I Became the Crown Prince of a Ruined Country

1 – Reincarnated as a Prince in a Strange World

In the midst of a grand banquet for all the high-ranking officials, I met the gaze of someone whose eyes were swirling with emotions.

I saw a cluster of emotions swirling in golden eyes: anger, greed, hatred, sorrow, resentment, disappointment, and above all, intense yearning.

She gritted her teeth and let out a cry, releasing the pent-up emotions within her.

“No! You can never leave my side! Never!! Not until the night falls like rain from the sky, and horses grow horns! I will never let you leave Hanyang!!”

Her outburst was a manifestation of her emotions, and her pure sincerity had no pretense.

“Horses grow horns and the night falls like rain, huh…”

I chuckled wryly.

Yes, I remembered that phrase. I had changed since meeting her, but had she remained the same, harboring unconditional hatred for people and a thirst for revenge against the world?

It was a sad thing. I felt like tears were about to spill.

It all started about ten years ago.

§

A carriage rode along an unfamiliar road.

“You must steel your heart, Your Highness.”

The voice beside me urged me to prepare myself, while outside the carriage, the murmurs of people seemed to be watching some strange beast inside.

But it didn’t matter. I wasn’t so idle as to pay attention to such things.

“This world is strange.”

It was because the vague suspicions I had were now being proven true.

Let’s say it was surprising enough to have been reborn thousands of years in the past without knowing English. That alone should be enough to understand that reincarnation, as Buddhism describes it, was true.

“But how should I accept the reality that I’m currently seeing?”

It had been a few years since I became aware of my past life and lived in this current one. I had learned about this world through my current life’s memories and conversations with people around me.

I had only seen a limited sample of people due to societal constraints such as status and age, but this was enough to confirm that this world was strange.

It was during the Spring and Autumn Warring States Period, where the Central Plains were divided into several states and engaged in a power struggle.

And the background of my new life was the later part of that era.

I wasn’t particularly knowledgeable about the Warring States Period, but I had some basic common sense about it. For example, in this era, women had extremely limited rights and could not socially advance, and as an East Asian, most people had black hair and eyes, and proper medicine and cosmetics were not developed, so people’s height and appearance were relatively lower compared to the future.

However, where I was reborn was like a separate parallel dimension where all the examples I listed earlier were untrue.

Women were guaranteed the same social rights as men, and even though they lived in the Central Plains of East Asia, people’s hair and eyes were naturally diverse in color.

Even their appearance had been upwardly harmonized to fit the standards of the 21st century, not just their past lives.

At first, I thought to myself, looking at the appearance of my followers, “Ah, it seems that even in the past, beauty standards weren’t that different. As a royal, beauties flock to me.”

But the looks of the crowd watching me, as if mocking my shallow conclusion, were all unique.

After gathering all of that information, I was able to sum up this world in one word.

Yeonhui.

Not Yeonui. Yeonhui.

If Yeonui was a novel based on history, Yeonhui was a creation of later generations that transformed historical figures into transgender characters.

For me, it was the answer that could explain this world better than anything else, and it was the world I would live in from now on.

But that doesn’t mean that the main social class has completely switched to women. The majority of the population is still male. However, it wasn’t difficult to find women in government positions or leading the military.

“Lord Gongja, are you listening? Lord Gongja.”

“Oh, sorry. I was lost in thought for a moment.”

Initially, even the flattery felt awkward, but now it flowed naturally. I must have adapted to this strange world and my newly assigned status.

My attendant, Hangeong, spoke with concern and regret in his voice.

“Yes, of course. You’re going as a hostage to the enemy. But you must never waver. Your Highness is the only enemy they have, so you will definitely be promoted to the position of prince. At that time, even the homeland will call for Lord Gongja, so you must endure and withstand this difficult time until then.”

Hangeong spoke to me as befitting his status as a member of the powerful Han clan, expressing his thoughts about the current situation.

But his voice trembled, and he seemed more nervous than me.

“Don’t worry about me. I’m fine. You, Hangeong, on the other hand, don’t tremble. Although the relationship between our country and Jona isn’t good, we were once allied. They wouldn’t go so far as to kill us, would they?”

“I don’t know. Lord Gongja may not know, but from what I’ve learned, after the Battle of Changping, the King of Jona tried to kill the envoy sent by the Jin Dynasty.”

“That’s not surprising.”

The Battle of Changping. The greatest massacre in the country’s history, in which an unimaginable number of prisoners were slaughtered by the Jona army, with a total of 450,000 casualties.

It wasn’t just a small war, it was an irreversible defeat that completely destroyed the future growth potential of Jona. There may have been exaggeration in the numbers, but there was no doubt that an enormous amount of people were slaughtered.

After that, even the capital of Jona, Handan, was besieged, so it was only natural that the king of Jona would receive criticism.

Even I, who was living in the past without knowing the world’s affairs, heard about it. It goes without saying how tremendous the ripple effects were.

“Anyway, Lord Gongja must be careful not to be caught. Now, let’s review the etiquette that you must follow when you meet the King of Jona.”

While Hangeong droned on about the tedious etiquette, I looked at the Jona people outside the carriage.

Inquisitive gazes met mine, and I sensed an undisguised resentment from the very beginning.

I had a feeling that my hostage life in Jona wouldn’t be entirely smooth sailing.

However, without time to sightsee the city, as soon as I arrived at the inn, I was called to the front of the royal palace of Jonara. Considering the Jangpyeong Daejeon, it meant that the middle of the nationwide era had passed. It was a calculation based on the premise that there was no difference between my memories of my past life and the current situation, but based on the names and events I heard, it was not different.

Currently, the king of Jonara was a middle-aged man who had been on the throne for over 10 years. Before the Jangpyeong Daejeon, the evaluation of the Jonara king was good. He was evaluated as a great military leader who led the prosperity of Jonara with outstanding subordinates such as Ingyeoyeo, Yeompa, Josa, and Pyeongwongun.

However, due to a single mistake, he became a disastrous king who ruined the future of Jonara. Even after several years since the Jangpyeong Daejeon, his face still showed deep sorrow.

“Yes, this is the message I sent from Yanara.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” I replied, bowing as I had learned from Hankyung.

The king did not even try to hide his displeasure. It was not difficult to understand his position. Yanara had every reason to be angry with Jonara. Already staggering from the humiliation of being surrounded by the Jinnara army, even in the capital of Handan, Yanara had taken away their land rather than helping.

So why did Yanara continue to send messages instead of taking advantage of Jonara’s weakness and attacking? The reason was simple. They no longer had the luxury of attacking Jonara themselves.

After only three years on the throne, Yanhyo, the king of Yanara, died suddenly, causing chaos in Yanara. And following him, my father, who had ascended to the throne, sent me to Jonara as a messenger, fearing Jonara’s retaliation.

Yanara could not afford to fight Jonara anymore, so they sent a message of peace instead. The king of Jonara had no choice but to accept it.

After completing all my tasks and preparing to leave, the king called me back.

“Wait.”

Did I make a mistake? As I pondered, the king spoke.

“I didn’t catch your name.”

“Oh, this is a breach of etiquette.”

In fact, it was more due to the king interrupting me before I could introduce myself, but as a gangster, I deeply bowed my head.

The king did not intend to make this a big deal and merely nodded his head. I straightened my posture, clasped my hands, and kneeled as I performed the customary bow of respect, then spoke my second name.

“It is said that I am Yeon of the Hee-seong (姓) family, a disciple of the great philosopher Confucius.”

My name was Hee-dan (姬丹).