There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 350

351. Produce Crown Princess (1)

“Are you… are you sure it’s okay for us to write an article like this?”

“Ahem, since ancient times, people have sought out renowned figures to have their strengths and weaknesses, abilities, and character fairly evaluated. What we are doing now is nothing more than updating that old practice for the modern era. What’s the problem with that?”

“I mean, she’s going to be the Queen of the nation. I’m just wondering if we should be wielding our pens so freely.”

His subordinates still looked uneasy, but Min In-saeng was different.

He was the type who had never written an article while worrying about what others thought. Even when it seemed like a precarious tightrope walk to others, he had no intention of backing down.

“This family approached us first for an interview. What’s the problem with that?”

Since the emergence of Yeoheung Soonbo [a privately published gazette], similar publications, though slightly smaller in scale, had been appearing one after another.

However, there had been no noticeable developments in their format.

Yeoheung Soonbo and its imitations still borrowed their format from the Jobo [official government gazette], with most articles written in the style of ‘It is discussed in the Jodang [government meeting],’ ‘It is said in the Jobo,’ or ‘It is rumored that…’

In other words, the concept of an interview had not yet emerged.

However, as this selection process garnered public attention, and as certain ladies were being touted as potential candidates for the Queen, the story changed.

“My daughter is not lacking in looks or character, so why is everyone only looking for a lady from the Jeong family?”

“Tell Minister Min of the Soonbo to see me! How dare the family of His Majesty’s maternal relatives write articles so biasedly!”

Complaints poured in from all directions, but ‘Minister Min of the Soonbo’ welcomed them with open arms.

“You seem quite disappointed. However, I know nothing about the young lady of your household. If her father would explain her upbringing and talents in detail, there would be no reason not to include her story as well.”

“Hmm…!”

Thus, several interviews were arranged.

– Question: What talents does the young lady of your household possess?

– Answer: My niece is still young, but she is very skilled at embroidery. She has single-handedly created the incredibly difficult Sagye Bun-gyeong (Four Seasons Bonsai), so that speaks for itself.

– Although we were unable to meet her in person due to the strict family customs, the young lady, who was listening to the interview from beyond the screen, was as composed as many had described.

Her humble nature prevents her from boasting even to her family, truly befitting a descendant of a prestigious family…

As favorable articles poured out for those who had initially agreed to the interviews, even families who had previously refused interviews could not help but feel tempted.

‘Could this be…?’

‘I was cautious, fearing I would be scolded for being frivolous, but was this not the time?’

Even if it meant falling out of favor with the royal family, it couldn’t be helped.

After all, only one person would be selected as the Crown Princess. The rest, having failed to pass through that needle’s eye, would have to marry into other families.

Therefore, the opportunity lay in the time when Yeoheung Soonbo was running around writing articles for the selection process.

Yeoheung Soonbo was renowned as a gazette for the Sarim literati [a faction of Confucian scholars].

If they could get an article that praised their daughter to the skies, wouldn’t the prestigious families of the capital, who had been unaware of their daughter’s beauty and talent, suddenly take notice?

With that in mind, it was only natural that they would be willing to take a slight risk and agree to an interview.

“Ahem, you must be busy, but thank you for coming all the way here. Go inside and have a drink with this [likely referring to a bribe].”

“Oh my, thank you very much!”

“While you’re writing the article, please include a story I heard.

The elder of the Kwon family, who was also selected for the selection process, is said to be very fond of courtesans, and he has often chased them away with scolding when they came to collect overdue debts.”

“We’re a little hesitant to criticize other families’ daughters, even if it’s for an article about your daughter…”

“Ahem, I’m not making things up. How can such a person become the father-in-law of the nation? I’m saying this out of pure patriotic loyalty.”

Amidst all the black propaganda, the major shareholder, Min Mu-gu, had to step in to cut it off.

“What talent is embroidery for a court lady? My daughter should be able to read lines of text like a woman.”

“Bah, what’s so great about reading Hangul [Korean alphabet]? A woman reading is less useful than embroidery.”

“What era are you living in! Doesn’t your wife attend the women’s association? These days, women are encouraged to learn letters and arithmetic to manage the household well.”

In this mud fight, the ones who benefited were those who had long been sucking honey [enjoying the benefits] and staying out of it.

The royal family’s favor was inversely proportional to this chaos, and it was bound to be concentrated on those individuals.

* * *

‘Why are they making such a fuss about choosing my daughter-in-law?’

Originally, there was quite a bit of interest in who would become the Queen, but this level of fervor was quite unexpected.

It seemed to be because of Juliet, who was among the candidates.

Her family’s wealth didn’t seem to be as great as the other families, so she was also playing the Cinderella position. Cinderella was actually a noble lady, after all.

Underdogs always receive people’s support.

Moreover, I liked that she had quietly refused interviews, even though Yeoheung Soonbo had initially focused on her.

I didn’t particularly intend to punish the friends who were doing interviews, but it wasn’t good to be too noisy.

“The people seem very interested in this selection process.”

“It’s understandable. Isn’t this the first selection process held by the nation?”

By chance, I had brought my wife from Ming China, and the three previous kings were not destined to become kings in the first place.

When they ascended the throne, there were already people who would occupy the Queen’s position.

Therefore, this was the first public selection of the Queen.

Not only the people, but also the Sarim literati, whose interests were intricately intertwined, were the most interested in this.

I asked my younger brother,

“Who are you supporting?”

Then Do-ga slightly raised his glasses and said,

“Of course, it’s my in-laws… um, please keep it a secret from my father-in-law.”

“I won’t tell.”

“Actually, it doesn’t matter if she fails.”

Since his success was guaranteed as my younger brother, it meant that if the Cheongsong Shim clan entered as the Crown Princess and got involved in politics, it would only splash mud on his future.

“Perhaps the Sarim literati’s opinion is similar.”

According to him, the reaction to this selection process was diverse.

The wise ones who wanted to avoid the risk of marrying their daughters into the family of a father-in-law slayer.

Or those who wanted to continue their power by holding onto the Crown Prince.

Those who didn’t have daughters to marry off or who had failed in this selection process, but couldn’t bear to see their competitors succeed.

“Perhaps the first or third group would prefer a family with no power to enter as the Crown Princess.”

“Public opinion is…”

I clicked my tongue.

In the end, it would be decided by my political needs.

Looks and whether the family was likely to produce many children would also be important considerations, but the fact that I would decide the opponent would not change.

“Still, wouldn’t it be better to have a Queen who is loved rather than hated?”

“Is that so?”

My ears perked up.

Considering that when Yi Bang-won only gave a hint, the officials moved like a swarm of bees to impeach the Min clan, the in-laws also had to manage their image well.

‘That goes for the royal family as well.’

Suddenly, I wondered what my image was like.

“A tyrant who throws people into the gulag at the slightest provocation?”

I vividly remembered the times when I had suffered from such absurd misunderstandings.

Then Do-ga smiled and waved his hand.

“Brother, that was a long time ago.”

“Right? Those ridiculous rumors have died down now, haven’t they?”

“Well… there are still rumors like that, but the people will still like you, Brother.”

“Damn it!”

I thought I was the greatest ruler in this country, ever.

Just looking at my predecessors, there were two traitors and one puppet king.

No, even if I went back to the Goryeo Dynasty, I would have to go back to before the era of the military dictatorships to find kings with good reputations.

I was worried that I would be remembered as a tyrant who had achievements but no popularity, citing ‘public opinion of the time’.

‘No, that can’t be.’

I’ve done so much for this country.

I should be evaluated by the true public sentiment, not by the gossip that some haters wrote in their collections.

‘Should I conduct a public opinion poll this time?’

* * *

The first public opinion poll in Joseon was conducted during the reign of Sejong regarding the implementation of the Gongbeop (貢法) tax system.

It was a large-scale public opinion poll conducted over five months, targeting 172,806 people in all eight provinces of Joseon.

Even in this era, public opinion was an element that could not be ignored.

Mencius said, ‘Heaven sees with the eyes of the people, and hears with the ears of the people (天視自我民視, 天聽自我民聽)’.

Therefore, Sejong conducted a public opinion poll to overcome the opposition of his officials to the Gongbeop and used the results as a basis.

Of course, that didn’t mean he went around asking for public opinion every time he implemented other policies. It was merely a means to push through the implementation of the Gongbeop, but it clearly showed that public sentiment was providence.

However, providence exists for those who cannot live without clinging to it.

‘If I prove it with results, the people will follow.’

If the results are good, public sentiment can be reversed at any time. Asking the people for their trust is a procedure necessary only for politicians in democratic countries.

Therefore, I no longer had any intention of conducting that kind of public opinion poll.

‘Wouldn’t it be better to do something else with that money?’

Even when I decided to conduct a public opinion poll, the same was true.

‘I can’t do a full survey of all the residents of the capital.’

As Hanyang [old name for Seoul] grew and the population continued to increase, and as population surveys became more sophisticated, the population of the capital, as identified by the court, was about 200,000.

It would cost a lot of money and time to conduct a public opinion poll by searching every house in Hanyang.

‘Besides, there’s no need to do that.’

No matter how large the population becomes, if you secure a certain number of samples properly, you can survey public opinion with a small margin of error.

Lee Je knew only the level of knowledge of probability and statistics he had learned in high school, but surprisingly, the Jiphyeonjeon (Hall of Worthies) [royal research institute], which was in charge of the survey, quickly understood.

“Are you saying that by surveying only a portion, you can know the overall public opinion so accurately with an error of about 3 pun (分) [a unit of measurement]? What is the basis for this…?”

“I see! It must be correct because it is based on His Majesty’s brilliant calculations!”

Jeong In-ji tilted his head as if he didn’t understand, but the people next to him hurriedly blocked his mouth.

If they didn’t follow Lee Je’s words, they would have to go to each and every house in Hanyang, so they were automatically persuaded.

However, even if they surveyed only a thousand people as a sample, it seemed clear that a considerable amount of manpower would be required.

Therefore, Lee Je brought in Yeoheung Soonbo.

The Jiphyeonjeon would oversee the public opinion poll, and Yeoheung Soonbo would provide the manpower.

And of course, Yeoheung Soonbo very gladly ‘cooperated’ with this.

* * *

‘As expected, the people like me.’

Seeing the article plastered on the front page of the Soonbo, my heart automatically warmed.

The article said that the vast majority of the capital’s people were satisfied with my reign.

“…Wouldn’t they naturally answer that way if someone suddenly came and asked them what they thought of His Majesty’s rule?”

“Quiet.”

It is said that even the king is cursed in places where there is nothing, so what else could this be if not real public opinion?

Above all, the Veritable Records [official historical records] will record that I was a king who received 99% support. Even if you ask the question of whether 1+1 is 2, you won’t get this kind of ratio.

‘Public opinion polls are fun.’

I should conduct them whenever there are pending issues.

‘By the way, those Yeoheung Soonbo bastards.’

They did what they were told, but in the meantime, they also conducted a poll on the Crown Princess’s approval rating, and the entire second page was covered with graphs.

I wondered why they were cooperating so readily. This is what they were trying to do.

I slammed the Yeoheung Soonbo shut. But then I slyly opened it again.

‘I’m curious, to be honest.’

Of course, I won’t reflect it. Really.

The selection process is originally based solely on the judges’ scores.