Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 144

Janggeura

Hello, Bomb

144. The Scramble for Supremacy (3)

‘Entrust the establishment of a weaving factory using automatic looms to the merchant guild.’

The basic argument of the opposition during the three-day debate leading up to this decision was simple from the start.

-Automatic looms aren’t free. If the price of the looms is higher than expected, will there be merchants willing to step forward?

Believing the point was valid, Sejong asked Hyang.

“How much does it cost to make one loom?”

“Thirty silver *nyang* [Joseon dynasty currency].”

Sejong couldn’t hide his disappointment at Hyang’s answer.

“Thirty silver *nyang* is equivalent to ten bags of white rice, so it’s expensive. I suppose the country should take the lead….”

As Sejong tried to proceed with nationalization due to the cost, Hyang stepped forward.

“Yes, it is indeed expensive. Moreover, to make a commercial profit using automatic looms, I believe at least ten units should be installed at once. However, if we bring them in bulk like this, the production cost per unit will decrease.”

At Hyang’s words that costs could be reduced, Sejong pointed out the problem.

“No matter how much it decreases, it won’t go down to less than half, will it? On top of that, we have to build a building to house the looms, hire people, and acquire livestock or waterwheels to provide power, so wouldn’t the costs be too high? Would there really be anyone willing to take on that level of expense? Especially with no track record.”

To Sejong’s question, Hyang answered in a firm voice.

“There is!”

“There is?”

“Yes, Father. There are still quite a few merchant guilds that survived from the Jeonjo era [the period before the Joseon dynasty]! They are capable enough!”

At Hyang’s words, Sejong turned to Minister of Taxation, Kim Jeom. At Sejong’s unspoken question, Kim Jeom immediately bowed his head.

“What the Crown Prince says is correct.”

“Do you have proof?”

Kim Jeom answered immediately to Sejong’s question.

“One-third of the goods entering Ming [the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644] through Shandong [a coastal province in China] are glass products and ceramics made through the royal workshops. The remaining two-thirds are products from private merchant guilds. Although the volume of trade in Shandong is increasing every year, this ratio has been maintained since the release of glass products.”

“The ratio is being maintained? So, the sales of private merchant guilds are also continuously increasing?”

“That is correct. Furthermore, the amount of trade with Japan through the *Waegwan* [a Japanese trading post in Joseon] is also increasing explosively.”

“I am well aware of that. That’s why I remember reporting that we should create a trading post in the territory of the Ōuchi clan [a powerful Japanese clan].”

“That is correct.”

Sejong, who was reminiscing for a moment at Kim Jeom’s answer, asked Kim Jeom.

“As far as I know, the Japanese are said to offer silver as payment for transactions. If so, the amount of silver held by the merchant guilds trading with Japan must be enormous?”

“That is correct. Not only the merchant guilds trading with Japan, but also the merchant guilds trading with Ming have considerable amounts of silver. Therefore, I fully support the plan put forward by the Crown Prince. We must absorb as much silver as possible held by the merchant guilds.”

Sejong expressed doubt at Kim Jeom’s words.

“Why?”

“Our Joseon, as well as Ming and Japan, all use silver as a means of transaction. Therefore, we must maintain the value of silver at an appropriate level.”

“Is that so?”

Kim Jeom answered firmly to Sejong’s doubtful question.

“That is correct!”

Hyang, who was listening to Sejong and Kim Jeom’s conversation from the side, shouted inwardly.

‘Yes! Minister of Taxation, nice! It was worth talking about prices all this time!’

* * *

It wasn’t just that Hyang had consistently educated them about prices, but Kim Jeom and the officials of the Ministry of Taxation were feeling a creeping sense of unease.

What made them feel uneasy was the trend of market prices coming in through the monopoly offices, the tariffs coming in through customs, and the scale of taxes collected annually.

The officials of the Ministry of Taxation, who had received intensive training from Hyang, thoroughly searched for tax evasion by the merchant guilds. Thanks to this, the Ministry of Taxation was confirming the transaction scale of the merchant guilds as close to the truth as possible through the incoming taxes.

“The transaction scale of the merchant guilds is gradually increasing.”

“Not only the transaction scale but also the profits are gradually increasing.”

The officials reporting on the merchant guilds reported one peculiar fact.

“It seems that the amount of silver held by the merchant guilds is considerable. In the past, they would have paid in kind, such as copper or sulfur, but now they are mostly paying in silver.”

“Paying in silver?”

When Kim Jeom showed interest, the officials immediately brought the books.

“These are the lists of tariffs and taxes paid by the merchant guilds. As you can see, when the trading post in Shandong was first created, many people paid in kind, but now almost all are paying in silver.”

“Hmm….”

Kim Jeom made a humming sound and examined the records.

Most of the products from Ming brought in through the Shandong trading post were luxury goods—silk, inkstones, musk, etc. In the early days, Joseon’s merchant guilds paid a significant portion of these goods in kind to pay tariffs. However, now most of the merchant guilds were paying in silver.

“Hmm….”

While Kim Jeom was examining the reports with a serious face, other officials brought reports.

“What is that again?”

“It’s the settlement report coming up from the monopoly office.”

“So?”

“Looking at the settlements from the monopoly offices in the cities and nearby areas where the merchant guilds are located, the amount of silver received as payment is gradually increasing.”

“The amount of silver is increasing, which means….”

Kim Jeom paused for a moment and ordered another official.

“Go and bring the record of the amount of silver paid by the court.”

“Yes, sir.”

After a while, Kim Jeom spread out the reports brought by the officials and began to compare them.

“It’s definitely more than what went out from the court.”

With the start of the economic reform, the court and the royal family abolished tributes altogether. This was because the harm was too great. The royal family and the court, which had abolished tributes, changed their method to purchasing necessary goods, and used grain or silver as payment.

In addition to the cost of tributes, they also paid wages in silver to those working in the royal workshops.

However, according to the records of the Ministry of Taxation, the amount of silver circulating in the market was definitely several times that amount.

After confirming through cross-checking that the amount of silver *ryutong* [circulation] was increasing, Kim Jeom issued another order.

“Bring me the investigation of how much it costs to buy one bag of white rice!”

“Yes!”

Kim Jeom’s face became even more serious as he examined the report recording the price trends of rice, the staple food of the Joseon people.

“Indeed….”

When the economic reform first started, 1 bag of rice was traded for 1 silver *nyang* or less. Of course, it was more expensive during the spring poverty season, but it maintained a price of less than 1 silver *nyang* during the harvest season.

However, since last year, the price of rice had been rising little by little. It wasn’t rising noticeably, but when comparing the monthly records, it was discovered that it was rising little by little.

“This is unsettling….”

Feeling a crisis, Kim Jeom immediately sought out Im Sun-wook.

“Certainly, the asking prices of goods have been rising little by little recently.”

Im Sun-wook, who had rushed over from coordinating the newly created administrative department, nodded and replied.

“Don’t you think this could be a problem?”

“It will be a problem. If things go wrong, those with goods in kind, such as grain or land, could make a fortune.”

“What do you think is the solution?”

“Please give me some time for a few days.”

Im Sun-wook, who had asked for time at Kim Jeom’s words, visited Kim Jeom again three days later.

“No matter how much I thought about it, the answer was almost the same. The court must step in to absorb as much silver as possible circulating in the market and issue currency. In addition, the planned new marketplace should not only provide loans but also be able to accumulate wealth.”

Kim Jeom listened to Im Sun-wook’s answer and quietly pondered without opening his mouth.

After contemplating for a long time, Kim Jeom made a decision.

“I must write a memorial to the King.”

Because it was necessary to accurately write not just a simple memorial but also the causal relationship, Kim Jeom struggled for several days to draft the memorial.

Finally, at the moment when he completed the draft of the memorial after several reviews, Hyang announced the completion of the automatic loom.

The moment Hyang argued at the demonstration of the automatic loom that the establishment of the weaving factory should be entrusted to private merchant guilds, Kim Jeom felt a thrilling emotion.

‘This is it! We can absorb the silver circulating in the private sector, and I can reduce my work! Hooray!’

* * *

Sejong, after listening to Kim Jeom’s explanation, asked again with a serious face.

“Is it that serious?”

“It has not yet been revealed, but soon everyone will know. And when that time comes, we will have to put in several times the effort.”

“Heo~.”

Sejong sighed deeply at Kim Jeom’s answer.

“In the meantime, I was happy because I heard that many riches had come into this Joseon and the people liked it. But was that a mistake?”

Kim Jeom told Sejong that it was not at Sejong’s self-reproach.

“That is not the case. Certainly, the lives of the people have become more comfortable.”

“Listen, Minister of Taxation. I don’t understand, but isn’t it good as more riches come in?”

Before Kim Jeom could say anything to the question thrown by Jo Mal-saeng, who was listening to the story from the side, Hyang opened his mouth.

“Sir. It is true that it is good to have a lot of riches come in. However, it is also true that it can become poison if handled incorrectly.”

Jo Mal-saeng, who still didn’t understand, threw another question at Hyang’s words.

“I don’t understand what you mean by poison. There are still many places to use it now, but isn’t it a disaster that there is not enough coming in?”

Hyang explained by giving a simple example to Jo Mal-saeng’s words.

“Looking at the current Joseon, it is in a state of insufficient physical strength to digest the riches that have rushed in. To put it simply, it is like letting a child who eats well eat the amount that two or three adults would eat, or like a feast being spread out in front of a person who is about to starve to death.”

“Ah….”

Jo Mal-saeng nodded at Hyang’s explanation. Sejong, who was listening to Hyang’s explanation from the side, sighed again.

“Haaa~. Really…. It was growing a little faster than I thought, but to think this would happen.”

Hyang replied in a calm voice to Sejong’s lament.

“It is something that will happen anyway.”

“It was something that would happen anyway?”

“Yes. From the end of the Jeonjo era, not only agriculture but also commerce and industry were devastated. Our Joseon has worked hard to shake off this devastation since its founding, but commerce and industry have been despised, claiming that virtue is the root and wealth is trivial. The problem is….”

As Hyang’s explanation lengthened, Sejong cut him off.

“The problem is that those who shouted for virtue held onto wealth and were less generous in sharing it.”

Hyang quietly bowed his head and replied to the conclusion Sejong had reached.

“That is correct.”

“Hmm…. Let’s think about it.”

Sejong became a stone statue in that spot and fell into thought.

After worrying for a long time, Sejong finally came to a conclusion.

“Good! I will accept the plans of the Crown Prince and the Minister of Taxation. Summon the merchant guilds and put it up for bidding! This is what I do with my authority, and I will take all responsibility!”

The officials all bent their waists at Sejong’s words that he would not accept any objections.

“We obey the order.”

The historian who recorded all of this added the following words.

‘All things are done by my authority, and I will take responsibility.’

As the King made this decision, all the officials, high and low, bowed and dared not refuse.

The historian discusses.

Just a few years ago, I was worried because the country had no money, but now we are in an era where we are worried about the abundance of wealth in the market.

However, the historian never even saw that wealth.

As soon as Sejong made a decision, the officials immediately began preparations.

* * *

Hyang, having confirmed Sejong’s decision and returned to his room in the East Palace, muttered while looking at the reports piled up on his desk.

“I’m glad it’s still now that there’s still some leeway.”

From the Three Kingdoms period, the merchants of the Korean Peninsula were actively engaged in commercial activities. The merchants of the Korean Peninsula traveled to and from China for commercial activities to the extent that the term ‘Silla Bang’ [Silla villages or settlements in foreign lands] was coined.

And this activity continued actively during the Goryeo Dynasty.

However, the power of the merchants on the Korean Peninsula gradually weakened due to the invasion of the Yuan Empire, economic chaos due to the rise of the powerful families, and economic deterioration due to the invasion of the *Wokou* pirates [Japanese pirates].

What Hyang thought was fortunate was that it was the early Joseon period.

Not only a few specific merchant guilds but also large and small merchant guilds remained.

Hyang sighed as he organized the situation.

“Hoo~. I don’t even want to think about it if it was the mid-Joseon period. Would it have been better if it was the late Joseon period?”