Black Corporation: Joseon

As other ministers seemed to understand following Hwang Hui, Hyang added:

“Of course, it’s possible that ‘one land, many countries’ might not be properly established and it could become ‘one land, one country’. However, consider this. Whether in humans or animals, the body is much larger than the head, but the body cannot replace the head. I think the same applies to the federal system I’ve envisioned.”

“No matter how big the body grows, it can’t replace the head… That’s a good way to put it.”

“Indeed, it is.”

Sejong and the ministers nodded and expressed admiration at Hyang’s words.

Watching their reactions, Hyang inwardly muttered:

‘Although it has a bad reputation in Africa, Asia, and Ireland, the British Commonwealth is still the most useful model. Of course, that damn notorious reputation is a problem…’

The relationship Hyang had in mind was that between Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. These countries maintained a seemingly loose but consistently strong connection.

‘Of course, this relationship might exist because the majority in all these countries are white people with roots in England, but if we consider that, weren’t the Native Americans also said to have originated from Asia?’

“Yes? Yes!”

Lost in his imagination, Hyang quickly returned to reality at the sound of Sejong calling him.

“I apologize. I was momentarily lost in thought…”

“What were you thinking about so intently?”

“I apologize.”

Seeing Hyang properly regain his focus, Sejong soon posed a question.

“As you said earlier, it indeed seems beautiful for our Joseon to play the role of the head. Then, what do you think we must protect and what must we share for Joseon to continue playing the role of the head?”

“There are three things we must absolutely protect.”

“Three things? Isn’t that too few?”

“Absolutely not.”

At Hyang’s resolute answer, Sejong’s eyes rather lit up.

“Is that so? Well, let’s hear it. What are these three things?”

“Knowledge, capital, and food self-sufficiency. The reasons are…”

Hyang explained why these three things must be protected:

-Joseon must secure the most pioneering knowledge in physics and technology for creating objects. This goes without saying.

Sejong and the ministers nodded at the first reason.

Sejong went a step further.

“Then I can understand why capital must be protected as well.”

At Sejong’s words, Hyang nodded strongly.

“That’s right. Of course, the newly acquired unclaimed land will grow larger than the mainland in terms of economy. However, if the Joseon mainland takes the lead in securing and managing the most important capital, that is, seed money, we can sufficiently maintain our leadership.”

“Indeed, indeed! That is absolutely correct!”

Kim Jeom nodded so vigorously at Hyang’s words that his neck seemed about to break, expressing his agreement.

Smiling and giving a small bow to Kim Jeom, Hyang continued:

“For the first point about knowledge, I only mentioned physics and technology to make it easy to understand, but we must also maintain a pioneering position in ideology.”

“Ideology?”

“Isn’t our subservience to Ming not just because of their size?”

With that short question, Hyang closed his mouth.

But there was no one who didn’t understand what Hyang was trying to say. As a result, the atmosphere in the main hall instantly became heavy.

In an atmosphere where even a feather felt as heavy as a rock, Sejong was the first to speak.

“Yes. I fully understand the necessity of that aspect, and it’s something we must achieve. It’s fortunate that we have the most suitable people to entrust with this.”

At Sejong’s words, Hyang and the ministers all nodded.

***

‘The people, high and low, chase only after wealth and physics, so morality has been buried in the ground!’

‘While it’s important to seek convenience by finding the truth hidden in physics, it’s equally important to enlighten and teach morality!’

As petitions with such content were submitted, Sejong established a research institution to study Confucianism. However, since Sejong, Hyang, and the ministers had all deviated significantly from orthodox Confucianism, they were not pleased with the growing voices of idealists. Therefore, this newly created research institution was filled with as many former officials who had gone through administrative practice as Confucian scholars, and heated debates between them were constant.

And Sejong and Hyang eagerly fanned the flames and watched from the sidelines.

“Popcorn! We need popcorn!”

This was the line Hyang shouted every time he heard their debates.

***

“Alright, I understand the first and second reasons well. Then why is food self-sufficiency important? In the case of the unclaimed land we’ve just discovered, they said that just a little inland from the coast, there are densely forested plains. Wouldn’t that solve the problem of farmland?”

At Sejong’s question, Hyang nodded.

“That’s right. It will probably be so. If that happens, our Joseon will definitely be able to escape from food shortage.”

“Then isn’t the problem of food self-sufficiency solved? Even if there’s a problem with the food situation in the mainland, we can solve it by bringing in food from the distant lands…”

Sejong suddenly stopped speaking. Mulling over what he had just said, Sejong shook his head.

“I see. That would be the problem…”

“That’s right. That’s why we must absolutely maintain food self-sufficiency.”

Meanwhile, the ministers began to grumble internally at the conversation between Sejong and Hyang.

‘Here they go again! A riddle only the smart ones understand!’

‘Ugh! Are they just showing off how clever they are?’

As if knowing the ministers’ thoughts, Hwang Hui stepped forward and asked:

“As Your Majesty said, even if it’s a distant land, it’s still Joseon territory in the end. Just as it’s natural to send grain from Gyeongsang or Jeolla when Gangwon-do has a bad harvest, isn’t it natural for the distant lands to help when there’s a problem in the mainland?”

Hyang stepped forward to answer Hwang Hui’s question.

“The problem is that even a small mistake could lead to the extinction of independent farmers in the mainland. Among the Western countries, there was a country called Rome…”

‘Wasn’t it after Rome swallowed up Egypt that it began to falter, knowingly or unknowingly?’

Hyang explained the reason using the example of Rome.

“…Therefore, even for the social stability of the mainland, we must maintain an appropriate level of food self-sufficiency.”

“Ah…”

At Hyang’s explanation, Hwang Hui and the other ministers all nodded.

Seeing the ministers’ reactions, Hyang moved to cement his point.

“You must never forget what efforts Abamanim has made to nurture independent farmers in Joseon since the beginning of the reforms.”

The first thing done when starting the reforms was to crush the landowners.

Of course, the main purpose at that time was to take away the control of rural areas from the landowners, but it was also a reality that the independent farmers nurtured through this process had become a major source of income for Joseon’s finances.

“Hmm… Then, should we avoid greatly promoting agriculture in the distant lands? Of course, I understand the need for self-sufficiency for the stability of the mainland, but…”

In response to Kim Jeom’s statement, which couldn’t hide his regret, Hyang immediately answered.

“No, we should promote it. We should promote it on a large scale. We need to prepare for cases where self-sufficiency becomes difficult due to bad harvests in the mainland and…”

Pausing briefly, Hyang glanced at the court historians and scribes and lowered his voice.

“There’s a saying, isn’t there? ‘If a fire breaks out in our house, it’s a disaster, but if a fire breaks out in someone else’s house, it’s the best spectacle.'”

At Hyang’s words, not only Kim Jeom but also Sejong and the ministers all made startled expressions.

“Surely not…”

As Kim Jeom made a disbelieving expression, Hyang smiled slyly.

“We have dangerous neighbors around us. It might not sound good, but if necessary, shouldn’t we throw in a spark?”

At that moment, all the ministers had the same thought.

‘How wicked!’

“Court historians and scribes, organize this as you see fit. Because in protecting the country, sometimes we must be prepared for unjust actions.”

“We receive your command.”

The court historians and scribes bowed their heads and answered to Sejong’s order, but the content of the historical records was slightly different.

-The historian says: While being prepared for unjust actions in protecting the country might be the fate of a ruler, I think it’s not good to speak of injustice before even starting. However, there are sometimes countries that make us want to not just throw sparks but set fires openly.

***

By now, Hyang’s presentation was nearing its end.

“Does the Crown Prince have anything else to add?”

“Yes.”

At Sejong’s question, Hyang organized his thoughts for a moment and then spoke.

“I understand well what the ministers are worried about. The newly discovered unclaimed land. The unclaimed land whose size we haven’t even confirmed. Of course, there will be natives there, and even if we pacify them to become Joseon subjects, there’s certainly a possibility that the balance of power could be reversed.”

The ministers nodded at Hyang’s words.

“However, think again about our current Joseon territory. How much has it expanded since we started the reforms? Even excluding the Daeseoldo and Jongjangdo regions, it has expanded to almost twice its previous size. Nevertheless, there are still endless unexplored areas in the northeastern forest regions, and although it would require an adventurous attempt, we still have the old Goguryeo land of Liaodong. If we properly digest this region, I’m confident that our Joseon mainland will be no less significant.”

“Wait a moment?”

“Oh?”

At Hyang’s words, the ministers who were examining the map nodded with shining eyes.

***

Although the climate was harsh, the unexplored forest areas in the northeast – known as East Siberia in the history before Hyang’s intervention – were continuously revealing not only timber but also various precious resources.

Not just forests and resources, but the natives who had settled in the forest areas were also gradually becoming Joseon subjects as they submitted to Joseon one by one.

As a result, the Ministry of National Defense had to update the map every month. This was because they had to input information about newly discovered areas through the tribes that had submitted.

While securing the northeastern forest areas in this way, Joseon was quietly approaching the eastern border region of the Liaodong area controlled by Ming.

And every time Sejong and the military commanders looked at the map, they muttered similar words.

“Someday…”

***

As Hyang’s speech ended, Sejong concluded:

“I think the Crown Prince’s considerations are quite good.”

“Indeed, that is so.”

“It is so, Your Majesty.”

Hwang Hui and the ministers responded to Sejong’s words.

Seeing the ministers’ positive reactions, Sejong added:

“However, this is just one person’s consideration, so there may be lacking parts. Therefore, you should refine and report based on the Crown Prince’s considerations.”

“We receive your command.”

“And Deputy Prime Minister.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

As Sejong specifically addressed him, Kim Jeom bowed his head with a tense expression.

“It seems we’ll need to increase the budget after all. However, since we can’t carelessly increase tax revenue, it seems we’ll have to release the funds we’ve accumulated so far.”

At Sejong’s words, Kim Jeom answered with his eyes tightly shut.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

As if knowing Kim Jeom’s feelings, Sejong added:

“However, releasing funds unconditionally is not helpful for the country, so examine the expenditure items for this year and next year, and reduce what can be reduced.”

Kim Jeom responded to Sejong’s order in a loud voice.

“I receive your command!”

***

Not long after the meeting ended, Kim Jeom barged into the office of the Minister of National Defense.

“Choose!”

“Choose what?”

“The Eul-type long rifle and the Eul-type fire cart! Choose one of the two! We can’t mass-produce both simultaneously!”

“But…”

“Even the Gab-type rifle has no match now! So choose! Didn’t His Majesty also say to reduce what can be reduced?”

Under Kim Jeom’s pressure, Jo Mal-saeng had to make a choice with tears in his eyes.

“I’ll choose the Eul-type fire cart.”

It was indeed a choice befitting Joseon people obsessed with firepower.