Book II 197instructions from the emperor, which read as follows: ‘Those who rule the
people in the world, whether their kingdoms be large or small, are numerous.
How can it be then accidental that they rise and decline? It has been many
years since in Korea Wang was finished, and now Yi has definitely replaced
him after years of maneuvering. This situation is not different from Wang’s
when he took over the country a long time ago. How can you say then that
it happened due to Wang’s outstanding talents in olden days and Yi’s good
strategies at the present time? It is impossible unless the Lord on High
willed it that way. The officials and the people of Korea have already begun
to follow Yi and are doing fine without having the disasters of war, and this
is the will of the Emperor Above. However, if they defend their land well
and stay away from acting cunningly, they will enjoy more blessings. You
officials of the Ministry of Rites shall take my message to Korea.’ Since
this is the sacred instruction given by the emperor, we respectfully deliver
it to you.”
The king returned to his temporary palace. All officials bowed down to
the ground and congratulated the king.25th Day (Kyeyu)
The government revised the rules concerning the letter of appointment
(kosin). It required the officials from rank 1 to rank 4 to receive letters of
appointment from the king, which are called kwan’gyo, and the officials from
rank 5 to rank 9 letters from the Chancellery, which are called kyoch’ŏp.
The king sent assistant chancellor Chŏng Tojŏn to Nanjing to express his
gratitude to the emperor, with a gift of sixty tribute horses. The memorial
submitted to the emperor read as follows: “Cho Pan, an envoy of our small
kingdom, returned from Nanjing with a letter from the Ministry of Rites,
which carried the sacred instruction of Your Imperial Majesty, and I, along
with my people, was deeply moved to read it because I found your kind
admonitions for our kingdom quite overwhelming, and in addition to my
personal gratitude, my whole kingdom feels very much honored.
“I tend to believe that there is a certain reason behind the rise and fall of
a dynasty. In the case of our state, it has already been many years since the
Wang family was finished when King Kongmin passed away without
an heir, and the disasters and sufferings of the people have increased day
by day.