I Prayed for a Murim Reincarnation, But I Was Born as the Youngest Imperial Prince - Chapter 3

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 3
Finally, Seonwu’s birthday arrived.
A magnificent banquet commenced.
Beautiful decorations were set out across the spacious courtyard, and artists were summoned to celebrate with dance and song.
The sound of the singing was truly so exquisite that Seonwu gently closed his eyes and enjoyed it.
Sitting upon a high dais with a special screen lowered in front, his condition could not be seen from below, which made him feel thoroughly at ease.
‘Wow, this is amazing.’
Honestly, he had harbored a prejudice that the music of this era would be rather monotonous compared to modern times in terms of instrument variety or harmony.
‘A person shouldn’t just harbor groundless prejudices. Wow, this is even better than the foreign performance at the Seoul Arts Center that I saw with the ticket Jun bought me.’
He had grumbled when he was abruptly given a ticket instead of beef for his birthday, but it turned out to be incredibly good once he actually listened to it.
Yet, today’s performance was even greater than that.
‘It’s outdoors without any sound equipment, so how does it resonate so grandly and in three dimensions?’
The melodies unfolded so brilliantly that admiration flowed from him naturally.
An ensemble of various instruments evoked the image of a majestic dragon roaming freely through the heavens.
‘Ah, it’s Sound Cultivation.’
Once he recognized it as Martial Arts, he could understand the reason.
It wasn’t for combat; Internal Energy was being used purely to create beautiful sounds.
Perhaps this was the true essence of Sound Cultivation.
‘Wow, so they summoned masters of Sound Cultivation just to perform for my birthday?’
And not just one, but dozens of them?
A tycoon who hires a philharmonic orchestra to perform for their birthday might exist.
But the value of these masters couldn’t possibly be compared to an orchestra.
‘Is this the dignity of the imperial family? Wow, our house is the wealthiest in the entire continent!’
The youngest son of the Imperial Palace, wealthier than any tycoon family.
This is worth doing.
Even though it was midsummer, it wasn’t hot at all.
Because of the Formation maintained at all times throughout the Imperial Palace, a moderate temperature that was neither hot nor cold was maintained all year round.
Naturally, the humidity was also automatically regulated by the Formation.
‘Who was it again? Someone said that the 21st-century Korean middle class enjoys a better table and standard of living than a king of the Joseon Dynasty.’
Perhaps that might be true if applied to an imperial prince of the Ming Dynasty on that other Earth.
While a prince might be superior in the luxury of employing many people, something like an [air conditioner] could not even be spoken in the language of this world.
Since it did not exist, there was no corresponding word.
That was why various words that only existed in his past life remained solely inside Seonwu’s head.
However, he could say this with confidence.
That applied to the story of that other Earth, but it did not fit this world.
There might not be an [air conditioner], but even the Earth of his past life lacked cooling and heating equipment that could perfectly regulate an open outdoor space.
Yet, the Formation here kept the outdoors comfortable 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
Even if it rained and the wind blew, the Imperial Palace remained unfazed.
It was outdoors, yet it possessed a comfort exceeding the indoors.
Even modern technology couldn’t do this, right?
Was that all?
This magnificent music utilizing Sound Cultivation would be impossible even with 21st-century audio equipment.
‘Heheh, even the tycoons of my past life could never have enjoyed this kind of luxury. Because it didn’t exist.’
While he was fully savoring his new status and enjoying such a splendid birthday banquet, a group that looked like people of the Wulin by any standard approached from over there.
Even to Seonwu, who currently only knew of the existence of Martial Arts, the group of mixed monks, Daoists, and secular individuals possessed the dignity of supreme masters.
There was a level where their extraordinary nature was visible just by looking at them, after all.
“To celebrate the birth of His Fifth Imperial Highness, the people of the Wulin wish to offer gifts.”
“Your Imperial Highness, we report to ask if it is acceptable to permit them to enter.”
Even without the Chief Court Lady whispering, Seonwu naturally intended to do so.
Masters of the Wulin thronged here just to celebrate my birthday?
As a Wuxia [maniac], how could I possibly turn them away?
Seonwu still thought with words from his past life occasionally mixed in his head.
“Let them do so.”
“Permit them to enter.”
They entered one by one and bowed toward Seonwu.
Watching their heads touch the ground, Seonwu marveled anew at his own status.
‘They might not be the Sect Leaders of each sect, but they probably aren’t of a low status either, right?’
He carefully asked the Chief Court Lady.
“What are their positions within their respective sects? Are they all Elders?”
“That is correct, Your Highness. They are Elders from the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Noble Families, centered around Shaolin and Wudang.”
As expected, Elder-level figures had come.
In things like this, who you send is just as important as the gift itself.
Shall I listen to what they are offering?
The one who offered greetings first was a male monk.
An old monk with hair as white as frost stood up after finishing his bow and spoke.
“May you live for a thousand years, a thousand years, ten thousand years. Congratulating the day of His Fifth Imperial Highness’s birth, Shaolin offers several gifts, including the Lesser Rejuvenating Pill.”
Oh, the Lesser Rejuvenating Pill!
You brought it just as requested!
Thank you, Shaolin.
No matter how I think about it, the Great Rejuvenating Pill would be greedy, and even though the Lesser Rejuvenating Pill contains the word ‘Lesser,’ it is by no means an ordinary Spiritual Pill.
‘I don’t know exactly how precious it is in this world… but it’s certain that if I had been born into an ordinary family, I wouldn’t even catch a glimpse of such a Spiritual Pill in my entire life.’
They offered that as my birthday present.
How exciting.
I just acted cute and asked my daddy once, and it’s granted just like this?
‘While I’m still cute, I need to act charming as much as possible to get everything I can. Yes, yes.’
Suppressing his jaw from dropping, Seonwu tried his best to remain dignified.
It would be strange if a five-year-old stood up and shouted, “Long live the Lesser Rejuvenating Pill!”
Subsequently, the others offered their greetings and presented their Spiritual Pills one after another.
“May you live for a thousand years, a thousand years, ten thousand years. Rejoicing in the birth of His Fifth Imperial Highness, Wudang offers the Lesser Clear Pill.”
“Mount Hua Sect offers the Red Plum Pill…”
“The Anhui Namgung Clan offers the Heavenly Clear Pill…”
“The Sichuan Tang Clan offers the Hundred Poison Pill…”
‘Wow, those are all Spiritual Medicines. Wow, I’ve got a Spiritual Medicine collection now.’
He didn’t know what grade each Spiritual Medicine belonged to.
However, he had a rough sense of things.
‘While the names of Spiritual Pills differ by work for other sects, Shaolin’s Lesser Rejuvenating Pill is a standard.’
The Great Rejuvenating Pill is an incredibly precious thing that even Shaolin only possesses a few of.
Depending on the work, there are cases where even Shaolin has lost the recipe.
Though it isn’t to that extent here since they made three pills in ten years and have one left, it is extremely precious nonetheless.
The Lesser Rejuvenating Pill is less precious than the Great Rejuvenating Pill, but it is still a tremendous Spiritual Medicine.
And the fact that Shaolin offered the Lesser Rejuvenating Pill meant that the other sects had matched that grade to some extent.
Of course, even among the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Noble Families, their prosperity differed, so the gifts wouldn’t be of the exact same level, but they would at least meet the baseline.
All of that is mine?
Seonwu tried to hold back his laughter, but he ended up beaming brightly.
‘This is nice.’
Even if one were born into a prestigious family, they would likely only receive a single Spiritual Medicine from that clan.
Furthermore, they would only receive one after competing with other kids of the same Generation Rank and demonstrating talent.
Yet, the prestigious orthodox sects and noble families are presenting everything as birthday gifts on their own accord.
‘Wow, is this what the status of an imperial prince is.’
I was born well.
* * *
Seonwu waited, wondering when he could consume the Spiritual Pills presented on his birthday.
Would they give them to him right away, perhaps the day after the birthday banquet?
However, there was no news.
‘Uh, why?’
So he asked the Chief Court Lady.
“When will I eat the Spiritual Pills that came in as my birthday gifts?”
I want to try eating them this very day.
I enjoyed looking at them, but Spiritual Pills exist to be eaten, don’t they?
It’s the Shaolin Lesser Rejuvenating Pill, no less!
Having been born into a Wuxia world and receiving this as a gift, how could I not eat it?
The Chief Court Lady bowed respectfully and replied.
“Your Highness, those are trivial things offered by the rustic folk of the Wulin, so they are not worthy of being consumed by Your Noble Highness.”
What kind of talk is this?
It’s the Lesser Rejuvenating Pill, no less.
Besides, would the items offered by other sects be significantly inferior?
Gifts have a certain grade, so sending something too cheap would be a provocation.
“Still, they were presented to the imperial family, were they not?”
“Of course, in their own way, they offered the precious treasures of their sects or families, so their sincerity is commendable, but how could Your Highness possibly consume them?”
“Then where did those Spiritual Pills go?”
“They must have all entered the imperial treasury.”
Seonwu blinked his eyes.
He had enjoyed looking at them, but when he woke up from his sleep, they had all vanished, leaving him wondering where they went.
They vanished into the treasury?
“Then, what am I supposed to eat?”
I want to eat a Spiritual Pill too.
Not just the Lesser Rejuvenating Pill, but the rest were also offered for me to eat, so I want to eat them and try accumulating that thing called Internal Energy.
Am I supposed to eat that Tianlong Pill or whatever it was that my father mentioned?
“Since Your Highness is still young, it is not good to consume Spiritual Pills immediately; when the time comes, His Imperial Majesty the Emperor will bestow something appropriate upon you.”
What kind of talk is this, like a mother saying she will keep New Year’s allowance safe and give it to you later when you grow up?
In my experience, if you believe in this sort of thing, it absolutely never returns.
“When is that time? No, this won’t do. I need someone to ask more professionally. Is there no one who knows about these things well and possesses outstanding scholarship?”
Since the prince, who was only five years old, was already seeking a scholar, Jeongwol, the Chief Court Lady, was surprised while feeling proud inside.
‘As expected of the dragon’s blood.’
Her own child was busy throwing tantrums for sweets at five years old.
Even so, they couldn’t just attach anyone as a tutor to His Imperial Highness.
If they brought someone arbitrarily and were impeached under the pretext that it brought a bad influence upon the prince, their head could be cut off.
This wasn’t a metaphor for being fired, but meant literally and physically.
“I shall inquire with His Imperial Majesty the Emperor and seek an appropriate person.”
“Please do.”
* * *
Seonwu thought of it as a simple matter.
However, an imperial prince requesting something in the Great Long Empire was a completely different story from a young child of a tycoon family wanting something.
As soon as the Fifth Imperial Prince reached the age of five, the story that he was seeking someone of outstanding scholarship circulated through the court.
The Emperor laughed upon hearing the report from the responsible Chief Court Lady, Jeongwol.
“Hahat, seeking a tutor of outstanding scholarship is an overstatement.”
“We beg for your forgiveness.”
“It is merely that a young child has become intensely curious about the world. But it is a good thing. It is about time someone is attached so he can begin learning the basics. I had intended to gradually teach him characters and numbers anyway, so, hmm. Very well. I shall put the matter of deciding the tutor for the Fifth Imperial Prince on the agenda for today’s Imperial Audience.”
How much could a five-year-old child possibly learn?
In a way, it was akin to a kindergarten teacher position.
Even though the aspect of being a private tutor made it different.
Yet, the moment that student was the Fifth Imperial Prince, factional friction and debates erupted to determine the best candidate even for that position.
The Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of War met.
“If we follow precedent, His Fifth Imperial Highness will also eventually receive a Princely Title just like the four princes above him.”
“Indeed, and unlike the previous dynasties, the territory managed by a Prince Mansion is truly wide and vast by the will of His Majesty in our Great Long Empire, is it not?”
Right now, the Hwaryong Prince Mansion opened by the First Prince governs Hebei Province in its entirety.
The Prince Mansions opened by the other three princes are no less than that.
In other words, the youngest prince is also bound to govern one large province or about two small provinces combined in the future.
To think it is the tutor position for an imperial prince who will become such a king, what a tremendously great position it is.
‘This matter is a position to build connections that cannot be missed…’
‘By nature, power is a matter of how close one is to the Supreme Ruler, rather than one’s official rank.’
“Should it not come from our faction this time?”
“Indeed. Let us make our move.”
The court ministers gathered according to their factions and shouted the exact same words.
“This time, it must be us…”
“To think it is the tutor position for the youngest Imperial Prince. We must absolutely take it, but in the worst-case scenario, it must at least not come from the Ministry of War’s side. Let us block it.”
Thus, the trivial request of finding an adult to satisfy the curiosity of a five-year-old child became a major point of competition among the court factions this time.
The Easterners moved, and the Westerners raged.
The Southerners ran wild, and the Northerners sought opportunities.
Such was the weight of the request he submitted to his imperial father, which Seonwu did not yet know.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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