The second group consisted of the Minister of Household Affairs and the ministers of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Construction.
"Do you think we will need writing tools in five days?" asked the Minister of Household Affairs, stroking his beard.
"Will we really need writing tools?"
"It is absolutely necessary."
"Isn't it just the opinion of a nine-year-old child?" The Minister of Justice questioned, and the Minister of Household Affairs explained his reasoning.
"Of course, His Highness the Crown Prince is only nine years old. Thanks to that, some say that behind every action and statement of the Crown Prince is His Majesty the King. However, I do not think so. The Crown Prince is a genius bestowed by heaven, and a remarkable one at that."
"Is there a reason to think so?" The Minister of Justice asked for the reason, and the Minister of Household Affairs gazed into the distance.
"There are several reasons. First, do you remember the day His Majesty punished the Crown Prince with a rod?"
"How could I forget?"
"The fact that His Majesty used a rod means that the Crown Prince's strange behavior was heard for the first time. That is why His Majesty was so furious."
The Minister of Justice immediately countered the Minister of Household Affairs.
"That is one way to think about it. However, isn't it a stretch to say that all other cases are solely the Crown Prince's independent thoughts? Consider the Crown Prince's age. He is only nine. Wouldn't it be more appropriate to see that day's incident as a mere coincidence?"
"If one does not know, it may be easier to think that way. But have you ever been to the famous library of the East Palace?"
"I have not. Have you?"
"I once went there because the Crown Prince asked for a list of books. While I was there, I entered the library and looked at the books. Each book was covered in fingerprints, and important phrases were underlined in red. That is not all. In some books, there were papers inserted, and those papers were filled with notes on how to apply them when introducing them to our Joseon. And that handwriting was not from His Majesty."
At the Minister of Household Affairs' words, the Minister of Justice's expression grew serious.
"Are you saying..."
"We are witnessing someone truly terrifying. Someone who is intelligent, has the ability to execute, and is backed by power."
"Ah..."
The Minister of Justice let out a sound that was hard to tell if it was admiration or lamentation.
The third group consisted of young officials from the Office of Special Advisors and the Office of Inspector General.
"What do you think?"
"Thinking or not, we should immediately submit a petition, shouldn't we? The Crown Prince is only nine years old! What is state governance? It is about running the country. It is such a heavy responsibility, and what can a mere nine-year-old know? This is His Majesty mocking us, his subjects!"
"However, as we can see from this golden pen, we must acknowledge the Crown Prince's exceptional abilities, right?"
"The thing I regret the most is this golden pen! I should have opposed its mass production! Because of this, everyone from His Majesty to the lowest officials only thinks about wealth, and I cannot help but lament! What is different from the previous dynasty? Why did our Joseon rise?"
Unable to contain his anger, a young official's fists trembled, and those nearby seemed to agree with him.
"Let's hurry! We need to write that petition quickly!"
"Yes!"
As the young officials moved in a rush, a small group of young officials gathered behind them.
Most of them were historians from the Annals Office.
"What do you think, Lee-hyung?"
"Jang-hyung, I don't know. From what I've seen, I couldn't find anything wrong with the Crown Prince's words..."
A historian who had just come out of the palace joined the conversation.
"Isn't the behavior of the Office of Inspector General and the Office of Special Advisors something we see all the time? It is the same now. They think that by nitpicking like that, their names will rise in value. Let's move quickly. We have work piling up, right? And considering five days from now, we need to prepare in advance."
"Indeed."
The historians who were criticizing the officials of the Office of Inspector General and the Office of Special Advisors hurriedly made their way to the Annals Office.
And such scenes were quietly observed by the palace attendants and court ladies.
The reactions of the officials were quickly conveyed to King Sejong through the palace attendants.
"Well done."
King Sejong sighed deeply after praising the attendants.
"How is it that only these stubborn people are around?"
Hearing the reactions of the officials, Sejong lamented deeply.
The officials were openly protesting.
"If they had actually moved, they would have met outside the palace. Very discreetly!"
Seeing Sejong's poor complexion, the attendant quickly pleaded.
"There are not a few who show goodwill."
At the attendant's words, Sejong smiled bitterly.
"Is that a relief? After all, even I find it hard to believe that the Crown Prince is only nine years old..."
Sejong, who had been smiling at the Crown Prince's brilliance, sighed deeply again.
"Ah... With such rigidity among the young officials..."
The part that disappointed Sejong the most was the rigidity shown by the young officials of the Office of Special Advisors and the Office of Inspector General.
The Prime Minister's faction also had a rigid mindset, but based on their experience, they could move flexibly when necessary.
However, the problem lay with those young officials.
They were people who blindly believed that Confucianism was everything.
They thought that thinking and living according to Confucianism was the only righteous path.
In their eyes, everything that Hyang promoted could easily be labeled as heretical.
In fact, they were already making such claims.
"The country is going backwards! To prioritize commerce! Why did the previous dynasty fall? Have they forgotten the principle of focusing on the root and suppressing the branches?"
"Ah..."
Once again, Sejong sighed deeply and lamented.
"There are no talented people. There are no talented people."
It had been five years since he inherited the throne from Taejong, and more than half a year since Taejong's death, but Taejong's shadow still loomed large.
Immediately after taking the throne, he partially reshuffled the cabinet, and the officials followed his orders well.
However, Sejong knew well that in their eyes, he still appeared as a mere child.
Ultimately, Sejong needed capable talents who would follow his orders well.
"It is still too early to call them..."
The "them" Sejong was thinking of were Hwang Hee and Maeng Sa-seong.
Both Hwang Hee and Maeng Sa-seong were recognized as talented individuals even by Taejong.
However, both had been caught up in Taejong's power consolidation efforts and faced crises.
In the end, they returned to the central political scene, but the justification for elevating them to the core of power was weak.
"The problem is whether they can manage those foolish young officials..."
Thinking of the young officials with rigid mindsets, Sejong placed his hand on his forehead.
"My head hurts."
At Sejong's words, the attendant's face filled with concern.
"Shall I call the royal physician?"
"It is not that serious. A short rest will do."
Sejong, who stopped the attendant from calling the physician, turned his gaze to the documents and petitions that had yet to be processed.
While Sejong was troubled, Hyang also heard similar stories through the palace attendants.
"Has the distinction between us and them been somewhat established? By the way..."
Hyang, trailing off, tapped the desk with his finger and muttered softly.
"It’s still the early days of Joseon, and already at a Taliban level..."
"Your Highness? What did you say?"
"It was just a mumbled thought. Don't mind it."
"Yes, Your Highness."
After silencing the palace attendant, Hyang fell into deep thought while tapping the desk.
"Damn! If they are already at a Taliban level, what am I supposed to do? How do I deal with those who have heads as solid as the foundation stones of Gyeongbokgung?"
Hyang felt overwhelmed at the thought of dealing with the young officials, especially those from the Office of Special Advisors and the Office of Inspector General.
After pondering various thoughts, Hyang finally reached a conclusion.
"Let the palace attendants leave."
"Yes?"
"I need to organize things alone."
"... Yes, Your Highness."
After sending the palace attendants away and sitting alone in the room, Hyang clenched his fists.
"Damn! I will do it all without hesitation! If it’s our King Sejong, he will surely pick the right ones from within! From there, once I ascend the throne, I will put the rest into action! If they can’t keep up, I’ll just replace them! Those who can go will go, and those who can be rolled will be rolled, and things will turn out fine!"
Having reached a conclusion, Hyang spread out a blank sheet of paper.
"Hmm... Where should I start?"
How long had it been since Hyang flipped the switch? A palace attendant standing outside the door called out loudly.
"His Majesty the King has arrived!"
Upon hearing that Sejong had come, Hyang stood up from his chair, adjusted his attire, and respectfully welcomed Sejong.
"Welcome, Father."
"It is late at night, and you are still awake? It is not good for your health."
"I have work to do, so how can sleep be a problem? Besides, your health is more important than mine, Father."
"My child..."
Sejong felt pleased by Hyang's response and lightly patted Hyang's shoulder before turning his head to the desk.
"May I read this for a moment?"
"Yes."
However, before Hyang could even finish his answer, Sejong picked up the papers and began reading the contents.
Seeing this, Hyang pouted and muttered inwardly.
"If you’re going to read it before I can answer, why ask? Anyway, those high-ranking people..."
Whether Sejong knew Hyang's feelings or not, he carefully read the sentences written on the paper and then asked Hyang a question.
"Crown Prince, what do the symbols ‘?’ and ‘!’ next to these sentences mean?"
"They are punctuation marks from the Westerners. The curled ‘?’ signifies a question, while the straight ‘!’ indicates exclamation or surprise."
"Oh? With just a simple symbol, the meaning of the sentence becomes clearer! Hmm... I see, I see..."
Understanding what the punctuation marks meant, Sejong examined the papers even more closely.
"Father, how about sitting down to read?"
"My legs were starting to hurt anyway, so I will do that."
Delighted by Hyang's suggestion, Sejong sat down in a chair.
"Your Majesty, you should lose some weight! Why are you still pyramid-shaped even after all that jumping rope?"
Watching Sejong's overweight figure, Hyang inwardly grumbled as he sat across from Sejong.
Sejong, who was flipping through the papers laid out on the desk, crossed his arms and stared at the documents.
"Reorganization of the administrative structure, differentiation of local positions, reform of the taxation system, land system reform... This is not just a simple presentation of opinions, is it?"
"My opinions are truly simple. It is the ‘Hongik Ingan’ that Hwanung spoke of long ago. The teachings of the sages are ultimately of the same meaning, aren’t they?"
"That is indeed true."
Sejong nodded vigorously, as if he agreed with Hyang's words.
Although it is called royal governance, the conclusion was simple.
"Let both the king and the people live peacefully."
"In order to actually implement this principle, there are many shortcomings in the current system. My dream is to correct these shortcomings so that the royal family and the people can live in peace in Joseon."
"That is a good dream. To be honest, just looking at what you have written makes me want to adopt it as a policy immediately. However, your age is only nine, and there will be many who will nitpick and refuse to listen."
At Sejong's observation, Hyang shrugged his shoulders.
"That is not incorrect, is it? It is true that I am only nine years old, and it is also true that my experience is shallow because of my young age."
At Hyang's response, Sejong clicked his tongue.
"Tsk! To prioritize age and experience when discussing the Way and governance is not the intention of the sages..."
"Thanks to that, it becomes easier to identify those who will truly help Your Majesty, doesn’t it?"
"That is true!"
At the same time, both Sejong and Hyang smiled broadly.
It was a pleasant sight of a father and son smiling together, but if the officials had seen it, it would have been a scene that would make them break out in a cold sweat.
Feeling relieved by Hyang's response, Sejong stood up from his seat.
"Now, go to bed. Children should sleep early to grow well."
"Yes, Father. You should also get some rest. Your health is essential for the peace of Joseon."
"Indeed."
With a smile, Sejong was about to step outside when he suddenly turned back to Hyang.
"Ah! I just remembered! For your presentation, we will invite not only the upper officials but also the lower officials. Prepare well."
"Yes."
"Rest well."
After sending Sejong off, Hyang frowned.
"Damn!"
The scale had become larger than expected.