I Became Park Jeong-ui’s Nephew - Chapter 329



Only Noblemtl

He became Park Jeong-ui’s nephew. – (329)

“Mom, do you want to try a treatment to make you look younger too?”

“He… needs to start talking sense.”

“What do you mean, think about how I feel about seeing my mother grow old?”

“When the time comes, people grow old and die. That’s the natural order of things.”

This is Daedeok-gun, the capital of Korea.

Mrs. Kim Ho-nam rejected her daughter’s advice. She is 74 years old this year. In the past, she would have been preparing for the end of her life in the twilight of her life, but now the world has changed.

In a world where you can buy life with money, do the rich live forever and the poor die?

Is that really a healthy world?

Mrs. Kim Ho-nam believed that there was no one in this world who was worthy of eternal life.

Some people say that if Sejong had lived 10 years longer, or if Munjong had lived 5 years longer, the fate of Joseon would have been different. So, did Joseon perish without Sejong and Munjong?

After that, Joseon was maintained well, but the country really fell into ruin in the early 19th century when the politics of the feudal lords began.

This happened 350 years after the death of King Munjong, so it is ambiguous to speculate that the fate of Joseon would have changed dramatically if Sejong and King Munjong had lived longer.

No, in a way, it was fate that Danjong was dethroned and Sejo ascended to the throne.

The royal elders who were supposed to be the shadow of the young king died one after another, and the powerful officials who were supposed to keep the princes in check showed little wariness toward Prince Suyang.

“No, what justification would those bastards have for harming Your Majesty?”

“Our King is of the purest lineage. There is no monarch with a more perfect lineage.”

In fact, King Danjong was the most perfect monarch of the direct line in Joseon history.

No matter how actively Sejong allowed the princes to participate in politics, it was difficult to surpass the power of Danjong, who had the direct lineage.

So, Prince Suyang couldn’t say anything while King Munjong was alive.

However, since all the royal adults have died and even the ministers who were supposed to protect the young king have let down their guard, it is not strange to interpret all of these events as a process by which heaven intends to make Prince Suyang the king.

The so-called ‘world where those who are meant to be will be’

Did King Taejong Lee Bang-won have a justification to rebel, kill the crown prince, and seize the throne?

King Taejo Lee Seong-gye is still alive and well, and there is a crown prince appointed by the king according to his own will. What right does a mere prince have to start a rebellion?

He felt embarrassed to sit on the throne right away, so he made his older brother the king and stepped down to become crown prince.

This is what human destiny is like,

An innocent person like Danjong could be murdered one day, or someone without a legitimate claim like Sejo could ascend to the throne.

In this world, how can we distinguish between those who deserve to live and those who deserve to die?

Living and dying are fate, and of course, no one can live forever.

No, why would a powerful person want to live forever? Did Qin Shi Huang travel the world in search of the elixir of life to bring peace to the world?

It’s just the desire of those in power to be emperors forever.

Why are the wealthy obsessed with eternal life?

For world peace? Isn’t that just selfish greed?

It’s just a dirty desire to keep what I’m enjoying now forever. If the vested interests enjoy eternal life like this, the world will become fixed as it is.

Mrs. Kim Ho-nam knows that, and that is why she does not like the obsession with eternal life. Fortunately, there are many intellectuals in this world who have that kind of mindset.

“I don’t think we need to live too long. If people, especially the vested interests that rule our society, don’t die, we will be trapped in old ideas and systems, and society will not be able to progress.

“For democracy to work properly, politicians need to connect with many people, but are the leaders who run the world today doing that? Everyone is trapped in the world they created and only sees the world within that world.”

Old and successful people have firm standards for themselves, so they do not accept any system that deviates from that framework.

So, if society becomes rigid and old people with rigid ways of thinking hold power, what will the world become?

Korea realized that, which is why they set the age limit for politicians at 70.

The head of state is now in his mid-60s, so would he break that rule himself to eat more?

If you do that, it’s just spitting in your own face.

If that’s the case, why revive parliamentary democracy? Just live for 300 to 400 years and continue to reign over the world.

There are some Koreans who are making a fuss that Korea will collapse if the head of state dies, but we will have to wait and see.

Even though Sejong and Danjong died, the Joseon Dynasty was maintained well.

Who knows, maybe Korea will be like that too?

However, it would be better if the succession of power was smooth. Mrs. Kim Ho-nam hoped that the head of state would choose a smooth succession of power rather than eternal life.

‘Your Majesty, people die when their time comes. No, please come down when the applause starts. You’ve done it long enough.’

I can’t express it on the outside, and I’m just suffering inside,

This issue has emerged as one of the hottest topics of debate in Korean society.

***

“Shall we put it to a national referendum?”

“Is this something that should be put to a referendum?”

“The people want the head of state to reign for a long time. Isn’t it because the head of state has taken the lead that Korea has developed to this point?”

“Right now, you members of the Central New Party are pushing the enemy into a pit of fire. Stop it. The enemy isn’t saying anything either.”

This is the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea,

The Women’s Peace Party and the Centrist New Party continued their heated debate.

With the development of new drugs, the average human lifespan has been extended to over 200 years, an event that the wealthy and powerful can rejoice over.

The problem is that this is likely to lead to social rigidity due to vested interests.

Now that older people have good jobs and won’t let them go, are you saying that young people should work part-time for 100 years?

You have to get out at the right time. Trying to live for 200 years is blocking the future of young people.

In addition, Korea is a country that has already set the upper age limit for politicians at 70 years old, and this rule has been firmly established as something that no one can break.

But are politicians taking the lead in extending the political lifespan of the head of state?

This means that they will elevate the head of state to a god and serve as members of the National Assembly under him for 200 years.

How can people who were elected to the National Assembly by the support of the people think like that?

Lee Yeon-soo, the leader of the Women’s Peace Party, declared war on the centrist New Party, which seeks to elevate the head of state to a god.

“You are not in your right mind right now. No one in this world can live forever. It is the law of the world that we grow old and die when the time comes. Aren’t you trying to make your enemy a god and enjoy power under him?”

“What did we say wrong? It can’t be bad for the enemy to live long, right?”

“Look at the history of Joseon. If Sejong and Munjong had lived 10 years longer, would Joseon politics have been like that? A country can only be stable if a wise ruler lives long. How can you interpret this as dictatorship?”

“You keep talking about the will of the people, so let’s ask the people. Let’s ask for their permission to allow the Marshal to live for 200 to 300 years.”

The position of the moderate party was clear.

If a great king dies, the system will be shaken, but the head of state has held the center of Korea for 45 years, and aren’t the people satisfied with that?

The head of state is a ‘person who deserves to live’,

Who would say anything if they live for 200 to 300 years?

Countries that are unhappy with Korea’s rise to power would want the head of state to die quickly, and for this reason, the centrist party decided to extend the lifespan of the head of state.

The Women’s Peace Party, in response, demanded a graceful exit from the head of state.

Furthermore, they pushed for a bill to scrap related technologies on the grounds that life-extension technologies could be socially exploited.

***

“Your Majesty, would you like a cup of tea?”

“Okay, let’s have a drink.”

This is Geumneung, and I enjoyed a leisurely tea time at my private residence.

Politicians who fight each other for my life,

Not only Korea, but the whole world is in chaos.

What’s so great about politicians that they even extend lifespan?

To be honest, the way the public looks at politicians is ‘When will that guy die?’

I served three terms, so what more could I have gained by causing such a fuss? In the end, it was not retirement but pancreatic cancer that ended my political career.

If I had not gotten sick, would I have retired from politics? Since I died before I was 60, I might have made a bigger fuss about becoming president.

Pancreatic cancer was not an uninvited guest, but something that put an end to my life.

If you think about it that way, it’s not something to just complain about.

‘Let’s have a beautiful exit in this life. Not by being pushed by the bottle, but by my own will.’

‘No, what kind of exit is this when the path that can be used for 200 to 300 years has been opened?’

Conflicts that repeat in this life,

Am I a being who must continue to live, even for the sake of Korea?

Or is my existence blocking the emergence and growth of new talent?

In America, older people are already treated as a burden – an obstacle blocking the future of young people.

If I don’t want to end up like that, I think it would be better to give up at the right time, but that damn foolishness is holding me back.

Even after 45 years, I still feel like I am lacking something. It was difficult to overcome this serious illness with willpower alone.

“Call the scientists.”

“All right.”

A few days later, I invited the scientists to my private residence.

Capitalists – they have become public enemies of human society because they have extended the lives of dictators, but what crime have scientists committed?

I’m asking scientists to stop being so comfortable.

“What is your fault? There are experiments that should not be done, but because of my greed, you ended up taking a risk. It’s all my fault.”

“Your Majesty… Then…”

“This technology should be discarded. It should never have existed in the first place. If an old man like me blocks the way, will new talents be able to achieve their goals? So, you too should stop being slaves to money and power and become slaves to your creative desires. Didn’t you also once have a pure desire to create?”

Scientists may have once pursued pure scientific knowledge.

But he became obsessed with money and power and ended up doing things he shouldn’t have done, and now he is being treated as a monster in collusion with those in power.

Me too, did I enter politics to gain power?

A world where we all live well together would be more fun than a world where I eat well and live well alone. Thanks to that kind of motivation, I have come this far, but at some point, power itself became the purpose of politics.

Am I qualified to be a politician since I have lost my original intention?

I gathered my thoughts and gave a speech to the nation.

[No one in this world is qualified to live forever. No matter how great their achievements, they must leave when the time comes and make way for themselves. The reason why Sejong is highly regarded is because he naturally passed power to his successor. I will also follow his example and focus on the succession of power.]

Abolish the Office of the Prime Minister and re-establish the government.

Now that the Office of the President has been established with the people’s permission, isn’t it time to return power to the people?

Since the Marshal’s Office has been abolished, there is no reason to remain in the position of Marshal, but in order to prevent minimal confusion, only a formal position has been left.

The core powers of the Wonsoobu were also transferred to the government one by one.

First, the Central Intelligence Agency was transferred to the Prime Minister’s Office.