There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 448

449. Legal High (2)

Recently, a major commotion has erupted in Junsubang, Hwangseong [the capital city]. Grand Prince Suyang and Prince Sa are locked in a bitter conflict over the inheritance of the late King Jin Munseong.

The contested inheritance is the share of the Jin Royal Residence belonging to the late King Munseong, and a fierce debate is ongoing as to whether it should be divided. Both sides are fighting tooth and nail, their familial bonds strained to the breaking point, creating deep animosity.

Grand Prince Suyang’s faction initially demanded the Jin Royal Residence’s share, while Prince Sa countered, stating, ‘We cannot accept the unreasonable demands of our uncles.’

Amid this dispute, the commotion intensifies, and legal representatives have been appointed to engage in a major legal battle.

Some are calling for an examination of King Munseong’s intentions during his lifetime, and the outcome of this case is drawing considerable attention. Meanwhile, Grand Prince Anpyeong expressed concern, saying, ‘We must not tarnish the royal family and the imperial household with this family feud.’

On the other hand, some suspect that this incident is akin to King Pae’s assassination of Uije, using the young nephew’s ascension as an excuse to seize assets…

“Damn it!”

Yi Yu crumpled the newspaper and threw it aside.

Despite the steady development of papermaking techniques, paper made from crushed coniferous trees was still rough, like newsprint. The crumpled paper quickly resembled trash.

He shouted, looking at the man standing anxiously before him.

“Who the hell authorized you to publish such an article?”

Min Choo, the son of the pro-Japanese [historical inaccuracy, likely racist] Min Mu-gu, was already dead, leaving only one illegitimate son.

Therefore, the head family line from Yeoheung Lord Min Je was continued by Min Chuk, the son of Min Mu-jil, but he too was dead. His son, Min Gi, was now the head of the Min clan and the president of the Yeoheung Soonbo [the newspaper’s name].

He was Yi Yu’s sixth cousin, but in the face of this fierce inheritance dispute, familial affection meant nothing.

“King Pae assassinated Uije? Using someone else’s words to write what I want to say!”

He had heard that reporters often did such things, but he never expected it from the Yeoheung Soonbo.

The newspaper system had been in place for decades.

Initially, the first editor-in-chief, Min In-saeng, founded Yeoheung Soonbo ‘to write uprightly and fearlessly, without being swayed by money,’ but as everyone knew, upright writing was often just idealistic nonsense.

Like a historian who gritted his teeth at Yi Je [a controversial historical figure], Min In-saeng wrote articles his own stubborn way until he died.

However, after Min In-saeng passed away, Yeoheung Soonbo became more cautious. The quality of other, newer newspapers was so low that Yeoheung Soonbo’s reputation grew stronger day by day.

These days, low-quality newspapers at best fill one or two pages with unverified rumors circulating in the market, and it is common to fabricate controversies in the capital out of thin air.

Therefore, educated scholars subscribed only to the Yeoheung Soonbo, a journal of record, rather than such trivial newspapers.

Grand Prince Suyang, a man of high status, was no different…

“And what is that cartoon drawn below? ‘When the dragon plays with the young crocodile, the waves of the four seas turn red with blood?’ Daring to compare me to Qin Shi Huang [the first emperor of China, known for his ruthlessness]! Do you think I wouldn’t recognize such metaphors!”

He felt betrayed by someone he trusted, so his fury was understandable.

Suspiciously unfriendly articles towards him.

Yi Yu could only reach one conclusion.

‘Did Hongwi give them money or something?’

Using such despicable tactics, that young brat was only learning bad things…!

Min Gi cursed the clueless rookie in his mind and reported.

“The article was written by a new reporter named Kim Jong-jik, who is incredibly rigid. He probably didn’t receive any money; he just wrote his own thoughts.”

“Then isn’t that even more of a problem!”

Yi Yu burst into anger, wishing the reporter would at least remain neutral.

He had no idea what grudge Kim Jong-jik held against him to write such slanderous articles.

However, despite this public opinion warfare, thanks to Han Myeong-hoi’s abilities, the trial’s outcome was tilting in their favor.

“It is said that the reason this dispute was triggered was because the family elders coveted the inheritance instead of helping the young nephew who planned it. This is truly a deplorable event where ethics have fallen to the ground…”

Yi Hong-wi’s side was greatly encouraged by the Yeoheung Soonbo article from the beginning and attempted to wage a public opinion war from the start, but

“King Jin is well over the age of majority, so what do you mean by young? If we’re talking about ethics, isn’t it you who betrayed the ethics of the relationship first!”

“If King Jin is still young, shouldn’t he consult with his uncles even more to handle family matters?”

The second strategy was bribery.

“The nephew said he would give each of his nieces a generous share. But he said he would never give money to anyone who stays in the dispute until the end.”

“Several lords and hyeonjus [royal relatives] have already sided with them.”

“Those children are married out, so they’ll be happy just to receive money, but our brothers are different, aren’t they?

I’ll give you that money if we win. My only condition is that you fight with me until the end.”

“I have never understood why Emperor Gaozu of Han [founder of the Han dynasty] treated his meritorious subjects poorly. Shouldn’t we share wealth and glory together after achieving great things?”

Perfectly blocking the secession forces.

When even the various means put forward by Yi Hong-wi’s side were suppressed, the trial began to revolve solely around sharp legal logic.

There were two main points of contention.

Whether King Jin Yi Do intended to bequeath the shares through the Jin Royal Residence.

Even if he did, whether it was right for King Jin to exercise the rights of the Jin Royal Residence alone.

“Not only the inheritance being disputed now, but also the inheritances that various princes received were originally all from the late king. If the late king hadn’t left a single penny, there might be some disappointment in terms of loyalty, but we should quietly follow his will.

Moreover, what was passed down to the eldest son and grandson was the late king’s will, so who would dare to add words?”

“My father always said during his lifetime that in dividing property, it should be done fairly so that there would be no further complaints. This is clearly what he had in mind for today’s dispute.”

“That is only limited to the fields and cash-like assets he left behind. Also, didn’t King Jin say he would share his share of the assets? This much property division is reasonable. Why are you being more greedy?”

“This dispute is not from my greed, but from Prince Sa’s tyranny in trying to take everything for himself!”

“Uncle, let me say one thing. Several lords and hyeonjus have already agreed, so why do only you uncles call it tyranny?”

The emotional fight that was triggered by arguing over what the late king’s intentions were was barely calmed down by the court, and then Han Myeong-hoi stepped forward.

“The Jin Royal Residence is simply an organization that executes the king’s orders, so it cannot be said to be an entity that owns property in itself. King Jin, are you really not going to admit that what you inherited was the late king’s private property?”

“That’s nonsense. If what you say is true, what about the fields and ancestral mountains owned by Jongjung [clan association] that are so widespread in Joseon?”

As Yi Hong-wi said that, Han Myeong-hoi smiled and said.

“That’s exactly it. Since Your Highness compared the Jin Royal Residence to Jongjung, let me say one thing. Even if you are the eldest grandson, where is the law that you can decide the affairs of the Jongga [head family] arbitrarily without gathering the opinions of the family members?

Your Highness has succeeded to the throne, but in reality, the property of the royal residence is like the joint property of the royal family members here.”
Han Myeong-hoi, who had been arguing that it was the late king’s private property, changed his position and declared that ‘in fact, the royal residence’s property is the joint property of the royal family,’ and Yi Hong-wi was flustered and shouted.

“The royal residence is different from ordinary Jongjung!”

“That’s right. In ordinary noble families, even if you are the head of the family, you only perform ancestral rites, but isn’t King Jin the owner of the royal residence? Why should the owner have to get permission from anyone to dispose of his own property?”

At the words of Seong Sam-mun, the lawyer for the Jin royal family, Han Myeong-hoi asked.

“There are many objections to your claim, but that is for the respected judge to decide, and before that, please tell us clearly. Is the property inherited by King Jin the late king’s private property, or not?”

If it is private property, it will be subject to division, and if you answer no, it may be judged as Jongjung’s joint property, and you may have to get the consent of other relatives for each matter.

So Seong Sam-mun racked his brains to get out of it.

“As I said, the share in question is not private property but the property of the royal residence. The royal residence is not a person, but it can clearly have property as seen in the example of Jongjung. In other words, it can be said to be a legal entity.

However, the owner of the Jin Royal Residence is clearly King Jin, so unlike Jongjung, the rights are entirely exercised by our King, His Highness.”

Does the royal residence also have legal personality?

If so, who represents it?

What is the scope of private property? Who is the owner of private property? Even if it is an emperor or a king, can he take it away at will? How is that different from dividing property by making a legal judgment like now?

Asking about ownership and rights to this extent was unfamiliar even to Joseon, where the rule of law was just taking hold.

In the past, the case would have been judged according to loyalty and emotion, such as uncles opposing the eldest grandson or nephews confronting their uncles, but now it was sharply opposed.

No one noticed this 꿀잼 [Korean slang for ‘꿀재미’, meaning ‘honey fun’ or ‘very interesting’] fight, but countless precedents and legal logic were 쌓이고 있었던 [Korean for ‘being piled up’] without the parties even knowing.

“In the end, we’ll have to look at what the late king’s intentions were…”

“The wills they heard are also different, so it’s really…”

The only will that King Jin Yi Do left behind when he died was to write a tomb near the imperial family.

The family’s words all differed based on what they had heard, so the court’s head was splitting.

Once the verdict was made, one side would never be able to accept it.

It would be much easier to execute if there was a will left by King Jin in his own handwriting, but if there was such a thing, this dispute would not have arisen in the first place.

So this was only a wish of the court…

“I think we have that in our family?”

“What?”

Yi Yu’s eyes widened as if they would pop out at the words of Yi Bo’s son, Prince Uiseonggun Yi Chae.

“If the late Emperor and my brother saw this, they would have wept! What sin did I commit to live alone for so long and see my brother’s descendants tarnish the honor of the imperial family!”

Grandfather Yi Bo stepped forward and scolded, and the nephews shrank back for a moment.

They gathered around and shouted.

“No, so where is the will?”

Yi Bo took out a letter with a pose that seemed to shout, ‘Here is a list of 205 unfilial children of the imperial family.’

It looked like an ordinary greeting letter, but the content was unusual.

– I have learned a lot since my older brother passed away. It would be good if our descendants could help each other and live together, but there will surely be cases where they cannot. In that case, rather than causing unnecessary disputes and harming the affection between family members, it is better to return it to the imperial family…

“This is a letter sent by my brother, King Jin Yi Do, during his lifetime. He was such a wise guy; he predicted that I would live the longest among our brothers, and that this would happen after he died.”

“…….”

While Yi Bo shrugged his shoulders, Yi Hong-wi and Yi Yu stared blankly at the sky with expressions like dogs chasing chickens [a Korean idiom for being dumbfounded].

In the end, the only one who benefited was Yi Dan, who was scratching his belly in the imperial palace.