When Yong was three years old, he was adopted into the household of Seongnyeongdaegun, his uncle who had died at the age of 14.
After that, as he grew older, he lived by going back and forth between the palace and Seongnyeongdaegun's house. One day, while on his way to the palace, he saw a performance by a satangpa (a troupe of entertainers), which became the root of his troubles.
Curious about the noise coming from outside, Yong, who was in the palanquin, asked.
"What's all this noise about?"
In response to Yong's question, the eunuch who was accompanying him checked the situation and answered.
"It seems to be a performance by a satangpa."
"Satangpa? I want to see it."
At Yong's words, the eunuch tried to dissuade him with a troubled expression.
"It's too vulgar for Your Highness to see. It's better not to."
"I want to see it!"
When Yong insisted, the wet nurse who was in the palanquin with him came to the eunuch's aid.
"Your Highness, it's a place with many lowly people…."
"I want to see it!"
As Yong's voice grew louder, the wet nurse sighed and said to the eunuch.
"Let's just take a look for a moment."
"Wow! Wow! It's great!"
Yong, who was watching the satangpa performance, clapped his hands and was delighted.
The tightrope walking on a high wire by the performer Eoreum San was thrilling, and the acrobat's skills, where he balanced and spun plates or basins on thin poles while exchanging jokes with the clown, were also fascinating.
After watching three acts of the satangpa performance—originally there were six, but Yong only saw three from the middle—he couldn't forget that memory.
He felt an overwhelming sense of freedom in the sight of a child around his age flying high in the sky and performing acrobatics and dances energetically.
And above all, it was exhilarating.
In the end, Yong made a firm decision.
"I want to become a satangpa!"
* * *
When the third son, Yong, earnestly said he had something to say, Sejong called him. Taking a break from his official duties, Sejong was drinking tea when he asked Yong.
"So, you have something to say to this father?"
"I want to become a satangpa!"
"Ha! What nonsense!"
Sejong, taken aback by Yong's absurd statement, spat out his tea in anger.
After that, not only Sejong but also Queen Soheon and Princess Jeonghye tried to scold and persuade him, but Yong's stubbornness did not waver.
"No! No! I want to become a satangpa!"
Upon receiving the report from the eunuch, Sejong put his hand on his forehead and sighed deeply.
"Yoo is obsessed with technology, and now Yong… These children of mine…."
* * *
When the whole family became deeply worried, Hwang finally stepped in.
Hwang, who had called Yong to sit down, asked quietly.
"Yong, you said you want to become a satangpa?"
"Yes!"
"Do you like dancing and singing like a satangpa, or do you like watching the satangpa performances?"
"Um…."
Hwang's question made Yong unable to answer easily, and he tilted his head.
Seeing Yong struggling to gauge what he truly liked, Hwang asked another question.
"If you become a satangpa, you won't be able to eat your favorite sweets or candies. Would you still want to become a satangpa?"
"I don't want that…."
"But you don't want that, yet you like watching the satangpa performances, right?"
"Yes!"
"Then it's simple. If you grow up to be an excellent person, you can call the satangpa to watch their performances. If you become famous, you can gather all the satangpa from across the country to watch, right?"
"Ah…."
Yong's mouth dropped open as he imagined what Hwang said. Just as he was enjoying this pleasant imagination, Hwang poured cold water on it.
"But, you know, I don't think you can become an excellent person."
"Why not!"
"Look at you now. By throwing a tantrum to become a satangpa, you're making your father, mother, and sister worry. How can you become an excellent person?"
"I will become an excellent person!"
At Yong's shout, Hwang shook his head.
"It's difficult. No, it's impossible. You don't listen and don't study. It's absolutely not possible."
"I can do it! I can!"
"Really?"
"Yes!"
"It's a promise!"
"It's a promise!"
Seeing Yong's determined answer, Hwang smiled.
"Alright, then I'll make a promise too. If you learn properly from the royal tutor, I'll take responsibility to show you the satangpa! If you grow up to be an excellent person, I'll gather all the satangpa from across the country to show you!"
"It's a promise!"
"It's a promise!"
Following Hwang's advice, Yong took a similar path to Yoo.
Upon receiving the report that "Hwang has set Yong straight," Sejong laughed heartily for the first time in a long while.
"Hahaha! Indeed, the Crown Prince! Indeed, the eldest son!"
As Sejong rejoiced, the officials around him also chimed in.
"Truly a blessing for this Joseon!"
"Indeed!"
Meanwhile, Hwang, who was thinking about his two younger brothers in his room, shook his head.
"One is obsessed with technology, and the other is obsessed with entertainment… How can they be obsessed with fields known for being hard to cure even if they suffer from them… At least, teaching them was a success, and I should be grateful to the teachers."
The teachers Hwang mentioned were the ones who taught him when he was a high school student in the 21st century. Knowing about Hwang's famous obsessions, the teachers advised him as follows.
"If you don't want to be called a 'freak,' succeed! Become a capable or successful enthusiast, and you'll be called a 'passionate hobbyist' instead of a 'freak'!"
"Even if you love alcohol, if you drink soju in a dirty alley, you're just a drunk. But if you wear a high-quality suit and drink fine wine in a hotel bar, you're considered to enjoy drinking. Isn't that disgusting? That's how the world works."
Recalling these past memories, Hwang scratched his head.
"Still, not only me, but also those guys… I wonder if a 'Jeonju Yi Clan Enthusiast Faction' will emerge because of all these enthusiasts."
Even as a small storm raged over the princes' education, many officials in the court did not pay much attention.
"It's better to focus on work rather than worry about this!"
Seeing the piles of documents and scrolls that kept piling up no matter how hard they worked, the officials felt that the princes' career paths were stories from another world.
The biggest reason they didn't pay attention was because Hwang, a person with an incredibly strong presence, was standing as the heir.
"Since the Crown Prince is firmly in place, there's no need to worry, right?"
* * *
However, there were also people who were troubled by unresolved questions.
Hotsan, a 9th-rank scholar and researcher, and his brother, who also worked as a 9th-rank scholar and researcher, were known as the 'elder Hotsan' and 'younger Hotsan' by the officials in the research institute.
Despite the trap that his brother was bigger, Hotsan's colleague asked him.
"Hotsan, why do you look so troubled lately? Is there a problem at home?"
A colleague in the research institute, noticing Hotsan's troubled expression, asked him. Since his brother also worked as a scholar and researcher, the officials in the institute called them 'elder Hotsan' and 'younger Hotsan.'
Hotsan, receiving the colleague's question, shook his head and tried to brush it off.
"No, no."
"Your expression makes it seem like there's a big problem at home."
"It's just that there's an unresolved issue…."
At Hotsan's answer, the colleague responded with a look of sympathy.
"If you have an unresolved issue, why don't you ask someone special? Why are you troubling yourself alone? Go quickly!"
"Yes, yes…."
Seeing Hotsan's lukewarm response, the colleague's nosiness kicked in.
"Hey! Do you have a wife at that age? I'll go with you!"
"No, that's not it…."
"Really! Follow me!"
The nosy colleague eventually dragged Hotsan to find Isunji.
"What's the matter?"
When Isunji asked about the matter, Hotsan hesitated.
"Well, it's that…."
"Speak up quickly. Time is passing, and it's precious."
Encouraged by Isunji, Hotsan finally spoke.
"There's an issue I can't resolve."
At Hotsan's words, Isunji's eyes began to sparkle.
"An unresolved issue? My, my! If even the great Hotsan can't solve it… This is intriguing. What is it?"
"Where are the people the Crown Prince talks about as 'Seoi'?"
"Huh?"
"What?"
Hotsan's question, which was far from what they expected, made Isunji and the colleague blink in surprise.
"I don't understand… Why Seoi all of a sudden?"
In response to Isunji's question, Hotsan added.
"To be honest, if anyone in the court knows the most about Seoi, it would be me, my brother, and the other scholars who came with us."
"That's true."
At Hotsan's words, Isunji and the colleague nodded.
After a moment, Hotsan continued.
"Our family has been settled in Joseon for 30 years, but we still maintain some contact with the scholars of the Ming. Through them, we learned about the Catholic countries called Seoi. However…."
* * *
Hotsan's explanation continued for a long time. Isunji, listening to Hotsan's story with a serious face, concluded.
"This is not an issue that can be resolved by me alone. Let's work on it together."
"Yes."
Isunji, standing up, warned the official who came with him.
"Try to keep this matter confidential. It's for your own good."
The official, pale-faced at Isunji's warning, swallowed hard and replied.
"Yes, yes!"
"No, it's better if you work on it together."
"I will keep it confidential!"
"There's a saying, 'already a lost cause.' Don't argue, just follow me."
At Isunji's firm command, the official made a grim face and replied.
"Yes…."
Hotsan, watching the scene from the side, patted his colleague's shoulder.
"I'm sorry."
"It's fine. I dug my own grave. This nosiness of mine…."
"Let's go quickly!"
"Yes!"
* * *
"Hmm… So, you're saying that the things the Crown Prince mentioned as 'Seoi' are not even made by Seoi?"
At Jeongcho's question, Hotsan nodded.
"Do you have solid evidence?"
At Jeongcho's question, Hotsan answered immediately.
"The most solid evidence is those junks."
"Junks?"
"Yes, do you remember when I went to the Ming to find glass craftsmen at the Crown Prince's request?"
At Hotsan's question, Jeongcho nodded.
"I remember. In the end, your brother couldn't find craftsmen of the desired level and returned home, right?"
"Yes. The conditions the Crown Prince set were 'craftsmen capable of making flat glass and lenses.' The standard for flat glass was at least 2 cheok (about 70 cm) in both length and width."
When Hotsan told this to his relatives, they were shocked.
"Is this Crown Prince an Italian?"
"What do you mean?"
"Making flat glass in such large quantities has only recently started in Italy! We only heard about it recently!"
"In other words, the Crown Prince knew about a technology recently developed in a country he had never visited."
At Hotsan's words, Jeongcho immediately countered.
"Perhaps the Crown Prince just set a high standard. 'It has to be this good,' he might have said."
"That could be, but the standards were so detailed that it's impossible to set them without specific knowledge. And…."
Hotsan paused and pointed to the corridor.
"The most incomprehensible thing is those junks. Especially, the last one, the warship, is the biggest problem."
"Warship? Why?"
"From what I've heard, none of the Seoi countries have made such ships."
"Huh?"
Thinking about the relatives' reaction to the flat glass issue, Hotsan asked the most pressing question.
"By the way, are there any ships among the Catholic heretics that don't use oars and only sails?"
"There are. I went to my hometown with a eunuch from the Ming emperor. To make more money, I went as far as the Mediterranean and saw that the Spaniards had built large ships. They were called carracks, I think."
"What do they look like?"
"They are…."
Hotsan's relative drew a picture on a piece of paper, recalling the memory. Seeing the picture, Hotsan asked again.
"So, this is the most advanced ship used by the heretics?"
"Yes!"
"When my relative drew this picture, it was the 'first generation' ship the Crown Prince mentioned."
"Do you have the picture?"
At Jeongcho's question, Hotsan searched his sleeve and handed over a piece of paper.
Seeing the picture on the paper, Jeongcho's face hardened.
The ship drawn on the paper, though crude, closely resembled what Hwang had named the 'first-generation ocean-going junk.'
Seeing Jeongcho's expression, Hotsan continued.
"Even more puzzling are the new armors supplied to the royal guards. Even though they are covered with cloth, they are clearly the plate armors of the Seoi."
"Well, the royal guards are learning the sword techniques of the Seoi…."
"Yes, I know. Among the books the Crown Prince obtained, there were records of Seoi sword techniques, and the royal guards who didn't have their own sword techniques were trained in them. However, it's impossible to make such perfect armor just from a few pictures. Moreover, the technique of stamping armor in molds at once is not something the Seoi have. It's a new technology. That's why I don't understand. Where are the Seoi the Crown Prince talks about?"
"Your point is…."
"Even though the Crown Prince mentioned Seoi, it's clear that he was thinking of something else. Then the question is, 'Why did he pretend it was Seoi? Why is he so wary of Seoi?'"
"Hmm… This is a matter that requires careful thought."
Jeongcho, nodding, warned Hwang, Isunji, and the official who was dragged along.
"Keep this matter confidential for now. It could be a matter of the rise and fall of Joseon."
"Yes."
* * *
A few days later, on the official holiday of the research institute, a slave came to Hotsan's house.
"You are to go to Jeongcho's house by 9 PM."
"Understood."
The slave, delivering the message, bowed and quietly disappeared.
At 9 PM, Hotsan headed to Jeongcho's house.
A servant, waiting at the gate, quietly led Hotsan to the main room upon seeing him.
"Sir, the guest you were waiting for has arrived."
"Bring him in."
"Yes. Please come in."
"Understood."
Hotsan, entering the main room, turned his head to look at the inner room. Seeing Sejong seated in the innermost part, in the seat of honor, Hotsan quickly bowed deeply.
"Your servant, Hotsan…."
"Shh! Come in quietly."
"Understood."
Following Sejong's order, Hotsan entered the room and took the seat at the far end.
"Since everyone is here, let's get to the point."
"Understood, Your Majesty. The matter began with this Hotsan…."
Jeongcho explained the entire situation.
Sejong, listening to the explanation, nodded.
"I've also had similar doubts recently. I read the books the Crown Prince collected, but none of them explained what the Crown Prince mentioned. So, where did the Crown Prince's knowledge come from?"
At Sejong's question, Jeongcho responded.
"I had similar doubts. Thinking about the recent issue of the heliocentric theory, it seemed like something so obvious that it didn't need explanation, yet it couldn't be explained."
"That's possible?"
At Sejong's question, Isunji stepped forward to answer.
"In my case, when I see a certain formula, the answer comes to mind, but I can't explain the solution, which is often frustrating. It might be the same for him."
Isunji, defending Hwang, added.
"Thinking back to the design and experimentation of the cannon, it felt like he already knew the results and was guiding us to discover them."