hyoryeong’s complaints, the war of words between the crown prince and Chungnyeong reached its end.
“Once the military is reorganized, the first priority will be private soldiers and Japanese pirates! “You have to defend yourself from the back of your head!”
“Abama has already taken care of the private soldier! Why are you so quiet these days? The Yeojin are still being installed and are as troublesome as Japanese pirates! If you think about the future, you have to deal with the aftershocks first!”
“So the private soldiers are gone? “Disposal of private soldiers and Japanese pirates comes first!”
“shut up! The crown prince is me! I admit you’re smart! But the next Bowie successor will not be you, it will be me! All you have to do is help me!”
“….”
Hearing the crown prince’s words, Chungnyeong gritted her teeth and glared at the crown prince.
Meanwhile, Hyang, who was watching the situation in Hyoryeong’s arms, was looking at Chungnyeong’s face with her eyes wide open.
Hyang, who saw the subtle flow of emotions on Chungnyeong’s face, broke into a cold sweat inside.
‘Wasn’t this guy pushed to become king?’
The commonly known belief in his past life was as follows.
-The reason why Chungnyeong became king was because Yangnyeong had poor behavior and Hyoryeong was obsessed with Buddhism, so Chungnyeong had no choice but to become king. This was rather an act of God.
To Hyang, who had such common sense, Chungnyeong’s subtle expression was a shock.
As Hyang looked at Chungnyeong’s face, it seemed like she was hearing the OST of a famous historical drama in her head.
‘Holy shit! Was it a traditional historical drama, not a fusion historical drama? Surely the butterfly effect that changes history because I reincarnated won’t happen?’
Although Hyang was very worried, his body, which had just turned to stone, could not overcome the fatigue. Hyang grumbled as he forced himself to open his eyes that kept closing.
‘cadet! This damn body! Low-quality physical strength!’
I didn’t know the scent, but the competition between Yangnyeong and Chungnyeong was gradually rising to the surface.
* * *
December, two months after Hyang’s first birthday party. (Although she didn’t know Hyang) Chungnyeong visited Namjae’s house with several people.
As the meeting continued, Namjae praised Chungnyeong’s deep learning and said the following.
“Once upon a time, when the Chief Minister was in his sleep, I advised him to study, and the Chief Minister said, ‘Prince Hangat has no place to participate, so what is the use of learning?’ He said, ‘Which son of a king cannot become a king?’ I did. “Now, my heart is happy to see that your love for learning is like this.” (Note 1)
It was a truly meaningful story.
Although Namjae did not explain what he meant, these words were immediately heard by King Taejong due to Namjae’s location and the content of his words. However, when Taejong heard this, he said the following and laughed it off.
“That old man took it too far.”
Taejong laughed it off, but the competition between Yangnyeong and Chungnyeong, the crown princes, to become the next Crown Prince began to accelerate.
The decisive cause of this competition was King Taejong’s ambiguous response. In principle, he acknowledged that Yangnyeong, the eldest son, was the crown prince, but he continued to show interest and favorable reviews to Chungnyeong as well.
“Look at Chungnyeong!”
Whenever there was a report that Crown Prince Yangnyeong was neglecting his studies, King Taejong scolded him by mentioning Chungnyeong.
One time, the crown prince, who could not bear this comparison, criticized Chungnyeong in a private meeting with King Taejong.
“Chungnyeong is not brave!”
Taejong openly refuted the crown prince’s rebuttal.
“Although he may not be brave, when it comes to tackling big things and deciding on a cause, there is no one in this world who can compare to him.”
In addition to this evaluation, Chungnyeong became Yangnyeong’s strongest competitor due to his benevolence and compassion for the people’s plight.
Although the person who caused this fierce competition was Taejong, Taejong continued to recognize Yangnyeong as the crown prince.
In the end, I don’t know if it was Taejong’s will or a voluntary movement of his subjects who wanted to prevent another ‘Prince’s Rebellion’ from happening, but Park Eun gave a warning to Shim On, the leader of those pushing Chungnyeong.
“Grand Prince Chungnyeong is so foolish that he is distracted from the inside and outside, so ask him and let him know for himself what to do.” (Note 2)
Park Eun gave a warning, but Sim On ignored the warning and did not convey it to Chungnyeong. Eventually, Park Eun, tired of enduring it, went to Chungnyeong’s residence in person.
The events of that day were ones that even the scent remembered. As a child who had just turned his first birthday, he was sleeping more than half of the day, but the noise outside was enough to wake him up.
“Captain Sim! “Do you have thoughts or do you not have thoughts?”
“haha. Captain Park. That’s not it…”
“Chief Inspector Shim shouldn’t be like this! Are you planning to experience the bloody tragedy that occurred during the reign of King Taejo again?”
“Is that possible?”
“But what is the behavior you are seeing now! Get out of the way! “I must see my great king!”
“I just forgot last time. I will definitely tell you this time. “Let’s stop here for today.”
“Look here, Captain Shim!”
“Now… let’s stop here for today.”
Although he could only hear the sound rather than see it, Hyang realized that the situation had become more serious.
‘Isn’t this really going to cause problems?’
“Phew~.”
Shim On, who pushed Park Eun out of the gate, let out a long sigh. Shim On, who had been watching Park Eun’s back disappearing into the distance for a long time, turned around with a stern expression on her face.
“It’s a preference anyway.”
Shim On’s voice as she muttered to herself was firm. Yangnyeong, the current crown prince, was not lacking in power. However, there were many reasons for disqualification in his conduct. Although he had a filial piety as the second son, it was acknowledged by others that he had no interest in the throne. If we were to eliminate it like that, the only person left as Danggeum Jusang’s legitimate son was his son-in-law, Chungnyeong.
‘For the future of Joseon, Prince Chungnyeong is the only answer!’
Shim On made his decision and pushed Chungnyeong to become crown prince. It was a risky adventure, but Shim On thought he had a chance of winning. This was because King Taejong’s reaction was lukewarm. As the number of supporters increased, Sim On’s confidence grew stronger.
“Even though the Lord Shang hates his maternal relatives, everything will be resolved when the Great Prince becomes the crown prince! All you have to do is bow down for a while until the great prince becomes crown prince and later ascends to the throne!”
And on the day when the great prince ascended to the throne, he would ascend to the position of one person and all people as the king’s father-in-law, the crown prince’s maternal grandfather, and a person who had made the greatest contribution.
Note 1) Annals of King Taejong December 30, 15
Note 2) Annals of King Taejong October 6,
17 [Episode 4 Who is your father?(2)] End
ⓒ Gukbbong
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