I Became a Fallen Noble of Goguryeo

Chapter 20: A New Beginning (2)

After the defeat against Silla triggered the policy of appointing the Domestic Fortress faction, the Pyeongyang Fortress faction split into two.

One branch, led by Wang Godeok, consisted of old nobles and opposed the Domestic Fortress faction.

The other branch, centered around Yeon Jayu, was composed of younger people who supported the Domestic Fortress faction.

Due to the defeat in the Kaema Plateau battle, Wang Godeok’s faction lost some of its influence.

Meanwhile, Yeon Jayu’s faction continued to rise day by day, with the support of the King and maintaining moral superiority.

But that did not mean Wang Godeok was entirely ruined.

They had reigned at the center of Pyeongyang’s politics for almost thirty years.

Even if a wealthy family collapsed, they could still live off their wealth for three years, and these political monsters wouldn’t fall in an instant.

Therefore they gathered all their power to prepare a counterattack, and this year they revealed that blade.

“Your Highness the Princess has turned sixteen (2×8 = 16), so it is time for marriage. Marriage is a state affair, and it can no longer be delayed.”

That was pressure to marry.

“An excellent politician always plans strategy around the fact that there is no rival but me.”

Boknyeo said.

“Yeon Taejo, Yeon Jayu’s child, is only fifteen, so it’s too soon for him to marry. Wang Godeok exploited that point and tried to marry Prince and me.”

“For my father, who desired a new order, Wang Godeok’s marriage pressure was a serious headache.”

“…Then wouldn’t it be simple to refuse?”

“It would be nice if it were that easy….”

Boknyeo sighed heavily.

“The Wang clan of Nangnang had been loyal to Goguryeo for generations. They were also meritorious subjects who supported the former king. So they have sufficient justification for their claim.”

I understood what she meant. From below, loyalty to the top is important—but from above, faith in one’s subjects is just as vital.

Moreover, Wang Godeok emptied his family fortune to distribute straw sandals and grain to the Pyeongyang citizens for this one move.

In the twenty-first century that would be election law violations, but in this era, it was all about popularity and benevolence.

“And besides… last year Silla withdrew.”

Silla ultimately retreated from the Kaema Plateau leaving only monuments. It was land they never intended to hold long term anyway.

Naturally, Wang Jun’s reputation rose from “a general who fled without fighting” to “a general who judged that the battle was unnecessary and returned without loss of troops.”

This shift in evaluation was reminiscent of how Bae Seol, who fled with twelve ships at the Battle of Chilcheonryang and was executed, was posthumously reassessed as hero by Admiral Lee Sun‑shin after his victory at Myeongnyang, and even awarded Minister of War posthumously.

Of course, Wang Jun’s spending of his wealth surely played a significant role in that change.

“But my father wasn’t pleased. He wouldn’t want to be manipulated by Wang Godeok. Then he got a clever idea. If I just ran away and married someone else, wouldn’t that ruin the plan?”

What—why did that become the conclusion?

Boknyeo grinned.

“If my father personally refused the marriage, it’s politics—but if a tomboy daughter escapes on her own, that’s an incident.”

“…Will people accept that?”

“People wouldn’t believe an ordinary princess who ran away at night. But I am not an ordinary princess.”

Boknyeo said confidently.

“After all, I already have a record of running away once.”

“A story from when you went tiger hunting?”

“That’s right. At that time, I wanted to see outside the palace… so I exchanged clothes with a maid and ran away. And I survived because of you.”

…No wonder it felt strange that Go Yangseong only dealt with “such a minor beast” back then.

It makes sense if it was about chasing away the beast that nearly devoured my daughter.

“This time was no different. My father secretly left the door open, I escaped, and came to meet you.”

At that point, I couldn’t help but ask.

“But… why me specifically? Was this also something the King determined?”

“Surely father only knew your name? Originally, after escaping I should have gone north. His goal was to marry me to the Ko clan of the Domestic Fortress faction, who held control in the north.”

Ah, this was something I had read in the The Biography of On Dal.

Originally, Pyeonggang was supposed to marry into the Ko clan in the north, but instead she went to On Dal.

“So… Go Yangseong’s plan was to secretly help me escape to avoid Wang Godeok’s marriage pressure, then link me to the northern Ko clan to firmly support the Domestic Fortress faction?”

Wasn’t that just covering their eyes while fooling others?

Just as I thought that, Boknyeo spoke.

“You were thinking it was just pretending to fool people with closed eyes, weren’t you?”

“Y‑yes, that’s right.”

“ I thought so too. If I married into the Ko clan, Wang Godeok’s faction would use that as an excuse to regroup. Better to marry someone else entirely, someone so ordinary they look like an accident.”

Her meaning was roughly clear. By neatly erasing her strategic value, she’d become a cold potato instead of a hot one. Eliminating the controversy itself.

“But why, of all people, you specifically? I too belong to the Domestic Fortress faction nobility.”

“No one would nit‑pick that.”

“…….”

Her reasoning was too valid to refute.

Boknyeo said.

“And more than why you—it’s that from the start, there was no one but you.”

Boknyeo looked at me and puckered her lips.

“You were the one who risked your life to save me. Who in the world could be more trustworthy? Of course… things turned out a bit differently from what you might have thought.”

“What did you originally think?”

“I didn’t know you had so much money, you know? Look at this.”

Boknyeo suddenly rolled up her sleeve. Numerous gold bracelets with the royal crest glinted.

“I even secretly took some royal jewelry. I intended to give these to you and boldly say, ‘I’ll make you rich, live with me!’—but damn, you’re rich.”

At that, I couldn’t help but laugh.

When I first arrived here, my goal had been the revival of Goguryeo. There was a bit of vengeance for what happened to China in my previous life too.

My goal remained the same even now.

But now, there were a few more reasons.

I hoped my mother, Munso, the people of Gromchon… everyone I know would be happy, and that the war wouldn’t destroy Goguryeo.

For that, I had originally intended to ally with a Pyeongyang Fortress faction family that looked good but had no substance.

But now how is it?

If I form a bond with Boknyeo, I become a royal son‑in‑law. That gives me several times more advantage in pursuing my goals.

And there was something even better.

“…Am I not good enough because I’m wealthy?”

“A bit?”

Pyeonggang, Boknyeo thought I had nothing at all.

No matter how political the strategy had been, what really moved her was gratitude.

She came all this way simply out of thankfulness toward me.

She came here, wanting to live with a man who dug wood and smeared himself with filth because of gratitude.

“…Wait, let’s stop right there.”

At that moment, Mother interjected.

“Judging from the situation, you cannot return to the palace.”

“If I did, I would be forced to marry someone I don’t even know. And Father might continue being manipulated by Wang Godeok.”

“In that case, you should have gone north from the start. Why did you come here?”

Mother asked.

“To be honest, I worry that if I marry the princess, On Dal might be harmed. If Wang Godeok or the Ko clan were to send someone to kill On Dal and cancel the marriage, how could we possibly stop that?”

“Like this.”

Boknyeo drew a dagger from her waist.

“They say that in the past, Janggang (the daughter of King Jangsu) took a dagger and locked herself in a room to break her father's stubborn insistence on marrying her off to the Northern Wei. My situation isn’t that different.”

“…My connection with On Dal lasted only a day. A single day is hardly enough to fall in love with someone.”

“For others, not even that day existed.”

Boknyeo said.

“The people under Wang Godeok, and those from the Northern Ko clan whose names I barely know…I don’t know those people. And they probably only know my name.”

Boknyeo’s words grew faster. It felt like she was speaking without restraint.

“I suppose this marriage is fate. It has already been decided, so it cannot be changed. However… while fate may be destiny, a person is one’s own fate. Fate can be chosen. At least someone who was there for even one day is better than someone who never existed, right?”

“Princess, please calm down.”

Mother placed a hand on Boknyeo’s shoulder.

“I understand what you mean. I once experienced something similar.”

“Similar?”

“My husband, On Jaemo, was a retainer in our household. My father said his nature was sincere and warm, so he granted him the surname On.”

“He fulfilled his worth alongside my name. When everyone else abandoned the family, he alone stayed by my side. But because of this marriage, I became impoverished.”

Mother and Boknyeo’s gazes met.

“Although our family fell completely during the rebellion, there were surely many who wished to marry the former noble me. But I didn’t choose them—I chose my husband.”

“Do you… regret it?”

“Do I look like someone who regrets?”

Boknyeo slowly shook her head.

Mother smiled softly, nodding her head slightly.

“Had I not married him, I wouldn’t have been able to bear On Dal. That child inherited my maternal grandfather’s martial skills and my father’s character. Seeing those I value most in that child, although I feel sorry toward On Dal… I never once regretted choosing him.”

Mother looked at Boknyeo with a gentle smile.

“You, Princess, will undoubtedly feel the same.”

Perhaps the long hike had worn her out.

As soon as Boknyeo finished speaking, she soon fell asleep.

“How pitiful…”

Mother gently tidied Boknyeo’s bangs with her fingertips.

‘How long have they known each other…?’

Perhaps because they had both been in similar situations.

Mother, who had been watching Boknyeo for some time, turned her gaze toward me.

“Earlier, did you see the dagger the princess held?”

“It was fierce.”

“When I saw that, I realized that the princess finding you wasn’t youthful recklessness, but genuine sincerity.”

“Hmm… because she held a dagger?”

“No more than that. People who make a living on lies often threaten others with knives when speaking.”

True, holding a dagger while speaking in Goguryeo was a moderate expression of determination.

In the 21st century, it’d be like tapping your forehead with your pinky and thumb—a flamboyant gesture, but not a basis for trust. If you went to the bank tapping your pinky saying “I swear I’ll repay!” would they increase your credit?

“Then, where did you get that idea?”

“They say King Jangsu’s daughter stopped an unwanted marriage with just a single dagger. The princess could have done the same.”

…Now that I think of it, that’s right.

She could have simply come to me, and then in front of Wang Godeok held a dagger to her neck and ended it.

“But instead of canceling the marriage that way, the princess chose to come to you and said she’d protect you with that dagger. In other words… from the start she intended only to seek you out. Because of that, she missed the simplest solution.”

That was why Mother changed her mind so quickly upon seeing Boknyeo’s dagger.

Focusing only on the dagger and politics hides the essence of the matter.

The core of this was that even though other options existed, she deliberately chose to seek me out.

“Why didn’t you point that out?”

“How could I? How flustered would she be? You don’t say that to someone holding a dagger.”

I understood at once. That would be humiliating.

“On Dal.”

“Yes?”

“The princess may be gentle, but you mustn’t act recklessly like a wild child.”

“Act recklessly?”

“I mean—you should delay consummation.”

Mother said.

“The princess is still physically small and not yet ready. And if you press for a child at too young an age, her health could suffer. You cannot compare the princess to unruly village children.”

“I understand.”

Goguryeo women typically married by age sixteen and commoners often bore children immediately.

But among nobles, this was rare—though marriages might occur early, children were born later.

Because having a child too young posed many risks, and if a wife died soon after marriage the bond between noble families could be severed.

Therefore, it was common to wait two to three years to strengthen familial ties before having children. That way, even if the wife died, the alliance between the families remained recognized.

And honestly, putting all that aside, I still held somewhat 21st‑century sensibilities. It felt entirely natural to wait a bit after marriage.

“And… take this.”

“This is…”

“This is the hair ribbon my father used for his topknot. Now that you are married, you should wear a topknot too. Do you know how to tie it?”

“I…I’m not very good…”

“Turn around.”

Mother trimmed my hair neatly to make it suitable for tying into a topknot, and then tied it securely.

“Like this.”

With my first attempt at a topknot, my forehead tingled slightly.

Only after feeling that discomfort did I begin to feel the reality that I was married.

“If only your maternal grandfather and… your father had seen you like this, they would surely have been pleased.”

The next day, Boknyeo and I cautiously discussed the matters ahead.

“Well… first, we should hide the fact that you’re a princess, right?”

“…Why would we hide it?”

That question made me somewhat surprised.

In most dramas, isn’t hiding the identity of an escaped princess common sense?

But Boknyeo said something entirely different.

“How could we hide it in the first place?”

“Hide it how…?”

“If I were missing in action, how many people would suffer? From today, all the soldiers couldn’t sleep.”

…Now that I thought about it, she had a point.

When the princess of a nation disappears, it cannot simply end with the term “missing in action.”

“Besides, there’s no need to hide it. I ran away because I didn’t want to marry—not because I dislike being a princess.”

“That’s also… true.”

Usually, someone of noble birth hiding their status in drama has a reason: someone wants to kill them, or they come from a treasonous family.

But Boknyeo wasn’t in that situation. She fled because she didn’t want the marriage, and now that she met me, the situation ended. There’s no reason to conceal her identity.

“And judging by the current situation… it’s better to spread the news, right? But how should we spread it so it’s seen as well‑spread rumor?”

Boknyeo pondered, then sighed.

“That thing you said last time—that would be good.”

“What did I say?”

“My father said when I cried, ‘She should marry On Dal.’ And after I grew up he said I should marry someone else. Let’s say I said ‘A king does not speak words and their opposite,’ and then escaped.”

Boknyeo smiled.

“Now that my father never abandoned fairness, it’s a fitting anecdote. And… this story, no matter how you look at it, is something the Pyeongyang Fortress people would love.”

“That’s certain.”

Even by 21st‑century standards, it’s a compelling story.

When Mother once said, “If you keep doing that, you should go live outside,” the idea of really leaving was many children’s fantasy. (Usually only in imagination.)

“On Dal, you know your reputation in Pyeongyang isn’t good, right?”

“I… I really didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I know. They just insulted you ‘cause they saw you as easy pickings. But from now on, none of that will happen.”

Boknyeo grinned broadly.

“From now on, you won’t be someone to curse—you’ll be someone to envy.”

Suddenly, I remembered the moment I first met Boknyeo.

She showed me the path to run from the wolf, and I followed her words to break through.

That relationship seemed like it would continue forward.

Bae Seol led twelve ships to participate in Admiral Won Gyun’s Battle of Chilcheonryang. He sunk eight Japanese ships and when the tide turned, he escaped immediately.

Keeping all twelve ships intact, he succeeded in evacuating the people safely.

Up to that point it could be considered a strategic retreat— the problem was that Bae Seol deserted.

Looking at how Bae Seol personally refused Seonjo’s royal command and a reward voyage (Admiral Yi Sun‑shin was so bewildered that he confiscated Bae Seol’s secretary and had him flogged), it appears he was full of distrust toward King Seonjo.

Combined with Won Gyun’s disastrous defeat, it appears he deserted altogether. Because of this he was captured by Kwon Yul and executed for wartime desertion.

However, during King Gwanghaegun’s reign, public opinion drastically shifted to “Wasn’t deserting the right choice there? If Bae Seol hadn’t preserved those twelve ships, we would all have been destroyed.” His reputation soared, and he was posthumously awarded first‑class merit and promoted to Minister of War.

The story of King Jangsu’s daughter is mixed between unofficial tales and official records. That Northern Wei proposed marriage but Goguryeo declined is official.

Records show that at first they said, “the daughter had already married away, so we request to adopt the younger sister as an adopted daughter.” Northern Wei accepted and even sent wedding gifts, but Goguryeo rescinded the engagement at the last minute.

Records suggest internal sentiment in Goguryeo: “Northern Wei once married the Northern Yan and then immediately invaded them. You can’t trust those bastards.” Thereupon King Jangsu rejected saying “the princess we intended to send died.”

Even by 21st‑century standards, it was a grave diplomatic insult—even cause for war, as seen in stories of Jang Bo‑go and others.

But Northern Wei didn’t wage war. Instead they said, “Then send anyone else!” Judging that they refrained from war after such treatment speaks to Goguryeo’s prestige under King Jangsu. Shortly afterward, Northern Wei’s emperor died and the marriage proposal faded away.

Unconfirmed tales include that the princess refused to marry, locked herself in a room, or even committed suicide.

Ten years later, another marriage proposal occurred at Goguryeo’s request, which succeeded, and Queen Munso of the Ko clan went to Northern Wei.

The phrase “cover your eyes while fooling others” (눈 가리고 아웅) the “a‑ung” is “peek‑a‑boo!” used when playing with children.

As a four‑character idiom, it’s “cover ears and steal a bell” (掩耳盜鐘), a figurative expression used since the Spring and Autumn period.

According to the adage “body, hair, and nails not yours to harm” (신체발부수지부모), it was said people didn’t cut their hair or nails—but in fact making hair orderly was also part of it.

Neglecting cleanliness was considered harm, so just as people trimmed nails and toenails, many trimmed and styled hair to fit for topknots.

The major backlash to the short‑hair decree in the late Joseon era came because the topknot was eradicated—not simply haircutting. The method of enforcement—officials roaming around with scissors and cutting noblemen’s topknots off without consent—was humiliating, making resistance inevitable.