The ttaengjeon in the phrase "not a single ttaengjeon" traces back to the late Joseon era, when Heungseon Daewongun needed enormous sums to rebuild the fire-ravaged Gyeongbok Palace and minted a coin called the dangbaekjeon (當百錢). True to its name, it was supposed to be worth a hundred of the standard sangpyeong tongbo coins. In reality it was worth nowhere near that, and when so much new money was suddenly poured into circulation, prices soared while the currency's value collapsed. Households grew poorer, and a resentful public twisted "dangbaekjeon" into the harsher-sounding "ttangbaekjeon" as a sneer. That, in turn, was shortened and hardened into ttaengjeon. So the phrase "not a single ttaengjeon" carries the lingering bitterness of common people toward money that had lost its worth and earned their contempt.