2 – In Search of My Land (1)
There are countless types of people in the realm.
Some have ears that are so long they touch their shoulders, some are eight feet tall with faces as red as beets, and some men are so beautiful they’re said to look like women.
I’m different.
Surely, I can be considered pretty, but something unique about me overshadows that.
-“His hair is golden, what kind of color is that?”
-“Isn’t it more yellowish? It’s less unusual, rather… this color…”
-“It’s a color that should be hidden.”
I’ve had yellow hair since birth.
Regardless of how often I view it, it can decidedly be defined as ‘golden,’ but I dare not call it gold.
-“Gold”
is a color that only the Emperor can use. How dare you claim your hair color gold!
The moment you utter those words, it is as if your neck would fly off. To have been born with the royal color in one’s hair is akin to being a traitor.
To think, a simple official’s child having golden hair. Not as if gold was melted into it, not as if gold was pouring out of it, but the color of the hair was unusual, who would accept such a child?
-Discard him.
My parents showed courage. Must have been very courageous.
If they truly cared and wished to keep me as their child, they would have hidden my hair’s color, whether by smudging dirt on my head, shaving it completely every day, or even my brows.
But they didn’t.
My parents abandoned me.
Those were tumultuous times, rocked by corruption amongst the court officials, and a child born with weird hair color was a child easily left on the streets.
That child was picked up by my future teacher.
I looked up to him as a parent, and he raised me in a place hidden from the scrutiny of others.
I learned the principles of Neo-Confucianism from him, I learned how to protect myself, and I learned how to live as a common man in this world.
Although the sorrow of being abandoned by my parents existed, I believed showing filial piety to my new parent with all my heart would suffice.
At the age of fifteen.
The day I became an adult. I lost the person who had raised me. My first master, who had gone to the ‘Plains’ to buy a present for my coming of age, was murdered.
The Rebellion of Hwang Geonjeok.
These heretics, wearing yellow turbans on their heads, audaciously attacked the government offices. Not just the government offices, but even the houses of the commoners.
I had to leave my hometown without even being able to recover the body of my master.
In the private houses, I smeared charcoal on my head and ran south to escape the war. In the riotous places where Hwang Geonjeok was surging, I passed over the mountains pretending to be a messenger, with a yellow turban on my head.
I had a decent mind, and with the help of several people, I hid in the land near Jinryu.
That’s where I met my second master. Rather than referring to him as my master, I was a helper who took care of the old man in his last phase of life in return for managing his wealth, helping him to fill his mouth.
The old man was a corrupt bureaucrat.
He had earned a reputation as a high-ranking official in his own right, but had been pushed out from the center by various circumstances.
Yet, it seemed that he wasn’t so condemned to be excluded from the center of power, and to have lost his head. He managed a small region quite well.
In order to repent for the mistakes he had made in the center, he had turned into a loyal official who thought about the royal family, bestowing integrity at least in the region he was responsible for, or so I heard.
Because of the rebellion of Hwang Geonjeok.
Because of the inability of the officials to stop Hwang Geonjeok.
As a leader who had managed a region, he ended up losing a ‘framename’, something he should’ve valued more than his life, and eventually lost all his wealth, honor, household, and even his name, and ended up living in a thatched house.
My first encounter with him was really breathtaking.
I had entered with relief into a deserted house, and found an old man lying there like a corpse in the corner of the room.
From then on, my relationship, which was not exactly master and disciple, with the old man had begun, and it ended yesterday.
The old man, my second master, died.
If my first master had taught me about the ethics of ‘righteousness (善)’ to live as a human being, my second master taught me about the ‘evilness (惡)’ that humans possess and how to live among such humans.
Then, how should I live?
“There’s no such thing as how to live. Just living as it goes.”
There is no purpose in life.
It’s not wrong if you say that you’re living because you can’t die.
But there are people who live that way.
Neither having a grand principle, nor clothing themselves with righteousness and self-realization, nor burning their bodies for righteousness and loyalty.
I will enjoy my own small utopia.
Cultivating the field, reading books, and enjoying culture.
If there is a war, avoid the war, have enough power to avoid disadvantages, and live moderately.
Thus, I left Jinryu, my second hometown.
But still.
If something goes wrong in Yangyang, isn’t it a good idea to prepare a low hill where I can return to?
So I strayed off my path to Yangyang and went to meet someone related to me before leaving Jinryu.
Land relatively peaceful, without Hwang Geonjeok or government soldiers.
Yejoo, Yeongcheon County.
“This place is right to be turned into the capital.”
Oops. Can I be arrested for treason for simply talking about this, while the royal family hasn’t even collapsed?
No one heard it, so it should be alright. Even if someone hears, who would dare to denounce me properly?
The underling of Mincho is shouting ‘Changcheonisa’.
Changcheonisa.
The blue sky, the royal family is dead.
“Although it’s not Huangcheon-establishment, Changcheonisa would be accurate.”
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The sky changed once again.
Chirp, chirp.
A sparrow flies high into the sky.
A woman with neatly styled, silky, jet-black hair grasped the scroll in her hand, taking deep breaths.
“Hooh, hooh.”
Once a month.
The day she meets ‘him’ always thrills her. Even though discussing politics of married couples or teachings of Confucius held no meaning to her, the stories he brought from beyond the borders of Yongcheon were far more thrilling than conversation with local scholars.
“When will he arrive…?”
What matters is not the existence of their relationship, nor is it academic. What did matter was his broad knowledge allowing a meaningful conversation.
“I hope he listens this time.”
She prepared various materials for persuading him in advance. After having an intense argument during their last encounter, she began to look for facts and logic that might convince him.
“Excuse me.”
A familiar voice rang outside the study room. The woman nodded toward her servant. The servant opened the door and welcomed the guest.
“It’s good to see you, sir Soon.”
“Sir, please, use less formal language.”
“I have no way of addressing you informally.”
The man walked in, pressing his hat on his head – a hat not unlike a crown – with an arrogant air. But to the woman, his seemingly coal-black eyebrows slightly revealed a glint of gold.
“Very well. Welcome, Prince Hwang. It feels long since we last met.”
“Yes. I’m sorry to say this right after meeting, but I…”
The young man got straight to the point as soon as he sat down.
“I’m leaving.”
“Excuse me? Leaving?”
“I’m going to Hyungju. They say the governor of Hyungju doesn’t know much, but one thing is certain: they control bandits well. It’s less likely to encounter bandits there, relative to other regions. Hence, I’m going to Hyungju.”
“Why all of a sudden?”
“My dad passed away.”
The woman’s, Soon Wook’s, hand stiffened in surprise.
“My father on his deathbed asked me to cremate him. I’m on my way back from sending him into the sky. I’m here to bid my farewell.”
“Why?”
“To conclude the unfinished conversation with you, miss Soon. Actually, let me rephrase that.”
He straightened up.
“Soon Muneok, I’m here to put an end to our debate.”
“Just call me Soon Wook. Or even just Ssi (a jegi). You’ve earned that right.”
“Ho ho, I’m a man who barely knows the alphabet, let alone someone learned. I’m an unsophisticated countryman. How could I have any such right?”
“You being here before leaving itself indicates you do. Fools don’t know they’re wrong. Mediocre people feel shame in their mistakes. And geniuses? Their answer never fails.”
Soon, who spread the prepared scroll.
“Let’s conclude: whose answer is the right one? Once settled, you’re free to leave.”
“I fail to see why my freedom of traveling should be subject to your whims.”
“If you just leave, you’re conceding the debate to me.”
“Ugh.”
The young man scratched his head.
“Fine. Let’s reach a conclusion before we set off for Yangyang. Now, where did we stop the discussion last time?”
“About who would emerge as the new hero to hold up the imperial household after the rebellion of Huang Gunjik.”
Hero. The young man mulled over the word
“hero”.
“Let me start. I nominate Won from the north.”
“Won? There are two in the Won family. Surely, you don’t mean Won Gongro?”
“No, I mean the second son, not the eldest, Won Boncho…Wonso.”
Upon hearing the name Wonso, the young man nodded.
“I agree with you on that. The stigma of him being the second son has been shed over three years. As he has occupied high posts in three different prominent households, Won Boncho is bound to receive a high position too, unless there is a chief minister.”
“Yes, I believe he will be the hero who will defeat the chief minister and establish the imperial household.”
Soonwook pushed a map that lay on the table.
“Who do you think will be the hero?”
“I guess I have to say it to reach a conclusion.”
“Yes, you must. Otherwise, you should admit that your words were wrong. What you…”
“Chang Chun Disaster.”
Soonwook frowned at the young man’s words.
“Watch your words.”
“I just repeated the slang used by Huang Gun party, that’s all.”
“You slip away like a snake…haa.”
Soonwook held his head, shaking it sideways. The young man grinned and pointed at the map.
“The Three Generals of Kangun. Jujun, Hwang Bosung, Noshik. And those who made their names during the suppression of Huang Gunjik. They are all heroes. But you know what? To me, a hero is someone who brings about peace and prosperity.”
“…Are you saying that it doesn’t have to be from the imperial household?”
“Exactly.”
Soonwook’s face turned reflective. The young man shrugged and took a sip of his tea.
“To a loyal subject, a hero would be someone from the imperial household. But my hero is still the same as last time. From your perspective of loyalty to the imperial household, you might consider my hero as a strong candidate in this chaos.”
“…So who would that be?”
“That…”
The young man shrugged again.
“I don’t know yet!”
“Yes, I thought so. Then, a question. Supposing, by your judgment, the stalwart of this chaotic era appears. What do you plan to do then?”
“Isn’t that obvious?”
The young man pointed to the map.
“I’d buy a large home near his hometown for a life of leisure. It might be a good idea to purchase nearby lands in advance. That way….”
The young man’s smile was incomparably bright.
“I could sell lands at a high price and live off the profit.”