As Prophet - Chapter 40
Only Krnovel
Episode 40. Yangju Academy
Fortunately, Baek Yi-jeong was very knowledgeable about the situation. He turned what started out as a simple idea into a concrete plan.
A long-time neighbor suggested a suitable place, which also solved the land problem. There was an abandoned piece of land that was being sold for cheap, and it belonged to someone he knew well.
The three men ran over and made a contract on the spot. In matters such as land sales, the noblemen would not come forward and do it themselves, but there was no reason for the warriors to observe such formalities.
It was not far from where Dalcheon had fixed his boat, and it was a place with a small wooden mountain behind it, overlooking the Han River. It was a good place with a wide view. Dalcheon was the one who signed the contract right away without caring about the strong wind. Although he had no money, Baek Ui-hyeong paid for the land out of his own pocket. It was a wide, flat land.
“We can build a house there.”
Baek Yi-jeong stopped Baek Ui-hyeong’s words. It seemed like the gentleman would rush in and say he would build a house right away.
“Rather than that, it would be better to just put a sign here for now. The house will take time to build, so let’s build it later. It would be better to just write ‘Yangju Academy’ on the entrance.”
Dalcheon moved immediately. He ran into the forest and cut down a few tall trees, and Mukhyeong brought a wooden board. These are the people who will roast beans in the lightning.
They were told to write something, and after giving in to each other, Baek Ui-hyeong wrote ‘Yangju Hakgwan’ in large letters, and Dal-cheon placed the letters on a small road and dug around them to carve them in relief. After attaching them to a long stick and setting them up, a fairly tall signboard was raised. It was truly absurd to see only one signboard on such a wide piece of land, but Dal-cheon was delighted as if he had accomplished his plan.
“Okay, okay, we have a school. What do we do now?”
“What are you doing? Let’s proceed as planned… .”
Dalcheon shook his head. Then he sent Baek Ijeong aside.
“Finish the studying you left off today while making plans.”
“Huh? Studying?”
“Wherever you can study, you should do it. Come on.”
Baek Yi-jeong went to a spacious area, took out the sword in his hand, and began to draw the shape of the three laws. Dal-cheon called out the shape of the three laws.
“You said you wanted to learn too.”
“Yes, that’s true.”
“Do the same thing. When you practice the sword, breathe into it. So, let the sword become your breathing method.”
“that?”
I couldn’t help but feel hesitant about doing it next to Baek Yi-jeong.
“Is that difficult to say?”
Mukhyeong walked out in a daze, afraid that he would be told to leave. As he stood next to Baek Yi-jeong, who was conducting the swordsmanship, Dalcheon suddenly jumped out and danced around. With each circular movement, the energy flowed like a torrent and deepened like a large river.
“Like this.”
“Ah! Okay, I understand.”
Baek Ui-hyeong clasped his hands together and looked elsewhere. Things had gotten bigger. He had been thinking that if it didn’t work out, he would give up, but he taught with enthusiasm as if he were the leader of the royal family.
“Priest, what shall I do?”
Baek Ui-hyeong thought that he would teach him something to learn. He thought that he would tell him about new swordsmanship or breathing techniques, but Dal-cheon shook his head.
“Go to the forest and cut down some trees to mark the boundary.”
“You want me to build a fence?”
“It would be good if you could set it up, but it would be difficult to do it alone. Please put the stakes exactly on the boundary.”
“this.”
“Is this so? The person who gave the order should pay attention to this matter.”
“Okay.”
Baek Yi-hyeong, who had no choice but to go into the mountains, cut down a tree the thickness of an adult’s arm and started driving stakes. He came here to check on the situation and ended up doing odd jobs. He couldn’t help someone who had recommended him to do something.
I didn’t have any proper tools, but I cut with the knife I had, cut off the branches, and then hit him with force. Still, it was hard work. I was so out of breath that I couldn’t breathe. When I saw what he was doing, he looked in the direction and backed away. His actions were just like those of a geomancer.
I was worried that he might do something stupid again, so I stopped working and crawled down.
“What are you doing now?”
“Are you done? I don’t think you’ve finished.”
“I came here because I was curious about something.”
“I know you came here to stop me from doing something bad.”
“Haha! You’re almost a fortune teller, priest.”
“I studied that too. I’m not very good at it though.”
“More than that, what are you doing?”
“I’m looking at the seats.”
“What seat?”
“This is the main shrine.”
“Oh my! I’m just going to ask them to build me a house.”
“But you still have to choose the right position. The Supreme Ultimate is the Infinite, and Yin and Yang are the Five Elements, so this position… … Ahem.”
He muttered to himself and walked around before planting a piece of raw wood he had cut with a knife into the ground. When Baek Ui-hyeong looked around, he saw that several had already been planted. Dal-cheon stepped back, then stood, turned around, and planted another piece.
Dalcheon’s mouth twitched as he watched the two people practicing. His lips moved, but no sound was heard.
The two men jumped in surprise. The sound ringing in their ears was clearly not transmitted through the air. It was a low sound that seemed to come from the depths of their hearts. The two men looked back at Dalcheon. Dalcheon waved his hand to continue, and Baek Ui-hyeong, who found it strange, asked.
“what?”
“It is a secret transmission of sound.”
“Oh! Do you think a priest can do that too?”
“Of course. Hehe.”
“Hey, teach me.”
“Next time. Hehe.”
When the two people who were surprised by the sound swung their swords again, Dalcheon took his place in the main hall. He held the tree planted on the ground with both hands and looked around in all directions. Dalcheon pointed to the ground with his fingertips and looked at Baek-ui-hyeong. He was about to order him to do something again, but he was doing something else.
“I have to finish quickly and come here to dig.”
“Why here?”
“Dig a hole for the pillar and place the stones on top of each other, and the carpenter will take care of it.”
“Ahem. Just hammer in the stick and leave the stone to the carpenter.”
“The location and direction of the main shrine are not good. A large stone would be good.”
“I have a lot to do today.”
“Please hurry and come after setting the boundary line.”
“… … .”
Baek Ui-hyeong turned around without saying anything. It is better to give Dal-cheon what he wants than to persuade him. This is his experience.
Dalcheon went to a nearby place and came back borrowing a hoe and a shovel, but it didn’t take long. It seemed like a time to help with work, not a time to study. Mukhyeong, who was out on a field trip, came and helped. Mukhyeong grabbed the shovel and started digging the main temple site.
“Where did you steal it from? From downstairs?”
“He asked me to borrow it.”
“Ahem.”
At sunset, stakes were driven into the place where the building was to be built. A stone larger than a man’s head was placed on the site of the main shrine.
“Ahem.”
Nothing had gone up, but Dalcheon looked around and smiled happily.
It’s just imagining. Realizing it is another thing, but maybe it will be something. I thought that Baek Ui-hyung had made a suggestion, and I thought it was better. If you focus on something, you won’t have any other thoughts, and then you won’t have any accidents. You’ll probably end up gathering kids and teaching them.
* * *
Dalcheon kept asking questions while eating dinner. He asked about how Hanyang’s school was structured, how many professors and instructors there were, how many students there were, and how many people lived there.
Baek I-jeong and Baek Ui-hyeong, who were well-versed in Hanyang’s information, explained it simply and simply. Every time they explained a certain part, my eyes rolled back quickly.
“Instead of doing this, please explain to the entire school what you know.”
“It’s not a very long explanation.”
“I will listen.”
“We followed the Goryeo Obuhakdang. We divided Hanyang into five parts: East, West, Center, South, and North, and tried to establish schools one by one. At first, there were no schools, so we used temples. The eastern school used Suncheonsa, and the western school used Mireuksa. Now, the southern school was built in Seongmyeongbang, the central school in Gwanghwamunbang, and the western school in Yeogyeongbang.
Unlike Sungkyunkwan, there is no Confucian shrine and it is dedicated to education. All personnel, including instructors, are dispatched from Sungkyunkwan. The student body is 100, and a dormitory is operated, and both tuition and operating expenses are covered by the king.”
“It’s free?”
His eyes rolled back and forth. Maybe he thought he should do it for free.
“Yes. We will provide land for school, provide slaves, and pay taxes on fishing grounds to cover the costs.”
“Ahem. It must cost a lot to feed a hundred people.”
“Children of the Yangban and Seoin classes enter school at the age of 10 and study until the age of 15.”
“Ahem, it’s been five or six years.”
“Studying is similar to Sungkyunkwan. The main subjects are the Elementary Learning and the Four Books and Five Classics, and you can enter Sungkyunkwan by taking an exam at the age of 15.”
“Ahem, ahem. It’s a test.”
“Yes. And every day, every five days, they take a test, and once a year, they report their results to the king. Five excellent people are selected to take the Saengwon and Jinsa exams. If they score well, they are given the opportunity to take the Alseongsi exam.”
“Ahem. Education and qualifications, that’s great.”
“… … .”
“But is a school a place to educate children?”
“Yes. Adults go to Hyanggyo and Sungkyunkwan.”
Dalcheon, who had heard the general contents of the school, asked about the Taoist priest Jjokjipge.
“There is a place outside Seodaemun run by a retired high-ranking official, and it is doing very well.”
“Please explain that too.”
“Um… … It’s a place where people who have studied quite a bit go. So, people who have studied at Seowon, and even people who have gone to Sungkyunkwan, they say, also go there. The number of people is not that large, and they gather twenty or thirty people and teach them. They say that they discuss the tenses and solve them through conversation, then put it into writing and then evaluate it.”
“Ahem. What about people who study but don’t pass the exam?”
It was a strange question. But Dalcheon’s gaze was on Baek Ui-hyeong. It seemed like he wanted you to answer, but it actually sounded like the person in question was asking why you fell.
“Well, that’s probably because I didn’t study well.”
“Ahem. I guess that’s true if your grades aren’t good. But it’s strange. After hearing what you said, I thought about it carefully. They say that people who fly and crawl go, but aren’t they talking about people who had good grades? Then why do they drop out?”
The answer was given by Baek I-jeong.
“There are hundreds of applicants, and twenty-eight are chosen. It’s not always the case, but someone is bound to fail.”
“Wouldn’t that be undifferentiating? It wouldn’t be based on grades or ability. It’s not an exam, it’s almost like a lottery.”
Baek Yi-jeong was tempted to compare it to something children do on the author’s side. When comparing something, it is a habit to choose an excessive example rather than an appropriate one. At first, I thought it was because I didn’t know the ways of the world, but in many cases, they compare it to an excessive example.
“Unless you are very good at it, studying is just so-so. You have no choice but to leave it to luck. You go to such places because you want to somehow get into it.”
Dalcheon looks at Baek Ui-hyeong again. Every time he looks at him, the past he had fallen into painfully comes back to him. Dalcheon makes up his mind, not knowing that other people’s hearts are breaking because of his thoughtless gaze.
“I thought that the deceased should be the one to teach, but I don’t think that’s the case. I think he should be the one to teach.”
In the end, that’s what happened. How naive Dalcheon. He only said it according to logical conclusion, but Baek Ui-hyeong suddenly stood up.
“Me! I won’t do it!”
It was a situation where one couldn’t even laugh. While Baek Yi-jeong covered her face and turned her head away, Baek Ui-hyeong, who was angry, went out while grumbling. Dal-cheon, who didn’t know what was going on, asked Baek Yi-jeong.
“Why are you like that?”
“I have a past where I failed an exam.”
“Why is that? I know that too.”
“It’s embarrassing and shameful, but I think you’re upset because I keep looking at you and asking you questions.”
“I’m not trying to make fun of the death penalty.”
“That’s right. So don’t tell your brother that anymore.”
“Ugh.”
The place was broken up as one person got up and left. Mukhyeong said he was going to Geumwon and left, and Baek Ijeong discussed household matters with Uncle Marum.
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