Book VIII 507reprimand him at all for bringing such items. Nevertheless, he took his own
life by jumping into a well. This is what happened.’
“Having read your message, your servant was extremely embarrassed
and worried. But again, on the twenty- fifth day of the fourth month of the
twenty- eighth year of the reign of Hongwu, I received another message
from the Ministry of Rites through the Regional Military Commission of
Liaodong, and the message was as follows: ‘We had Yao Zhong, company
commander, transport twenty- six eunuchs, including Chang Pugae, who
were originally your people, and return after handing them over to your
authorities in Ŭiju.’ Having read this notice, we learned in detail about the
incident related to Chang Pugae and the other eunuchs.
“Since they received your sacred order and went over to the imperial
capital, they should have been careful and discreet in discharging their duty
in your court. Notwithstanding, Chang Pugae and others were so wicked
and avaricious that they violated the law. Since Your Majesty, however, was
gracious enough to return them to their country without punishing them, I
am surprised and find myself utterly at a loss.
“I immediately ordered my officials to interrogate each of those eunuchs.
According to the report made by Chŏng Hon, who conducted the investiga-
tion, they all deserve to be punished for their wrongdoings. However, since
they once served in your imperial court, I dared not punish them rashly. So
I had Chang Pugae, Sin Hŭnggi, Kim Hŭiyu, Yi Wŏnŭi, Kim Hwa, Ch’oe
Yŏn, and Kim Kwich’ŏn imprisoned to wait for your further instruction,
and I submit to you the detailed affidavits of these individuals by dispatching
Kim Ŭlsang, director of the Directorate of Ceremonies (Chŏnŭisi).”Kim Ch’ŏnsin, assistant navy commander of Kyŏngsang Province, and
Myriarch Ch’a Chun captured a ship of the Japanese invaders. The king
bestowed them with royal wine and silk by sending Cho Panghyŏn.9th Day (Kyŏngja)
The king called Nam Chae and Nam Ŭn to his private quarters (p’yŏnjŏn)
and told them to eat meat.^2
- Nam Chae and Nam Ŭn were brothers and well known for their loyalty to T’aejo. They
were both appointed dynasty- founding merit subjects first class. A couple of months earlier,
they were in mourning for their parent, but T’aejo ordered them to return to their work despite
the fact that they were still in mourning. The reason T’aejo told them to eat meat was probably
that he was worried about their health during their mourning.