Tightening the Reins on a Lax Confucian World

Blegh. Blegh.

...A new 'writing tutor' had been assigned to me. And during my meetings with this 'writing tutor,' Dolbi gagged endlessly until, exhausted, they just let their head spin in circles. A massive pile of notes had stacked up in front of me back then.

It was a relief that my new tutor... that is, Shin Sukju, didn't think my expression was too strange. Blegh.

I had no idea a human being could curse someone so colorfully without uttering a single swear word. It was truly a display of literary prowess worthy of someone who had once ascended the throne in a nation of scholars, and who had spent over five hundred years bound to Yeongwol acting as a local deity.

Maybe this guy would actually make a better writing tutor...?

Blegh. Blegh. Blegh.

Of course, that was nonsense. I shook my head.

Blegh. Blegh. Blegh. Blegh.

Distracted by the continuous gagging sounds, I glanced to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the side. Dolbi was holding their mouth open as if yawning, only their uvula twitching. Just as I thought they were finally going to throw up, something popped out.

Blegh.

Even after that, Dolbi kept gagging. Of course, nothing else came out.

...It was clear that the twenty-first-century spirit, Yi Hongwi, was absolutely furious. It seemed he couldn't stop trying to send messages even though he had run out of data. Dolbi also puffed up their fur, raising their tail high and growling. It was easy to guess the emotional state of their master through Dolbi's behavior.

I offered a silent moment of pity, imagining the spirit of Yi Hongwi weeping tears of blood in Yeongwol.

Soon, even the gagging sounds stopped. I let out a sigh.

Right. For now... I just had to endure it. What choice did I have?

Even a child prodigy myth had its limits.

If a young child solved high school math problems on their own, everyone would applaud them as a genius. But if that same kid claimed to have reproved Fermat's Last Theorem all by themselves in a tiny room, everyone would tell them to stop talking nonsense.

That was why I currently needed a reliable 'guardian' and 'plausibility.'

First of all, I had Kim Jong-seo. He was an essential connection if I wanted to survive in this northern frontier. Naturally, there was no way Kim Jong-seo would just sit idly after seeing me. He must have reported directly to 'His Majesty.'

Seeing as there was still no filial piety gate or any loud, celebratory events, the report probably hadn't been made public yet. They were keeping me in reserve.

Of course, keeping me in reserve didn't mean they should just neglect me. To play this card properly, support was required. Thus, they had hastily sent down a writing tutor. Someone whom Kim Jong-seo and Sejong himself believed would make an excellent backing for me. And that was Shin Sukju.

Mmmmmm.

Now completely quiet, Dolbi looked at me. They slowly flicked only the very tip of their tail, and when our eyes met, they nodded and purred. ...It seemed the cub had calmed down, and their master had composed his mind as well. What a relief.

At any rate, Shin Sukju went back to stay at the nearby government office. Our village didn't have the resources to feed and house a pampered young master from a wealthy family. To be honest, surviving this past winter was practically a miracle. If Shin Sukju had to source his own food, clothing, and shelter here, this time we would all surely die.

Of course, in the long run, since Kim Jong-seo was supporting this area, they would build quarters for Shin Sukju and receive provisions. Thanks to that, the villagers were currently thrilled. Though the filial piety gate had been delayed for some reason, the immediate probability of starving to death had decreased. After all, I had become someone whom the King himself looked after, and this village had become a place directly under royal care.

I could breathe a sigh of relief. Everything would go well for us. Nothing bad would happen when Shin Sukju returned tomorrow.

"Ugh... How strange. Have I caught a cold after all? Ever since I arrived here, my body has felt bizarrely heavy..."

...Of course, I knew the reason, but I didn't tell him. Even if I told him that a ghost tiger was currently riding on his shoulders, chewing, gnawing, and savoring his head, he wouldn't believe me anyway.

Dolbi, with all their fur standing on end, was currently biting down on Shin Sukju's head, grinding their teeth. Is that... really okay? Still, it didn't seem like Dolbi was actually trying to harm him. Shin Sukju merely felt stiff for a moment before letting it go.

Just as Dolbi climbed down from his head and sat in the corner of the room, Shin Sukju adjusted his posture and looked at me.

We were not in the mourning hut, but in my original house. After all, the hut I had been staying in wasn't spacious enough for two people to remain for long. Since we would only be here during study hours, and considering that most people in mourning frequently ate and slept at home anyway, it could hardly be considered a breach of propriety.

"I have heard the news that you are exceptionally bright, having mastered the Thousand Character Classic and immediately moving on to read the Reflections on Things at Hand."

He rotated his shoulders to loosen them up as he opened with those words. Come to think of it, this man was also someone who had been called a child prodigy in his youth.

"It is an impressive feat, but it is akin to a child learning to ride a horse before they have even learned to walk. Only after a person can stand straight and walk properly can they truly master riding or anything else. That is why I have come to lecture you on the Elementary Learning."

"Mmm..."

I carefully scrutinized Shin Sukju as he handed me the Elementary Learning with those words. And I reached a conclusion.

He doesn't believe it.

Well, it was only natural. What an arrogant fellow from the very start. How dare he not believe the words of the King? Still, it seemed like an error that didn't particularly need correcting. After all, it was enough for him to just know that I had mastered the Thousand Character Classic at this age.

Seeing my lukewarm reaction, Shin Sukju lowered his voice for effect.

"Though the Elementary Learning was written for young children like you, it is also the foundation for investigating things and rectifying the mind."

"Yes, Scholar."

"Call me Master from now on."

"...Yes."

"Master Zhu Xi had his disciple Liu Zicheng gather the essentials of learning and self-cultivation. Thus, the Elementary Learning contains the general principles a scholar must uphold and the very foundation for governing the world."

His introduction was long. He was probably worried that I would be an uncooperative student, like those who ruined their studies by skipping ahead without a proper foundation... but his worries were entirely unnecessary. I quickly straightened my posture and nodded solemnly. At that, Shin Sukju finally opened the Elementary Learning.

"Now, let us begin. First, read aloud."

Right. Let's see, uh... Oh.

Jeyu Pyoje Juso Sohak Jipseong (Collected Commentaries on the Elementary Learning with Headings and Annotations by Various Scholars).

In other words, a comprehensive compilation of the Elementary Learning featuring headings and annotations gathered from various Confucian scholars. Shortened to Sohak Jipseong, it was an annotated commentary on the Elementary Learning. Since it was compiled by He Shixin of either the Yuan or Ming Dynasty, it was a relatively hot-off-the-press book by the standards of this era. At any rate, since it was written less than a century ago, it was practically a new release. It was a commentary that was particularly promoted and distributed during Sejong's reign.

"Zisizi yue, tianming zhi wei xing... (Master Zisi said, what Heaven ordains is called nature...)"

As I chanted the first page along with Shin Sukju and scanned the text, it certainly felt unfamiliar. It lacked the familiar, deep scent of... the Westerners and the Patriarchs faction (Seoin-Noron).

Sohak Jega Jipju (Collected Commentaries of Various Schools on the Elementary Learning), shortened to Sohak Jipju. That was the commentary on the Elementary Learning I was familiar with. Written by the famous Yulgok Yi I, this would become the standard for understanding the Elementary Learning in the late Joseon Dynasty. Later, the vernacular translations (Sohak Eonhae) published during the reigns of King Hyeonjong and King Yeongjo were also based on it. I knew this because I had wrestled with it back when I was studying Middle and Early Modern Korean.

...Ah, the memories of being a Korean literature major were flooding back.

Regardless, the Sohak Jipju written by Yi I was a work where a great scholar of his time had personally corrected other commentaries, finding them disorganized and sloppy. More than thirty percent of the annotations gathered from various sources had been replaced or modified. In other words, it was a text Yi I had written to 'direct traffic' in the direction he personally deemed correct.

Compared to such a Sohak Jipju, what was this Sohak Jipseong?

It was closer to a compilation like: [Playlist] One Morning, I Met Neo-Confucianism on the Roadside. Since its primary purpose was simply to gather annotations and help the reader understand, its direction was entirely different from Yi I's Sohak Jipju. Rather than explaining the philosophy itself, it placed far more weight on defining difficult characters and explaining the context. One could even glimpse the compiler's determination to maximize the reader's understanding and interest by inserting illustrations here and there. While the content was much more unrefined and raw, the format felt somewhat easier to comprehend.

At any rate, since I already knew the material inside out and was merely examining the contents of an unfamiliar book, our progress was rapid. Just as I was about to turn to the next page...

"Wait."

"What is the matter?"

"I have just changed my plan."

Shin Sukju suddenly pulled away the copy of the Elementary Learning I was holding. He then rummaged through the bundle behind him. As I blinked, wondering what on earth he was doing, Shin Sukju brought out another book. It was the Reflections on Things at Hand. It seemed he had at least brought along his primary text.

"...I know you have already read this. However, it is a book difficult to understand properly without a teacher to guide you, so we shall read it again."

If he insisted, what could I do? When I nodded, Shin Sukju read the text first this time as well. As I read along with him, Shin Sukju would provide a suitable explanation—

"Stop."

"What did you say, Master?"

"Your brilliance... exceeds my expectations."

...He stopped midway again. Shin Sukju wore a deeply conflicted expression before finally handing something to me. It was a book that was already in my room: the Collected Commentaries on the Four Books (Saseo Jipju).

"Before we read simpler texts... I shall first stimulate your desire to learn. I will give you a taste of the profound flavor of the classics."

Saying so, Shin Sukju suddenly flipped to a random page and pointed with his finger.

"Read this."

"Pardon? This is so sudden..."

"I told you to read it."

I wondered what had gotten into him. For now, I read the passage he indicated.

"Shun jin sa chin ji do i go su ji ye... (Shun exhausted the way of serving his parents, and Gusou reached the state of being pleased...)"

"S-stop."

"...Pardon?"

"I-I told you to stop for a moment!"

Suddenly shouting like that, Shin Sukju bolted upright. He was even stammering. As I blinked, wondering what on earth was wrong, Shin Sukju stood before me and pointed at the page.

"E-explain the meaning of what you just read."

"Emperor Shun exhausted the way of serving his parents, and Gusou reached the state of being pleased..."

"..."

...Ah. I forgot.

Shin Sukju slowly sat back down. As he sat, he tapped a single character with his finger.

Even the blind, unyielding Gusou was finally moved to joy.

Shin Sukju pointed at the character '底' (normally read as *jeo*, meaning bottom) in that phrase. His hand was trembling.

"You did not read that character... as jeo."

He was asking why I read the character for 'bottom' (底) as *ji* instead of *jeo*.

But that was only natural. When Mencius wrote that passage, the pronunciation of the character for 'bottom' (底) and 'to reach' (致) was identical. It wasn't strange. Even by the standards of the 'present' in the early Joseon Dynasty, Mencius was a man from eighteen hundred years ago. It would be stranger if the language hadn't changed over such a long time. Back then, there weren't as many Chinese characters, so when people wrote and couldn't think of the exact character, they would roughly substitute one with the same sound. This was called a phonetic loan character (tongga). It was a common practice in those days.

Over time, both the spoken language and the characters evolved. Characters that had been used haphazardly just because they sounded similar were eventually assigned precise meanings. However, because later generations kept misreading the ancient texts, scholars had clarified them in the footnotes.

'The character for bottom (底) means to reach (致).'

So I had simply read it accordingly. The problem was that I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was a six-year-old who had supposedly just finished reading the Reflections on Things at Hand, and there was absolutely no way I should have known an obscure footnote attached to a random passage of Mencius that Shin Sukju had flipped to.

I was drenched in sweat. So was Shin Sukju. To make matters worse, since the master and disciple were the only ones in the room, there was no one to interrupt this suffocating silence. I prayed for anyone—whether Geobi or Jageun-i—to come in, but then I recalled what the two of them had proudly declared earlier.

"We won't let so much as a single ant wander near the young master's study!"

"Of course! You can count on us, Young Master! We will even leave your meals outside without making a sound when the time comes!"

"How... do you know this?"

"..."

It was dead silent. ...There really wasn't a single ant in sight.

Ha, how utterly ridiculous.

No matter how important political maneuvering was, how could this be? A rustic local noble had recklessly moved to an even more remote countryside and died, leaving behind only his young son. And that son, out of deep filial devotion, had decided to observe a three-year mourning period on his own? That was plausible. Or perhaps the son was a prodigy who mastered the Thousand Character Classic after his father read it to him a few times during his lifetime? That, too, was possible. But he had done both.

He had even skipped straight from the Thousand Character Classic to the Reflections on Things at Hand and mastered it.

While he did not doubt the wisdom of His Majesty, Shin Sukju had suspected that Lord Jeoljae (Kim Jong-seo) had made a grave error. Perhaps he had been deceived, or perhaps there ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had been a misunderstanding. It didn't matter which. At any rate, sending a young man with a bright future to this distant northern frontier 'by mistake' was a significant debt. Even if it meant placing the supreme ruler and high officials of this nation in his debt, it was a highly profitable trade.

Indeed. Yes. Reading the Reflections on Things at Hand at the age of five? A once-in-a-generation genius? What nonsense...

"Y-your name is Heon, correct? Yes, Heon. S-so, that..."

...Huh?

Sweat poured down Shin Sukju's back like rain. There was probably no one else in this freezing northern frontier whose body was burning up as much as his. No, come to think of it, he had to exclude the young boy sitting before him as well.

"...How do you know this?"

Shin Sukju trembled as if a tiger had pounced on him. His head felt strangely heavy for some reason. As Shin Sukju barely managed to piece his words into a sentence, the boy before him hung his head low.

An Heon spoke.

"I... I could not fully comprehend the Reflections on Things at Hand... so out of necessity, even though I knew it was far beyond my level, I sought out and read other texts."

"..."

Because he couldn't understand the introductory text, he had read the classics first. Unable to grasp the book meant for beginners, he had grasped the ultimate source instead.

"And then... because the words of the sages connected with one another, the meaning finally began to enter my mind."

"..."

"I did not realize that this was s-strange, so I failed to mention it to you. I am sorry. It is all due to my own foolishness."

Only then did the entire picture form, allowing him to understand. He had assumed everyone did the same. He thought it was just because he was foolish.

"So... you are s-sorry? You are... sorry...?"

Ha... Hahaha... Haha...

...Huh?

As Choe Yun-deok waited silently outside, the Chief Eunuch soon entered the inner chamber and announced him.

"Left State Councillor Choe Yun-deok is here, Your Majesty."

"Let him enter."

Choe Yun-deok stepped inside. He knelt before the noble presence, whose face he dared not look upon directly. Then, the King lifted 'something' up.

"Left Councillor."

"..."

"Believing it was not yet time to reveal this matter to the assembly of officials, I entrusted you with this errand."

His tone was calm and gentle, yet it carried a weight that anyone would be forced to feel. It was an authority born from knowing, as if it were only natural, that he was destined to lead a nation. It was a majesty born from knowing, as if it were only natural, that all civil and military officials must bow their heads to him.

"Yet, you sent me a letter."

Choe Yun-deok felt suffocated by that authority and majesty. Beneath the surface-level calmness of that voice, something was boiling.

"'Such a thing has never existed in all of history, ancient or modern.'"

The King spoke.

"'It could not be found in the historical records of this land, nor in the records of China and other nations.'"

He recited, passage by passage, the very letter Choe Yun-deok had written with trembling hands.

"Look at this."

Before his mind could even process the command, Choe Yun-deok raised his head. There sat the sovereign of this nation. The third son of King Taejong, the most noble of all. He saw what was held in the King's hands. An immeasurable passion burned within the King's eyes.

"You said that such a thing... is growing in the northern frontier."

"Y-yes, indeed..."

"If that is truly the case, then this must grow across all eight provinces."

Across the entirety of Joseon. Throughout the whole country, this wheat must be planted, grown, and harvested. And the wheat harvested in this manner must be planted again the following autumn. This was not something that could be hidden. More precisely, it was something that must not be hidden.

When Choe Yun-deok looked into His Majesty's eyes, they gleamed like those of a tiger eyeing its prey. It was an expression that clearly said, 'Why on earth should we hide something this good?'

"If that is the case, what more is there to hide? Heaven has bestowed this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠blessing, and it was wrong to try and obstruct it."

The King's voice was filled with ambition. Choe Yun-deok had no doubt that this nation would be thrown into an uproar for some time to come.

"Did you say the boy's name is An Heon?"

However, he did not anticipate the words that followed.

"A filial piety gate shall soon be erected in Aoji. There is no need to wait for his three-year mourning period to end."

"T-that is indeed a beautiful..."

"Furthermore, since his father died while dedicating his loyalty to the state, it is only fitting that a gate of commendation be erected for him as well."

"..."

"In addition, his mother cannot be left out. She traveled all the way to the northern lands to serve her husband and father-in-law until her death. If she is not a virtuous woman, then who is?"

"..."

"Aha... Three gates for a filial son, a loyal subject, and a virtuous woman."

The King slowly curled the corners of his lips upward, as if he could no longer contain his delight.

"We must call this the Gate of the Three Bonds (Samgangmun)."

"..."

...It felt as though something irreversible was about to happen.