The 'Document Organization Punishment' was a penalty that made all officials tremble with fear as soon as it was created.
In the 21st century, when talking about Joseon on the internet, there was a joke about the 'record fetishists' because the Joseon literati were so enthusiastic about keeping records.
Thus, even though the records of state affairs since the founding of Joseon had only just surpassed 30 years, they boasted an enormous volume.
Xiang's evaluation of this volume was harsh.
"Idiots who stake their lives on note-taking!"
Xiang's evaluation was that the examinee's notebook, which was beautifully written with various colored pens and memory pens, was based on the belief that 'if you take good notes, you can be an excellent student.'
"The problem was how to organize and digest it afterward…."
Among the meticulously recorded documents, the only ones that had been organized were the Veritable Records.
That was why, after securing his position through the designation of the crown prince, Xiang had proposed organizing the records by department.
The issue was not that the records were overly detailed, but that they had value.
However, this task was blood-curdling.
The amount of documents was enormous, and urgent matters kept piling up.
Just the amount of petitions, memorials, and other reports that came to the court every day was staggering, and the amount of replies required was no less.
It was a cycle of 'organizing one cartload of documents and having two cartloads of work pile up.'
In this situation, the 'Document Organization Punishment' created to penalize the Ministry of Personnel officials who had failed to understand the situation and performed the bow of submission was the best solution.
The worst punishment, where 'if the results were not achieved within the set time, the remaining time and volume would determine the exile period,' made the punished officials literally 'tombstones of some archive' as they had to process the work.
"What will you do if you handle such data organization carelessly?"
To Sejong's question, Xiang replied with a nonchalant expression.
"We should apply the collective punishment system."
"Collective punishment system?"
"We can involve the high-ranking members of the family and the scholarly community. If the criminal who receives the punishment tries to cheat and mess things up, we should call in the elders of the family and the scholarly community."
Sejong slapped his knee at Xiang's words.
"Aha!"
* * *
With all their assets confiscated, Jomalseng and his wife had to rely on their eldest son, Joseon.
"Father, please come in."
"Please come in."
As Joseon and Princess Jeongjeong welcomed them, Jomalseng and his wife bowed deeply and begged for forgiveness.
"I am sorry to cause trouble for Your Highness."
"I am sorry."
"No, please come in."
Thus, Jomalseng and his wife had to set up their living quarters in a separate building of Joseon's house.
On the day Jomalseng and his wife came to rely on Joseon's house, Sejong had the Chief Secretary deliver a letter to Jomalseng.
The content of the letter was simple.
-Be cautious and more cautious. Do not forget whose blood you carry.
It was a short but powerful warning.
* * *
A Ministry of Justice official was carefully reading a scroll to Jomalseng, who had come to receive the 'Document Organization Punishment' that he had only heard about.
"…Therefore, the criminal must do his best to organize the documents! This is the imperial command. Do you understand?"
To the cautious words of the Ministry of Justice official, Jomalseng nodded weakly.
"I understand. And since I am a criminal, please speak more casually."
"Then… is it okay?"
"I am a criminal."
"Then I will speak casually… hmm. Follow me."
"Yes."
Jomalseng followed the still uncomfortable-looking Ministry of Justice official and looked up at the sky.
"Damn, it's a clear sky."
The sky in April was truly dazzlingly clear.
* * *
Jomalseng headed to the newly built buildings behind the Six Ministries, next to Gyeongbok Palace.
After the government purchased the areas of Jungang-dong and Susong-dong in the 21st century and demolished all the civilian houses, enormous buildings were constructed on the vast open space.
At the entrance of the space enclosed by tall walls, a signboard written by Sejong himself hung.
"Joseon National Document Archive"
The name engraved on the signboard was a place with a terrifying legend that 'the red pillars of the archive are stained with the tears and nosebleeds of the officials and criminals who worked there.'
"Wow…"
Seeing the grand scale of the archive he had only heard about, Jomalseng involuntarily opened his mouth.
The scale and budget he had heard about in the main hall as a minister were different from what he actually saw, making the impression even more profound.
"Let's go."
"Let's go…."
Staring blankly at the buildings, Jomalseng had to hurry his steps at the official's words.
Seeing Jomalseng hurriedly approaching, the Ministry of Justice official clicked his tongue.
"Hmm… If you have so many distractions… you will most likely be caught in the collective punishment."
"A, I understand!"
Jomalseng's face turned pale at the official's words, and he shook his head.
* * *
"This is where the criminal will work from now on."
"Yes."
Jomalseng arrived at one of the several buildings in the archive. The signboard on the main gate post read 'Ministry of War.'
Entering the building, Jomalseng involuntarily sighed.
"Ha~."
In the large room in the center of the building, nine long desks were arranged in three rows, and officials with dark circles under their eyes were sorting through scrolls and writing them into books.
Seeing the officials exhausted from fatigue, Jomalseng felt a mix of emotions.
'Am I going to end up like them?'
"Now, I will explain the work process."
"…Yes."
Whether it was because he was told to speak casually or because he realized that Jomalseng was more than just a criminal, the Ministry of Justice official's tone had become blunt.
"First, you will receive your workload from the supervisor sitting over there and process it. Since it's the Ministry of War, you should be familiar with it, right?"
"…Yes."
The words were polite, but the content had a hidden thorn.
The official, looking at Jomalseng with a mix of sympathy and criticism, continued.
"Since it's the Ministry of War, it will probably start with memorials from various regions. Confirm the date the memorial was submitted, find the corresponding date in the Veritable Records, and record what was discussed. If a reply was issued, confirm the date it was issued and find the copy to record the exact content."
"Then, do I have to go to the Veritable Records…?"
"Follow me."
The official led Jomalseng to the entrance. Pointing to the two large buildings in the center of the archive, the official said,
"From here, the left building houses the Veritable Records, and the right building houses the copies of the replies. They are classified by year, month, and day, so if you find them properly, the work will be easy."
"…Yes."
Seeing the two large buildings, Jomalseng replied in a disheartened voice.
The official's explanation was nearing its end.
"…When the bell rings once, you will be given a 15-minute break. During this time, you can go to the restroom and stretch your stiff body. When the bell rings twice, go to the entrance and eat at the cafeteria on the left. You will be given one meal a day, at noon. Finally, when the bell rings three times, you will leave. Do you understand?"
"Yes."
"Then, start your work."
"…Yes."
Feeling the gaze of the Ministry of Justice official standing behind him, Jomalseng walked to the supervisor.
"Let's start with these 10 first."
The supervisor took 10 scrolls from the stack on the bookshelf behind him and handed them to Jomalseng.
Taking the scrolls, Jomalseng involuntarily read the date on the top scroll.
"Hongwu 26 (1393, Year 2 of King Taejo)… Huh!"
Startled, Jomalseng looked at the supervisor with wide eyes. The supervisor nodded, reading Jomalseng's expression.
"Quite old, isn't it? There are almost no criminals in the Ministry of War. Or they are illiterate… The goal is to reach the 6th year of King Taejong by the end of this year."
It was a total of 14 years of records.
Seeing Jomalseng's stunned and frozen expression, the supervisor urged him.
"Hurry up and start working! If the work is delayed or an error occurs, the collective punishment will be applied! Especially for criminals, it is a first-degree major crime of treason, so even one mistake will result in immediate collective punishment!"
"Yes, yes!"
Urged by the supervisor, Jomalseng hurriedly found an empty seat and sat down, unrolling the scroll.
"Writing materials… hmm…."
Looking for writing materials, Jomalseng's expression turned dejected. In the center of the long table were several quills, an inkwell filled with ink, and a stack of blank paper.
He was now in the position of a tombstone, having to write documents.