Book III 2379th Day (Ŭlmyo)
The Office of the Inspector-General submitted a memorial to the king: “Kim
Kyesŏn, special director of Ubong Smithy (chŏlso),^11 stole goods while
supervising the work. We request you to have his appointment withdrawn
and order that he be interrogated and punished.” The king gave an order,
saying, “The property he stole shall be confiscated and reverted to the gov-
ernment, and his appointment withdrawn permanently.”
12th Day (Muo)
The Office of the Inspector-General presented a memorial to the king: “Yi
Haeng, former academician of the Office of Royal Decrees and Historical
Records, who served as chief royal secretary during the reign of King
Kongyang, made a false record that Your Majesty killed Sin U [King U],
Sin Ch’ang [King Ch’ang], and Pyŏn Annyŏl in an effort to seek favor from
Yi Saek and Chŏng Mongju. We request you to have his letter of appoint-
ment (chikch’ŏp) revoked and have him interrogated for his crime.” The
king granted the request.
Prior to this, Chancellor Cho Chun had visited the Bureau of State Records
to review the historical records of the former dynasty and happened to find a
preliminary draft related to himself, which was made by Yi Haeng.^12 The
draft said, “Yun Sojong was jealous of Yi Sungin’s talent, so he tried to harm
him by slandering him to Cho Chun.” Pointing at the sun, Cho Chun swore,
“The sun is my witness that I did not try to harm Yi Sungin after listening to
the slander perpetrated by Sojong.” Then he reported the matter to the king.
The king ordered the preliminary drafts of historical records made after
the Mujin year (1388) to be brought in and personally read the record made
by Yi Haeng. The record said that Annyŏl, U, and his son Ch’ang, were all
executed by the king [T’aejo] despite their having committed no crime.
The king said, “When the Censorate requested capital punishment for
Pyŏn Annyŏl, King Kongyang granted it so fast that I had no time to stop it.- Ubong is an old name for Kŭmch’ŏn County in Hwanghae Province.
- Yi Haeng (1352–1432): an official of late Koryŏ and early Chosŏn. During the reign of
King Kongyang, he served as royal secretary and concurrently editor (such’an) of the Bureau
of State Records. He was impeached and exiled to Ulsan for making a wrongful record
regarding T’aejo but was released the following year.