There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 2

「Fog descends, and a quince-sized meteor appears in the night.」

[This quote describes an unusual celestial event, likening the meteor’s size to a quince, a type of fruit.]

– Annals of King Taejong, 2nd year (1402), October 25th, Eulhae 1st entry

===

I opened my eyes to sunlight streaming in.

“Just five more minutes…”

I mumbled, turning over, but quickly shook my head and sat up.

“…Where am I?”

An unfamiliar ceiling greeted me. A delicate tea scent, unlike any lodging I knew, drifted in the air. Beyond the paper door, shadows flickered in the wide room.

“When did I come back to Korea?”

Disbelieving, I rubbed my eyes with slender fingers.

‘Wait, slender?’

Something felt wrong. I looked down at my hands.

“Aren’t these baby hands?”

Not quite an infant’s, but the hands of a much older child. Still, a far cry from my own calloused and rough hands, earned from a life of hard work.

Now, my hands were fair and soft, untouched by hardship. Moreover, they were much smaller than they should be.

I tried to recall the previous night.

I was lying down, watching the night sky after finishing a drama. I remember lamenting the thought of returning to Korea when a shooting star streaked across the sky.

“Ugh…”

As I dug into my memories, a sudden headache struck.

The memory of last night was just a fragment, but the process of recalling the past didn’t stop there. Memories began to flood my mind, unbidden.

Memories that weren’t originally mine.

Amidst the chaos, I repeated the first name that surfaced.

“Yi, Je (禔)?”

I knew that name.

‘Surely, that was the given name of Grand Prince Yangnyeong from the drama.’

It was fortunate I hadn’t missed a single episode of 「The Land of the Morning Calm」. [A fictional historical drama.] At least I hadn’t forgotten that name.

It could be someone with the same name, but the chances were slim.

Absurd as it was, the newly implanted memories clearly indicated that the owner of this body was none other than Grand Prince Yangnyeong, Yi Je.

“Haha, ridiculous…”

A shooting star fell when I wished I didn’t have to go back to Korea yesterday.

But did that really cause me to end up here?

“Damn it!”

I cursed under my breath and scratched my head vigorously.

What kind of person was Grand Prince Yangnyeong?

The Joseon royal family’s scoundrel, a degenerate son, a backstabber who betrayed his brother, a womanizer.

A man with every negative label imaginable.

If not for Taejong and Sejong’s leniency, his head would have been lopped off immediately.

I looked at my soft hands and sighed.

‘At least it’s a relief that I look young.’

My memories were muddled, so I couldn’t estimate my exact age, but I looked to be around an elementary school student.

Even if he was a complete scoundrel, Grand Prince Yangnyeong wouldn’t have caused any major incidents at such a young age.

‘…Right?’

Logically, I believed that to be the case.

Please.

Only after roughly grasping the situation did my surroundings finally come into focus.

Scattered bedding, a basin full of water and a wet towel, and a few needles.

And behind them, a beardless young man was dozing off against the wall.

“Umm…”

In my bewildered state, I poked him, and the young man quickly rubbed his eyes and stood up.

“Ahem, is it already time for the shift to end…? Huh, Your Highness the Heir Apparent!”

The young man was horrified and prostrated himself.

He seemed to be a eunuch attending to me.

“Are, are you feeling better? I must have fallen asleep without realizing it, having nursed Your Highness all night! Please, kill me!”

The young man slammed his head against the floor as he spoke, which only made me more flustered.

‘What’s wrong with this guy?’

“H-How is your condition?”

At my question, the young man exclaimed.

“Do you not remember? You lost consciousness for several days after a meteor fell from the sky!”

Grand Prince Yangnyeong lost consciousness?

Did such a thing happen in the original history?

My head was spinning from the flood of information, so I put a finger to my lips, signaling him to be quiet.

The beardless young man reflexively followed my action.

“Quiet.”

Now I can finally ask questions slowly.

I took a deep breath and asked.

“Who are you? Where is this? No, more importantly, what year is it?”

The eunuch stared at me for a moment with a bewildered expression before bowing his head.

“Your Highness, this is the fourth year of Jianwen, no, the thirty-fifth year of Hongwu (1402). And this is Sijwa Palace in Gaeseong. And I am Nobun (盧犇), your close attendant eunuch.”

“……”

My head spun with the different dating system from modern times.

‘It changed from Jianwen to Hongwu?’

I don’t have deep knowledge of history, but I watched 「The Land of the Morning Calm」 and Jinhyuk-hyung made me study history whether I wanted to or not, so I had a rough idea about this period.

– The Prince of Yan has newly ascended to the throne in the Central Plains, so we must abolish the original era name and use the Hongwu era name again until this year. Let us use the Yongle era name from next year.

The famous Yongle Emperor had just overthrown his nephew and ascended to the throne.

So, roughly that time.

The realization that I had fallen into the Joseon Dynasty washed over me once again, making me feel terrible.

“Damn it!”

If it was going to grant my wish, it should have granted my wish to win the lottery.

Did it treat that as a wish and grant it?

I was complaining to the shooting star that didn’t even properly grant the user’s wish, but poor Nobun turned pale.

“P-Please, kill me!”

– Thump, thump!

Nobun slammed his head against the floor again.

“Ah, damn it. I get it, so stop that, no, look here. Why are you hurting yourself?”

Annoyed by his continued self-harm, I asked, and Nobun cautiously raised his head and answered.

“Has Your Highness not commanded that if a servant does wrong, they must beg for forgiveness in this manner?”

So, I was the one who ordered that?

‘Yangnyeong was Yangnyeong since he was a little kid.’

As I delved into the memories of this body, Nobun’s words were correct.

Not only that.

There were memories of slapping a court lady repeatedly for not combing his hair properly, telling a eunuch to hide his books because he didn’t want to study and then blaming him, and even ordering someone to eat poop just for fun.

‘He was rotten from the start?’

They say a child who isn’t disciplined is bound to go astray, but he was already showing signs of his misdeeds from such a young age?

‘Well, if he wasn’t such a failure, the third son wouldn’t have become king instead of the eldest son.’

– From our perspective, isn’t it fortunate that Yangnyeong was a scoundrel?

Jinhyuk-hyung’s words suddenly came to mind.

Now that I’m Yangnyeong, do I have to act like a scoundrel just like in history to make Sejong the king?

Just recalling the memories of the ill-mannered brat was enough to make my face flush, but me doing it myself?

The more I was lost in thought, the darker Nobun’s expression became.

I opened my mouth.

“The Heir Apparent is contemplating what creative punishment to inflict.”

“?”

“Is that what you’re thinking?”

At my question, Nobun turned pale and prostrated himself.

“How could that be! I will gladly accept whatever punishment you bestow upon me!”

No, he hit the nail on the head.

Otherwise, there’s no explanation for his contradictory words.

I sighed deeply.

“It’s okay, you can leave.”

“Yes?”

Nobun asked.

“I’m fine and my mind is clear. I have no intention of punishing you separately. I need to be alone for a while, so in the meantime, you can go call the royal physician or something.”

Nobun blinked in disbelief.

“Do I not have to stand upside down and bow for half an hour?”

“…Did I order you to do that too?”

What kind of posture is that?

I don’t need a grand bow or a dogeza [A Japanese term for prostration, often used to beg for forgiveness].

Seeing that I didn’t seem to be joking, Nobun finally obeyed the order.

“Then I will take my leave.”

As soon as he opened the sliding door and went outside, I heard a sigh of relief, “Phew,” from outside.

Is he that happy not to be mistreated by the Heir Apparent?

There are other eunuchs outside, but Nobun personally took the initiative.

I collapsed back down, feeling empty.

‘I have to live in an era without modern conveniences, without cigarettes, and even without a penis?’

In Africa, I at least got to eat Korean food that had been shipped over, but here, I’d have to cross the New World just to see a chili pepper.

‘At least it’s fortunate that I’m a prince.’

Even though I’m the worst of the worst, the senseless brat Grand Prince Yangnyeong.

Thinking that, I clenched my fist tightly.

‘It’s a hundred times better than being an unknown commoner A.’

Besides, even though the circumstances aren’t good in many ways, it’s also a land where I can achieve what I wanted in some ways.

‘From my perspective, there’s no difference between an underdeveloped country in Africa and Joseon! Isn’t this where I can do what I wanted to do to my heart’s content?’

Although there are many developed countries in Africa, the country I was in still had tribal societies. Starting from scratch and gradually developing a village was my specialty.

Even if this is Joseon in the early 15th century, what I have to do doesn’t change.

‘I will change the country, the lives of all people. With my own hands.’

As I thought that, I felt the pleasure I had already tasted several times rising up my spine again.

On a much grander scale than before.

– Thump, thump, thump

As I was envisioning the grand ‘Joseon Modernization Plan,’ I heard hurried footsteps.

‘Did Nobun bring the royal physician earlier than I thought?’

That’s what I expected, but that prediction was wrong.

The eunuch outside announced in a high-pitched voice.

“His Majesty the King is here!”

“?!”

His Majesty the King.

I abruptly sat up at the sudden visit.

Since I am Grand Prince Yangnyeong, the current king is obviously that person.

A wise ruler who laid the foundation for the revival of Joseon.

Taejong Yi Bang-won.

‘I’m meeting Yi Bang-won from the start?’

Yi Bang-won, as seen in 「The Land of the Morning Calm」, was like a sharp, blue-edged sword itself.

I thought I would delve into my memories a bit more and organize my thoughts before facing him, but to encounter him from the very beginning.

Before the eunuch could finish speaking, the door burst open.

A man with a cold impression.

“……”

I swallowed hard as I looked at Yi Bang-won’s face.

The charisma of the actor who played him was no joke, but the real Yi Bang-won was even more so.

Sharp eyes and a coldly set mouth.

He looked as if iron and blood were flowing from him.

Yi Bang-won, who was standing at the threshold, staring at me, suddenly strode towards me.

‘Ugh…?’

Just as I was tensing up at the momentum as if he was about to strangle me.

– Hug

“Wonja (Heir Apparent)!”

‘Huh?’

Yi Bang-won hugged me and exclaimed.

“You were alive!”

End

ⓒ Pitkong