346 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o
2nd Month
1st Day (Sinmi)
The Censorate and the Board of Punishments submitted another memorial
requesting that the king exile Wang Kang and others. The king did not grant
their request.4th Day (Kapsul)
The king looked around and inspected the construction of the walls of the
capital.6th Day (Pyŏngja)
Trees were covered with hoarfrost.A fire broke out on the east side of the servants’ quarters at the National
University.The Censorate and the Board of Punishments jointly submitted a memorial
to the king: “We examined the depositions made by Kim Kahaeng, Pak
Chungjil, and the blind man Yi Hŭngmu and found their crimes were related
to state security. So we previously submitted a joint memorial to bring their
crimes to light. Your Majesty, however, decided to have mercy on them
and only exiled them to various districts separately. We were naturally
very disappointed and worried about the consequences for the future of
the state.
“At the moment, we have also found that the depositions made by Wang
Hwa, Wang Kŏ, and monk Sŏngnŭng related to state security. The circum-
stances revealed in their depositions are different from those in that of
Hŭngmu, but the details of their cases are essentially the same. Clearly, they
committed treason, and their crime cannot be forgiven according to the law
of the state.
“Those who commit wicked acts generally form a band first. Hence, the
Spring and Autumn Annals (Chunqiu) teaches that traitorous subjects and
sons should be punished only after punishing their associates first, so that
those evildoers can be isolated and helpless. The Spring and Autumn Annals
was emphatic about this.