338 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o
*
The magistrates of Left and Right Kyŏnggi Provinces arrived, recruiting
workers to construct the fortification of the capital.15th Day (Ŭlmyo)
Trees were covered with hoarfrost.16th Day (Pyŏngjin)
The king went to Such’ang Palace. He dispatched An Chongwŏn, grand
councilor of the Chancellery, and Yi Sŭngwŏn, deputy director of the
Security Council, to the Chinese capital and had them express gratitude to
the emperor on his behalf by submitting his memorial. The memorial he
sent to the emperor read as follows:
“Since you send your imperial envoys one after another with your instruc-
tions, I am tearfully grateful and at the same time ashamed to the point of
sweating. I am well aware that the countries that border China, all with dif-
fering customs, have paid tribute to China since antiquity. Hence I am
always mindful of your grace and in awe of your mighty power. I indeed
have tried to serve you with unbound loyalty because I cannot survive
unless I do so. Furthermore, I was fortunate to live in an enlightened age
and to benefit from your noble instructions on multiple occasions. You
entrusted me with the power to rule my kingdom and allowed me to change
its country name from Koryŏ to Chosŏn. Since I stabilized the state on the
strength of your sacred authority and dignity, I worried that I might not be
able to repay the favor you gave to me. Then how dare I bring you troubles
endangering our relationship?
“One of your imperial instructions, which I received through the Chief
Military Commission of the Left Army, was as follows: ‘You sent your man
to request me to allow you to change your country name. So I gave you my
permission to change it to Chosŏn if you cherish its legacy. You changed
your country name but continued to refer to yourself as provisional ruler
(kwŏnji kuksa) just as you used to, which I cannot understand.’
“The reason that I continued to present myself inappropriately as I used
to do even after changing the country name is because I was not conversant
with relevant precedents, not because I had certain schemes in mind. I