There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 447

448. Side Story – Legal High (1)

Around the time the Ottoman Empire was suddenly plunged into a fierce struggle for survival against armies pouring in from both East and West, a battle just as intense, though not bloody, was unfolding in the Joseon Empire.

“In private, he fostered harmony within his family, and in public, he dedicated himself to the nation and its ancestral shrines, leaving nothing more for him to desire in life. There’s no need for extravagant tombstones or burial mounds. It will be enough to bury him near our imperial family, alongside his mother who preceded him.”

“Father!”

Prince Jin, Yi Do, had passed away.

It’s said that in this world, people offer condolences when a minister’s dog dies but not when the minister himself dies, but that’s only true for those who have lost power. How much more, then, would people flock to the passing of a great statesman who, not only himself but also his children, had prospered and continued to enjoy good fortune while assisting his brother and nephew in benevolent governance for many years?

Many people gathered to bid farewell to this great statesman. Even Emperor Yi Dan himself came to mourn the death of his uncle, bestowing the posthumous title of King Munseong (文成王) [King of Accomplished Literature] to honor his achievements.

The one who succeeded him was Crown Prince Jin, Yi Hyang… but.

“Although the Crown Prince has come of age, he is still young, so you all must assist him well in managing the household.”

Not long after inheriting the title of Prince Jin, Yi Hyang also passed away.

Compared to the original history, medicine had advanced, and the concept of hygiene had greatly improved, so he didn’t die from something like a boil. Therefore, Yi Hyang enjoyed a fairly long life compared to the original history, but the problem was that his father, Yi Do, also lived a long life.

Because the lifespans of the two father and son were strangely extended by similar intervals, an unexpected series of deaths occurred. However, sorrow eventually fades.

The remaining descendants had to focus on a more important issue. It was the enormous inheritance left in the Jinwang household.

Now, it was an era when the tradition of equal inheritance remained, befitting the early Joseon period. Of course, a portion would go to the eldest son (宗主) [head of the family] to ensure the ancestral rites were properly performed, but it was reasonable to divide the remaining assets equally.

Originally, his father, Yi Do, was so prolific that he had dozens of descendants, including both legitimate and illegitimate children, but how much wealth did he possess during his lifetime?

Of course, it couldn’t compare to the Joseon imperial family, which was the head family (宗家) [main family line], but the lineage of Prince Jin, Yi Do, was also second to none in its nobility and wealth. Unlike the Ming Dynasty, where imperial family members received money from the country from time to time, the wealth that Grandfather Yi Je had given to his younger brothers was enormous, and the largest share of it was given to his father.

Moreover, the Joseon Biak Corporation was a cornucopia that literally printed money. Since it was a de facto public enterprise, others were in charge of management, but even inheriting a portion of its shares would be more than enough to live comfortably for generations.

“Wh-what?”

Grand Prince Suyang, Yi Yu, who had visited the royal residence where his nephew resided with such thoughts, felt a sudden stiffness in the back of his neck.

“Tell me again… what did you say?”

“As the late King originally stipulated when establishing the royal residence, the shares of Biak Corporation and Cheonghaejin were all attributed to the Jinwang household, so they are not the late King’s personal assets but assets belonging to the royal residence. Therefore, they are not subject to equal division.”

“Nonsense! His Majesty placed them in the Jinwang household for convenient management, not for the succeeding king (嗣王) [the king who inherited the throne] to act as he pleases!”

“That is not the case. If it were as Your Highness says, the shares would be divided into such small portions after only a few generations that it would be difficult to find any trace of them. Surely the wise King Munseong would have considered that as well?”

“So, you’re saying my nephew is going to take that great wealth for himself!”

When Yi Yu shouted, Park Paeng-nyeon, the chief administrator (長史官) [head clerk] of the Jinwang household, smiled awkwardly and said.

“As I mentioned, the rights to those shares rightfully belong to His Highness, the master of the royal residence, Prince Jin. However, His Highness has said that he will morally distribute an amount of money equivalent to those shares to his uncles…”

“You’re going to compensate the shares that can’t be bought with money with money?”

Yi Yu longed for the iron mace of his grandfather, Emperor Taejong. He seemed to have seen that iron mace in the imperial family’s armory. If he asked his cousin to lend it to him, wouldn’t he lend it to him?

“Where is my nephew? How can he do such a thing without consulting his uncles, who have taken care of all the household’s affairs!”

Even while Yi Yu was arguing with that treacherous Park Paeng-nyeon, he was even more displeased that his nephew didn’t even show his face.

“His Highness, Prince Jin, is temporarily away on urgent business.”

In the end, Yi Yu, who had retreated without even seeing his nephew’s face, burst into frustration at the injustice.

“How can a nephew betray his uncle like this?”

“Father, please calm down.”

“You’ll harm yourself if you continue like this!”

His two sons, Prince Dowon, Yi Jang, and Prince Haeyang, Yi Hwang, hurriedly stopped him as he was spewing out his anger. At this rate, they would end up holding a funeral for their father after their grandfather and uncle.

Yi Yu shook off his sons’ hands and said.

“The reason why this father is doing this is not for my own personal gain. What more wealth and honor would I enjoy at my old age? However, when I think about the future of you two and your descendants, this family cannot do this to me.”

The coup d’état instinct engraved at the DNA level pulsed through his veins, but it didn’t seem like anything would be resolved by taking an iron mace and smashing the heads of his nephew and the royal residence’s officials.

“A lawsuit, we must file a lawsuit. Tell Imyeong and Yeongeung to come too.

I have been serving Father since my brother was in Nanjing and managing the household’s affairs. Are you saying they’re going to hand it all over to a nephew who is barely of age?”

There was no way that was going to happen.

Yi Yu’s eyes gleamed.

* * *

Prince Jin is a hereditary princely title (世襲罔替) [a title that passes down without diminishing in rank].

That is to say, unlike the descendants of other royal families who receive a title one rank lower than their father’s title, only those who inherit the title of Prince Jin will have their princely title preserved forever without any reduction. This princely title, which Sejong Yi Je bestowed upon his younger brothers who could be said to be the founding contributors of the nation, had even greater privileges than the Prince Sim title held by Emperor Seonhwang’s own son, Yi Hwan.

Moreover, Grand Prince Yi Yu himself already had sons who were dukes, and his grandsons were marquises, so after four generations of princes, dukes, marquises, and counts, they would be no different from ordinary scholar-officials. As soon as the thought reached that point, Yi Yu’s stomach churned.

‘The young one is so greedy. Was the princely title not enough for him?’

However, although the opponent was a prince, he was just a young boy who had never held a proper official position. No matter how high his title was, if he didn’t have the skills and background, it was nothing more than a fancy ornament.

Unlike wealth or titles, those were not things that the previous generation could pass on even if they wanted to. On the other hand, Yi Yu, like the many sons of King Munseong Yi Do, was a figure who had been hardened by going through only key positions since his youth, even before Joseon rose to become an empire.

The experience and connections he had accumulated in the process were considerable, so how could his nephew compete with him? The same was true for his brother Yi Hyang, but he was already dead, and all that remained was his nephew, who had not yet yet built up such intangible assets.

Even the uncles who should have filled that gap were the same. Even Grand Prince Anpyeong, Yi Yong, who could be said to be the greatest opponent, was also indignant at his nephew’s actions, so it was not difficult to make him sit down. Because of his cautious nature, he couldn’t completely bring him over to his side, but it was still something to just make him watch.

“I heard that Grand Prince Geumseong has gone over to their side.”

“I guess they decided to give him a generous bribe. That’s fine. Geumseong is no match for me anyway.”

Once he was convinced that he could win, Yi Yu first went to his cousin and rolled around.

“…….”

Yi Dan, who had been discussing the affairs of the world, from the complicated domestic economic situation to the wars taking place far away in the Middle East, was speechless at the disgraceful behavior of his cousin who had come to the palace after a long time.

“We all suffered together when we were building up the family, but no matter how much my nephew is the eldest grandson, how can he take all the family’s wealth?”

If Yi Gyeong had been in this place, he would have nodded without hesitation, but Yi Dan, who was also the eldest son, said nothing. Originally, poor families fight in their own way, and rich families fight in their own way.

As the eldest son, he sympathized with his nephew’s position that the head family should naturally possess the wealth, but he was also reluctant to turn away his cousin who had served him for a long time. If he sided with one person for no reason and incurred the resentment of his family, wouldn’t he feel uncomfortable before going to bed?

“The Emperor already governs the country by law, and if I arbitrarily seize the property and give it to you without clearly examining the circumstances, it will become a great disaster in the future.”

Then Yi Yu said as if he had been waiting for it.

“You are right. So, I want to file a lawsuit to examine the rights and wrongs in detail. Please allow me to do so.”

Although it was a lawsuit within the Jinwang family, they were still members of the imperial family. If they recklessly engaged in litigation and damaged the dignity of the imperial family, the Emperor would be upset, so he came to seek his permission first.

This was to prevent the lawsuit he had worked so hard to file from being blown away by the Emperor’s scolding. This could be said to be the social experience that his reckless nephew could not even follow.

Yi Dan was not very pleased, but he had already said those words, and he was still reluctant to get involved himself, so he had no choice but to nod.

“Do as you please.”

“Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!”

Yi Dan lamented the family feud and then took the Crown Prince’s hand and went to see the stone inscriptions of the imperial precepts erected in the backyard. Now it was really time to do things according to the law.

* * *

Just as modern people would find a lawyer with good skills if they could, Yi Yu also tried hard to recruit the most skilled legal expert.

“I don’t care how much money it costs. I have to get those shares back no matter what!”

However, as he called upon various people, there was no one who met his expectations. Then, Kwon Ram, the Vice Minister of Finance (財務部 正郞) [high-ranking official in the Ministry of Finance] and grandson of Kwon Geun, whom he had known deeply since he was in office, recommended someone.

“I have a close friend who has become a lawyer. He is the grandson of Han Sang-jil, who went to Ming Dynasty as a scribe (注文事) [official in charge of diplomatic documents]. He will be the perfect person for what the Grand Prince is looking for.”

“Are you saying that the descendant of such a prestigious family is working as an attorney?”

“That’s a thing of the past. Attorneys from the Yulgwan (律館) [Legal Office] were not even called scholars, so they were called lawyers, but the situation has been reversed, and now even the great noble families will prostrate themselves to find famous ones.”

It had been a long time since the name was changed to lawyer, using the character ‘事’ (sa, affair) with the same sound, even though they couldn’t dare to use the character ‘士’ (sa, scholar). For that reason, Yi Yu became quite interested.

“My friend also failed the civil service examination several times and entered the Yulhak student (律學生徒) [law student] of an unnamed government office, but now he is making quite a name for himself as a lawyer.

He is said to be good at coming up with ingenious plans and has never lost a lawsuit.”

At those words, Yi Yu’s eyes widened.

“That’s right, that person is an extraordinary person (異人) [unusual or gifted individual]. Let’s go together. What is his name?”

Kwon Ram opened his mouth and said.

“Han Myeong-hoe, his name is Han Myeong-hoe.”

* * *

“I’ve heard of your reputation. Is it true that there is no lawsuit you can’t handle, from mountain disputes (山訟) [disputes over land ownership in mountainous areas] to divorce lawsuits?”

“I would like to say it’s an overstatement, but it’s true, so I can’t be modest. That’s right, I am Han Myeong-hoe, the lawyer who always wins.”

As soon as Yi Yu saw the man, he felt a strange sense of familiarity and fondness. He hurriedly revealed the purpose of his visit and waited for Han Myeong-hoe’s answer.

Han Myeong-hoe stroked his chin and said.

“It’s definitely a worthwhile case to fight over.”

“Can you win?”

“Didn’t I just tell you?”

Han Myeong-hoe said, his eyes shining.

“I always win.”

At his confident attitude, Yi Yu clapped his knees and shouted.

“You are truly my Zhang Liang!” [A famous strategist in Chinese history]

Yi Yu sued Prince Jin, Yi Hong-wi.