There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 218

The highly anticipated first game was, in a way, a demonstration match before the official launch of the professional league.

The court officials each offered their commentary on the first game.

“Gyeokgu [a traditional Korean polo-like game] is a game enjoyed by military officers to easily learn horsemanship, not a spectacle to gather the entire capital’s population to enjoy. Yet, the country encourages wagering and competition, which is the beginning of corrupting the nation’s customs. You must strictly prohibit it even now.”

‘Are these guys the first ones to come out?’

Complaints erupted, mainly from the censors, but the majority of the court’s reaction was indifferent.

“I heard the Min faction won this game?”

“It was a pity. The Sim faction initially took the lead, but they couldn’t maintain their momentum until the end.”

“Isn’t this due to the difference in basic skills? I heard that State Councilor Sim isn’t very interested in Gyeokgu, so that must be the reason.”

“…I’ve had all the children in my family who are preparing for the military examination come out. Let’s see how well your family does.”

Luring in prestigious families who were known to have some influence was a stroke of genius.

They had been coaxed and persuaded to create teams for various reasons, but once they were created, it became a battle of pride.

Who would be crazy enough to spend a lot of money to create a Gyeokgu team and then pretend to be uninterested, saying, ‘Gyeokgu is not something a scholar should pay attention to’?

As a result, the censors’ arguments did not receive much support from them.

The only person the censors, with their few supporters, could turn to was one man.

“What do you think, Vice Minister of Rites?”

The censors looked at Heo Jo with hopeful eyes.

They were hoping that he, known for his stubbornness despite being a member of the Crown Prince’s faction, could put a stop to this craze.

“Hmm.”

Heo Jo nodded and said,

“Your Majesty, may I, Heo Jo, Vice Minister of Rites, speak?”

When Yi Bang-won readily gave his permission, Heo Jo stepped forward and said,

“In my opinion, gambling is a human instinct that cannot be prohibited. Selling Gyeokgu tickets is permitted by the country, and the accounting is transparent and fair, so there is nothing to hide. If this prohibition is strictly enforced, those who enjoy Gyeokgu will secretly gamble again, leading many heroes and talents to fall into sin.

In my opinion, abolishing Gyeokgu is not a good plan.”

At Heo Jo’s words, whom they had trusted, the censors looked at him with expressions as if the sky were falling.

‘Why do they look like they’ve been betrayed?’

Heo Jo may seem like a fuddy-duddy, but deep down, he’s quite open-minded.

I said to Yi Bang-won,

“The results of Gyeokgu are openly revealed under the clear sky and cannot be compared to the gambling in the marketplace, where fraud and trickery prevail.”

Unless match-fixing occurs, the results cannot be overturned.

In the back alleys, gambling is rampant with cheating, and there are cases where people are waylaid by thugs and cannot return home safely even after winning.

Wouldn’t it be better to have Gyeokgu, which has a reliable guarantee and the fun of enjoying it as a sport?

“Gambling is inherently a part of human nature and cannot be easily prohibited. Gyeokgu allows the country to secure revenue and manage the process cleanly, so how great is that?”

I presented the logic that Yi Cheon-woo had laid out to Yi Bang-won.

Then, the senior officials of the court nodded.

I looked at the censors with a triumphant expression.

However, an attack came from a place I did not expect.

“There is some truth in His Highness’s words.”

‘Of course, there would be.’

I am not a person who says things that are wrong.

“However, it must be pointed out that the King Emeritus [a retired king] has lost his dignity. There are rumors circulating that the King Emeritus engaged in bizarre behavior at the recent Gyeokgu match, so how can we not call this a problem with Gyeokgu?”

“……”

Ah.

I can’t refute that.

===

“This is the thrill of Gyeokgu!”

Yi Bang-gwa was excited, holding a megaphone and jumping around, yelling.

He abandoned his dignified(?) tone and was busy giving instructions, saying things like he should hit the ball as he pleased and actively take up space.

Yi Bang-gwa was probably the happiest person to hold the Gyeokgu tournament.

Since the association president was acting like that, no one else could say anything.

‘No, looking at this scene, are these people also enjoying it?’

“Hey, you guys! If you’re going to play like that, give me back the money I bet!”

“We can’t go home until we win!”

Whether it was because Yi Bang-gwa acted so freely that others were influenced, or whether this was the original spectator culture of this era, I don’t know.

“Isn’t that because there’s money involved?”

I felt a little dizzy in the midst of the shouting and throwing trash from all directions.

“Who is that guy cheering on top of the platform?”

He seems young, but he’s got guts.

I need to catch him and give him a scolding.

“That is…”

No-bun lowered his head and answered,

“It’s Grand Prince Hyoryeong.”

I rubbed my forehead.

I wondered why I didn’t see him this morning.

He secretly skipped his studies and came here to enjoy the game.

‘What’s going to become of this family.’

“Seeing this, it seems that money isn’t the only thing that makes people like this.”

He grew up without envying others, so he wouldn’t be doing this because of money.

Maybe it’s just pure fandom.

But that guy isn’t cheering for the Han team.

‘Then we’re enemies.’

I need to remember that.

===

“……”

King Emeritus’s wife, Lady Kim, had always treated our brothers with a benevolent attitude, but today her gaze was cold.

The Queen Emeritus silently stared at me.

“It’s a big problem that the King Emeritus goes out to the stadium almost every day.”

I lowered my head.

Because I had nothing to say.

To be honest, Yi Bang-gwa’s behavior was such that there was no room to defend him.

There were already many comments here and there that he had lost his dignity.

But the King Emeritus didn’t seem to care.

I guess he has the mindset that he doesn’t need to manage his image since he’s retired.

‘People who like Gyeokgu seem to like my great-uncle’s eccentric behavior…’

You can shout and cheer while watching sports.

But it’s a bit much for the association president to hold a megaphone and do that himself.

“I will come up with a countermeasure, nephew.”

The King Emeritus told me to trust him, but in the end, I’m the one who has to clean up the mess.

I immediately started to come up with a plan.

“There are many inquiries about whether gongs and drums can be brought into the stadium.”

“Hmm.”

There’s no reason why I can’t allow it, but…

‘I can imagine it, I can imagine it.’

It seems impossible to have normal cheering in the current situation, right?

But the idea of bringing in instruments did give me an idea.

‘I’ll establish a proper cheering culture in this country.’

Thinking that, I looked around and said,

“Go to the Royal Music Academy and call some people.”

Strictly speaking, this is being done without the approval of my great-uncle, the association president, but there shouldn’t be any problems.

That’s because he doesn’t intend to act like a real power figure.

===

Until now, the situation was that the league’s performance and public interest were being raised through the teams’ practice matches before the professional launch.

But this game is literally the league’s opening game.

As such, Yi Bang-won, and the King Emeritus and Queen Emeritus all attended in person.

‘It’s an important event from a national perspective.’

Of course, the Gyeokgu game itself was not important enough to have three kings and the Crown Prince attend in a row.

It was only because of Yi Seong-gye and Yi Bang-gwa’s love for Gyeokgu that they all came out.

Conversely, because three kings attended, it forcibly became a national event.

In any case, preparations could not be taken lightly.

– Bbiri! (Sound of music)

The female musicians from the Royal Music Academy danced in unison to the music being played.

People stared in awe at the splendidly fluttering hanboks [traditional Korean clothing].

“Hmm…”

“Hum…”

Some people let out uncomfortable sighs, but I didn’t care at all.

Music is a means of harmonizing etiquette, so isn’t it called etiquette and music?

So, originally, national events are accompanied by such dances and music.

From that point of view, the Royal Music Academy’s congratulatory performance is very natural for the people of this era.

‘You’re the weird ones.’

As I thought, most of the audience showed a crazy response.

The concentration in the stadium seemed to have doubled.

– Dum dum!

The sound of drums being beaten fiercely was heard, and those sent out by each team entered the space prepared in advance as a cheering section.

‘They’re from the Namsadang troupe [a traveling performance group], so they’re good at cheering.’

They were hitting the drums hard and inducing audience response, which was typical of people who made a living doing that.

‘Now it’s getting organized.’

Each person shouting and saying only what they want to say is not true cheering.

Right?

I glared at Grand Prince Hyoryeong, who was sitting next to me.

“H, Hyungnim [older brother] .”

I’m definitely not doing this because he cheered for his in-law’s team instead of the Han team.

“No excuses needed.”

Hyoryeong, who was sulking and lowering his head, was chewing on dried squid next to him.

It was food that No-bun had bought earlier.

Inside the stadium, there were people walking around with stalls selling food like this.

This was because I had decisively allowed it to maximize the stadium’s revenue.

I wonder if they would put poison in it since major figures like us are all here, but it’s okay because No-bun has already tasted it.

“The stadium seems to have changed a lot from before…”

I sighed at the King Emeritus’s words.

I handled everything without passing the association president, so it was bound to be surprising.

‘At this rate, even if I’m called a puppet association president, I’ll have nothing to say.’

Is it Yi Bang-gwa’s destiny to become a puppet in any world line?

My great-uncle would feel a sense of shame, but Yi Bang-gwa didn’t seem to care.

“Much… better… The stadium should be like this…”

He was just feeling proud as if he had accomplished all of this.

‘I didn’t even get his approval and proceeded with it, but he’s not angry.’

In the end, I didn’t go around getting Yi Bang-gwa’s permission while I was handling everything from start to finish.

The subordinates also followed my orders without asking Yi Bang-gwa.

‘Then what’s the point of him being in charge of the association?’

I tilted my head with a puzzled expression, but he didn’t say anything in particular.

However, I soon found out the reason.

“The ceremonial first pitch will be done by the honorable President of the Gyeokgu Association, King Emeritus!”

At the sound coming from the long copper megaphone, Yi Bang-gwa grinned and jumped up.

He entered the stadium as if flying, quickly got on a horse, and grabbed a Gyeokgu stick.

“Watch… carefully…!”

Yi Bang-gwa shouted that and cleanly hit the ball placed in front of him with the Gyeokgu stick.

The ball drew a beautiful arc and entered the gate.

– Swish!

The player blocking the front of the gate moved far away and only swung the stick after the ball went in.

“Waaaa!”

“King Emeritus!”

“Long live King Emeritus!”

The cheering sections of each team started beating the drums again, and Yi Bang-gwa waved his hand at the audience with a very excited expression.

“Hehehe…”

“Your Majesty can even play as a player!”

“Please teach our team a thing or two this time!”

Looking at the people who were crowding around Yi Bang-gwa and flattering him, I thought.

‘Ah.’

In fact, as long as he can get attention, he doesn’t care who holds the real power.

End

ⓒ Pitkong