A Tree with Deep Roots
"Would that be you, sir scholar? The gentleman I saw this afternoon?"
Hong-wi answered the question only with a nod.
"I turned back on the chance you were still here. That suspicious band I saw in the daylight weighed on my mind, and I feared some misfortune might have befallen you. And it seems my fear was not unfounded."
Song Yu-bin glanced around the reed field. His suspicion that trouble might strike had indeed been right on the mark. But the skill of the men Hong-wi had at his side was no ordinary thing either. Ruffians twice their number, every one of them killers who would cut a man down without a second thought—and yet they had been beaten back. And yet, all the same... Song Yu-bin tilted his head.
"How did you come to keep company with a man like this? This fellow has a notorious reputation as a smuggler even here in Manpo. Don't tell me he abducted you?"
"It is nothing of the sort," Hong-wi replied, stepping forward. "It is just as this man said. I wished to take a sail down the Amnok River and went looking for a boatman—that is how we met."
"Hm."
Song Yu-bin turned a stern eye on Jang Hui-sun. "Is what this gentleman says the truth or not?"
"Didn't I tell you that already!" Jang Hui-sun, who had only just convinced himself that the road to survival lay open before him, answered sullenly.
Song Yu-bin made no reply, only studied Hong-wi's face in silence. Hong-wi met that gaze without a flicker of wavering. It was Song Yu-bin who looked away first.
"Very well." He let out a breath before continuing. "I know you are not lying to me. And if you were, then you would be a bold enough liar to deceive even these eyes of mine. But that the man you have hired is a criminal is a fact that cannot be argued away. I draw the state's salary, and I cannot simply let him go. And besides..."
Song Yu-bin looked Hong-wi up and down.
"This afternoon I took you for a man of noble character and let you pass. Forgive my earlier carelessness. But I cannot let you pass now. You must report to the Deputy Magistrate at Ganggye and await his judgment."
Song Yu-bin's tone was gentle, yet it carried a weight that could not be defied.
Hong-wi shook his head. "I understand your circumstances, Officer Song, but I have circumstances of my own that forbid it."
"I am not asking for your understanding. This is an order."
"Whatever you may be, you cannot drag my master away!"
Ho-in flared up and lunged forward. In the blink of an eye his blade was already drawn.
Song Yu-bin stood as unmoved as Mount Taishan. To be so utterly composed before a drawn sword—Hong-wi marveled inwardly at the man's audacity.
"Put that sword down. If you don't, then even I can no longer spare you—or your master. Do you truly wish to make your lord a criminal of the state?"
In truth, Song Yu-bin's words were a contradiction. Though he did not know it, Hong-wi and Ho-in had been criminals of the state for a very long time already. But the officer's voice was soft even as it brooked no disobedience.
After a moment's hesitation, Ho-in slid the sword back into its sheath.
Song Yu-bin smiled. "I thank you. You chose wisely." Then he turned back to Hong-wi. "You keep a brave servant, young master. But bravery that cannot read the moment is nothing but recklessness. In another time, in another place, such audacity might have passed. This is the frontier, and as the general responsible for its safety, I must do what must be done. That I do not cut your servant down where he stands for the crime of drawing steel on an officer—that alone is already an enormous favor to you."
"I know it well. I have no wish to be a burden to you either, Lord Song, who gives yourself for the sake of the realm."
"Then come with me to Ganggye Prefecture. If you are innocent, I trust you will not refuse."
Hong-wi shook his head again, and Song Yu-bin's brow furrowed.
"I have reasons I cannot go to Ganggye—and at the same time, reasons I must go with this man you would take captive."
"I cannot fathom it. That a gentleman of such refinement and evident nobility should wrap himself around a criminal like this and court danger."
"When the times are dark, such things happen. Is this not, after all, an age when ministers hold their sovereign hostage, and traitors brand the loyal as criminals and drive them into persecution? In such times, even a noble gentleman may keep company with criminals."
Song Yu-bin's expression hardened. At length he asked coldly, "That much, I cannot let pass unheard. You crossed a line just now, young master. This scholar of Hamheung you spoke of—who in the world are you, to dare such insolent words before me?"
"I am a man who holds the right to command you, Lord Song, to open the road so that I may go where I must today." Hong-wi answered with perfect calm.
For a long while, no one opened his mouth. Only the whisper of the reed field stirring in the wind could be heard. Beneath moonlight breaking free of the clouds, nothing showed but Song Yu-bin's scowling face.
"No man alive has the right to order me to defy the law of this realm—not even my own superior, the Deputy Magistrate of Ganggye. And you are no exception. Now, reveal your identity! I have no wish to drag a gentleman like you away with a rope around your neck."
"Splendid. To learn that a general such as you guards the frontier is a comfort beyond measure. But if I were you, I would do otherwise."
With those words, Hong-wi lifted his face to the sky and recited:
Having spoken, Hong-wi took a single step forward. And then he thundered:
"The man who stands before you is the great-grandson of King Taejo, great-great-grandson of King Taejo—no—the great-grandson of Taejo, the great-grandson of Taejong, the grandson of King Sejong the Great, and the son of King Munjong. I succeeded to the legitimate line of this realm and ascended the throne—only, through misfortune, to yield it to my uncle. Now I have been unjustly demoted to the title of Prince Nosan, cast into exile, and hunted with threats against my very life. There—that is the history I have to tell you. Is your curiosity satisfied?"
Ho-in's eyes went round as saucers. Was it merely his imagination?
Hong-wi had a sturdy frame, but Song Yu-bin was clearly the taller of the two. And yet in this moment the boy of sixteen seemed somehow larger than life itself, while Song Yu-bin seemed to shrink before him.
For an instant, an overwhelming sovereign's power and majesty, impossible to suppress, had swept across Hong-wi's face.
A heavy stillness descended. Not one of them could draw a proper breath. Song Yu-bin, who had stumbled back a step without meaning to, now wore an expression of fear and astonishment—and of awe.
The next moment, he cried out.
"Truly—truly, Your Majesty? No, this cannot..."
A murmur escaped him, like a groan, and then Song Yu-bin threw himself to the ground. Mud from the reed field splattered his cheollik robes, but he paid it no mind whatsoever.
"I am unworthy of this grace, Your Majesty. Your humble servant has been insolent before you."
"Think nothing of it. I have answered your question; now it is your turn to answer. Whom do you serve? The woman? Or her uncle, who sits in Hanyang?"
"Your Majesty!"
That cry was all the answer Song Yu-bin could give. And it was answer enough. A thin smile brushed across Hong-wi's lips.
"To chance upon a loyal subject in this land a thousand li along the northern frontier. Rise now, I bid you!"
For the words of a boy of sixteen, they carried a force that gripped a man's very bones. Song Yu-bin rose unsteadily to his feet.
"How is it that Your Majesty has journeyed to this place? I heard tell that... that you were confined in Yeongwol County..."
"You heard I had been shut away in Yeongwol, yes. And so it was. But thanks to the people here..."
Hong-wi turned to Ho-in and Cha Gyeong-yeon as he continued. Ho-in was still half-dazed by the sudden turn of events; Cha Gyeong-yeon wore a faint smile at the corner of his mouth.
"...I was able to flee safely all the way here. There were many others besides, who gave their lives to protect me. I ought to bury them with all the rites due great ministers of state."
A sorrowful smile flickered across Hong-wi's drawn face. "One day, I will do exactly that. But enough—now you must tell me your history!"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Still uncertain whether he walked in dream or waking life, Song Yu-bin recounted his story in full. Most of it was as Jang Hui-sun had told them. In truth, he had been one of Kim Jong-seo's men from his father's day, and he himself had entered the service of the Provincial Commander of Hamgil, Yi Jing-ok—another of Kim Jong-seo's men.
Song Yu-bin let out a long breath.
"When I heard in Hanyang that the Grand Commander had met with a violent end, I hurried to the Provincial Commander's side. Even now his face, his expression in that hour, remains vivid before my eyes."
"Mm."
"He ordered me to return and hold Ganggye. He said that in times of turmoil, a realm needs able generals all the more. But it seemed to me he had already made his decision within his heart. If only I had stayed with him then... Not long after, word came that old Wonbong and his sons had all been cut down."
A shadow fell over Song Yu-bin's face. Hong-wi shook his head.
"Wonbong's reasoning had its merit. No matter who sat upon the throne, someone still had to guard the frontier in silence for the sake of the people."
"That may be so. And yet, though I knew full well that Your Majesty had been deposed and sent down to Yeongwol, I hid behind the excuse of my office and never once came to see you. Worse still—even when I stood before you just now, I failed to recognize you. Mine is a great sin."
"How could that be a sin? But tell me—why did you come back here?"
"In truth, even after I beheld Your Majesty, something felt left undone. It took a long while before I understood what it was. When I passed the military examination long ago, I was granted—unworthily—an audience with the late King. And yet, unworthy wretch that I am, my eyes were blind even then, and I failed to recognize Your Majesty. Now that I have looked upon you again, I see it plainly: you are the very image of him!"
"So I have been told—that I take after my father!"
A look of deep remembrance passed over Hong-wi's face. "Come, rise. In times like these, what guilt could possibly attach to you? Rather, to learn that a man like you has been guarding this land—my heart is all the more at ease. I intend to cross over into the lands of the barbarians and entrust my body to them now. But I beg of you: look after this Joseon in my stead."
"Your Majesty!" Song Yu-bin cried out. "I had my suspicions, but—how could you wish to bind yourself to the land of the wild tribes?"
Hong-wi smiled, a lonely smile. "Where the way of lord and subject has already collapsed, what profit is there in lingering there any longer?"
Song Yu-bin fell silent. That a young king should abandon his homeland and set out on the road of exile—it struck him, as a servant of the realm, as heartbreaking beyond words. He lifted his head.
"Then, though I am foolish, allow me to stand guard at Your Majesty's side."
It was the people standing beside Hong-wi, more than Hong-wi himself, who were startled by those words.
Hong-wi shook his head. "You are the man charged with the defense of this frontier. How can you say such a thing!"
"I resolved long ago to retire from service, Your Majesty. With the law of the realm in ruins, how could I cling to a mere post? And now that I have at last beheld my true sovereign—how could I simply remain here?"
Hong-wi held his silence. Song Yu-bin's resolve seemed already fixed.
"That I cannot allow. I cannot grant it."
"Your Majesty!"
"If you, too, abandon your post, what is to become of the people?"
There was force in Hong-wi's voice, and Song Yu-bin closed his mouth at last.
"Do this, then. Even if I go now, it will not be forever. When the time comes, I will return. Until then, hold your post, and keep my people safe. That is your charge, and your duty. Do you understand?"
Song Yu-bin made no answer.
"Will you honor my wish?"
"...Yes, Your Majesty."
Song Yu-bin answered with obvious reluctance. "Then, Your Majesty, grant your servant leave to offer you one last farewell drink."
"I grant it."
Hong-wi smiled sadly. As if he had been waiting for exactly this, Cha Gyeong-yeon drew a bottle of liquor from his bundle. "I found it in the lean-to earlier. That fellow Sol-gae turns out to have surprisingly refined taste."
Beneath a waning moon, in the dark, king and minister drank in silence, the wind in the reeds their only company.
Song Yu-bin escorted Hong-wi's party all the way to their boat. Then he turned a warning on Jang Hui-sun.
"Because I bear witness to His Majesty today, I let you go as you are. But next time, my hands will not be so gentle. Mend your ways, and live honestly from here on..."
"That I will, sir, that I will."
Jang Hui-sun groveled as though he might melt into the ground on the spot. Ho-in watched the spectacle with wonder.
Song Yu-bin bowed deeply to Hong-wi. "Travel safely, Your Majesty. May we meet again on a brighter day."
"I thank you."
The ferry carrying Hong-wi and his companions slid out across the broad river. Hong-wi watched Song Yu-bin for a long time, and at last sighed.
"That such a man stood here all along, and I never knew. I should have entrusted him with far greater burdens long ago."
"Is it not so, that the darker the times, the more loyal ministers hide themselves away?"
Hong-wi nodded wordlessly.
All the while, Jang Hui-sun at the oars wore a distinctly sour expression. Cha Gyeong-yeon broke into a sly grin and settled himself across from him.
"Something troubling you, Seongnime?"
"Aye. Trouble's exactly what you've stuck me with."
At Cha Gyeong-yeon's sly remark, Jang Hui-sun bristled without cause. "Oh, come off it—'stuck you with trouble'? You died and came back to life, man. Where in the world would you find greater luck than that?"
"Are you mocking me, you wretch? I've been dragged into a matter far bigger than I ever bargained for, that's what. And to think—that gentleman was really the king..."
"Ha. Thirty years a smuggler, and now he's laid eyes on a living king. Fancy that," Cha Gyeong-yeon quipped.
"Whether it turns out a blessing or a curse, I can't rightly say," Jang Hui-sun answered.
"A curse?"
Jang Hui-sun felt a dull ache settling in one corner of his skull. From Cha Gyeong-yeon's bearing alone he had already guessed that the man he was ferrying across tonight was no ordinary soul—but never in his wildest thoughts had he imagined it was the very king the whole realm was hunting.
That said, neither did it mean Jang Hui-sun had suddenly found reverence in his heart for a sovereign whose face he had never seen nor favor he had ever tasted.
"Wherever that man goes, Hanyang or anywhere else, they say the whole realm goes to war—how many times now? Who's to say he isn't a plague god in the flesh? If word of tonight reaches the magistrates, I'll be branded a traitor and dead as a doornail."
"Hmph." Cha Gyeong-yeon snorted. "What's this now, Seongnime? A moment ago you talked as though being taken by the authorities was nothing to fear? Because hear me—if the authorities ever do get their hands on a Seongnime, everything you've done until now is quite enough to lose your neck all on its own."
"Well... that's... true enough," Jang Hui-sun grumbled. "Still. If I'd known, I'd have refused outright."
"Then go soak up some of the king's fortune. And that saves me the trouble of telling you to seal your lips tight about tonight."
Jang Hui-sun shot him a sidelong glare. "You wretch. You knew all along and dragged me into it anyway."
Cha Gyeong-yeon only laughed. A while later, Jang Hui-sun heaved a great sigh.
"Ah, well. That's a smuggler's life for you, isn't it. But the king himself, fleeing into the lands of the wild tribes—what in the world is this world coming to?"
"That's hardly like you, Seongnime. A smuggler's just to keep doing what he's always done, that's all."
The conversation lapsed. The four men each sank into his own thoughts, until Ho-in suddenly cried out.
"Look there—a star, shining bright."
Hong-wi's gaze followed the point of his finger, and soon he nodded. "Mm, so it is. The morning star. Unusually bright tonight."
Just as Hong-wi said, it was the morning star. A familiar sight, yet tonight it seemed to burn somehow clearer and brighter than ever. It might have been because the moon was only a dark sliver—but to Hong-wi, it felt almost as if the star were guiding him onward. As if his departed mother and father, and his lady Hyobin, and his uncle Grand Prince Geumseong, and all the others besides, were guiding him together.
"It seems as though that star is leading Your Majesty through this darkness," Ho-in said.
"To us smugglers, that star has always been an omen of good passage," Cha Gyeong-yeon added. Even Jang Hui-sun nodded his agreement.
Hong-wi bowed his head for a moment as though in silent offering, then raised it again and looked upon his companions.
"Yes. However deep the darkness, light can never be smothered."
And so the ferry bearing Hong-wi and his companions crossed the river.