There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 342

343. Counting Chickens

Ju Sohwa was holed up under her blanket.

“Is the news that Daenae’s daughter might enter the palace that shocking?”

“Of course. How can I watch my own child, whom I raised with such care, take a barbarian as a daughter-in-law?”

‘Coming from someone who married into a barbarian family, that’s rich.’

I grumbled inwardly and said,

Since everyone would be considered barbarians by modern standards anyway, shouldn’t we discard such narrow-minded views?

“The story has been twisted. There’s no intention to bring in a *Wa* [ancient Japanese] person as the Crown Princess.”

“Then, are they considering her as a concubine?”

“…It’s not confirmed yet.”

At my words, Ju Sohwa pouted and said,

“There seems to be a lot of talk about the royal marriage already. Wouldn’t it be better to bring in the Crown Princess from our own family?”

By ‘our own family,’ she naturally meant the Ming imperial family.

“If we choose from the Emperor’s daughters, their ages would roughly match.”

In terms of lineage, they would be like great-aunt and granddaughter, but Ju Sohwa would hate to hear that.

However, I wasn’t keen on that suggestion.

“If two Ming princesses come in, there might be some talk…”

Joseon officials have deeply ingrained trauma from the Yuan dynasty era.

Considering those who acted more like sons-in-law to the Yuan Emperor than kings of Goryeo, it’s understandable.

‘It’s a concern for me too.’

Right now, I’m the Emperor’s uncle-in-law, but Dan would become the Emperor’s son-in-law.

There’s a risk of becoming subordinate to the Ming imperial family’s affairs.

Like me, who inadvertently followed the lineage of in-law slayers, Dan might have to go to war to destroy his in-laws.

‘I want to prevent that.’

Moreover, they might try to tie him to a collateral princess under the pretext of being too closely related.

We don’t have to go far; even Emperor Yongle tried to pull such tricks.

It was only thwarted because Ju Sohwa fell for my fatal charm.

“Then what should we do? Father seems to be already eyeing potential candidates.”

The Crown Princess needs to be chosen quickly so that concubines can follow.

He must be trusting that the Crown Prince will produce offspring abundantly, compensating for my limitation of having only one legal wife.

‘Is having only one son still a source of anxiety?’

Dan is so healthy that he’s not under too much pressure, but we should also try to ease his burden as much as possible.

With that in mind, I burrowed into the blanket covering Ju Sohwa and said,

“I’ve heard that many noble families are already vying for the position of in-law.”

‘In my opinion, we should exclude daughters from overtly powerful families.’

Lee Bangwon must know that too, so he’s probably looking into families with prestige but not much real power.

‘Like the Jung Mong-ju family.’

I shook my head to clear away unnecessary thoughts.

That would create a truly remarkable marriage alliance.

No matter how shameless my father is, he wouldn’t consider such a thing.

“Anyway, I don’t know why we have to bring a *Wa* woman into the palace.”

Ju Sohwa said with a voice that was gradually losing its composure.

From her perspective, it’s a natural reaction, considering the prejudice that Japanese people don’t have properly established etiquette for women’s quarters.

Joseon women don’t know the classics either, so there’s nothing to say about that.

“I’ll take care of that.”

However, courtly intrigue cannot be swayed by the etiquette of the inner court.

Based on my brief historical knowledge that Toyotomi Hideyoshi unified Japan and invaded Joseon, the Ouchi clan eventually lost and disappeared into history or fell under his control.

So, if we occasionally give them red pills [favors or advantages] and use them as a breakwater, the chances of that happening will be low.

As part of that, bringing in an Ouchi girl as one of Dan’s concubines would be an acceptable level.

* * *

Now that the shogunate had broken off direct communication with Joseon, Ouchi Mitsuyo could no longer pretend and stay in Buyeo.

Ouchi Mitsuyo decided to return to the main family and convey this fact directly.

As expected, he was met with accusatory glances asking, ‘Why didn’t you prevent such a critical matter beforehand?’ but he tried to maintain his composure.

Even if those old men had been in Joseon, could they have prevented the agreement between the Joseon court and the shogunate?

Since he hadn’t returned empty-handed, he needed to calmly inform his uncle about this even more.

“The shogunate has finally revealed its true colors. With the trade with Joseon increasing daily, the shogunate’s direct exchange of trade ships means they intend to exclude us in the future.”

Even if the Ouchi clan buried their past grievances, they would inevitably continue to be checked by the shogunate, as they had grown significantly through trade with Joseon.

“Eventually, we will have to fight the shogunate.”

Ouchi Morimi nodded at Mitsuyo’s words.

“That is something we have long known.”

Ouchi Morimi had been steadily extending his power to the western provinces for that time.

However, he replied coldly.

“But even if we fight, we cannot guarantee victory. If we do not have a backup plan for that time, it will only be an empty warning.”

“Doesn’t my uncle know the strength of Joseon well?”

Ouchi Mitsuyo said.

The Ouchi family had been constantly striving to advance into Kyushu.

What drove the Shoni clan, once the greatest threat, to the brink of destruction? The Shibukawa clan, in charge of Kyushu Tandai [an administrative and military office in Kyushu], could hardly survive without Ouchi’s support.

“If we add Joseon’s [ancient Korean kingdom] assistance to this, we can take over all of Kyushu in four or five years.”

In southern Kyushu, there is the Ryukyu Kingdom, pouring all its national strength into building a fleet, and the Cheonghaejin [a major naval base during the Joseon dynasty] stationed there.

The Ouchi clan, with its Joseon connections, can pressure Kyushu from the north and south.

Moreover, if we gain the power of Joseon, we can cause a major upset in case of emergency.

“We are also gathering troops and sending them on Joseon ships, so we are well aware, but the current Joseon fleet is the best in the world.

We can receive considerable help when aiming for Sangrak (上洛) [marching to Kyoto to seize power].”

Imagining the might of the Ouchi army marching to Kyoto to gain hegemony, Ouchi Mitsuyo’s words gained strength.

“If we completely take Kyushu into our hands and attempt Sangrak, we can greatly wash away the grudges of the past and seize the power of the world.

Even if things go wrong and we lose all the territory of Chugoku [region in western Honshu, Japan], we can base ourselves in Kyushu, blockade the sea with the help of the Joseon fleet, and plan for the future.”

“Hmm…”

Ouchi Morimi made a groaning sound.

“It seems you are right.”

Either way, when the time comes, we have to ride the tiger whether we like it or not.

What is there to fear about adding the stigma of colluding with Joseon when we are already subtly ostracized as a group of immigrants?

It may already be revealed that we have been trading gunpowder and weapons with Joseon.

‘The relationship with Joseon is our greatest strength.’

“However, if Joseon does not help, all your words are just empty talk. That’s why you are questioning the Joseon court’s acceptance of expanding communication with the shogunate, aren’t you?”

“It is only that the Joseon King temporarily granted the shogunate’s request due to various circumstances, but rather, they have provided us with an opportunity to have a deep relationship with the royal family.”

“An opportunity to have a deep relationship with the royal family?”

“Yes. We have received a positive response to the idea of sending a child of our clan as a concubine to the Joseon Crown Prince.”

This was not included in the national letter, and it was only a verbal nuance, but Ouchi Mitsuyo emphasized those words in particular.

“A concubine.”

“I didn’t expect it either, so I said I would ask for my uncle’s permission, but if my uncle allows it, we can wait for the Crown Prince to grow up and proceed.”

Ouchi Morimi nodded.

The Crown Prince is the heir to Joseon and also inherited the blood of the Ming imperial family.

It was a bit disappointing that she was not considered as a candidate for the main wife, but it was still an attractive proposal.

“Well, it doesn’t matter if she’s not the main wife. If she can only receive favor, she can give birth to a healthy son and establish him as the heir.”

In Joseon, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children is clear due to strict Confucian patriarchal order and Yi Bang-won’s contempt for illegitimate children, but in Japan, it is not to that extent.

‘My grandson could become the King of Joseon…’

In Ouchi Morimi’s view, Joseon was an unimaginably great country.

A country that can send troops armed with firearms to the sea ten thousand miles away.

A country that can send ships to terrify even barbarians whose whereabouts are unknown.

Moreover, they obtained a large land in the north as a reward for subduing the rebels of the Ming Dynasty, so, to exaggerate a bit, their power is shaking the world.

‘If a child born like that comes forward to help their maternal family, there could be nothing better.’

Ouchi Morimi thought so.

If we consider it that way, it doesn’t necessarily have to be his own daughter.

The important thing is to please the Crown Prince and the Joseon royal family, so we must search the family thoroughly and select a qualified child.

If Ije had seen it, he would have been drinking a bowl of kimchi soup and clicking his tongue, but they did not know it yet.

‘Fortunately, I won’t suffer a major blow.’

Ouchi Mitsuyo sighed and thought.

If it happens, he will be the top contributor to this marriage, and even if it falls through, it will be a few years after the Crown Prince’s wedding, so he can make a suitable excuse at that time.

Ouchi Mitsuyo inwardly overcame the crisis.

* * *

While the story related to marriage is hotly debated in both Joseon and Ouchi, a shift in power was slowly taking place in the inner court.

Court ladies who have not become Sang-gung [high-ranking court ladies] are called Hang-ah.

Hang-ah is a legendary fairy who lives in the Moon Palace (月宮) [traditional name for the lunar palace in East Asian folklore], so it is called that way to evoke the fantasy of court ladies serving the royal family.

But reality is always far from fantasy.

Especially these days, the gap in perception was severe.

“These days, the Hang-ah who guard His Majesty’s residence…”

“Huh?”

“Don’t they seem more like Hang-woo [Korean wrestlers] than Hang-ah?”

“Shhh, don’t say unnecessary things.”

Shouldn’t a court lady, especially a court lady serving the King, be beautiful enough to please the high-ranking people?

However, only burly women are serving the King’s close proximity, so it was easy to mistake them for Gapsa [elite soldiers] disguised as women for security.

Wise people who realized whose will was involved kept their mouths shut.

‘The Queen’s selfishness is a little involved.’

In the original history, Yi Bang-won mentioned the abolition of Queen Wongyeong to her, and a power game was fiercely fought in the inner court, including intervening in the inner court and replacing court ladies against the rules, but it is different here.

Due to the intervention of Ije, who was the Crown Prince, the conflict between the two did not lead to a breakdown, and Queen Wongyeong’s control of the inner court was further strengthened.

But even the moon wanes when it is full.

From the beginning, she had seized the inner court according to the plans of many sons, and since the Sangwang [retired king] had already given the throne to his son, Queen Wongyeong had to gradually hand over the inner court to Queen Juso-hwa.

Juso-hwa, who inherited the women’s association and seized the personnel rights of the inner court, immediately carried out personnel changes.

Before Ije could even realize it, he was surrounded by court ladies with physiques no less than those of Gapsa.

The attempt to block other women from interfering was moderately successful.

Anyway, such personnel reassignments are essential in the process of power shifting, and apart from Juso-hwa’s trivial (?) jealousy, no particularly unfair measures were taken.

However, there are always those who feel pushed back and dissatisfied every time.

And as people in this era often do, there were bound to be some court ladies with extraordinary guts.