Jeong Cheol
However, some hardline Easterners saw Song Yik-pil as the mastermind behind the Westerners and instigated the descendants of Ahn Dang to seek justice and punishment for Song Saryeon, who was then deceased after enjoying thirty years of power and wealth. After an reinvestigation in 1586, it was determined that Ahn Dang and others were falsely accused by Song Saryoen and over 70 family members of Song Saryeon including Song Yik-pil were enslaved and given to Ahn family as compensation. Facing certain revenge from aggrieved Ahn family, the Song family scattered and became fugitives. Song Yik-pil, who turned from a respected scholar to fugitive slave overnight, hid himself by secretly staying with leaders of the Westerners such as Jeong Cheol, his disciple and famous scholar Kim Jang-saeng, and even an Easterner like Yi San-hae. According to some accounts, it was while Song Yik-pil was in Hwanghae area that the accusation of treason was made against Jeong Yeo-rip, who lived in Honam. During the whole period when Jeong Cheol was in charge of investigating the treason case and interrogated the Easterners, Song Yik-pil was said to be staying with Jeong Cheol.