There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 212

“So, he finally withdrew from the new Jae-hwe [Student Council], returned to his studies.”

The Bureaucrats of the Old System, who had gathered again, couldn’t hide their dismay.

Unlike before, there were many empty seats, indicating that many had already realized things had gone wrong and fled.

Vice Commandant Yeom Chi-yong gnashed his teeth at the actions of the traitors.

‘Those bastards know the value of slaves but ran away because they didn’t want to be held accountable!’

They were the kind of people who would happily add a spoon once the work was done [take credit after the work is finished].

“All the Jae-im [Student Representatives] who independently carried out the public affairs have been voluntarily dismissed.”

“Fools, if the public affairs were going to fail, they should have stayed and protected the Jae-hwe…”

“Since they had already unconditionally declared public affairs, they would have had a poor excuse even if they had clung to Sungkyunkwan [Royal Academy].”

As soon as all the Jae-im left Sungkyunkwan, the Crown Prince ordered the formation of a new Jae-hwe as if he had been waiting for it.

The Jae-hwe that was formed was, literally, a puppet Jae-hwe.

The first thing they did was to declare a break with the previous Jae-hwe and withdraw all demands, so scholars with any sense of justice could only lament.

“Throughout history, kings have respected public opinion and guaranteed the independence of Sungkyunkwan, but today it has been reduced to a mere office of the Crown Prince.”

“The current Jae-hwe is a false Jae-hwe! We must somehow ensure that only the existing Jae-im are recognized through public opinion…”

“What justification do those who kicked Sungkyunkwan out with their own feet have to still call themselves Jae-im? Let’s not pay any more attention to them.”

They had already been reduced to students without any allies.

Most of the people gathered here had given up on them.

‘The problem is that Sungkyunkwan has been neutralized, so there’s no way to do anything about it…’

To touch the Crown Princess, and behind her, the Ming Dynasty, was something they had to risk their lives for.

So, they had tried to attack the Crown Princess by hiding behind public opinion, but since that had failed, the means to stop the abolition of slavery had disappeared.

“Then, should we get endorsements from the local gentry? They took the lead in the Daedong Law incident [a tax reform], so even a slight hint would get them to step forward.”

“Foolish talk. If that happens, the country will gladly punish them for treason.”

Students are students who will become the pillars of the country, so there would be hesitation in suppressing them, but the local gentry, whom the country is constantly looking for an opportunity to crack down on, would only get hurt.

Various plans were proposed, but they were soon refuted, so the discussion went nowhere.

“In the end, all of this is because of the Crown Prince.”

Yeom Chi-yong said irritably.

“When His Majesty swept away the treacherous subjects and ascended the throne, the country was upright. But what has happened since the Crown Prince grew up?”

He doesn’t study and only pays attention to the lowly work of merchants.

He follows the Grand King [Former King] and learns the unrestrained behavior of warriors.

Even the royal marriage, if he had quietly brought in a maiden from a good family, it would have been fine, but he must have wanted to imitate King Mu of Baekje [an ancient Korean kingdom], bringing in a princess from a great power.

Now, he is trying to shake the vested interests of this country with his in-laws behind him.

“There have been several reforms, but there has never been an attempt to shake the ownership of slaves by the gentry itself. How could this have happened if the Crown Prince hadn’t stirred things up?”

Yeom Chi-yong said so.

Then, former Minister Dang Seong, who was next to him, opened his mouth.

He was the one who had been dismissed for slandering the Byeonjeongdogam [Office for Rectifying Administration] as a Bujeongdogam [Office for Corrupt Administration] after losing a slave lawsuit during the reign of the Grand King, and he remained steadfastly in this position even though high-ranking officials were absent.

“But is it certain that the Crown Prince’s intentions are in line with His Majesty’s true intentions?”

Yi Bang-won [King Taejong] was clearly a very compromising person with the existing forces, at least until the beginning of his reign.

Of course, even then, a murderous aura was felt from time to time, but His Majesty was a rational person, so he would surely consider the proposals from the Crown Prince to be unreasonable.

“So, His Majesty only ordered an investigation of the government slaves and refrained from speaking about the abolition of slavery.”

Dang Seong’s words caused others to question.

“But His Majesty’s affection for the Crown Prince is so great, how could there have been no communication between His Majesty and the Crown Prince?”

However, this time, Yeom Chi-yong stepped forward to support Dang Seong’s claim.

“Although his affection is great, didn’t he once declare the abdication of the throne?”

The abdication commotion caused by Yi Bang-won was deeply imprinted in the minds of all the officials.

Even the Crown Prince’s maternal family was almost wiped out because of that.

“His Majesty was the one who made the Crown Prince kneel in front of Heejungdang [a building in the palace] and beg for forgiveness for days. So how can we say that His Majesty’s affection is only great?”

With that incident, Yi Bang-won properly disciplined his subordinates.

He showed the world that even the Crown Prince was merely one of his subjects.

But now that the Crown Prince has married a Ming princess, that structure is likely to be shaken once again.

‘Even King Chungnyeol and King Chungseon of the former dynasty engaged in all sorts of infighting to drive each other out.’

“Power cannot be shared even between father and son. How can His Majesty be happy to see His Highness’s authority grow?”

The story that Yi Bang-won had told in the past came out of Yeom Chi-yong’s mouth.

In the end, the state affairs of this country are decided by His Majesty.

“If we could know His Majesty’s true intentions…”

“Is it possible to reverse the situation at once?”

Yeom Chi-yong nodded and said.

“The Crown Prince’s duty is to study hard and learn the ways of governing, not to create factions and interfere in state affairs. But since that principle has now been violated, many scholars must work together to prevent the Crown Prince and his wife from interfering in state affairs.”

“That’s obvious, but will the Crown Prince accept those words willingly?”

Then, Yeom Chi-yong looked around and clenched his fist.

“This country belongs to His Majesty, and even if the Crown Prince is the son-in-law of a great power, he is only a son and a subject within Joseon.

But if the Crown Prince does not accept that he is a subject, shouldn’t we ask His Majesty to make a firm decision?”

“W-What does that mean?”

“It means we must change the Crown Prince.”

“······!”

Everyone was taken aback by his words, but Yeom Chi-yong took a deep breath and said.

“Although primogeniture is the principle, His Majesty also ascended the throne by choosing a virtuous person to inherit the throne due to his exhaustion.

Even before the current Crown Prince, there were three princes, but they died early, so he was inevitably called the eldest son. In reality, what is the difference between him and the legitimate Grand Princes below him?”

Yeom Chi-yong looked at his comrades and shouted fiercely.

Unlike the traitors who were not here, those who remained were those who had decided to risk their lives together to protect the sovereignty of Joseon, so there was no reason to hide their true feelings.

The comrades who heard Yeom Chi-yong’s words could not hide their surprised faces for a moment, but soon their eyes became serious.

The comrades exchanged glances and nodded.

They looked as if they had made a decision on his proposal.

‘As expected.’

Something hot surged from within Yeom Chi-yong’s heart.

No matter how chaotic the country may be, there are always scholars who will sacrifice their lives for such righteous deeds.

If he works with them, what would he regret even if he fails?

However, Yeom Chi-yong’s spirit did not last long.

The Uigeumbu [Royal Secret Police], having received reports from his colleagues, raided Yeom Chi-yong’s house the very next day.

It was a futile end, unlike the grand cause of gathering the public opinion of the literati to correct the country.

===

“Shouldn’t we punish all the Jae-im who left Sungkyunkwan?”

I gnashed my teeth at the Jae-hwe executives who incited the protests.

However, Yi Bang-won was indifferent.

“Those guys are just the henchmen. The real culprits are the bastards who don’t want to give up their slaves, who are whispering in their ears.”

Even if you catch a few students who have lost their backing and torture them, you can’t hit the main body in the end.

“Still, shouldn’t we hold them accountable for committing blasphemy?”

“If we do that, in the future, students will be afraid of being punished no matter what happens in the court, and they will bury their heads and only study books.”

“Isn’t that a good thing?”

At my question, Yi Bang-won snorted and said.

“Hmph, what use are those kinds of students?”

Hmm.

I think it would be better for them to shut up and study.

‘Strangely, you’re lenient in these areas.’

Blood is thicker than water, did Father do some protesting at Sungkyunkwan back in the day?

“Anyway, thanks to you, this abolition of slavery issue has been resolved smoothly.”

“I didn’t really do anything.”

If I had to say, it was just stopping the students’ protests?

Well, after crushing the students’ riot, things progressed smoothly.

Since the shadow of the Ming Dynasty was cast, others couldn’t move easily.

‘Wait, wasn’t this something you planned from the beginning?’

I narrowed my brows.

Yi Bang-won wanted to apply the clause in the Great Ming Code that ‘commoners cannot own slaves’ to Joseon as well.

However, if this were to happen, a nationwide backlash would be inevitable.

‘So, you passed it on to the Crown Prince…?’

At first, I thought you were trying to make me a scapegoat.

I don’t care who barks at me, so I said, ‘Go ahead.’

But the situation was different.

The policy of restricting slave ownership was clearly established by Yi Bang-won after receiving advice from Wang Ho.

Even then, only the investigation of the origins of government slaves was announced to the public.

Clearly, the issue of abolishing slavery, which should have been kept secret until the next step was taken, was leaked, and at some point, it became as if the Crown Princess had spread it.

And that suspicion became words such as ‘protecting slave sovereignty’ and ‘the Crown Princess’s involvement in state affairs.’

‘Could it be?’

Unable to bear the suspicion swirling in my heart, I opened my mouth.

“Where did the story that the Crown Princess petitioned for the abolition of slavery come from in the first place?”

I looked up at Yi Bang-won slyly, but he said without a change in expression.

“I wonder. I’m curious too.”

Yi Bang-won said with a faint smile on his face.

“Since they dared to slander my eldest daughter-in-law, I won’t kill them easily if I catch them.”

Just as I was about to say something, the voice of the eunuch Noh Hee-bong was heard from outside.

“Your Majesty, a Geumbu [Capital Police] officer has something urgent to report and has requested an audience.”

“Let him in.”

Yi Bang-won tapped the desk and said.

“It seems like the culprit has already been caught.”

===

“Your Majesty, I am not at fault!”

“The heinous words of changing the Crown Prince came only from the mouth of the traitor Yeom Chi-yong! I did not add a single word!”

“Enough! Can’t you all be quiet! If you have something to tell His Majesty, tell it during the interrogation!”

The Uigeumbu had only arrested Yeom Chi-yong and a few others who had not reported his words to the Geumbu.

However, even after they were imprisoned, the interrogation was not carried out for several days.

Instead, Yi Bang-won ordered the Dogwan [Chief] of the Ministry of Justice to resolve the slave issue ‘as written in the Great Ming Code’ while keeping them arrested, and a large-scale slave investigation was conducted from Hanyang [the capital].

The Shim family was nominally a meritorious family of a prestigious family, so the blade did not directly reach them, but Shim On quietly closed the door and stayed out of sight.

He continued to turn away even the guests who came to visit, using the excuse that he was ill.

However, even Shim On could not turn away this person.

“You seem to be fine, even though you said you were sick.”

Ha Ryun, who had come to greet him, greeted him sarcastically, and Shim On let out a long sigh.

“My illness may seem fine on the outside, but my condition is not good. I can’t entertain you for too long, so please understand.”

“Oh, is there a law that you should treat a guest so poorly?”

When Ha Ryun asked with a smile, Shim On replied irritably.

“As I said, I am sick…”

“But he is a guest who has come to save you, so please take a little more time.”

Ha Ryun looked at Shim On’s surprised face and asked.

“Do you know why Vice Commandant Yeom Chi-yong was taken to the Uigeumbu?”

End

ⓒ Pitkong