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Chapter – 12
The Three Sons and the Successor
Princess Amang from the popular web novel [That Tyrant’s Youngest Daughter is a Delinquent] was like this.
A troublemaker, a prankster, a wild child, a precious one, one of those difficult to raise.
While climbing a tree and falling, she abruptly pointed her finger at the Tyrant.
The owner of a strong nerve.
‘And yet, painful pasts are a given.’
My friend, who was deeply immersed in this web novel, was like this.
[‘Princess Amang has a very sad past, you know! She grew up alone without a mother, imagine how lonely she must have been. That child! That’s why she chose that method. At least when she climbs up a tree, she can see the entire imperial palace, so she’s not lonely! Our Princess… she’s not delinquent, she’s pitiable!’]
[‘Even so, that doesn’t excuse breaking etiquette.’]
[‘How can you say such harsh things about our Princess!’]
Yes, yes, I’m sorry.
It was a truly frightening story.
To think it made my normally gentle friend so obsessively fanatical.
Anyway, thanks to that friend, I got a slight clue.
‘It’s said that as a form of affection deficiency, she engages in delinquent acts.’
It seems like she just does it because she’s bored, though.
Aren’t there originally many people with inherently restless natures?
Perhaps Amang is one of those types.
Or perhaps, for some reason, she developed that kind of personality.
‘I don’t know.’
I absolutely hate things that give me a headache.
I just want to think less about psychology while I’m here.
But Ran, blocking my way…
“Our Princess is one who knows everything! How dare you speak so recklessly!”
Is she taking Amang’s side?
And with her face all smeared with tears!
‘What kind of situation is this now?’
The other party is a ten-year-old kid.
Geumjin’s words were probably just a casual remark.
‘My answer was pretty terrible, though.’
I do admit that much.
“But you haven’t even heard what the problem is yet!”
She stepped in directly, as if it were her own business.
I’m grateful too.
This proves Ran’s loyalty without me even having to test it.
Ran, a palace maid of the Hwanyeong Bin and Amang’s governess/nanny, must have seen everything.
The Hwanyeong Bin’s favor.
Pregnancy, childbirth, and Amang’s birth.
The princess who grew crooked along with death.
What thoughts did she have while looking at the young princess with her innocent, unknowing eyes?
“Th-that’s not what I meant.”
Geumjin hurriedly clasped her hands and bowed in greeting.
Her flustered state was evident.
It’s somewhat satisfying, isn’t it?
Presumably, Ran’s feelings towards Amang are close to maternal.
“Even though our Princess! Is always wandering outside aimlessly, and throws tantrums saying she won’t eat! She has her own cute side, and she also handles various tasks skillfully!”
I take back what I said.
What is this strange feeling?
Clearly half the words are compliments, but it feels like I’m being insulted.
‘She’s on my side, right?’
I suspected a high-level form of indirect criticism.
How should I react to this?
Above all, I’m getting a bit tired of listening to Ran now.
It’s time for the main character to step in.
“Enough.”
“Princess. Ha-na!”
“Geumjin’s words aren’t wrong either. It’s true that I answered terribly during the lecture the other day.”
I stopped acting like a tomboy.
It wouldn’t help the situation anyway.
Instead, I stood before Geumjin with a somewhat solemn demeanor.
“If my remarks have displeased you, Princess, I apologize.”
“Let’s change locations. I want to hear about the problem.”
“Huh?”
“Let’s have some tea.”
Amang leisurely returned to the Yeoyeong Palace.
Forgetting the real reason she came here in the first place.
‘I can just go to the Saenggwa Bang early tomorrow.’
Above all else.
‘It looks fun!’
What in the world could it be?
A problem that even the silver-tongued Geumjin couldn’t solve.
Amang felt her heart beating strangely.
The two ten-year-olds sat facing each other solemnly.
On the table were sweet honey, yakgwa (traditional cookies), and cool iced tea.
After setting down the refreshments, Ran quietly closed the sliding door.
“Tell me. What is this problem about?”
There’s a saying that even a sheet of paper is lighter when two people lift it together, right?
If we put our two heads together well, something should come out.
Above all, that Grand Tutor Geum I saw earlier…
‘He probably gave a pretty interesting problem.’
People who speak indirectly have always given Sphinx-like riddles.
Countless psychological tests and common sense questions I did for fun flashed through my mind.
If nothing else, I’m confident in nonsense problems!
Amang was quite confident.
“It’s a story about a Prime Minister facing death and his three sons.”
Geumjin slowly began to speak.
The Prime Minister, a meritorious retainer from the founding of the nation and the Emperor’s loyal subject, was old and frail, facing death.
He had three sons to carry on his line.
The problem was that he couldn’t determine which of the three was the wisest.
Throughout his life, the Prime Minister had been extremely busy and had not properly looked after his three sons. So, he asked his wife and attendants about his sons’ usual conduct.
“Why did he need to determine who was wise?”
“It was to pass down the position of Prime Minister.”
“Wouldn’t he give it to the eldest son?”
From the start, it was full of questions.
Geumjin pondered for a moment and then answered.
“The three sons were born at the exact same hour.”
Aha.
So they were triplets, that’s why he couldn’t decide.
“The first son was a person with a strong sense of responsibility who pursued justice. The attendants all unanimously praised the first son’s conduct.”
One day, a kitten that had entered the Prime Minister’s residence climbed a tree. It was in a precarious state where the branch seemed ready to break at any moment.
The attendants stamped their feet anxiously, worried about the kitten.
What should we do?
Isn’t it going to fall?
Then the first son appeared.
He bravely climbed the tree and saved the kitten.
“When the Prime Minister learned of this, he called the first son and praised him greatly. He said it was a courageous and righteous act. But do you know what the first son said?”
“No.”
“As the son of a nobleman, I merely did the right thing. I beg you to grant me permission to raise this motherless kitten.”
Oh.
A exclamation escaped me.
‘If it were me, I would have boasted about it all over the neighborhood.’
I bravely climbed a tree and saved a kitten!
The hero of our time has been reborn!
Spreading rumors like that.
I would have milked it for life and acted proud.
“The second son, unlike the first, lacked a sense of responsibility. However, he was quick-witted and achieved whatever he set his mind to. With his exceptional brains, he accumulated wealth. He actually did what others only thought about, filling the storehouses full.”
During a very hot summer, people barely managed to beat the heat with fans. At that time, the second son thought.
[If only there was something to overcome this heat, it would be so good!]
Thinking about it day and night, he called a blacksmith and had him make this and that. Among them was a cylindrical object that gathered wind and shot it in one direction.
‘The precursor to the air conditioner!’
When people found out about this, everyone, without exception, wanted to buy it. They were so determined that they would even sell their houses if it could just beat the heat.
“The second son looked after his own profit. Whether they were poor or rich, that wasn’t important to the second son.”
The second son, coldly and mercilessly, was satisfied with his bulging pockets. Just walking made the coins jingle.
Seeing this, the first son said one thing to the second.
“Why are you sucking the lifeblood of the poor people? I acknowledge your talent, but isn’t that making the people’s lives even more impoverished?”
Hearing that, the second son was rather dumbfounded. He showed not a hint of reflection or shame.
“Brother, do you think they will be grateful if I give to others like you do? The world operates by paying a fair price. If I give one thing, the people will expect something else from me. That is the way of life.”
The second son gave a familiar answer.
It was similar to what Geumjin had said before about relief rice.
‘What is this? Is he talking about himself?’
It was suspicious to the point of being uncanny.
Amang, who had been quietly listening to the problem, fell into deep thought.
‘They are too different. The first son, who values people, and the second son, who thinks of profit.’
For now, she decided to listen to more of the story.
Pricking up her ears, she focused on Geumjin’s words.
“The third son had the qualities of an artist. He couldn’t speak up even once between his two older brothers. He was innately timid and sensitive, often startled by small sounds.”
The third son, who merely watched his self-assured older brothers, was always hesitant. When it came time to choose something, the first son had the right to speak first, so the third son hardly ever voiced his opinion.
Being timid and sensitive was, in another sense, a sign of being delicate.
“What kind of talent did he have?”
“He had a talent for the arts. His skill in playing the bipa (lute) was so excellent that it had the power to make passersby stop in their tracks.”
Among the three sons with distinct characteristics, he had to choose one as his successor.
The good first son, the clever second son, the artistic third son.
“Which one seems like the correct answer to you?”
“Somehow, it seems the second son is suitable for the position of Prime Minister. The position of Prime Minister is the foremost among the court ministers. One must not be easily swayed and needs appropriate tact. However.”
“However?”
“Is this truly the correct answer?”
Geumjin was worried.
Worried that she might be wrong, worried that Grand Tutor Geum might be disappointed.
Even though she was at an age where she didn’t need to give the correct answer.
‘Seeing her like this, it’s also a bit pitiful.’
Why would Grand Tutor Geum ask such a question?
The answer was already out, but Geumjin wasn’t confident.
“Why?”
“Huh?”
“Why do you think that?”
Only silence flowed through the Yeoyeong Palace.
“…This subject also does not know why the second son should become Prime Minister.”
Limited information.
Uncertain relationships between the brothers.
The Prime Minister had never paid attention to his three sons throughout his life.
‘In that case.’
Something struck Amang’s mind.
The corners of Amang’s mouth, who had been lost in thought for a moment, curved upwards.
“I get it.”
“Princess?”
“It’s about the correct answer for this.”
Geumjin’s eyes sparkled for a moment.
It was a problem she had been agonizing over for a long time.
There were countless days when her heart would pound just at the thought of meeting Grand Tutor Geum!
Finally, the Princess is going to solve it!
“There is no correct answer for this.”
Of course, this was unexpected.
