Black Corporation: Joseon

Episode 411: Lord of War. Hua Merchant (2)

Before issuing the imperial command, Emperor Seondeok moved quickly.

“Send an envoy to Joseon immediately! right now!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

What Emperor Seondeok wanted from Joseon was the original version of the nationally recognized bill of exchange, similar to the one used by the Joseon Dynasty.

*

…

The Joseon government, concerned that tax evasion or other problems might arise in this area, issued bills of exchange at its own expense.

It was an attempt to prevent tax evasion as much as possible by forcing the use of bills with serial numbers for transactions, just like currency.

And behind all these policies, there was a scent. It was based on the knowledge I learned in the 21st century and the experience I gained during my short career as a civil servant.

Of course, in the process of planning this policy, the township was not optimistic about the results.

“There is a saying that ten police officers cannot stop one thief. “The history of tax evasion is as old as the history of mankind… But we must do everything we can and plug as many loopholes as possible.”

What emerged from that process was the investment capital market.

“Pull out and eat as much as you can!”

* * *

As soon as the original plate made in response to Emperor Seondeok’s request arrived, Emperor Seondeok ordered it to be printed.

As soon as a certain amount of supplies had accumulated according to Emperor Seonde’s order, Emperor Seonde immediately issued an imperial order to the entire Ming Empire.

-From now on, the upper part of the title prohibits the use of dictionaries, including vouchers. All merchants must use government-issued vouchers provided by the government. This is the royal order, and anyone who breaks it will be considered to be insulting me and will be severely punished.

When the imperial name was promulgated, the superiors of the royal name visited the government office and received vouchers.

Officials in charge of distribution meticulously recorded which merchants received how much vouchers, and these records were immediately delivered to the register in Beijing.

* * *

Of course, in this process, there were those who knowingly or unknowingly resisted. The surrounding merchants and merchants who discovered these people were startled and ran away.

“Have you already forgotten that bloody wind that blew last time?”

“No matter how good the wealth is…” Just

as the merchants and merchants feared, the merchants and merchants who pretended not to know Emperor Seondeok’s orders and the merchants once again flocked to the merchants and reduced them to ruins.

In this process, there were unfortunate victims, many of whom were destroyed due to the false accusations of surrounding merchants and merchants.

It was not only merchants and merchants who suffered damage. They hired warriors to protect goods and merchants from bandits and raiders while transporting large quantities of goods. And these warriors recklessly engaged in combat during the suppression of the Geumgun army.

“Such outrageous things! “Follow me until the end and keep me safe!”

Following the orders of Emperor Seondeok, who was enraged upon receiving the report, Geumgun persistently pursued and eliminated the warriors.

In this process, the martial society called Seqing River Lake or Wulin suffered a huge blow and became the beginning of its downfall.

This was because no matter how excellent a warrior he was in martial arts, he was powerless in front of Geumgun’s fire spear.

* * *

In this way, Emperor Seondeok concentrated as much power as possible in himself.

The existing bureaucratic organization, the Cabinet of Ministers, the eunuchs, and the Jingui Committee were all in a situation where they were absolutely obedient to Emperor Seondeok.

The power base of Emperor Seondeok was the musketeers called the Geumuiwi within the Jinuiwi, the so-called Musketeers, and the artillerymen, the Fire and Fire Guards.

* * *

A new type of Hwachang (火槍) was created based on the copper gun imported from Joseon, and Emperor Seondeok organized a unit within the Geumuiwi to operate this new type of Hwachang.

In the process of organizing the units of the Geumwiwi, some improvements were made to the Donggun. Several craftsmen had finally created the aiming device.

Even though it was an aiming device, it was a very primitive method of attaching small protrusions to the front and back of the barrel and aligning the protrusions in a straight line, but it showed a much more advanced accuracy rate than the Hwachang imported from Joseon and the Hwachang used before.

After seeing the actual demonstration, Emperor Seondeok ordered mass production.

Emperor Seondeok’s primary goal was to first compose the main force of the Jin army with musketry and artillery, and ultimately to compose the main force of the 500,000 army with musketry and artillery.

But this was almost impossible.

There were many reasons why it could be declared impossible, but the first thing that could be mentioned was that the basic quality of the soldiers was very poor.

‘Good iron does not make nails, and good talent does not make soldiers.’

The perception of soldiers was so bad that there was a proverb like this. Therefore, most of those entering the military, especially regular soldiers, were illiterate.

Second, gunpowder weapons such as fireworks and artillery were budget-consuming monsters.

In particular, gunpowder costs a lot to produce, but is also difficult to maintain, and once used, that’s it. And the problem was that in order to train properly, you had to consume a significant amount of it consistently.

* * *

Although there were many problems, Emperor Seondeok could not give up the formation of riflemen and artillerymen. In a battle against the Jurchen tribe that took place shortly after ascending to the throne, Emperor Seondeok personally led his soldiers into battle and won. And it was because he could not forget the usefulness of the gunpowder weapons he experienced at this time.

Therefore, Emperor Seondeok began to organize troops at the Geumuiwiwi, which was composed of selected talented people.

First, they selected 12,000 soldiers and began training 10,000 riflemen and 2,000 artillerymen.

The musketeers and artillerymen trained by consuming large amounts of wealth brought in through the joint venture grew into the elite of the elite.

Emperor Seondeok, who was satisfied with the soldiers who boasted powerful military power at a glance, gave the names of Musketeers to the riflemen and Hwapowi to the artillerymen.

Emperor Seondeok, who achieved the first goal, set the next goal.

Emperor Seondeok’s second goal was to increase the size of this musketeer and artillery committee by five times.

50,000 musketeers and 10,000 artillerymen.

This was the second stepping stone to reach the final goal that Emperor Seondeok dreamed of.

* * *

The musketeers’ corps and artillery committee, which were raised as elites, were affiliated with the Geumui Committee. Although they were the Jinuiwi, the last bastion to protect themselves and the imperial family, Emperor Xuande had no intention of displaying them as mere decorations in the Forbidden City.

Emperor Seondeok, who organized the interior of the empire centering on the trained musketeers of the Jingui Committee and the Fire Committee, turned his attention to the outside.

This was the city that Emperor Seondeok’s gaze was directed to.

After the Emperor Yongle allowed tribute trade, marshals were held regularly in the north, and trade with the Mongolian tribes in the north took place.

The Mongol tribes sold horses and fur, and the Ming sold silk, clothing, and food.

The drinking party, which was held regularly but not permanently, was growing in size as time went by. In addition, nearby Uyghur merchants began to appear there.

“I see money!”

When reports surfaced that merchants who smelled money were engaging in smuggling, Emperor Seondeok issued an imperial order without delay.

First, an area on the border between Ming and Oirat where drinking water was plentiful and easily supplied was selected to build an earthen fort of an appropriate size.

Afterwards, they prepared lodging facilities and a horse yard around the fortress and then informed the tribal chiefs and merchants of Oirat.

“A permanent market has been established in the current location. Those with permits can trade in the market at any time!”

However, there were prerequisites: the Oirat side had to write a document showing loyalty to the Ming emperor, and Ming and Uyghur merchants had to purchase a trading license.

In addition to a permit, merchants who wanted to trade in the market had to pay an entrance fee of 10 nyang of silver each time they entered the market. By paying this entrance fee, merchants could stay in the market for five days. Afterwards, merchants who wanted to extend their stay had to pay an additional 10 nyang of silver every five days. That too was paid in advance.

However, the Oirat tribe was exempt from this condition.

“This is my kindness to you. “Never cause trouble.”

Each time you entered the market, you had to pay 10 nyang of silver in banknotes, but the merchants accepted this. This was because the profits that could be gained from trade in this market were worth the expenses.

In particular, the benefits included safety concerns. The fortress built near the market was stationed with 3,000 musketeers, 500 artillery guards, and 1,000 cavalry.

No matter how violent the warriors of the Oirat tribe were, they could never act rashly in front of them.

In fact, small tribes belonging to the Oirat tribe tried to attack the market several times, but each time they suffered huge losses and had to retreat.

And the tribe that retreated after receiving such damage was eaten by other tribes, like the Jurchen tribe that attacked Joseon and was destroyed.

Masibo (horse city hall) created in this way was unexpectedly useful militarily.

The market built near Masibo was overflowing with wealth, so not only the Oirat but also other Mongolian tribes focused their attention on it.

Thanks to this, military pressure on the border area bordering Mongolia was significantly reduced.

Another advantage was that the skills and combat power of the musketeers and fire siege soldiers continued to strengthen as they experienced actual combat at Masibo.

The soldiers were replaced by one-third every six months, and the soldiers who were constantly rotated honed their skills through combat.

Next, based on the profits coming through Masi, there was room to gradually expand the size of the Musketeers and Artillery Committee.

Lastly, military commanders who valued traditional cold weapons became clearly aware of the usefulness of gunpowder weapons.

* * *

It would have been great if it had ended that way, but things in the world were not that easy.

Attempts to expand musketeers and artillerymen throughout the Ming army were still sluggish.

The reason, as mentioned before, was the quality of the soldiers.

Every time they received a report like this, Ming generals and military officers felt sad and lost their appetite.

“It is said that the Japanese become as ferocious as wild beasts when they pick up a sword and become warriors for a hundred men….” “

For those who carry swords and set up, artillery is the best, but the soldiers are all ignorant….” “Come to

think of it, Joseon Dynasty. Have you heard the news? They say they teach basic tactics and military techniques to even the most junior soldiers.”

“The Koreans are so smart…”

In the end, the generals of the Ming Dynasty chose the most certain and worst method to train their soldiers.

Their choice was violence.

Those who showed even the slightest sign of immaturity during the training process were subject to harsh beatings.

On the other hand, if a person knew letters and showed even the slightest bit of excellence, he or she was immediately promoted to a low-level executive position.

And these low-level executives were entrusted with the management of gunpowder weapons and gunpowder. Those who suddenly became executives were not all that good. He was secretly ostracized among the soldiers below him and was constantly asked for bribes by his superiors.

On the outside, a large army armed with gunpowder weapons was being built, just like in Joseon, but inside, a bad smell was slowly beginning to emerge.

* * *

And in this situation, an appeal came to Emperor Seondeok.

“Let’s build a currency-issuing country in Nanjing? “Are you sane?”

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