Chapter 10

< Chapter 10: Germination (發芽)... Cancer (發癌)? (3) >

Chapter 10: Germination (發芽)... Cancer (發癌)? (3)

After the 'explanation meeting for the auction of the gold pen' ended, the merchants gradually left the Hojo. Just before crossing the threshold of the Hojo, an elderly merchant spoke to the Hojo official.

"Sir."

"What is it?"

"What is the age of the Crown Prince this year?"

"He is eight years old."

"Wow~."

When the merchant could not hide his surprise, the young Hojo official, with a voice full of pride, said:

"He is a remarkable person. The current Emperor is also an extraordinary person, and the Crown Prince is so wise at such a young age, it is a great blessing for our Joseon."

"That's true."

After bowing to the official and stepping out onto the street, the merchant suddenly felt a surge of anger.

"Whose child can be so well-mannered at eight years old! My grandson, that brat!"

At the same time, in the Donggung.

Hyang, who had returned to her room, was facing a man. The man was the one who had been chased away by the officials earlier.

"Thank you. Jo Naegwan."

"No, Your Highness. But did it have to be done this way?"

"Because I am young, I had no choice."

Thinking about Hyang's age, Jo Naegwan nodded and got up to bow.

"I will return to change my clothes."

"Thank you."

* * *

With the production of the gold pen being privatized, it spread throughout the country. As the gold pen became a hit, a spectacular scene began to unfold.

In a yangban family in Naju, Jeolla Province.

In the main hall of a large tile-roofed house, which appeared to have at least 40 rooms, an elderly yangban was waiting for someone.

A short while later, a peddler carrying a large wooden box on a pole entered the courtyard. The peddler set the pole down and bowed deeply in the courtyard.

"Sir, did you find it?"

"Yes, I called you. Do you have the gold pen?"

"I have it this time."

"Oh, really!"

As the yangban showed excitement, the peddler spread a mat in the courtyard and carefully took out a lacquered box from the wooden box, placing it on the mat.

After placing the lacquered box, the peddler bowed deeply and carefully carried the box to the main hall where the yangban was seated. When the peddler placed the lacquered box on the desk, the yangban exclaimed in admiration.

"Oh! This is it!"

As the yangban reached out, the peddler quickly stopped him.

"Sir! You must bow first."

"Oh!"

At the peddler's reminder, the yangban quickly straightened his clothes and bowed respectfully in front of the box.

"Your Majesty's grace is profound, bestowing such a precious item. I am deeply grateful."

After expressing his gratitude to the king, the yangban carefully opened the box.

Inside the box, lined with soft silk, were a lacquered pen and ten golden pen nibs.

The ceiling of the box and the pen nibs were clearly marked with apricot blossom patterns.

"Please insert the golden pen nib into the pen... "

While listening to the peddler's explanation, the yangban combined the pen and the nib, dipped it in the ink, and wrote on the paper.

Writing down a passage from a scripture he liked in one stroke, the yangban exclaimed in admiration.

"Truly a precious item!"

* * *

With the gold pen becoming a hit, the face of the Hojo Panseo was filled with a smile.

"The budget is increasing!"

It wasn't just the Hojo Panseo whose face was filled with a smile; the officials of the Hojo also had smiles on their faces.

Since the founding of Joseon, or even during the late Goryeo Dynasty, the national budget had never been abundant.

Even though the royal family reduced their salaries to one-sixth and the officials to one-fourth after the founding of Joseon, the budget was still insufficient.

In this situation, the profit from the sale of the gold pen was very welcome.

Although it was a small amount, like "peeing on a sore foot," it allowed the government to have a bit more room to maneuver in the process of running the country, which was a welcome development.

Another positive effect was that the king, Sejong, and his ministers began to take an interest in the positive effects of commerce.

However, beneath the surface, negative movements began to emerge.

"How did the government become a merchant?"

"You're right. The king and the ministers are showing too much favor to the lowly commerce."

"Among the four classes of society (scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants), merchants are the lowest. They are yangban in name but no better than commoners! If this continues, we will repeat the bad habits of the previous dynasty!"

The orthodox Confucian scholars, who were dissatisfied with the attention the king and ministers paid to the funds entering the country from the sale of the gold pen, began to express their discontent. And those dissatisfied people turned their attacks on Hyang, the Crown Prince.

"The start of this matter was the Crown Prince."

"Such a young person is already on the wrong path... This is the fault of those responsible for the Crown Prince's education!"

"The king is also a problem. No matter how wise the Crown Prince is, he is still a child, and to let him make important decisions for the government is something that must be corrected!"

"The Crown Prince's education needs more attention! Instead of reading and memorizing the words of the sages and fostering a love for Chinese culture, he is paying attention to trivial skills, which is unacceptable!"

"We must write a petition immediately!"

"You're right!"

Just as the dissatisfied people were about to rise up, an unexpected event stopped them in their tracks.

Taejong had passed away.

On May 10, 1422, Taejong died at the age of 56.

During the 10-day mourning period for Taejong, the morning meetings were suspended for 10 days, and the afternoon meetings for 5 days.

Although the government continued to function, no controversial petitions could be submitted during the mourning period for Taejong.

"Let's wait for the next opportunity."

"That's what we should do."

Those who intended to submit petitions had to wait for the next chance.

* * *

Unaware of what was happening beneath the surface, Hyang used the mourning period for Taejong to immerse herself in reading.

"Hmm... Is this how it is translated?"

With several books spread out, Hyang was carefully comparing them.

The books Hyang was reading were Western books that had entered China and their Chinese translations.

Just before the Winter Solstice Envoy was to leave for China, Hyang called the chief envoy.

"Your Highness, did you call me?"

"Yes. I'm sorry to call you when you are busy preparing for the mission."

"That's fine, Your Highness."

After a brief conversation, Hyang got straight to the point.

"I have a favor to ask of the chief envoy."

"A favor?"

"Yes. When you go to Beijing, could you obtain some books for me?"

"Books? What kind of scriptures should I bring back?"

"Not scriptures, but miscellaneous books. Books related to medicine, and... Ah! Do you know the Western barbarians?"

"Western barbarians? Do you mean the Semu people?"

"Yes. If there are any translations or original texts about their laws and techniques, please bring them all."

"Why do you want the books of the barbarians...?"

When the chief envoy looked puzzled, Hyang explained.

"As the saying goes, 'Among three people, there must be my teacher.' And 'The stone from another mountain can polish the jade.' If it can help me improve and run the country, why should I not learn from the barbarians?"

"..."

The chief envoy was speechless at Hyang's words.

If the person in front of him were an ordinary prince, he would have advised, "Read the scriptures first." However, the Crown Prince sitting in front of him was recognized by all the ministers as a genius even more formidable than his father.

Before the age of six, he had completed the Four Books and Five Classics, and by the age of seven, he had read through the Thirteen Classics (Analects, Mencius, Book of Songs, Book of Documents, Book of Changes, Rites of Zhou, Book of Rites, Book of Filial Piety, Spring and Autumn Annals).

At such a young age, he studied the classics for more than three hours (six hours) a day without rest, and by the time he was appointed Crown Prince, he could even discuss policies with the scholars.

As a result, some young officials who liked to speak their minds said:

"If the Crown Prince grows up and learns about the world outside the palace, the government will be turned upside down."

Therefore, the chief envoy had no choice but to bow and respond.

"I will faithfully carry out the Crown Prince's orders."

"Thank you."

After that, whenever envoys were sent to Beijing, Hyang made similar requests. Of course, after the first time, he even provided a list.

"These books on the list are already in my possession, so please bring other books."

"...Understood, Your Highness."

As a result, the envoys had to go to great lengths to obtain books. Since the books of Europeans and Arabs who had entered China since the Yuan Dynasty were not common, it was a difficult task.

* * *

"With this, the reference problem is almost solved."

Looking at the books that filled three-quarters of the bookshelf in one corner of the room, Hyang smiled.

While verifying the industrial technology of Joseon during the reign of Sejong, Hyang's usable ideas gradually increased.

"The problem is that if I claim I thought of all this, many people will look at me with suspicion. Especially in the field of medicine. In such cases, it's better to provide references."

Having reached this conclusion, Hyang obtained Chinese books and European books that had entered China through the envoys to Beijing.

Through the envoys, Hyang obtained late medieval and early Renaissance European books, books from the Middle East, and their Chinese translations, and began to read them carefully.

"I need to know roughly what each book contains. If I can explain things convincingly later, it will be more believable. 'You need to know the rules to play the game' is not just a saying."

Hyang had this thought because of the hardships he experienced when presenting the gold pen.

"It's a good item, but how did the Crown Prince come up with such an idea?"

In response to Sejong's question, Hyang answered immediately.

"Because I noticed something unique while dipping the brush in ink."

"Something unique?"

"I saw the ink rise through the bristles of the brush. Water usually flows downward, so it was quite surprising to see it go against this. This..."

Hyang made a plausible story about how he came up with the idea for the gold pen.

Sejong, upon hearing the explanation, slapped his knee in admiration.

"Many people have used brushes, but no one has had the same thoughts as the Crown Prince! This is truly an example of 'investigating things to gain knowledge'!"

Thus, the gold pen incident passed without any issues, but Hyang knew that such luck would not last.

"Presenting the gold pen was to show that I have such talent. I can't just suddenly present something out of the blue. However, 'accidentally' getting away with it only works a few times. To be more convincing, I need references."

* * *

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has arrived."

While dealing with petitions and reports in a makeshift tent during the mourning period for Taejong, Sejong put down the petition he was reading and replied.

"Let him in."

Upon entering the tent, Hyang bowed to Sejong.

"Father. Your Majesty looks unwell. Have you had dinner?"

"The ministers made a fuss, so I ate."

'This man!'

Hyang inwardly sighed at Sejong's response.

'A carnivore who can't live without meat for a meal! Even in mourning, he should eat properly!'

Although Hyang inwardly cursed, he earnestly said:

"Your Majesty is the pillar of this country. Even in mourning, you must eat properly."

"I will. What is it?"

"Your humble servant has obtained miscellaneous books of the Western barbarians through the envoys."

"Yes, I know. Was there anything helpful?"

"I would like Your Majesty to judge."

Sejong, who had been smiling comfortably at his playful son, straightened his posture and put on a serious expression.

"Tell me."

"Yes. Your humble servant requests the use of the numbers of the Western barbarians."

"The numbers of the Western barbarians?"

"Yes. To be precise, they are called the 'Tianzhu numbers.' To explain in detail, these numbers originated in Tianzhu and..."

< Chapter 10: Germination (發芽)... Cancer (發癌)? (3) > End

ⓒ National Pride

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