The Temptation of Jang-geum
A question mark floated above the head of Jeong Su-chan.
"Hehehe..."
In a small, cramped room in the Banchon district of Hanyang, Park Pangon, a scholar from Baecheon in Hwanghae Province, let out a bizarre, cackling laugh as he caressed the cover of his completed book. He never imagined that the texture of paper, stained with ink at his fingertips, could feel so ecstatic. Park Pangon pulled the finished book tightly against his chest and tilted his head back toward the ceiling.
"I've burned it all away..."
At first, it was just a light curiosity. He had simply taken up his brush without much thought because he truly liked the appearance of Dae Jang-geum as reflected in the merchant's mirror. But that light curiosity soon turned into passion, and that passion fueled his creative desire, eventually leading him to burn everything he had.
Was this what the philosopher Zhuangzi meant by Wu-wo-yi-ti (the unity of object and self)? The refined scholarly pastimes he once loved had already vanished from his mind. Even the basic needs—sleeping when tired, eating when hungry—had faded away. For months, he had lived a faithful life, holed up in a corner of his room, writing, reading books he scavenged from the marketplace when he hit a wall, and then writing again whenever a new thought struck.
His parents, who had traveled all the way from Baecheon to Hanyang to find their son who had gone to take the civil service exam and then vanished, had shed tears of joy upon seeing his room—littered with books, paper, and ink—and their son, gaunt and hollow-eyed, writing with a fierce, venomous intensity. They had wept, convinced that the rascal had finally come to his senses.
And as every beginning has an end, the sweet fruit of his labor now rested in the hands of Park Pangon, who had finally managed to exhaust the last of his family's fortune.
"Hoo."
This was the final task. Taking a deep breath to steady his mind, Park Pangon picked up his badger-hair brush and, with a flowing hand, wrote the title on the rough cover of the book.
The Temptation of Jang-geum
It was the moment Park Pangon's new masterpiece, which would surpass Park Pangon, the Future of Joseon and Food Wars: Jang-geum to strike the nation of Joseon, was revealed to the world.
Changdeokgung Palace, Gyoseogak (The Office of Royal Publications).
Jeong Chansik, a Rank 6 Suchan (Editor) in charge of the Gyoseogak, was buried in newly arrived books today, letting out groans of misery.
"Aigoo, my aching bones."
They say you don't notice someone's presence until they're gone, and there were days when he missed Kim, the Gyori (Senior Editor), who was sometimes annoying and didn't have much to teach him. To think he would take a vacation on a day like today. Having to perform a two-man job alone made the fatigue hit him three times as hard.
Rubbing his tired brow, Jeong Suchan finished reading the book, checked it off, and tossed it aside with a flick.
"How exhausting."
Those who don't know might envy him, thinking he gets paid to read his favorite books all day, but books are not all the same. Does one have too much money to burn, or is one just thick-skinned? How could anyone think to write such literary waste on expensive white paper, and where does the baseless confidence come from to engrave one's own name on it? Out of a hundred books, you might find one or two worth keeping; the rest are just kindling, unworthy of being called books. The future of this nation of Joseon is truly dark.
"If only a book like Food Wars: Jang-geum would come out right about now."
Was there no book that could snap his tired eyes wide open like Food Wars: Jang-geum? If it were a book like that, he could read a hundred, even a thousand volumes, even if it meant staying up all night.
As he rummaged through the piles of books, selecting the next one to read, a book that looked interesting caught Jeong Suchan's eye.
"Wait? What's this?"
The Temptation of Jang-geum? If it's Jang-geum, it must be the story of Dae Jang-geum. Could it be... the next volume is already out? It hasn't even been a few months since that epic saga ended, has it?
"Huk! I don't have time for this!"
This changes everything. His fatigue vanished in an instant. Jeong Suchan immediately pulled out the sweets he had hidden in his drawer, took a firm bite, and began to devour The Temptation of Jang-geum.
- After all the events concluded, Dae Jang-geum and Min Jeong-ho headed for Joseon. Having played a major role in resolving the Ak-ha-chu-gi incident, Dae Jang-geum was appointed as an executive of the Gourmet Guild, and simultaneously, her status as a fallen noble was restored by the Emperor of Ming.
- Jang-geum, since you have been recognized by the Emperor of Ming, my mother will no longer be able to interfere in our affairs. Let us go to Joseon now and hold our wedding.
- Yes, my husband. I am happy to be with you.
- And so, the two went to Joseon to hold their wedding...
"I see. It's like an epilogue."
Well, they had been through so much, it was time to tie up the loose ends. Yes, Min Jeong-ho should marry her, have children, and Jang-geum should live happily. Jeong Suchan, who had laughed and cried with Jang-geum for the past few years while reading Food Wars: Jang-geum, The Little Prince, and Jin Gwang-ryeol, turned the page with a satisfied smile.
Unfortunately, his expectations were shattered.
- However, the couple's married life was not happy.
- I heard the medicine you brew is quite effective. Is it true that if one takes this, they will not conceive a child?
- That is correct, Madam. It is a potent tonic, strong enough to prevent even a conceived child from taking root.
- Good. Prepare five doses immediately, and when the medicine runs out, come and brew more. I will pay you whatever you ask.
- Understood, Madam.
- Thanks to the recognition of the Ming Emperor, Ahn Jeong-suk had no choice but to accept Dae Jang-geum, but she still did not consider Jang-geum her daughter-in-law. While pretending to treat Jang-geum well with tonics, she was secretly using sinister methods to prevent her from conceiving and to drive a wedge between Min Jeong-ho and Dae Jang-geum.
"Oh my, how could she be so cruel? Even if she is a woman who hasn't learned the teachings of Confucius, how could she feed such toxic medicine to her own daughter-in-law!!"
Tsk tsk, she will surely face divine retribution one day. Jeong Suchan clicked his tongue at the beastly schemes that couldn't even be spoken aloud, and read on.
- My child, it cannot be helped. I wanted to wait for your pregnancy until the end, but there is no more time.
- Mother! What on earth are you saying! A concubine? How could I take another wife while Jang-geum is here!!
- Jeong-ho. I am not doing this because I want to. But we cannot let the family line end.
- But!! Mother!!
- I have already spoken with your father, so please understand. Jang-geum, you understand too, don't you?
- ... I understand, Mother.
- In the end, unable to resist his parents' pressure, Min Jeong-ho takes Shin Ae-ri as a concubine to carry on the family line. Her beauty was truly flamboyant, and her long, fierce eyes made it seem as if a demon had been brought into the house.
- And a few months after Shin Ae-ri was brought in, news reached Jang-geum that pierced her heart like a dagger.
- Shin Ae-ri, who was pregnant, began to suffer from morning sickness, and for the sake of the mother's health, Jang-geum had no choice but to give up the master bedroom she had lived in.
"No, how does it turn into this?"
Then what happens to Jang-geum? Is she to be robbed of her bedroom by a concubine, unable to bear a child, and left to die lonely and old in a solitary room? Is this right? What kind of epilogue is this...? No, wait. Who is Heo Gyun? He is a genius who mastered the Confucian virtues of benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom by the age of five. Furthermore, he is the literary master of the age who practices the teachings of Confucius directly by writing countless books and medical texts without rest. Whenever one overcomes frustration, glory always follows. Looking at the previous five volumes, the philosophy Heo Gyun pursued was always the same, so Jeong Suchan turned the page with renewed faith.
- Shin Ae-ri gave birth to a child. It was a boy who resembled his mother greatly, with a high nose bridge and bewitching eyes. And after that day, Jang-geum lost everything.
- Haha, I finally see the grandson I've been longing for. Daughter-in-law, you've suffered. Jang-geum, the daughter-in-law is busy nursing the child, so from now on, you go into the kitchen. If you can't even bear a child, you should at least contribute to the household with the cooking you're good at. Do you understand?
- ... Yes, Mother.
- It was treatment that made it hard to distinguish whether she was the legal wife or a servant. Jang-geum had to wake up before dawn to light the furnace, and even after the sun set and night fell, the work did not end.
- However, Jang-geum could endure it. Because Min Jeong-ho was there. Although he had been forced to take Shin Ae-ri, their bond was so strong that even she could not break it, so Jang-geum silently stood by Min Jeong-ho's side, waiting for the child that would one day come.
- Then one day, Min Jeong-ho died.
"?"
Suddenly? Min Jeong-ho died? Why? Jeong Suchan, left speechless by the unpredictable, insane development, turned the page immediately. The cause of Min Jeong-ho's death on the next page was a traffic accident.
- While on his way to a pharmacy in Namchon to get medicine for his mother, the young master was struck by a wild horse and...
- What? What happened to Jeong-ho? If he left the palace, he should have come straight home, so why did he go all the way to Namchon!!
- Having lost her only son in an instant, Ahn Jeong-suk wailed as if she had lost her mind. And that anger was directed at innocent Jang-geum.
- You husband-eating wretch!! Dae Jang-geum, it's all your fault!! Get out of my sight right now. Get lost!!
- In the end, Jang-geum was kicked out of Min Jeong-ho's house.
- That day, rain was pouring down like a waterfall. The sky was pitch black as if it were collapsing, and dark clouds hung low, blurring the view. It was the sky's consideration, washing away the tears Jang-geum shed and ensuring no one could see her state.
- Her body temperature dropped until she was shivering, and a cold, sharp aura settled on Jang-geum's red lips and flushed cheeks. Nevertheless, she had nowhere else to go.
- As Dae Jang-geum sat in a corner of the marketplace, weeping silently, someone approached and shielded her from the torrential rain.
- Why are you doing this? It is cold.
- ... Who are you?
- I am Park Pangon, a scholar from Baecheon.
- "Park Pangon?"
- I have been friends with Min Jeong-ho since we were young.
- ... Ah, you were a friend of my husband. I apologize. I was so distraught that I was rude.
- As Jang-geum wiped away the tears mixed with rainwater and greeted him, Park Pangon draped a raincoat over her trembling shoulders.
- Jeong-ho left me some words. Somehow, Jeong-ho's death seems suspicious.
- Yes, what do you mean?
- Jeong-ho told me. That he was azoospermic. He was too ashamed to say it, but that is why he felt endlessly sorry for you. And since it makes no sense for Shin Ae-ri to have his child, Jeong-ho went to Namchon today, where she used to live, to uncover that secret.
- Yes?
"Yes?"
A question mark floated above the head of Jeong Suchan.