It was accurate to say that King Sukjong was the most sincere cat lover in the 500-year Joseon Dynasty, as his love for them was well documented by many records. There were detailed records of King Sukjong's companion cat, especially in the book Kim Si-min's Geummyoga.
[King Sukjong named it Geumdeok, while the cat's offspring was Geumson. It was literally a cat with golden fur. Unlike other cats, Geumdeok and Geumson were incredibly loyal to King Sukjong.]
Geumson was the only creature in the palace that could eat next to King Sukjong. When it was cold, Geumson was said to have slept next to Sukjong's bed, which showed how much Sukjong's love for cats was.
When Geumdeok, mother to Geumson, passed away, King Sukjong ordered a funeral to be held and even wrote a letter to mourn its death. Although it was just an animal, King Sukjong's courtesy to the cat that truly loved its master was never too much. Perhaps the barren palace's only entertainment source was the time to play with Geumson.
It must have felt entirely foreign to see King Sukjong, an iron-blooded monarch who caused his ministers to tremble, handing out his food to Geumson, who would be under the table, lying on its stomach.
<...LOGIN TO SEE COMMENTS
