Record of Special Bequeathal by Yi Eeonjeok

This document records a special bequeathal by Yi Eonjeok (1491–1553) to his concubine, Lady Seok in 1546. He cited the reason for this bequeathal as follows: Lady Seok cared for her mother-in-law wholeheartedly at all times, and in the summer of the preceding year, when he left home to serve in an official position and found himself unable to return home in the following year due to the death of the king and the ensuing period of national mourning, he became deeply concerned about his elderly mother from afar. During this time, Lady Seok provided good care for her motherin- law, consoling her every night and serving her with good food for each meal. Thanks to her devoted efforts, Yi Eonjeok’s mother was less troubled and became healthier, which moved him to bequeath some of his property to her. The property inherited by her included three slaves that he had originally purchased, and a female slave granted by the king, as well as three seomjigi of field and one seomjigi of rice paddy. It would appear that Lady Seok’s status as a concubine restricted her to receiving only property personally accumulated by Yi Eonjeok, as opposed to any property inherited through his family. He also specified that the farmland and slaves bequeathed to her could be passed down to her offspring with the responsibility to hold ancestral services for her after her death, with no caveats such as having to return the estate upon her death. At the time, Lady Seok lived with her mother-inlaw in a house built by her husband in Oksan-ri while he was ostracized from government office, as opposed to in Yangdong village, which was the location of the residence inherited by her husband from his father. It is notable that Yi Eonjeok’s mother was cared for by Lady Seok, a concubine, rather than his wife, Lady Bak. As a witness, his younger brother Yi Eongwal (1494–1553) was present at this property distribution.