Book XIV 839
my house for treatment of his illness. But he has not arrived yet. I also heard
that a disturbance had broken out, so I hurried here to protect him.” Prince
Chŏngan asked, “Are you then dressed in armor?” Mansu replied, “No, I am
not.” Prince Chŏngan immediately ordered him provided with armor and
had him stand behind his horse.
Ch’ŏnu said to Prince Chŏngan: “Mansu belongs to the clique of Tojŏn
and Ŭn. You should remove him.” Prince Chŏngan replied, “Impossible.”
Prince Hoean, Ch’ŏnu, and others insisted more strongly that Mansu be
removed, saying, “In a critical situation such as this, the majority opinion
should be allowed to prevail.” Turning around to look at Sukbŏn, Prince
Chŏngan said, “It seems there is no choice.” Then he ordered Sukbŏn to
enumerate the wrongs that Mansu had committed.
Mansu immediately dismounted from his horse and pleaded with the
prince, holding the horse’s reins. He said, “Let me confess. Please, let me.”
Prince Chŏngan ordered his subordinate to pull him off his horse, but Mansu
quickly grabbed the reins. Sogŭn stabbed him under the chin with a small
dagger, and Mansu collapsed, then raised his head, and people cut it off.
Prince Chŏngan said to Wŏnji [the son of Mansu], “You have done nothing
wrong. Go back home.” However, Prince Hoean followed after him and
killed him before the gate of the Office of Guest Affairs.
Chun, Sahyŏng, and others went into the office of the Privy Council to
hold a meeting. Prince Chŏngan figured that it was advisable for him to stop
them. If Pangsŏk decided to fight, leading out royal guards under his com-
mand to the outside of the palace gate, he thought he would be outnumbered
and would have no choice but to withdraw momentarily. Then there would
be a good chance that the chancellors in the Privy Council would choose to
stand on the enemy’s side because they supported the enemy forces. So,
Prince Chŏngan sent a man to the Privy Council with his message. He said,
“It is inappropriate that grand councilors sit in the Privy Council while our
brothers are standing out on the road. You shall move to Unjong Street
immediately and have a meeting over there.”
Then, Prince Chŏngan ordered the Board of Rites to summon all of the
officials in a hurry. Cho On, chief military commissioner of the Royal
Guard, was on night duty in the palace. Prince Chŏngan sent a man to
summon him along with Pak Wi, and Cho On immediately showed up,
leading armored soldiers and officers, and paid his respects to the prince on
horseback. Pak Wi, on the other hand, lingered for a long time and finally
but reluctantly came out, carrying a sword, but Prince Chŏngan treated him