Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 323

323. A Hero? A New Devil? (6)

While minor commotions arose over the issue of staffing the research lab, a major event was unfolding at the East Palace.

“Aaaaaaack!”

“Aack!”

“Ack!”

From the hastily prepared birthing chambers, the Crown Princess, Royal Concubine Yang, and Royal Concubine Yangji’s screams echoed, as royal physicians, court ladies, and palace maids bustled in and out of the rooms.

It was the moment when the children who would carry on the next generation of Joseon [historical Korean kingdom] were being born.

Hyang stood in the courtyard of the East Palace, wringing his hands, anxiously awaiting the end of the labor.

“Aaaaaaack!”

“Aack!”

“Ack!”

Each time the screams of the Crown Princess, Royal Concubine Yang, and Royal Concubine Yangji rang out, Hyang flinched and pressed the eunuchs and royal physicians.

“Are the Crown Princess, Royal Concubine Yang, and Royal Concubine Yangji alright?”

“They will be fine, Your Highness.”

“Are you sure they are alright?”

“Experienced court ladies and royal physicians are attending them, so please do not worry.”

Each time Hyang pressed them, the royal physicians and eunuchs reassured him, but Hyang could not hide his anxiety.

“Isn’t the labor taking too long? It started before sunrise, and it’s already noon.”

“Sometimes, there are mothers whose labor is prolonged.”

“Hoo~.”

At the royal physician’s words, Hyang sighed deeply and grumbled.

“These brats took longer to come out than other people’s children, and now they’re even dragging out the delivery….”

* * *

As Hyang said, the three pregnancies had exceeded the average term by about a month and a half.

“Isn’t the pregnancy too long?”

“Sometimes, there are cases like this.”

At the royal physician’s explanation, Hyang immediately asked again.

“Have there been cases where all three had long pregnancies?”

“…This is the first time. However, both the mothers and the fetuses are healthy.”

“…I understand. Please do your best.”

“We will do our best.”

Listening to the royal physician’s reply, Hyang sighed again and muttered.

“Hoo~. It’s like they’re deliberately holding back….”

* * *

“Aaaaaaack!”

“Ack!”

“Ack!”

Time passed noon and was now past 2 PM, but the labor continued.

Hyang, who had been pacing anxiously outside, began to pale as he heard the mothers’ parched voices and the weakening screams as their strength waned.

“It’s taking too long…. Are these brats really holding back….”

It was a thought he would normally dismiss as absurd, but the situation made Hyang seriously consider it.

After pondering for a moment, Hyang soon made a decision.

“Come what may! Eunuch!”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Who is the eunuch with the loudest voice?”

“Yes?”

* * *

“Ugh….”

“Please, 힘내세요! [Have strength!] Just a little more!”

The court ladies and female physicians beside them encouraged the Crown Princess as the mothers, exhausted from the long labor pains, groaned.

“Hoo… Hoo….”

As the Crown Princess, Royal Concubine Yang, and Royal Concubine Yangji gripped the white cotton cloth hanging from the rafters, gasping for breath, a thunderous voice rang out from outside.

“Announcing to the young masters! His Highness the Crown Prince has ordered: ‘Your fates are already determined! Stop being unfilial and come out immediately!'”

“Pfft!”

“Puh!”

At the eunuch’s shout, the Crown Princess, Royal Concubine Yang, and Royal Concubine Yangji burst into laughter, forgetting their pain. No, it wasn’t just the mothers. Even those who had been anxiously watching couldn’t help but chuckle.

From outside, another thunderous shout rang out.

“His Highness has ordered again! ‘If you continue to resist, I will inform His Majesty and get a royal decree! Will you come out now and receive honorable treatment, or will you become criminals who defy the royal command and face the worst fate? I will count to 30. Come out now!'”

As soon as the shout ended, the royal guards around them began to shout loudly at Hyang’s signal.

“Thirty!”

“Twenty-nine!”

Instantly, the mothers screamed in pain once more.

“Aaaaaaack!”

“The head is visible! Just a little more, 힘내세요! [Have strength!]”

At the shouts of the court ladies acting as midwives, the mothers squeezed out every last bit of strength.

“Uaaaaaa!”

“Just a little more, just a little more!”

* * *

“Waaaa! Waaaa! Waaaa!”

Shortly after, the noisy cries of babies erupted from the birthing chamber.

As the prolonged cries of the children subsided, the royal physician walked out of the birthing chamber.

The royal physician, with a weary face, bowed to Hyang and reported.

“Congratulations, Your Highness. All three young masters are boys.”

“How are the mothers?”

“They are very exhausted, but there is no great danger.”

“That’s a relief. Please take good care of them.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Can I see the mothers now?”

At Hyang’s question, the royal physician replied with a slightly troubled face.

“Not yet. Please wait a little longer.”

“I understand.”

Hyang, who had been waiting outside, entered the birthing chamber as soon as he was allowed.

Following the procedure he had created, Hyang thoroughly disinfected his hands and went to the mothers lying in their beds.

Looking at the pale faces of the mothers, Hyang spoke in a gentle voice.

“You have truly worked hard.”

“It was nothing, Your Highness.”

“As the labor was long, your bodies must be very tired, so you must not forget to rest sufficiently.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Holding the mothers’ hands in turn, Hyang turned to the court ladies and female physicians.

“I hope you will pay special attention to the mothers’ recovery.”

“We will do our best.”

“I ask you to.”

“We obey your command.”

After checking the mothers’ condition, Hyang finally looked at the babies. Looking closely at the babies wrapped in swaddling clothes, Hyang muttered.

“So, these are you, huh? You must be prepared to pay the price for making your mothers suffer, right?”

As the babies’ faces contorted as if they understood Hyang’s growl, Hyang immediately continued.

“I will take special care to roll around the one who cries.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than the babies’ faces relaxed again.

After patting the mothers once more, Hyang came out and tilted his head.

“I said it in a fit of pique, but…. Surely they didn’t understand, did they?”

* * *

The news that the Crown Princess, Royal Concubine Yang, and Royal Concubine Yangji had safely given birth, and that all three babies were boys, was immediately conveyed to Geunjeongjeon Hall [main hall of Gyeongbok Palace].

“Congratulations!”

“The birth of a 嫡孫(direct line grandson) [the first grandson born in the direct line of descent] is a great blessing for the royal family and the nation!”

“Congratulations!”

At the congratulations of the ministers and officials, Sejong replied with a pleased face.

“Thank you. I am truly grateful.”

Answering the ministers, Sejong turned to the eunuch and asked.

“I heard the labor was long. Are the mothers safe?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Tell me the details.”

Sejong, who was in a good mood at the auspicious news of the birth of a direct line grandson who would continue the throne, wanted to hear about the delivery process.

At Sejong’s command, the eunuch told the delivery process in detail. Although Sejong and the ministers were already experienced in childbirth, they all listened with fascinating expressions.

In particular, Sejong and the ministers burst into laughter at the mention that Hyang was restless every time the mothers screamed.

“Haha! It seems the Crown Prince is an inevitable father!”

“That is correct!”

The eunuch’s story reached its climax in Hyang’s 협박(threat) [threat] part.

“Puhahahaha!”

“Hahaha!”

Sejong and the ministers, who had only been smiling or chuckling until then, forgot the time and place and burst into hearty laughter.

“Haha! A royal command, indeed!”

After laughing for a while, Sejong looked at the ministers.

“As expected of the Crown Prince’s children, don’t you think they show promise?”

Meng Sasung immediately answered Sejong’s question.

“That is correct. Even though they haven’t even opened their eyes properly, they know the weight of the royal command, so they are not ordinary.”

The ministers nodded at Meng Sasung’s words.

Listening to the ministers’ words and mulling over the situation, Sejong smiled and looked at the ministers.

“Don’t you think it will be fun to raise them? I’m already worried about who to entrust as 빈객(royal tutor) [royal tutor].”

“Aren’t you getting ahead of yourself?”

Sejong laughed and replied to Lee Jik’s question.

“That’s true, but I keep getting impatient. They’re already showing such outstanding qualities.”

The ministers muttered inwardly at Sejong’s 팔불출(doting fool) [doting fool] appearance.

‘Why do I feel sorry for the young masters?’

* * *

As time passed, the story of what happened during the delivery process was also known to the people of Hanseong [old name for Seoul].

“…So, when the Crown Prince said, ‘If you don’t want to be beaten with 치도곤(royal punishment) [royal punishment] by royal command, come out immediately!’ the young masters came out right away?”

The men gathered around, listening to the words of Jang Seo-bang, a well-known talker in the neighborhood, all nodded with surprised faces.

“Heo~. Do they already understand words? Amazing!”

Jang Seo-bang rebuked the neighboring man’s words.

“Hey! Whose 씨(seed) [seed, referring to lineage] do the young masters have? Isn’t it the Crown Prince? Isn’t he the one who makes all sorts of 신묘한 기물(mysterious devices) [mysterious devices] and solves 난제(difficult problems) [difficult problems] without hesitation? How could the 씨(seed) [seed, referring to lineage] he gave be ordinary?”

The gathered people all nodded at Jang Seo-bang’s words. Even among the general public – at least the residents of Hanseong – Hyang’s 비범함(extraordinary ability) [extraordinary ability] was widely known.

“And, didn’t he say royal command? No matter how young the young masters are, how could they not know the fear of the royal command?”

The gathered people all nodded at Jang Seo-bang’s words.

* * *

One of the things that Joseon emphasized most when it was founded was 법치(rule of law) [rule of law]. The first thing that Joseon created when it was founded was a 법전(legal code) [legal code], and judicial processing could not be done at the discretion of the magistrate. No matter how perfunctory it was, it had to be based on the 법전(legal code) [legal code], and all such actions were written in a report and sent to the king.

Therefore, most of the actions of Joseon people had to follow the 율령(laws and ordinances) [laws and ordinances], and the most frightening and heavy of these 율령(laws and ordinances) [laws and ordinances] was the 어명(royal command) [royal command].

The weight of this 어명(royal command) [royal command] also exerted power in 무속신앙(shamanistic beliefs) [shamanistic beliefs].

For the simplest example, when people moved or newly dug toilets in their homes, they shouted the following to avoid the wrath of 측신(toilet god) [toilet god, the god who protects the toilet]:

“어명이오!(It’s a royal command!) [It’s a royal command!]”

In other words, it was a sound that meant not to be angry because the toilet was being moved or newly dug by the king’s command. This was the idea that even 영험한 신(efficacious gods) [efficacious gods] had to follow the king’s command.

* * *

However, there were always 회의주의자(skeptics) [skeptics] among people.

“Eh~. Isn’t that too exaggerated? No matter how 비범(extraordinary) [extraordinary] they are, they are still 핏덩어리 아기씨(newborn babies) [newborn babies] who can’t even open their eyes yet, so how can they understand words? It must be a coincidence.”

Jang Seo-bang 발끈했다(got angry) [got angry] at the 지적(pointing out) [pointing out] of 강 서방(Gang Seo-bang) [Gang Seo-bang], who was a 회의주의자(skeptic) [skeptic].

“Hey! Have you already forgotten what I said earlier? Whose 씨(seed) [seed, referring to lineage] do those young masters have? It’s the Crown Prince! The Crown Prince! That 양반(gentleman) [gentleman] who had already mastered 사서삼경(the Four Books and Three Classics) [the Four Books and Three Classics] at the age of four and made the 빈객(royal tutors) [royal tutors] noses flat before he was six! How could the 씨(seed) [seed, referring to lineage] be ordinary?”

“No matter how good the 씨(seed) [seed, referring to lineage] is, there is a limit to people…. The young masters are not Buddha….”

Veins popped out on Jang Seo-bang’s 이마(forehead) [forehead] at 강 서방(Gang Seo-bang)’s 반론(rebuttal) [rebuttal].

“Are you saying that I’m talking nonsense now?”

“It’s not that, it’s just that the exaggeration is a bit 심하다(excessive) [excessive].”

“Hey! There are dozens of people who saw it! I also heard it through someone who works in the palace!”

“Who works in the palace?”

“You don’t need to know that!”

“Who is it?”

“I said you don’t need to know!”

강 서방(Gang Seo-bang) [Gang Seo-bang] kept asking, but 장 서방(Jang Seo-bang) [Jang Seo-bang] firmly 함구했다(kept silent) [kept silent] about that part.

The reason why 장 서방(Jang Seo-bang) [Jang Seo-bang] had no choice but to do so was because the source of the story was 과부 홍씨(widow Hong) [widow Hong], who worked as a 무수리(laundry woman) [laundry woman] in the palace. 장 서방(Jang Seo-bang) [Jang Seo-bang] and 홍씨(Hong) [Hong] were 썸을 타는 사이(flirting) [flirting]. The problem was that 장 서방(Jang Seo-bang) [Jang Seo-bang] was 유부남(married man) [married man]. If the truth was 들키면(found out) [found out], it would be a 피바람(bloodbath) [bloodbath], so 장 서방(Jang Seo-bang) [Jang Seo-bang] firmly 입을 다물었다(shut his mouth) [shut his mouth].

Anyway, the story about the delivery spread beyond the capital and throughout Joseon.

Many people who heard the story 축하하는 한편(congratulated) [congratulated] Hyang on the birth of his sons, while 기대했다(looked forward to) [looked forward to] what would happen next.

“Will there be a discount event at the 전매소(monopoly store) [monopoly store] this time too?”

* * *

Hello?

This is 국뽕(Gukbbong) [Gukbbong], who is writing 블랙기업조선(Black Company Joseon) [Black Company Joseon].

Thanks to your prayers for her recovery, my sister has been moved to a general ward. We are still cautiously monitoring the situation, and related procedures will continue as her strength recovers. However, her consciousness has returned and she is much better.

Thank you. All of this is thanks to the wishes of our readers.

Although I am still worried, I will work harder to repay you with hope.

Gukbbong Dream.