Seeds of Knowledge and the Dawn of Growth (Part 2)
Yi Yeon didn’t bring the servants this time.
The cry of the gourd that would have announced the king’s procession had fallen on deaf ears, and the delay had cost precious time.
One shot should be enough.
Yi Yeon dismissed all the laborers, then walked briskly around the entire grounds in one lap.
Surrounded by the grand palaces of Yeonheegung, the place seemed even broader than Gyeongbokgung itself.
This will do. It’s more than worthy of being called the cradle of knowledge.
Yi Yeon decided right there to name the entire area “the Knowledge Cradle.”
After all, it was the place where the mother of all things—knowledge itself—would be raised and nurtured.
Just as he was about to step into the inner palace, Sim Ui-gyeom called out, “Your Majesty, may I make a courtyard in front?”
Yi Yeon ordered a field the size of a soccer pitch to be cleared and named it the Knowledge Plaza.
Sim Ui-gyeom, unused to the unfamiliar word, simply called it a courtyard.
“Isn’t that all right?”
“Your Majesty will be staying here. It worries me that it might become too noisy.”
“That’s exactly what I intended.”
“What?”
Yi Yeon placed one foot inside the palace and continued. “Knowledge grows when people debate it together. Therefore, the more lively the Knowledge Plaza, the deeper our nation’s knowledge will become.”
“Yet there is still fear that arguments will break out.”
Yi Yeon stopped and turned around. “Why so?”
“You ordered the Education Bureau to the east and the Science Bureau to the west. Their characters are so different that arguments might turn into outright fights on that open ground.”
“Hm… was something like that reported?”
Yi Yeon fixed Sim Ui-gyeom with a skeptical gaze.
Sim Ui-gyeom hesitated, so Ki Dae-seung stepped forward.
“Your Majesty, with all due respect, there was indeed a terrible quarrel between the Education Vice Director and the Science Director.”
“What happened?”
“It’s just that…”
Sim Ui-gyeom’s resentment toward Yi I, now a bureau director, was plain to see.
He himself was a third-rank official, yet Yi I, a sixth-rank scholar, had become director. It was intolerable.
So he had kept picking fights until they finally came to blows.
Yi Yeon sighed as he heard the tale. The expression on Sim Ui-gyeom’s face—glaring at Ki Dae-seung—was almost pitiful.
How am I supposed to handle this…?
Yi I had already gone.
Anyone who was surpassed by someone much lower would be furious. But to resort to grabbing a collar? He’d wanted to punish the man severely.
Still, the merit of passing the Hangul civil-service exam had earned him a special position.
Maybe it was a blessing in disguise.
“Vice Director?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“The Education Bureau and the Science Bureau will be funded directly from the royal treasury, so I cannot assign you the task of auditing them. I intend to establish a separate Inspector General’s Office, and I want you to head it.”
“What?”
“You don’t know what an inspector is?”
“Oh, I do, Your Majesty. It means to observe and investigate. However, calling it a bureau…”
“It means a direct institution under the throne, like the Office of the Censor-General. Therefore, you will oversee both bureaus from your post.”
Sim Ui-gyeom’s eyes suddenly gleamed. He had already suspected he might be punished later, so he had dared to speak up early.
And now he was to become the head of an entirely new institution.
And the very institution that would audit others.
He had never been more certain of anything.
Sim Ui-gyeom dropped to his knees and cried out, “Your Majesty! This boundless grace is overwhelming!”
Yi Yeon chuckled coldly and added water to the mix.
“It’s not a matter worthy of overwhelming gratitude. You must remember that the bureau sits beneath the court. Do not flaunt yourself foolishly. If you do, I will send you straight to the Anju coalfields. Understood?”
“Yes, yes, Your Majesty.”
“Furthermore, you must also keep an eye on the Maritime Trade Bureau. Do not set foot inside the Trade Bureau director’s residence from now on. If you see anything suspicious involving him, settle it quickly. Should anything untoward occur between the two of you, you will never return from the coalfields. Understood?”
“Yes, yes, Your Majesty. I will remember every word.”
Only Sim Ui-gyeom knew the worst of the greed and corruption better than anyone.
That was why Yi Yeon had chosen him for this role.
While Sim Tong-won represented the pinnacle of greed, Sim Ui-gyeom embodied the pinnacle of honor-seeking.
Referred to as the “Gourmet of Fights,” Sim Ui-gyeom would never dare lift a finger against the new Inspector General’s Office.
Not even his uncle had been spared impeachment.
Should I entrust the Military Commissioner’s Office as well?
Yi Yeon shook his head.
The duties of the Military Commissioner’s Office were of a different nature entirely.
Safety is the most critical matter.
He could not assign it to the combative Sim Ui-gyeom.
Yet he could not abandon the office either.
I trust both sides enough…
Yi Yeon glanced toward the side where Kim Yang-bo stood, ears attentively listening.
Shin Rip was also nearby, scanning the surroundings with nervous eyes.
Suddenly, his heart skipped.
The memory of sparring with Shin Rip flashed through his mind.
Damn it! The paranoia is back again.
There had been several glitches, but the dream Stephen had described was steadily coming true.
Every now and then the uncertain feelings of a past life would snag his ankle, yet he had endured them so far.
He would endure this time as well.
Betray me, then—betray me!
Yi Yeon took a deep breath, filling his chest with air and steeling his resolve.
That feeling of inexplicable confidence always rose at such moments.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Yeonheegung had been built to ward off misfortune for the Joseon royal family.
It had been renovated by King Sejong for his father, King Taejong, and Yi Yeon himself had spent eight years there.
Yet when King Yeonsan used it as a banquet hall, it became the stage for unspeakable evil.
Afterward, it had been abandoned, and only ravens remained.
Now, standing on the spot where the king’s arrival had been hastily cleared away, Yi Yeon picked up a chalk and began to write on the blackboard.
“The phrase ‘ravens feast on the bones of Yeonheegung’ has always carried a bad connotation. But I intend to change its meaning. Knowledge grows deeper the more one focuses on a single topic. Therefore, the Education Bureau Director and the Science Bureau Director must divide the newly selected students into one specialized field each.”
“Your Majesty, does that mean we will teach subjects separately?”
Ki Dae-seung was confused. Everything he had learned so far had been different.
Still, he had listened because elementary studies were a required subject.
But separating even those subjects was unacceptable.
“Correct. The first students you teach will become professors for the students we recruit in the future. They must each take charge of one subject and build deep expertise. Only then can we teach the next generation with true depth.”
Yi Yeon had drawn from middle-school curricula to design the new course of study.
Korean language, history, mathematics, science, and elementary studies.
He named these five the Five Essential Studies and made them compulsory.
Classical Chinese texts and the Four Books and Five Classics would be electives; students could choose just one.
If a student was capable, they could take every elective, and he would not stop them.
Physical education, art, and foreign languages would be special subjects; students could choose as many as they liked.
If a necessary field was missing, he would add it experimentally and then include it among the electives.
Yi Yeon believed that any abrupt change would face resistance and sink without a firm foundation.
To teach new subjects without resistance, the Four Books and Five Classics must remain.
In Joseon, where Neo-Confucian orthodoxy was revered, removing it would cause disaster.
A massive uproar would erupt.
Moreover, the only students available right now were the graduates of the Seonkyungwan.
So he had to think creatively.
He ordered every subject to be divided one by one and each professor to concentrate on a single area.
Even the Five Essential Studies would be separated.
That way the impression of abandoning Neo-Confucianism would not be created.
That was why Ki Dae-seung did not understand.
Even separating the electives was one thing; separating the essential subjects was another.
Yi I examined the list one by one and asked, “Your Majesty, I have a question.”
“Speak.”
“If we divide the subjects this way, there will be many students choosing the Five Essential Studies and very few choosing the Four Books and Five Classics. What should we do about this?”
Damn it…!
Yi Yeon nearly cursed aloud.
Pouring ashes on perfectly cooked rice.
At times like this, one must simply plow ahead shamelessly!
“That is because the Five Essential Studies are the easiest,” he said casually.
Yi Yeon thought for a moment. “Do you know why we are establishing the Education Bureau and the Science Bureau, training professors? Not to teach the young commoners who cannot learn abroad.”
“Correct, Your Majesty.”
“Do you think they would understand if we taught them the Four Books and Five Classics from the beginning?”
“No, Your Majesty.”
“Therefore, we start with the fundamental subjects.”
“Ah…!”
Yi Yeon smiled with satisfaction.
The boat had not yet capsized.
Keep pushing!
He could not afford to give smart people time to think.
“Right now we have no teachers to staff the academies or schools. So we must first train professors and descend one step at a time. What do you think will happen then?”
“The number of teachers will increase exponentially.”
“The Education Bureau and Science Bureau will also grow.”
“The Inspector General’s Office will have even more work.”
The three of them looked like children who had just been told a good story.
They answered as if they could already foresee every future event.
“Correct. Everything you said is right. You three carry such heavy responsibilities; you have every reason to be proud.”
“We will remember, Your Majesty.”
Yi Yeon took one last deep breath, preparing to deliver the final card.
“However, students without clear affiliation may become confused. Therefore, I intend to give them one.”
“But there are already the Education Bureau and the Science Bureau.”
Sim Ui-gyeom was eager to speak again.
“What do you think those places are?”
“Royal institutions, aren’t they?”
“Correct. They are places where we study how to teach subjects well, not places where we teach students.”
“What?”
Sim Ui-gyeom blinked in confusion.
He still had not broken free of his old way of thinking.
How frustrating.
Ki Dae-seung spoke as if he had understood everything. “Your Majesty, then are you planning to create a separate institution for teaching students?”
Yi Yeon smiled brightly and nodded.
The knot in his chest had finally loosened.
“Correct. Therefore, I intend to name it after the University—the study of the process by which a man perfects himself and establishes social order—so that we call it University School.”
“So the Seonkyungwan graduates will become students of the University School?”
“Correct. However, the University School will not be built only here. We plan to establish them throughout the kingdom. Therefore, this one will be called Shinchon University after its location.”
“Like the academies?”
“Correct.”
“Ah…!”
The three of them gasped in unison.
They had thought the Education Bureau and Science Bureau would be operated as one single institution like Seonkyungwan. Instead, it turned out to be something far greater.
Becoming the head of every academy at once?
This will be an enormous organization.
The king’s ambition is truly immense.
The three men smiled at one another, their faces filled with hope.
Only now did they understand the full scope of what the king intended. The future felt bright.
Yi Yeon called out to Ki Dae-seung.
“Education Bureau Director.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You will also serve as the principal of Shinchon University. And Science Bureau Director?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“You will serve as vice principal and assist the principal.”
“And Inspector General’s Office Director?”
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
“You will also head the administrative department, support the operations of Shinchon University, and perform inspections.”
“I understand, Your Majesty!”
“Remember, this is only a temporary measure.”
“We will remember, Your Majesty!”
A new educational institution and curriculum had been decided.
Korean language and history would be taught in the Education Bureau.
Mathematics and science in the Science Bureau.
And elementary studies and the Four Books and Five Classics in the Seonkyungwan.
The news spread instantly.
Yet there was no great commotion.
Nothing had changed, only new things had been added.
Instead, envious murmurs began to circulate.
With the sting of jealousy at the heads of institutions receiving enormous royal funding.
Even a famous saying cannot change the fact that they are not yet veterans.
Still, new faces being called senior officials?
Why? Do they not have separate ranks?
Since they are royal institutions, that must be it. But they are directors of the Bureau and Office that serve only the king? What should we call them then?
Ah…
They have to be treated as equal to the chief ministers, right?
Exactly! You’re right. So from now on, should we call them senior officials?
That would be best. With such a large organization, they deserve to be seen as such.
Damn it! I’m so jealous…
Simultaneously, inquiries about admission to the first university in Joseon, Shinchon University, flooded in.
It was not only a way to manage a royal institution but also seemed far more stable than politics.
Of course, people who had political ambitions still wanted to enter.
From now on, examination questions would be set jointly by the Education Bureau, Science Bureau, and Seonkyungwan.
* * *