Ferris Wheel Echoes and Teacher's Grace
It was night on the Ferris wheel once more. The spring academic conference was fast approaching. I was digging through the EMR, verifying the results of cases divided by lactate levels: above 2.0, above 1.5, above 1.0. Checking again how much the incidence of septic shock varied by threshold. The only sound filling the officetel was the laptop fan whirring noisily.
Breaking that silence came a Gatong message.
I told him this month was busy... But I couldn't voice that inner thought to Munjong.
My fingers froze over the keyboard. Something I'd forgotten came rushing back.
No, he wants to rewatch that video? And how did he even finish it with the data limit? The king of Joseon was talking about a video. It was the first one sent after the Gatong upgrade—the top file in the cloud app sorted by newest. A few days later, when we confirmed file transfer limits with Munjong, I'd been relieved. No, I'd completely forgotten about it.
No way... It seemed he'd snagged an unlimited transfer promo.
That precious service... wasted on baseball videos...
But that wasn't the point. A spreadsheet sprawled before me. The conference was end-of-month, tomorrow was the two-week mark, and the paper submission deadline. I had no time.
I turned off all Gatong notifications, including the chat with Munjong. Grabbed two hours of sleep and headed to the hospital at dawn. Read the finished paper cover to cover, double-checked data consistency, and reported in.
The professor pored over the paper from start to finish.
"The direction is solid. Content's good too."
He paused briefly.
"But you know presentation matters more, right? The paper gets read on submission, but you have to convince them live. Prepared for floor questions?"
"I'll prepare well over the next two weeks."
"You know the first question?"
"Multicenter validation."
"Right. Sample size will follow right after. Yours lacks power, so own it upfront. Admit the limits first, and questions won't turn aggressive."
"Got it."
The professor closed the paper.
"The pre-sepsis capture concept is great. Hammer home its meaning in your talk. Don't waver on why this study was needed. Anyway, good work. Go on."
As I opened the door, he added,
"Got a great Teacher's Day gift from the chief. That precious Joseon Certified Products Eosam... Thanks. You worked through the holiday too. King Sejong must be thrilled—son's got him named national teacher once a year."
I froze at the door. That's why the ward felt emptier than usual.
I rushed out, incorporated the professor's feedback, and submitted to the conference. Then opened the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty.
Annals of King Munjong, Volume 13, 2nd Year of King Munjong (May 15, Eulyu)
The Crown Prince proceeded to the Hall of Collected Sages, accompanied by various Confucian officials, and performed the rites of gratitude. He paid respects to the Former Sage and Former Teacher, then presented gifts to his tutors, including Left Scholar Yi Gae.
The king issued an edict: "Our royal father created Hunminjeongeum and established the Hall of Collected Sages to cultivate talent and compile various books, all for the deep benefit of posterity and the people. The unity of sovereign, teacher, and father is the great foundation for governing the state and establishing moral education. Command the Ministry of Rites to ensure this rite is observed in every provincial school and village academy."
Modern Teacher's Day had rippled back through time to become Joseon's Day of Gratitude to Teachers—and now it was changing the present too.
That night, another Gatong from Munjong.
I'd known this from the Annals months ago.
It was burdensome. The unlimited promo was surely one-time.
Wait, does that actress even fit Joseon's beauty standards? I didn't know Joseon ideals well, but her looks seemed to match by chance. Or maybe not. It struck me that Munjong might resemble his father Sejong not just in talent, heart, and build. Sejong had 22 children; Munjong, 8.
Munjong's kids might multiply way beyond original history...
I scoured the internet for a photo of the actress from the video—clothed, of course—and sent it.
Much later, Munjong replied.
The photo was 2MB. I opened an editor, shrank it to 300KB. Poor quality by modern standards, but the transfer limit.
Soon, another Gatong.
Your professor envied Sejong, teacher to all by his son's grace. And here I receive thanks from that son. Yet this woman sits in the heavens.
Your Highness, please overlook modern wonders...
Thankfully, Munjong didn't probe modern tech deeply.
A laugh broke the awkward king-and-video talk. Yesterday's queen selection petition—Jeon Sun-ui would've heard. New queen in 3-6 months; he'd prepped fast.
Oysters aren't in season, are they?
I laughed again. The woman's favorite—fresh in mind from the recent video. Seafood tomato stew-ish. But no tomatoes in Joseon yet. Similar dishes all needed tomatoes.
Just send something close... Most half-hearted since starting Gatong with Munjong. I was that drained today.
Ingredients: Squid 100g, shrimp 200g, shiitake mushrooms 20g, bamboo shoots 80g, Shanghai cabbage 120g, green onion 40g, garlic 10g, ginger 10g, chicken stock 3 cups, cooking wine 1 Tbsp, soy sauce 1 Tbsp, potato starch 1 Tbsp, water 2 Tbsp
Instructions: Score and slice squid; peel shrimp and remove veins. Slice shiitake and bamboo shoots thickly; trim cabbage base and blanch in boiling water. Slice garlic and ginger thinly.
Heat oil in pan, stir-fry green onion, garlic, ginger; add seafood and sauce, stir 2 minutes. Add stock, bring to boil, thicken with starch slurry, pour over scorched rice.
The king of Joseon pondered poor folk eating nurungji.
Sorry, Prince Suyang... Sorry, but post-paper exhaustion left no energy for him.
Handle it yourself.
I eyed the desk calendar. Teacher's Day, holiday. Recalled Hunminjeongeum in the Annals. Flipped to October—9th in red. Holiday added.
This butterfly effect? I'd announce it. Hero to every worker...
Heading to bed, another Gatong.