[1] In Paris the 40-year-old student worked at the Guimet Museum, where he translated the Chunhyangjeon, The Tale of Sim Chong, and the Jikseong haengnyeong pyeonram (직성행녕편람; a Korean fortune-telling book) into French.

In 1893, Hong traveled to Japan where he decided to assassinate Kim Okgyun and Pak Yeong-hyo, two reform-minded Koreans.

In 1894, he shot and killed Kim Ok-gyun aboard ship en route to Shanghai.

[2] He later returned to Korea where he was appointed to high office.

With the growing influence of Japan over Korean affairs, the anti-Japan Hong Jong-u resigned his official position.