The Faces of Two Kings
"To the land of the wild tribes?"
"Yes. As you said, there is nowhere within Joseon where that young king can hide from Suyang's pursuit. And let me be clear—I am not proposing we help him out of pity, simply because the boy is pathetic and deserves to live. I have come here tonight to tell you, elders, that a great opportunity has arrived."
"An opportunity, you say?"
"Think it through. Right now, that young king's life hangs by a thread. But suppose we extend him some aid and he survives by the skin of his teeth. Suppose that, whether it takes ten years or twenty, he climbs back onto the throne—and suppose you elders were the ones who made it possible. What do you imagine would come of it?"
"Hmm..."
It was plain that the elders had never once entertained such a possibility.
Eun Pa-seok could not hide his skeptical expression, while On Dal-hyeong sat lost deep in thought.
"We could hold the reins of Joseon in our hands?"
On Dal-hyeong murmured the words aloud. It was an enormous statement, and yet his voice carried no tremor whatsoever.
"The very nation of Joseon! I will not pretend the prospect doesn't tempt me. Small country or not, where in this world is the man who would dismiss a realm like Joseon as beneath his interest—especially if it meant dictating terms to the Emperor of the Central Plains himself? Yes, this is a tempting proposal, no doubt of it."
The next instant, On Dal-hyeong's eyes snapped open, sharp and piercing.
"But the odds of success are slim. Merely spiriting that young king out of the palace he has never known beyond is a formidable task. And does anyone think Suyang will simply stand by and watch? Then there is the matter of getting him out to the northern frontier—a feat in itself. As for me, if that boy manages to hold out for even a single year, I would call it a miracle."
"Yes, I understand all of that."
Jeong Ho-chan answered without a flicker of hesitation.
"If you understand it, then why do you waste our time with such futile talk?"
"Because I wish to give the young king a chance. Whether he is capable of seizing it is, as you say, another question entirely—but if he is given no chance at all, not even the smallest one, it is obvious he will simply wither away as he is."
Jeong Ho-chan turned to face the assembled elders.
"And I promise you this: if it succeeds, wonderful—and if it fails, you elders stand to lose nothing whatsoever."
On Dal-hyeong gave no reply, either way. With no one willing to be the first to speak, he turned to Eun Pa-seok and asked,
"What say you, Elder Eun?"
"You ask my opinion?"
Eun Pa-seok replied in a low voice.
"Well... I would sooner place our bets on Suyang, if you ask me. But Young Master Jeong Ho-chan's argument has merit too—provided we truly stand to lose nothing and risk nothing. And of course, should matters go badly awry somewhere down the line..."
Eun Pa-seok grinned even in the darkness. The smile was chilling.
"We could always hand the boy king over to Suyang later as a gift, and profit handsomely for the trouble. Though frankly, I expect that is exactly how things will play out in the end."
He shrugged and went on.
"In any case... whatever the Chairman decides, I will follow. Neither path looks particularly bad to me."
"Very well. Then, Young Master Jeong Ho-chan—there are things we must make clear."
"Yes, elders."
"Your plan is reckless, and the likelihood of failure is high. At least, that is how I see it. We cannot openly aid the young king's escape. Even now we are barely holding on as it is. We certainly cannot spare men to send hundreds of li away to Hanyang. Is that not so, Station Master Yeol?"
Startled by the sudden question, Yeol Se-ho faltered for a moment—but he answered promptly enough.
"Yes, Elder Daehyeong speaks the truth."
Yeol Se-ho could not bring himself to look at Jeong Ho-chan.
He, too, admitted that if Jeong Ho-chan's plan succeeded, a ray of sunlight might yet fall on their slowly withering community. It was truly a magnificent scheme.
And yet he could not gamble on committing his forces only to expose his subordinates—and the elders—to the threat of the wild tribes.
"Such being the case, the matter of getting the young king out alive must be managed by your strength alone, Young Master Jeong."
"I had already planned for that."
Jeong Ho-chan replied with perfect composure.
"I will see to this matter myself."
"Oh? You believe you can manage it alone?"
On Dal-hyeong's eyes went wide. Eun Pa-seok, too, looked visibly surprised.
"The more people are involved, the more easily eyes are drawn—and even should things go wrong, it must not bring harm upon the elders. Cha Gyeong-yeon will be assisting me."
"Then suppose things go well, and that young king does make it to the northern frontier. What then?"
"The same. I will have everything prepared and handled."
"You truly need no help from us?"
"A secluded dwelling where he might stay upon arrival—that alone would be a great kindness."
"That's no trouble at all... we could simply give up one of the side halls where our members train. Station Master Yeol can arrange it. But you truly require nothing beyond that?"
Jeong Ho-chan smiled faintly.
"I am grateful for the offer. But I believe that if the young king is to become a truly great man, he must endure hardship."
"That is true enough."
On Dal-hyeong studied Jeong Ho-chan intently. Severity and keen insight both radiated from his gaze.
Eun Pa-seok, meanwhile, threw Jeong Ho-chan a look that was at once arrogant and somehow unconvinced, then leaned over to whisper something with the other elders beside him.
"We will deliberate on this proposal for a time and give you our answer. Wait for us."
"Yes, elders."
Jeong Ho-chan led Cha Gyeong-yeon down out of the pavilion.
Yeol Se-ho followed after him.
"Are you sure about this?"
"Why wouldn't I be? Gyeong-yeon, whom my elder brother assigned to me, will be helping—and he's worth an army of a thousand horses."
"Still, it's only the two of you."
Yeol Se-ho clicked his tongue in evident frustration.
"I'd like nothing more than to send my men to support you... but as Elder Daehyeong said, the situation doesn't allow it. The situation on the northern border grows more precarious by the day, and my men are few. It has to be you and your own strength alone."
Yeol Se-ho let out a sigh, then continued.
"Tell me, Ho-chan. Do you truly believe that young king can endure a whole year? And even if he does, can he ever take Joseon back? From what I hear, this Suyang is no pushover either."
"That's something we'll only know by trying. If it works, he becomes a hero without equal, one who can command even the Central Plains. And if it doesn't—well, ruling as a king over the wild tribes is a gratifying fate in its own right. And even if everything truly falls apart... I am confident it will be better than doing nothing at all."
Jeong Ho-chan tilted his head toward the pavilion above.
"Those people have been able to live with some shred of dignity thanks to my elder brother. But if things go on like this, a hundred years will not pass before everything they have passes into the hands of the wild tribes."
"That much is true."
Yeol Se-ho smiled faintly.
"The elders simply refuse to admit it. It was Elder Daehyeong who saw the darkness ahead... and that is why he summoned you here."
Jeong Ho-chan nodded.
"It feels a bit strange to say this, but... understand that your plan is the last chance not only for that young king, but for the rest of us as well."
Yeol Se-ho spoke the words with force.
Just then, Yeol Se-chang came down to them.
"The elders request your return."
"Hmm, understood. Let's go up, then."
Jeong Ho-chan, Yeol Se-ho, and Cha Gyeong-yeon took their seats before the elders once more.
On Dal-hyeong spoke first.
"After due deliberation, we have resolved to proceed as you proposed, Jeong Ho-chan. However, there will be no direct support from this council. Should the young king escape safely, we will provide him a dwelling—but we will involve ourselves no further. What that young king does with his future rests entirely on his own will and his own talent."
It was what he had expected all along.
"And if it comes to light in Hanyang... bear firmly in mind that we will be unable to give him any aid whatsoever. If that young king fails in the end, then, hmm..."
On Dal-hyeong trailed off, as though reluctant to finish. Eun Pa-seok looked at him.
"...Depending on how things are handled in Hanyang, we may be forced to deliver that young king into Suyang's hands."
"I had already prepared myself for that possibility."
Jeong Ho-chan said. The elders nodded.
"When do you intend to begin?"
"I could begin at once—but so long as the young king remains in Hanyang, I cannot make a move. I intend to rescue the loyalists who were purged, and in the meantime watch for the right moment."
"Do so. May the blessing of Heaven follow you."
The meeting came to an end. The elders each went their separate ways.
On Dal-hyeong granted Jeong Ho-chan, the Yeol brothers, and their company the grace of time to unburden ten years of pent-up longing. But the time allotted was far too short to unwind a decade's worth of it.
Yeol Se-chang was the first to depart. As he was charged with personally guarding the Chairman of the council, he could not linger.
"If you ever need help on the northern frontier, call on me at any time."
"Your words alone are a great comfort, Elder Brother."
Jeong Ho-chan and Yeol Se-ho exchanged their parting words with reluctance, there in the darkness. A sudden gust of the bleak northern wind came howling down, and Yeol Se-ho pulled his collar tight.
"A ferry back to Manpoguja has been readied for you. These are dark times indeed, and tonight even the weather has turned cold to match. How much longer must this land wait for its spring to come? Well then—travel safe."
"Please take care going in."
Jeong Ho-chan bowed.
Yeol Se-ho turned to Cha Gyeong-yeon.
"Farewell, and take care of Ho-chan for me. In times as dark as these, you are a treasure beyond price. But I suspect your talents will serve this friend of ours Jeong Ho-chan all the better. I leave him in your hands."
"Could I possibly be careless about it? Until the day we meet again—be well."
Cha Gyeong-yeon returned the courtesy with grave sincerity.
Yeol Se-ho offered to escort the two of them all the way to the ferry.
An aged boatman was waiting, his straw hat pulled low over his eyes. Jeong Ho-chan stood long at the edge of the boat, watching until Yeol Se-ho's figure vanished into the darkness of the landing.
Just as he turned away, the boatman, still plying his oar, spoke with a smile.
"So. Have you finished trading all your old stories?"
Jeong Ho-chan recognized the voice. His face—a face that never, under any circumstance, showed surprise—lost its composure and convulsed violently.
The next moment, he bowed low over the gunwale of the boat.
"Master...? What brings you here, of all places?"
"Could I send an old disciple on his way without laying eyes on him even once?"
The boatman lifted his straw hat and beamed.
His thick eyebrows and long beard had gone white as snow, but his eyes burned bright and brimmed with wisdom, and the stroke of his oar did not waver so much as a hair.
"I heard you would not be attending the council, Master."
"Se-ho and Se-chang told you that, did they?"
Joeui Seonsa—Jeong Ho-chan's old master—laughed.
"There is no need to blame them; I deliberately said nothing to the boys either. In council, not only do eyes multiply, but the undercurrents fought to seize control of the agenda are vicious. Yes—even where real power is absent, men will quarrel over the smallest of official caps. I have no interest in such things. I withdrew from the council's proceedings long ago; I simply wished to speak with you quietly today. Ah—and thank you, young Gyeong-yeon."
Cha Gyeong-yeon sprang up at once and took the oar from Joeui Seonsa's hands.
Jeong Ho-chan shook his head slowly.
"I can never hold my own against you, Master."
Old master and disciple sat facing one another across the gunwale as the boat slid out onto the water.
Jeong Ho-chan looked up at the night sky. The stars were thick and countless.
"The heavens are exceptionally clear tonight. Ideal weather for reading the stars."
"Yes, Master."
Jeong Ho-chan answered quietly.
Joeui Seonsa asked, in the careless tone of one remarking on something in passing,
"Have you read the physiognomy of the two kings?"
The two kings. There was no need to ask which two he meant. Jeong Ho-chan nodded.
"Yes, Master."
"As you must have gathered from today's council, many of the elders already believe the tide has turned in Suyang's favor. Elder Eun in particular is of that mind."
"And do you believe so as well, Master?"
"Does not the current of the age say as much? More than that—do not the very stars tell us the same?"
Joeui Seonsa raised a finger and pointed to the southern sky. Jeong Ho-chan's gaze followed it.
"Look there. Do you not see how distinctly the royal aura gathering in the south is being pressed down? Sooner or later it will lose its light and fall into decline—that is all but certain."
"But did you not teach me, Master, that the Way of Heaven is ever-changing and unpredictable?"
"Rightly said. How well you remember. It is true. And yet, once a great river has chosen its course, it is no easy thing to bend it. The destinies of countless struggling wills, entangled with the fortune that acts upon a single fleeting instant—those are what decide it. And Suyang managed it masterfully. I have never laid eyes on the man myself, but he must possess a will stronger than any man alive. Did he not shake the very foundations of the state in a single moment?"
Jeong Ho-chan did not answer.
"Well then—back to the matter of faces. Let us hear Suyang first. What manner of countenance does he bear?"
"I could hardly presume to offer my opinion before you, Master, but..."
Jeong Ho-chan ordered his thoughts.
"There is unmistakably a royal aura upon him. Just as you say, his will is iron-strong, and his is the face of one who could unite a nation. But he lacks the final measure. Once he wins the state, he will be content with what he has. More than sufficient for a vassal king—but not a vessel fit to challenge the Son of Heaven."
"Most men would say ruling even a single vassal kingdom is plenty. So—by your reading, the throne of Joseon is the full measure of him."
Jeong Ho-chan nodded.
"And the boy king? What of him?"
"I only glimpsed him from a distance, and briefly at that. But..."
Jeong Ho-chan closed his eyes and traced the memory of that moment. It was still vivid—so vivid that he felt a single bead of sweat trace down his spine.
"By my judgment... he bore, without a doubt, a countenance that could shake the world itself. No—rather than saw, I should say I felt it. Yes, it was closer to a feeling. When I first beheld him, though he was but a child, sweat ran down my back."
"What manner of feeling did you take from him?"
"I felt the spirit of heroes and great men flowing on and on through his veins. His august ancestor, Taejo Yi Seong-gye, was himself the hero who founded a dynasty—but that young king carried within him the aura of a hero of the age, in no way inferior to his forebear. If only the times favor him, he will shake not Joseon alone, but this land as well—and, in the end, even the Central Plains..."
Jeong Ho-chan's voice trembled, uplifted and burning with fervor.
The next instant, the exaltation that had wrapped his entire body vanished all at once, and his mouth clamped shut.