As Prophet - Chapter 114
Only Krnovel
Episode 114. The School President and the Increased Students
Dalcheon guided Baek Sa-ban to the main temple.
“I should have come here sooner. When I came and saw what the kids were doing, I realized how wrong I was.”
“No. Thank you for your help, I was able to prepare it like this.”
“I did something.”
As we went up to the main building while chatting, Baek I-jeong brought out tea. With her, nothing had changed at the school. It was the same as before.
“There’s no need to be attached. I understand now that I’ve quit. All I had to do was not feel ashamed of my situation, but I thought it was too hard. If I got fired, I could have just started a new life. I don’t know why I was so anxious. Hahaha!”
Dalcheon nodded. I used to criticize and ridicule Confucian scholars, but this kind of Confucian scholar is different. There are bound to be some people who are lacking in the world and cause trouble, but it is limited to a few. However, the cultural atmosphere of this country may actually be a problem if it leads to the eradication of heresy.
“Then how about you take care of the school for the time being? It would also be in line with the original purpose of strengthening the country’s national defense.”
“What? You want me to take care of the school?”
“yes.”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m not good at anything. I’m not good at teaching children either, so I depend on the instructors. It’s really hard to manage internally. And bringing in new students… … Please help me. I had no choice but to leave, but what bothered me the most were the children. It was a shame that they couldn’t pull themselves up and had to live the same life as their parents. I felt like I had committed a sin.”
“Huh! Then what should I do?”
“What about the general?”
“Haha. They’re trying to tie me up by giving me a position.”
“Wouldn’t it be fun to teach children? In a few years, you’ll see a flood of past exam passers-by. Little kids, little punks, all of them.”
“Heh heh heh.”
He just smiled, but his expression didn’t seem unpleasant. Dalcheon lowered his head.
“Please. I want to make sure that the school can run even without me.”
“Okay, I understand. I will accept your request.”
“thank you.”
“You must have some plans, right?”
Dalcheon had a hard time letting go of his uncomfortable expression and spoke briefly.
“Your Highness, we must destroy this gang. There will be no other choice.”
“Oh my, this guy! If he’s not careful, he could be accused of treason.”
“Isn’t destroying the Grand Prince’s Majesty treason?”
“Yes. How can it be the same as the exercise of a superior position?”
“Politicians should never hold back the livelihood of the people.”
“Yes. If it works well, it’s a really good thing, but why do people do it?”
“I saw the reality of rampant assassination and decided to destroy its origins.”
“Whew, it’s a really mountainous area!”
“Please take care of the school building.”
“I understand! I’ll do my best. I won’t do anything half-heartedly.”
“If the king calls you again, you should go and do great things.”
“Hahaha. It’s a shame that it’s not heard, but it’s a great relief.”
Dalcheon bowed halfway and explained the situation to Baek Yi-jeong. Baek Yi-jeong’s face brightened as she realized that he had come back.
* * *
The large army that had set out at dawn the day before arrived that evening. Their destination was the academy, and they entered right through the main gate of the academy.
The door was open, and the face of the great general brightened as he discovered the traces of human life. He tied up his horse and went up to the main hall to greet them, just like he had studied the day before, and it was like a student visiting his teacher.
“I plan to make this place my headquarters.”
“This is where students study.”
“Protests also need to be studied.”
“Wouldn’t that forbidden garden be better?”
“Then there will be no avoiding suspicion.”
Baek Sa-ban came out to greet me and Baek I-jeong looked behind him. Bulmok-hani, who had disheveled hair, smiled brightly.
“Okay. There are protests here, and there’s an old man who’s been arguing with me. Accept them all as students.”
At Dalcheon’s words, Baek Sa-ban lined everyone up and gave a long speech. It might be a habit of an official. While introducing the schoolmaster, explaining the daily schedule, and even how to solve the needs of life, Dalcheon took the prince up to the main hall. It wasn’t very big, but it was in the center, so it was the main hall. The Confucian scholars might have said something about using names like hall and pavilion. He looked back and asked, seeing Mukhyeong following him.
“Aren’t you a student?”
“I am a student and a trainer.”
“Oh, that’s right! Hoondo.”
A faint smile spread across Mukhyeong’s stern face. Dalcheon pointed to those listening to the general’s explanation. They may be soldiers, as they are the general’s guards, but they are certainly beings who need to learn.
“Make those guys study in the evening first.”
“I will receive your order.”
The general chuckled.
“Isn’t your Majesty the Grand Prince a student too? She’s definitely not a tutor.”
“Yes, but I’ll start tomorrow. I have a lot of work to do today.”
From that evening, the school started to return. I don’t know if he thought it was a place to hide private soldiers, but Dalcheon tried to educate them(?). Through sword and physical training, breathing training, and reading martial arts, he made them look at their lives as military officers. He tried to instill in them that they were now the swords of a great general, but as military officers, they had a duty to protect the country.
The next day, the children came. Baek Sa-ban had contacted the day before and announced that the school had reopened. There were more children than there had been at first. On one side, the adults were sweating, and on the other side, the children were chirping like sparrows, studying.
Yuseokdo got a job as a sergeant at the school. He chopped wood, made and repaired training tools, prepared side dishes, and went to Baeksaban’s house to carry rice. He sat in a corner of the living space, where he could clearly see the training grounds.
People from the Daegun began to come to visit, and if they offered to help with the work, they were accepted as students. Since there were no slaves, they could work and study at the same time, and no one complained.
* * *
It was three days later that the return of the Grand Prince and Dalcheon’s return were known to Hanyang. The eunuch Daejeon was lying face down, and the king was staring at the floor with a serious expression.
“You came? You came back?”
“Yes, I am running the academy again.”
“Haha. So the best you can do after coming back is study?”
“They say the number of students has increased significantly. They say that people in the surrounding area who felt a great sense of loss due to the sudden departure are rushing to send their children.”
“Is that all?”
“His Majesty the Grand Prince has also taken up residence there.”
“As a student?”
“Yes. I heard he studies hard.”
“If you’ve come, shouldn’t you enter the palace and report?”
“I heard you’re feeling intimidated by the last assassination. Yes.”
“Hmm, that was a big deal.”
“Anyway, I think we should consider the mission accomplished. I brought the mountain man back by His Majesty’s order.”
“Your plan was right. Baek Ui-hyeong, Dae-gun, Baek Sa-ban. In the end, did Dae-gun do it?”
“That’s right. What will happen to the resigned Baek Sa-ban?”
“I don’t want to see it! How dare you disobey me?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
The job was done, but the anger over the mutiny that had taken place along the way did not go away. And he did not contribute to Dalcheon’s return.
“What about the Crown Prince’s Palace?”
“I am listening to Shigangwon’s lectures without any particular difference.”
“Nothing special? No way! There must be a lot of people coming and going.”
“Yes, you’ve grown a lot.”
“Investigate those coming and going and report back. By tomorrow.”
“It will be as you said, Niye.”
The king’s expression did not soften. It was because he did as he wanted, but he did not feel that he had bowed down. It was because he did not come back and report when the work was done. Dalcheon did not come, and the grand prince did not come to report. It is understandable that he was afraid to enter Hanyang, but he went and came back at the king’s command…
What lifted the king’s spirits was the report of the return of the great general that had come up at that time. It had already been reported, but the Royal Secretariat had been suppressing it, and the eunuch of the Grand Prince came to see him.
“Actually, there was a return report, but it seems to have been missed.”
“Missing? I must have been trampling on it. How can someone who is carrying out official duties do that? Tell the Chief Secretary to come!”
“Yes.”
After a while, the chief secretary came in. When he sternly asked why he had suppressed the report, he said that he had sent someone to come in and report in person, as it seemed the right thing to do to report after entering the palace. He was good at getting out of the way. When he suppressed the report, he must have prepared the answer.
“And then?”
“He said he was scared and couldn’t come.”
“Then you should have reported it.”
“That was meant to be.”
He is very calm. He is clearly being reprimanded, but he does not waver at all and his expression does not change. Suddenly, I thought that Do Seung-ji was not on my side.
“Did the Crown Prince tell you not to bring it up?”
“How can I tell you not to report to His Majesty privately? Such a thing has never happened.”
The king was annoyed. Nothing works, nothing doesn’t work. I don’t like it.
* * *
Meanwhile, the Crown Prince sent many spies to Yangju. This was expected. The only difference was that their movements were easily exposed in the empty fields where there were no people. Some of them approached the mountains, but they were all caught by Dalcheon’s acumen.
The best way was to use the local residents, but there was not much to gain because the news was spread through the children. If the parents of the children came and hung around for no reason, you could tell right away that someone had ordered it.
There was a man who approached me pretending to be a peddler. He was carrying a peddler’s* baggage, which I don’t know where he got it from, but it was really awkward. Baek I-jeong brought what he needed from his family home in Yangju, but he still needed quite a lot.
* Peddler: A peddler who sells various items, including cosmetics and ornaments for women, sewing tools, and jewelry. Since these peddlers were mostly old women, they were called ‘Apa (牙婆)’.
A peddler who could freely come and go from the main building of the Daegatjip came rushing into the school building. Yu Seok-do, who was sitting in a corner, frowned, but Baek I-jeong greeted him warmly as if she had been waiting for him.
“Okay, we have everything. What do you need?”
“I need sewing tools. I play so hard that my clothes get damaged a lot.”
The old woman’s gaze turned to the smokescreen.
“Why are you working so hard?”
“This is a martial arts school. We study physical exercises.”
“Oh my, what good would you do with something like that in this day and age?”
“This spring, three people have already passed the military service examination.”
“Three people?”
“One went to Manho in Hoeryong, and the other went to Sejaikwisa.”
“Oh, and one more?”
“Not yet. I am working at the Yangju County Office* and have not yet been assigned to the military camp. Please give me a needle and thread, a thimble, and even a bobbin.”
* It’s Yangju-mok, but I made it so that Yang Ju-hyeon is there.
He took out what the old woman had said from the bundle she had put down on her back and looked at Baek I-jeong’s expression.
“How would you like me to calculate it?”
While speaking, his eyes carefully observed various aspects of the school building.
“Would you like some mixed grains?”
“Hey, it’s heavy… … . Coins would be better.”
“sorry.”
“There’s nothing I can do.”
His gaze was still focused on the main building. He wasn’t really interested in the conversation.
“Do you have a sewing kit?”
“I have to get one.”
“There’s something good here.”
“there is?”
“It’s made of bamboo. It’s made by splitting bamboo into thin pieces and sticking them together. It’s strong and good. It has to be big because there are a lot of people.”
Baek Yi-jeong shook her head after seeing the sewing machine that Apa had put out. It was too crude.
“No, this is not it. I’ll bring one from home.”
“I see.”
I paid and finished everything, but I had no intention of leaving. I sat on the floor and looked around the inside of the school building. As I counted the number of people with my mouth open, I met eyes with Dalcheon, who was standing at a place overlooking the firing platform on the other side. Then Dalcheon smiled brightly. It was a liver attack! I was startled as if something very large was pouring into me. I quickly packed my things and hurried down.
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