230 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o
said, “Why is Your Majesty so devoted to Buddhist works? I beg you not to
believe in Buddha.” Then the king replied, “A great Confucian scholar such
as Yi Saek also believed in Buddha. If it is indeed wrong to believe in him,
why do you think Saek believed in him?” Ch’ong replied, “That is the reason
Saek, despite being a great Confucian scholar, is criticized.” The king said,
“Are you saying that Saek is no better than you? Do not mention it again.”5th Day (Sinsa)
The government conducted the investigations on the condition of prisoners.6th Day (Imo)
The king went out the north gate of the temporary palace and inspected the
royal guards. Looking around at the officials attending him on the left and
right, he said, “The Art of War says, ‘Do not confront a well-ordered army
with banners in the right places, and never attack the military camp deployed
with confidence.’ The statement speaks of our guards, doesn’t it?”13th Day (Kichíuk)
The government had two administrators and two record keepers installed in
the Directorate for Dynasty-Founding Merit Subjects (Kaeguk kongsin
togam).^114Inspector-General Nam Chae spoke to the king: “The so-called stipend was
originally instituted by the sage kings of antiquity in order to foster the
officials responsible for administration. However, the mothers and wives of
merit subjects with the title of Lady of the House (T’aekchu) are now pro-
vided with stipends. Though you are very generous in treating your merit
subjects, it is not appropriate that two persons in a family receive stipends
from the government at the same time. So we request that noble women^115
and ladies of the house, except those who belong to the royal family, not be
paid stipends. The king said, “The merit subjects who rendered service in- It was first established in the eighth month of 1392. Later, its name was changed to
“Directorate for Merit Subjects” (Kongsin togam). - Here they refer to the princesses-ordinary, who belonged to the extended royal
fa m ily.