Black Corporation: Joseon

The changes in Joseon through the reforms were not just changes for Joseon alone.

Ming and Japan also began to move in quite different directions compared to the history before Hyang’s intervention.

First, looking at the case of Ming, compared to the history before Hyang’s intervention, the development of commerce was more prosperous.

The one at the forefront of this development was the Xuande Emperor.

Unlike the history before the intervention, the Xuande Emperor responded not by strengthening the maritime ban, but by making it a bit more flexible.

First, he expanded the scale of tally trade with Japan slightly. As a result, the volume of trade between Japan’s Muromachi shogunate and Ming increased.

In addition, he opened several trading posts in coastal areas of Ming such as Fujian^[1], Jiangsu^[2], and Guangdong^[3], allowing merchants who received permission from the Ming court to trade with neighboring countries.

Of course, this permission could only be obtained by paying a substantial amount.

Merchant groups that paid money to the Ming court and received permission could open shops in the trading posts established by Ming and sail ships for trade for three years.

Therefore, not only medium and large merchant groups in the relevant regions but also inland merchant groups rushed to pay money and purchase trading permits to sail ships.

There was another hidden move by the Xuande Emperor and the Ming court here.

Even in the early stages of implementation, it was just at the point when the Joseon navy’s control of the sea was beginning to grow.

Therefore, pirates and Japanese pirates were swarming in the seas between Ming, Joseon, and Japan.

To this, the Xuande Emperor built a naval fleet and assigned them to escort merchant fleets. In addition, he allowed the merchant ships themselves to be armed. However, the ships that could be armed were limited to those that had purchased trading rights by paying money to the Ming court.

And to manage this, before departure, Ming officials and soldiers searched the ships thoroughly like catching mice.

Because of these carrots and sticks, merchant groups paid money to purchase trading rights, which was no small help to Ming’s finances.

Of course, this policy was borrowed from the policy that the Joseon court applied to Joseon’s merchant groups and the merchant groups of Ming and Mansur.

And as time passed and Joseon secured control of the West Sea and South Sea, the activities of pirates and Japanese pirates decreased.

Upon receiving reports, the Xuande Emperor moved a considerable number of naval forces to the southwest and began to pressure the pirates.

“It seems dangerous to empty the East Sea (Joseon’s West Sea). What if Joseon harbors different intentions?”

When the ministers voiced opposition to the relocation of naval forces, the Xuande Emperor scoffed.

“Hah! Is our Ming connected to Joseon only by sea? And aren’t we leaving an appropriate scale of naval forces?”

“But…”

“What you’re doing now is precisely what’s called needless worry. Close your mouths!”

At the Xuande Emperor’s rebuke, the ministers and eunuchs all closed their mouths like clams.

***

To grow Ming’s commercial sector while simultaneously making finances sound, the Xuande Emperor implemented many policies.

One of these was strengthening the protection of intellectual property rights, just like Joseon.

Even during this period, the imitation and counterfeiting by Chinese people were quite notorious. Most of the items said to have come from ancient tombs of the Qin, Han, or Three Kingdoms periods were fake, and counterfeit products were circulating even among medicines on which people’s lives depended.

It wasn’t just imitations and counterfeits that were problematic. When rumors spread that an item made by a certain merchant group or craftsman was popular, products that exactly copied it were soon released by other merchant groups.

It was a culture of disregarding intellectual property rights that future historians would call ‘Shanzhai^[4] culture’.

Naturally, the Xuande Emperor and the ministers were well aware that this culture hindered the nurturing of healthy commerce. Therefore, they made many efforts to eliminate this culture, but it did not easily disappear.

However, this culture began to disappear when Hyang directly negotiated with the Xuande Emperor and launched a joint venture merchant group.

The products distributed by the merchant group jointly invested in by the Ming Emperor and imperial family, and the Joseon King and royal family, were incredibly popular items.

Naturally, it was a natural progression for unauthorized copies of these products to circulate.

And when he received reports related to this, the Xuande Emperor became furiously angry.

“This is making light of the promise I made. Making light of my promise means making light of me, so this is truly a crime of high treason!”

***

The enraged Xuande Emperor immediately began a crackdown. And it wasn’t just a simple crackdown, but a large-scale forceful suppression mobilizing the military.

This crackdown brought about a tremendous bloodbath. The disappearance of just one family or one merchant group was considered minor. It even led to the disappearance of an entire village. This was because it was not applied as a simple crime, but as high treason.

Merchant groups caught unauthorized copying were immediately reduced to ruins by the military. Places where the signs of these merchant groups were hung were destroyed without leaving even a single foundation stone, and hidden treasures were dug up even from underground. And in the holes thus created, the bodies of the dead were buried.

And based on the ledgers obtained from such merchant groups and the interrogation of related persons, those who received bribes were also tied up like dried pollack and purged.

In this process, the Xuande Emperor did not forget to create competition between the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

“I will give 30% of the confiscated wealth as a reward! This is a reward given out of gratitude for your loyalty to me!”

At the Xuande Emperor’s declaration, the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard shouted cheers loudly.

“Long live the Emperor! Long live! Ten thousand years!”

Thus, as the Central Plains were dyed red with blood once, the indiscriminate unauthorized copying that had been rampant gradually disappeared. Of course, unauthorized copying still occurred in deep places, but the open, blatant unauthorized copying that had been going on before disappeared.

And the ‘Imperial Intellectual Property Registration Office’, modeled after Joseon’s example, emerged.

***

While the Central Plains suffered as such a bloody wind swept through, there was also a counterbalance.

That counterbalance was the further enhancement of the emperor’s power, symbolized by the Xuande Emperor. Of course, even before that, the emperor was called the ‘Son of Heaven (天子)’ and was a symbol of power.

However, the emperor did not hold all the power. The ‘Prince of the Blood (親王)’ who had settled in various parts of the continent shared a considerable portion of the emperor’s power.

And a considerable portion of the power that these Princes of the Blood had taken was returned to the Xuande Emperor by the bloody wind caused by him.

After such a bloody wind had swept through, the powerful and the wealthy prayed earnestly.

“May this bloody wind end with just this once…”

However, the bloody wind they so desperately wanted to avoid blew once again.

The name of this blood wind that blew this time was ‘currency’.

***

As everyone knows, seeing that Joseon used currency efficiently and especially that Joseon’s silver banknotes exerted influence as far as Malacca, the Ming court also decided to create and circulate currency – more precisely, not physical currency but banknotes.

And as the circulation of currency began, two problems that arose grabbed the ankles of the Xuande Emperor.

The two problems that grabbed the ankles of the Xuande Emperor were counterfeit currency^[5] and private currency^[6].

The problem of counterfeit currency was an issue from the time of preparation for issuance. To prevent this counterfeit currency problem, a precise currency plate that was impossible to counterfeit was needed. However, it was impossible to develop this with Ming’s technology, so in the end, Joseon had to make and present the currency plate and printing machine.

On the day when the currency plate and printing machine made in Joseon arrived, the Xuande Emperor praised the Joseon envoy and vented his anger at his own subjects.

“Why can’t we make what even Joseon can make!”

Thus, before the currency printed with this was circulated, the Ming court sent samples to government offices throughout the Central Plains for display. This was to prevent the mistaken use of counterfeit currency.

However, less than half a year after the circulation of the currency began, a petition came up saying that counterfeit currency had been discovered.

Looking at the counterfeit currency that came up with the petition, the Xuande Emperor looked at the ministers with an expression of disbelief.

“They confused this with real currency? Are all the empire’s people blind?”

The counterfeit currency in the Xuande Emperor’s hand was so crude that anyone could tell it was fake.

While the Xuande Emperor was pondering about the quality of the people he ruled, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet stepped forward and answered.

“The area where the petition came from is a remote area of natural barriers. It is a place where there are people who don’t properly know the ways of the world, so I believe that’s why.”

“Huh…”

The Xuande Emperor, who sighed and shook his head, gave an order.

“Make samples again and send them without fail even to the most remote areas.”

“We humbly accept your command!”

However, less than three months after that, another petition came up saying that other counterfeit currencies had been discovered. This time the problem was more serious, as it was discovered in Sichuan, which, although far from Beijing, has a large population. And although it was still said to be crude, it showed more advanced skill than the last time.

The Xuande Emperor, who received the counterfeit currency along with the petition, glared at the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet.

“Do you have nothing to say to me?”

“Please forgive my crime! Please spare my life!”

“Drag this person out!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

At the Xuande Emperor’s order, soldiers of the Embroidered Uniform Guard came in and dragged out the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet. To the Grand Secretary’s cries for mercy, the Xuande Emperor coldly responded.

“Is there a need for me to show mercy twice?”

Glaring at the ministers and eunuchs who were literally frozen, the Xuande Emperor immediately gave an order.

“Mobilize all available personnel of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot right now to root out the counterfeiters! These are traitors harming the empire, so absolutely no mercy should be shown! Anyone showing even a slightly lax attitude will be charged with the same crime of high treason!”

At the Xuande Emperor’s order, the executives of the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard answered at the top of their voices while sweating cold sweat.

“We humbly accept the imperial order!”

Following the Xuande Emperor’s order, a bloody wind blew in Sichuan province. As it was a matter of their own necks, the personnel of the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Eastern Depot persistently tracked down the counterfeiting organizations. In the process of this tracking, not only real members of the organization but also quite a few who were caught up in false accusations were caught. However, the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard did not distinguish between these people, but first arrested them and then proceeded with torture.

In this way, about 20,000 people in Sichuan province alone disappeared as dew on the execution ground, and counterfeit currency disappeared.

***

Having solved the problem of counterfeit currency, the Xuande Emperor carefully examined the problems related to currency and revised and supplemented the deficiencies.

“Although the use of currency has increased, the speed of increase is not fast compared to the size of our empire. What is the reason?”

To the Xuande Emperor’s question, the new Grand Secretary of the Cabinet stepped forward and answered.

“There are still quite a few merchant groups using their own private currency, that is, promissory notes.”

“Why?”

To the Xuande Emperor’s question, the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet explained the reasons why they use their own promissory notes.

-First and foremost, merchant groups lack faith in the currency issued by the country. The reason is that they remember the failure of the Jiaochao^[7] issued by the Yuan Dynasty and the Da Ming Baochao^[8] issued in the early days of the empire.

-Next, it’s to hide their wealth. To use currency, they have to bring physical gold and silver for exchange, but they don’t want their wealth to be revealed in the process.

“Why do they want to hide their wealth?”

“It’s because of taxes, Your Majesty.”

At the new Grand Secretary of the Cabinet’s answer, the Xuande Emperor gritted his teeth and struck the armrest with his fist.

“These damned bastards!”

At the Xuande Emperor’s shout, everyone, including the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, prostrated themselves flat on the ground.

“If they are subjects of the empire, it’s only natural that they should pay the set taxes! They’re using private currency to avoid paying those taxes? I will issue an imperial edict right now!”

It was a cry that would bring another bloody wind.