Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Chapter 7 — Who Is My Father? (5)

The funny thing was, the second reason Hyang changed his plans was because of a physiological phenomenon.

“Shit! Crap!”

Hyang suddenly felt a need for a basic necessity before running into the room where the chamber pot was located.

He threw the disturbing hem of his red dopo back, then cursed in a low voice as he did his business in the chamber pot.

“Oh, shit! As bright as ever!”

Once Hyang reached the age where he didn’t need diapers anymore, the thing that bothered and annoyed him the most was relieving himself.

There were bathrooms in the palace, but they were few in number and far away.

Because of that, Hyang had to do most of his needs in the chamber pot, and every time he did that, he had to endure the discomfort.

Hyang personally had a complaint about this, but relieving oneself was a problem that had to be solved.

‘This palace is full of shit’s smell and urine’s smell!’

In every secluded place in the palace where there were many trees, there were traces of shits and urine.

The most extreme case was the tree in the favorite place where court ladies do their business, dried up and its leaves turned yellow.

It was not just a matter of smell. There was also a hygiene problem. A problem where a slight loss of attention during relieving oneself could lead to stained clothes.

‘No, in the first place, the attire is the problem!’

Hyang remembered a memory from when he was younger.Ñøv€l--ß1n hosted the premiere release of this chapter.

It was a scene that happened back in the days when Grand Prince Choong-nyeong still lived in his private house. That day, Hyang’s mother changed her clothes because she was about to wash them.

‘How many fuck of layers is that?’

First, she wore dari-sokgot, sok-sokgot, sok-baji, and after that she wore dan-sokgot, then she wore neoreun-baji and daesyum-chima, on top of that, she wore mujigi-chima made with layers of fabric of different colors, and then a skirt with a gorgeous gold pattern.(1)

Hyang cried out inside as he blankly stared at such a scene.

‘What about those movies I’ve seen? Tell all those in charge of historical research to resign! Isn’t ass supposed to be after the outer skirt and the inner skirt? Even if it was an erotic story, it was still a movie! Isn’t this too much?’

Hyang went sideways. But the skirt itself, which was worn in layers, became the worst obstacle to women when they had to relieve themselves.

Because it was such trouble to go to the bathroom due to the attire that was uncomfortable to wear or take off, it became a daily routine to use a chamber pot or go to a secluded place to relieve oneself.

There was another important hygiene issue that had arose from this attire and toilet issue.

“We greet His Highness the Prince.”

The court ladies passing by while carrying baskets of laundry saw Hyang and behaved respectfully.

“Yeah, you have worked hard.”

When they saw Hyang reply with a dignity that did not suit his age, the court ladies held back their smiles as they picked up their stuff and headed back on their way.

“Wait a minute, Court Lady.”

“Pardon?”

“Not you, but the third court lady from behind.”

“Is His Highness talking about me?”

The court lady who was getting pointed out came forward with a clueless face.

She had hoped for the thing called fortune(2))—even though there would be a problem because court ladies were king’s properties—because the prince’s age had passed Jihak(3)), but the prince in front of her eyes was only a 5 years old kid.

When the court lady that he had pointed came forward, Hyang simply said,

“You. There is something on your back.”

“Pardon?”

“There is something on the back of your skirt.”

“Pardon?”

“There is poop on the back of your skirt!”

The face of the clueless court lady who kept tilting her head reddened at Hyang’s words. Then she took a look at the back of her skirt.

“My God!”

“Go and change!”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

As the reddened court lady sprinted out, Hyang glared at the remaining court ladies.

“What were you all doing?”

Bring forward the start of external activities at 9 years old. At the latest, when I reach nine I should be installed as the crown prince, not prince anymore. When I become the crown prince, I will hold power to some extent. When I get installed as the crown prince, I will go outside the palace. Find out about the life outside the palace, the life of the commoners in the capital city, and empower the reformation policy pursued by King Sejong.In addition to the above, take a role in accelerating the creation of Hunminjeongeum.

While sighing, Queen Soheon directed her eyes to the direction where Hyang’s room was located.

The first time Hyang saw Yoo, who was just born and was dressed in swaddling clothes, Queen Soheon detected Hyang’s odd reaction.

‘Hostility? Why?’

Queen Soheon was concerned about Hyang, who was showing enmity toward his newborn little brother, and she asked the nanny with worry.

“It looks like the eldest hates the second. What should I do about this?”

The nanny answered Queen Soheon’s question with a smile.

“It is natural, Milady.”

“Natural?”

“When they have a little sibling, it is natural for the child who was born first to not like it. This is about the affection that was previously only given to them turning to the little one. This thing will soon get fixed when the older sibling grows a bit more and becomes educated.”

“Is that true?”

“Yes, it is.”

Despite the nanny’s answer, Queen Soheon couldn’t ease her worry and ordered the nanny.

“I need you to take care of Hyang.”

“Understood, Milady.”

After that, as if the nanny’s efforts paid off, there was no hostility shown from Hyang to his little brother. However, Queen Soheon’s worry couldn’t fade easily. The hostility from Hyang had disappeared, but indifference, and then excessive standards, took on its place.

“Hyang, what are you doing?”

A few days after Yoo’s first birthday party, Queen Soheon found Hyang who was looking for a book in the Grand Prince Choong-nyeong’s study. Hyang quickly fixed his posture and politely answered Queen Soheon’s question.

“Mother, I am looking for a few miscellaneous books to cool my head and a book that is suitable for Yoo to learn later.”

“Hyang, Yoo just passed his first year. Isn’t it too fast to look for a book for him to learn?”

“I learned that it is best to prepare in advance.”

“That is not wrong, but....”

Queen Soheon’s words were fading because Hyang’s words were not wrong, and she asked another question.

“So, what do you think is good?”

“I think Tong-Gam-Jeol-Yo is good. His first year has passed, and when he passes his second year, I think it’s good for him to start.”

Hyang’s answer made cold sweat flow on Queen Soheon’s face.

“Isn’t that too fast?”

“Is that fast?”

Queen Soheon nodded at Hyang’s question.

“That is fast. Hyang, you started to learn earlier because you are a brilliant child, but the others didn’t start that early.”

Hyang showed his dissatisfaction at Queen Soheon’s explanation.

“All the subjects of Joseon know about Father’s outstanding talent. The children of such a person are absolutely not allowed to be mediocre.”

“Huff~.”

Queen Soheon only let out a long sigh after Hyang’s resolute answer.

* * *

“Huff~.”

Queen Soheon once again let out a long sigh as she remembered about the past event.

“I thought giving birth to a brilliant child is fortune....”

Having a child that was not only brilliant but excessively brilliant was frustrating.

Compared to the first child, the second and third were brilliant, but they were a bit lacking. It was like the brightness of the moon that couldn’t even be compared to the sun.

The problem was Hyang set his little siblings’ standards to be the same as him. No, the problem was not only Hyang. From the moment the princes started their education, it was certain that the retainers adjusted their standard of judgments to Hyang.

“Huff~.”

With a sigh, the sleepless night of Queen Soheon continued.

T/N:

(1) Check this link if you want to know more.↻

(2) Fortune: Love. Court Lady wasn’t allowed to marry, and they were the King’s properties. If the King or prince took a liking on them, that is a fortune for them. It was possible for princes to take the court lady as lover or concubine, but they had to get the King's permission.↻

(3) Jihak: Back in Joseon days, it was the age when someone is said to reach maturity, which was 15. But someone was also said to pass Jihak when they properly could understand the meaning of learning. My guess for the minimum is Great Learning of Four Books.↻

(4) Perfume pouch: A traditional handmade personal adornment with a pleasing fragrance. Seems like if the scent from the pouch mixed with someone who has not taken a bath for days will bring bad news.↻