Black Corporation: Joseon

Episode 422 Cargo Culture (5) King

Sejong and the local ministers all nodded at Lee Maeng-gyun’s words.

Starting from Hanseong, the iron horses installed and operated or prepared for operation in Pyongyang, Kaesong, Daegu, and Dongrae were worthy of Emperor Seondeok’s evaluation.

However, the iron horses moving along the coast of Joseon were desirable in terms of their speed and transportation capacity.

Therefore, it was certain that the Ming Dynasty would demand sufficient tribute.

Therefore, King Sejong and the ministers were confident that the Ming Dynasty would definitely demand an iron horse.

“The question is how many units will be requested…. As things stand now, I am worried about whether we will receive the quantity we need on time.”

Lee Maeng-gyun stepped forward to address the concerns of the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Development.

“If it is the Emperor’s will, the amount to offer as tribute will be small. “If it were the emperor’s nature, he would ask for something different.”

“What if it’s something else?”

This time, Hwang Hee came forward to answer the question from the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Development.

“blueprint.”

“ah!”

In response to Hwang Hee’s answer, the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Development let out an exclamation as if he had finally remembered something.

Seeing the reactions of the ministers, King Sejong opened his mouth.

“Considering the emperor’s temper we have experienced so far, that would be the most likely. “Because he has pride, pride, responsibility, and distrust all in equal measure.”

“I’ll buy it back.”

The ministers all nodded in response to King Sejong’s evaluation.

* * *

After Emperor Seondeok became emperor, Joseon meticulously analyzed his every move.

-He has strong pride. I hate saying sorry things to someone more than dying.

-He is full of pride that his empire is the best in the world.

-He is full of responsibility to make the empire stronger since he is the emperor.

-He distrusts everyone but himself. This has intensified through several purges and the recent major purge.

Because of this, he is in a situation where he trusts our country, Joseon, which openly deals with him.

Through this analysis, King Sejong and the ministers who understood Emperor Seondeok’s nature predicted that Emperor Seondeok would want a blueprint rather than a large quantity of actual objects.

* * *

“What does the Crown Prince think?”

Hyang answered King Sejong’s question right away without hesitation.

“Soja too, I think what Abamama said is right. An emperor like the one I saw in real life would want a blueprint rather than a minimum of the actual thing. If you receive a physical object as a tribute, even the repayment can put a hole in the title’s finances. But if it’s a blueprint, it’s not that bad.”

In response to Hyang’s response, Sejong glanced at Kim Jeom and nodded.

“I guess so.”

And Kim Jeom also nodded without realizing it.

* * *

Funnily enough, the notoriety of the Ministry of Finance and Economy officials, starting with Kim Jeom, was famous not only in Joseon but also in Ming.

“It was my time! “If I wanted to be called ‘a guy who does some work,’ I had to get paid at least four times as much!”

Whenever they calculated the size of the return gift that the envoys should receive, the officials of the Ministry of Finance and Economy had to listen to Kim Jeom’s words like the above.

And the Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials who went to Beijing as envoys had to engage in a bloody battle of wits with the Ming officials to achieve the results set by the Ministry of Finance and Economy.

Every time he came back with a result that was much lower than expected, Kim Jeom said something half-hearted to Lee Maeng-gyun.

“Why don’t we just send our kids away?”

And every time they heard such words, the officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had to cry out loud.

* * *

Hyang’s words continued.

“And because of the problems with the new iron horse itself, even if I wanted to, I couldn’t give it much.”

“Self-problem?”

“There is no ship in Joseon that can transport the new iron horse in its completed state.”

“Is a challenger level front too much?”

“We have to tear down all the bulkheads in the dock. Also, there is a problem of balance, so if it is transported by sea, it must be completely disassembled and transported as parts.”

“Very good.”

Sejong and Hyang smiled equally evilly. Seeing that sight, all the ministers shouted inwardly.

‘Such evil!’

While the smart but foul-tempered rich man was smiling evilly, Hwang Hee joined the conversation.

“Couldn’t we tell them to send it by land?”

Hyang briefly responded to Hwang Hee’s point.

“All you have to do is say that they will send it to you if the Ming government builds a railroad that passes through Liaodong and Liaoxi to Beijing. Why do we spend money to build a railroad because these people make a fuss when we go even a little bit west of the Yalu River? Even when we say in good faith that we will lay a railroad, they are foaming at the mouth and claiming that they have other intentions.”

“Of course.”

In response to Hyang’s response, Hwang Hee nodded without realizing it.

* * *

The Ming and Joseon Dynasties were engaged in a fierce competition, knowingly or unknowingly, for control of the Liaodong region, which was called Manchuria before the intervention of the Xiang Dynasty, as well as the Liaoxi region.

Of course, thanks to Hyang’s roasting and boiling of Seondeokje, he was able to easily take control of the area north of the Duman River and east of it, and through the rebellion between Lee Man-ju and Muntemu, he was also able to take control of Mt. Baekdu and the area north of the Yalu River to some extent. But that was it.

If Joseon extended its hand even a little to other regions, Ming immediately sent an envoy to argue with them.

“Why does Joseon covet Jim’s river area?”

Each time, King Sejong had to convince the envoy that he had absolutely no such intention and sent a long explanation to Emperor Seondeok.

In the end, Myung’s intention was simple.

-The east where Joseon is currently advancing is far away and there are many unexplored areas, so I will just look at it, but it is absolutely not possible to go to areas that have already been fully developed!

Ming had no intention of giving up the richest land in Liaodong and Liaoxi.

* * *

Hyang continued speaking.

“I think it is a good idea to offer two or three actual items as tribute and send blueprints for the rest as it is a courtesy to the merchant nation.”

At Hyang’s words, Kim Jeom spoke in a tone full of regret.

“Considering the cost and time and effort we have spent so far, it is truly regrettable that we are handing over the blueprints.”

Hyang responded to Kim Jeom’s words with an evil smile once again.

“That’s why we’re only handing over the blueprints. “Just the blueprints.”

“huh?”

“uh?”

At that moment, King Sejong and the ministers all looked like they couldn’t understand.

No matter how many times he thought about it, King Sejong could not understand the meaning of what Hyang had said, and in the end he had no choice but to ask Hyang.

“Seja. “Why is it a brilliant idea to just give a blueprint?”

“yes? “That’s it…”

Hyang, who was about to say something as if King Sejong’s reaction was strange, looked at the ministers and kept her mouth shut.

‘oh my! ‘There is no science graduate here!’

Hyang realized once again what the majors of the people filling Geunjeongjeon were and sighed briefly without even realizing it.

“Haa~.”

‘what? ‘I feel dirty somehow?’

‘This is for my father…’

Hyang began to explain, looking at King Sejong and the ministers who were somewhat in tears.

-The research lab and Area 51 created together with Gyeongjang did not just create amazing objects.

-What the research center and Area 51 focused on was developing the technology to make such objects and the technology to make the materials used in such objects.

-The knowledge accumulated during the process was documented as much as possible. He then used these documents as teaching materials to educate young craftsmen.

-At the same time, not only did they produce such objects, but they also standardized and standardized the parts used in all kinds of areas, including architecture and civil engineering. This is the greatest achievement of the laboratory and Area 51.

“…To give a simple example, skilled Joseon craftsmen today can roughly guess what purpose it is used for and what properties it has just by hearing the words ‘how many times a screw’ or ‘how many times a rivet is a rivet.’ That’s why this is the greatest achievement.”

Sejong asked with an expression as if he knew or did not know the explanation of the scent.

“I understand that you and those working under you are putting in a lot of effort. But I don’t understand why it’s necessary to just hand over the blueprints?”

In response to Sejong’s question, Hyang explained again.

“Because it’s really just going to be a blueprint. We can know things such as the thickness and length of the iron plates that make up the water tank and heating furnace, but we will not go beyond what the quality of the iron should be. Likewise, the number and location of the two wells that join the steel plates may be in the blueprint, but we will not go over what standards the two wells follow.”

“Ah…”

“Huh…”

Only then did King Sejong and the ministers understand what the fragrance meant.

Hyang continued to explain with an evil smile still on his face.

“The iron currently used in this land of Joseon, from the hoe held in the farmer’s hand to the iron plates that make up the body of the iron horse, is of a quality that other countries cannot match. “If we don’t know this and simply use low-quality cast iron or steel and make it according to the blueprint, will it perform as well as it should?”

Sejong answered Hyang’s question right away.

“Of course it won’t come out.”

“That’s right.”

Hyang nodded at Sejong’s words, cleared his throat for a moment, and continued his explanation.

“If the Emperor’s temperament is right now, he will have to suffer for at least a few years until he asks for our technology.”

Hwang Hee nodded and accepted what Hyang said.

“I guess so. If you think about that pride and self-esteem…. the craftsmen will have to suffer for at least five years.”

“I’m expecting about 10 years. And by that time, our shipbuilding technology will have developed further and we will be able to make all kinds of excuses with technology that is one step behind us. Continuing to move ahead is fundamental. That’s why I’m saying I’ll just hand over the blueprint. Of course, we have to add a little spice to it so that they don’t know our sincerity.”

“Huh~”

Sejong exhaled without realizing it at Hyang’s words and sincerely asked Hyang.

“Seja, how many moves ahead did you foresee?”

“This is what we learned from history.”

After giving a simple answer, Hyang continued speaking to himself.

‘In the history of the 20th century.’

What was not mentioned was that this was the method developed countries such as the United States and Japan had used in Korea.

* * *

‘I just hand over the blueprint.’

King Sejong and the ministers wondered what Hyang’s words meant at first, but when Hyang finished his explanation, they all nodded.

“I think the crown prince’s plan is the best.”

“That’s right.”

“This is truly a cunning and deadly move.”

When the ministers all showed their approval, King Sejong looked at Lee Maeng-gyun.

“Minister of Foreign Affairs.”

“Yes, Your Highness. “God himself will go to Beijing and take care of it.”

“Please. “The minister is the best person to adapt on the fly depending on the merits and seriousness of the matter.”

“I will do my best. At least God won’t be the first to mention it.”

King Sejong smiled warmly as if he was satisfied with Lee Maeng-gyun’s answer.

“I will only trust the minister. “Then let’s discuss the next agenda.”

* * *

After the meeting that day, the ministers gathered once again in the Prime Minister’s conference room.

In the process of recalling the events of that day, the most talked about topic was by far the solution to the scent.

“You are truly a great person.”

“That’s right. “Is this the person who will succeed His Majesty the Lord?”

Jo Mal-saeng grumbled while the ministers who admired the incense’s talent continued to praise him.

“I have to tell my children and grandchildren not to go to work. “If a crown prince like that ascends to the throne, it’s obvious what will happen to his subjects.”

The ministers nodded silently as if they greatly sympathized with Jo Mal-saeng’s words, but they were saying something else in their hearts.

‘Wow!’

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