Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 385

385. That, Jang Yeong-sil. (2)

Seeing Hyang’s surprised expression, mouth agape, Jang Yeong-sil looked equally surprised.

“It’s been almost ten years since I started working with you, Your Highness, but this is the first time I’ve seen you make such a face!”

At Jang Yeong-sil’s question, Hyang quickly composed himself and replied, “Ah, I was just briefly surprised by the unexpected device. But how does it work?”

“Well, when we need to reinforce a fortress or move heavy objects, we usually have several people working together, or we use a trebuchet [a type of catapult] or a winch, right?”

“That’s right.”

“However, there are often cases where it’s difficult to install a trebuchet or winch because the space is too narrow. Or sometimes, it’s a job that 4 or 5 people could easily handle, but only 2 or 3 people have to struggle. I’ve been pondering whether this could be used in such cases.”

As he explained, Jang Yeong-sil carefully assembled the structures hanging on one wall.

When the assembly was complete, Hyang asked in a slightly trembling voice, “Could it be… an exoskeleton?”

At Hyang’s question, Jang Yeong-sil exclaimed in surprise. “You recognized it right away, as expected of Your Highness! That’s right. It’s a device that mimics the human skeleton and is worn. It’s made of wood now as a proof of concept, but if it works properly, we’ll make it out of steel to ensure its strength.”

“How will it be powered?”

At Hyang’s point, Jang Yeong-sil’s face clouded over. “That’s the problem. I was thinking of using a steam engine as a power source, but considering the size of the steam engine, the heat it generates, and fuel management… Haa~.”

Jang Yeong-sil sighed briefly and continued with a regretful expression. “The process of transmitting the user’s movements is also a problem. Right now, it’s just mimicking the movements, so thick and sturdy cotton thread is sufficient, but if we actually make it, we’ll have to use steel cables, but then no one will be able to move…”

Before Jang Yeong-sil could finish, Hyang interjected. “There’s also the problem of force control. Using that would allow you to exert at least 2-3 times the strength of an ordinary person, but that much force isn’t needed every time.”

“That’s right!”

Jang Yeong-sil nodded vigorously at Hyang’s words. “That’s right! So, I thought about adjusting it before use, but it’s too inconvenient…”

“Before that, how will you transmit the power generated by the steam engine?”

“That’s also under research…”

As Jang Yeong-sil trailed off, Hyang exclaimed, “Chief Jang! I’m disappointed in you, Chief Jang! How can a person be like this?”

Jang Yeong-sil, momentarily bewildered by Hyang’s sudden rebuke, immediately prostrated himself on the floor.

“Please forgive me! I have used time and money privately for my personal research! And yet, I have not obtained proper results, which is a great sin! Please forgive me!”

Jang Yeong-sil apologized, stating the most likely reason for Hyang’s anger, but Hyang’s scolding continued. “Why did you conduct this research alone? How could you do such interesting research by yourself! Do you not know what is right?”

“Yes?”

For an unexpected reason, Jang Yeong-sil unknowingly raised his head to look at Hyang.

‘Is this guy joking… He’s serious!’

Seeing Hyang’s face, Jang Yeong-sil had no choice but to prostrate himself again.

“I am sorry! I did not report it because I thought it would be worthless, as it was just the idea of a humble craftsman! Please forgive me!”

“Even if you think it’s worthless, others may see it as worth a thousand or ten thousand gold! Bring me anything else you’ve researched right now! Right now!”

“Yes, yes!”

At Hyang’s command, Jang Yeong-sil hurriedly moved and brought the conceptual diagrams and blueprints of what he had been planning and handed them to Hyang.

Hyang, examining the blueprints Jang Yeong-sil had brought, was genuinely angry with Jang Yeong-sil. “You’re saying you just buried these precious things! These interesting things!”

“I am mortified!”

“I will take them, discuss them, and then register them in the Challenge Log [a record of innovative projects], so be aware.”

“It is an honor!”

“Seriously, a person should have some sense of ethics… You should share interesting things, not try to enjoy them alone…”

* * *

After the commotion, Hyang took a moment to catch his breath and remembered why he had come here today.

“Ah! The reason I came here today is that I want Chief Jang to make a clockwork device.”

“A clockwork device, you say?”

“That’s right.”

Hyang told Jang Yeong-sil about the problem of the propulsion system for a steam-powered ship.

“…So, the development department is trying to conduct experiments with a steam engine, but I think it’s too hasty. If the current method doesn’t seem right, we’ll have to start all over again, which could lead to unnecessary expenses. If that happens, wouldn’t Director Kim Jeom and the officials from the Ministry of Finance all come and make a mess?”

“That’s right.”

At Hyang’s words, Jang Yeong-sil nodded without realizing it.

Even he knew that the budget consumed by the research institute and Area 51 was enormous. If there had been no achievements so far, it would have been reasonable to demand its immediate abolition.

Confirming that Jang Yeong-sil understood, Hyang explained the purpose for which the clockwork device was needed. “So, I think it’s better to experiment using a scaled-down model ship.”

At Hyang’s explanation, Jang Yeong-sil nodded. “That is certainly true. Then, what size would be appropriate?”

At Jang Yeong-sil’s question, Hyang spread his arms to indicate a suitable size. “About this much? About the width of my chest would be appropriate.”

At Hyang’s words, Jang Yeong-sil immediately replied. “I understand. Then, I will make the clockwork device and the model ship together and submit them. By when should I submit them?”

“Would five days be possible?”

“It seems possible.”

“Then, let’s plan to receive it within five days… Ah! When making the clockwork device, you must make it so that the direction of the power shaft can be easily changed.”

“The direction, you say?”

Jang Yeong-sil pondered for a moment at Hyang’s words, then soon nodded. “I understand why you need to do that. I will adjust it accordingly.”

“Then, I look forward to it.”

Having finished his business, Hyang got up from his seat. Hyang, sweeping up the blueprints Jang Yeong-sil had left unattended, gave another warning. “I say again, do not leave the things you have come up with like this.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

As Hyang was about to leave Jang Yeong-sil’s office, he suddenly seemed to remember something and immediately turned around.

Jang Yeong-sil, who had followed Hyang out to see him off, looked tense when Hyang suddenly turned around. “Your Highness?”

“Ah, I suddenly had an idea about the exoskeleton and the power problem. Let’s go inside and talk.”

“Yes? Yes.”

Hyang, who had re-entered the office and sat down, spread a blank piece of paper on the conference table and began to speak. “That exoskeleton. It doesn’t necessarily need to have all four limbs like a person, does it? There’s also the problem of attaching a steam engine to it…”

Trailing off, Hyang began to draw on the blank paper.

The drawings Hyang was drawing were construction machines such as excavators and cranes.

“If we use pulleys and steel cables to transmit power and control movement like this…”

Jang Yeong-sil, listening to Hyang’s drawings and explanations, immediately understood and nodded. “Ah! It would be very useful for civil engineering and construction! I will consider it!”

“It will also be listed in the Challenge Log.”

“Haha! It will be a good competition!”

Meanwhile, the disciple who was listening to Jang Yeong-sil and Hyang’s conversation next to them looked tearful.

‘I can’t understand what they’re talking about! I thought I was smart, but was I just a frog in a well [ignorant of the wider world]?’

While Jang Yeong-sil’s disciple was frustrated in one corner, Hyang, having finished talking with Jang Yeong-sil, got up from his seat with a satisfied expression.

“Then, I look forward to the future.”

“I will do my best!”

* * *

Jang Yeong-sil, who had seen Hyang off and returned, sat down in his chair, sighed lightly, and looked back at his disciple. “Isn’t he a truly great person?”

“Yes.”

“Every time I see him, I feel that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is a divine being. He is a person sent by heaven for this Joseon [historical Korean kingdom].”

“Isn’t my teacher the one whom such a person values? My teacher is my pride.”

At his disciple’s words, Jang Yeong-sil shook his head. “Compared to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, I am just a firefly under the moonlight. Didn’t you just see it? Despite it being the first time he saw the blueprints and models, he found the problems on the spot and even came up with applications. Who in Joseon today is capable of this? As far as I know, there is only one person besides His Highness.”

“Who is that?”

At his disciple’s question, Jang Yeong-sil answered firmly. “His Majesty the King.”

* * *

While Jang Yeong-sil was lecturing his disciple, Hyang’s steps returning to his office seemed to fly.

“Hehehe…….”

Hyang’s face, looking at the blueprints and various conceptual diagrams in his arms, was filled with a smile as big as a washbasin.

‘This will reduce the chance of running out of funds!’

As things progressed under Hyang’s leadership, Hyang was slowly feeling a sense of crisis.

‘If this goes wrong, I won’t have anything to obsess over later, will I? If I mess up, I might only be able to do kingly duties instead of obsessing! My dream is in danger! I failed to control the amount!’

Hyang was bitterly reflecting on his failure to control the amount.

But there was no answer. The talents of the research institute and Area 51 moved passively, and he couldn’t resist the things that seemed to be realizable right away rolling in front of him.

‘This will disrupt my life plan! I have to find a way right away!’

That’s how the Challenge Log was created.

‘Still a little lacking…’

Even so, Jang Yeong-sil’s works were a gift from heaven to Hyang, who felt 1% lacking.

Most of the conceptual diagrams and designs drawn by Jang Yeong-sil made him want to take off his official robes and go into a smithy right away.

Looking at the blueprints with such a happy face, Hyang murmured to himself, recalling Jang Yeong-sil. “That guy is also out of the ordinary…….”

He had felt it when he made the golden brush before, but the technical level of the craftsmen in Joseon today was not to be underestimated.

“If there had been no trend of despising craftsmen and no wars…”

It was a time when there were many craftsmen with high levels that Hyang, who had first confirmed the skills of the craftsmen, complained about, but Jang Yeong-sil was one of a kind.

Looking at the anecdote of the self-striking water clock before Hyang intervened, and the record that no one could fix the broken self-striking water clock, one could know Jang Yeong-sil’s skills.

With Hyang’s intervention, Jang Yeong-sil’s fate changed greatly.

With Hyang as his backing, he would no longer be dismissed later. And, while making various devices that Hyang wanted, Jang Yeong-sil crossed a kind of boundary.

No, these people who crossed the boundary were not only Jang Yeong-sil.

Swept away by the typhoon of ‘scientific and technological revolution’ symbolized by the research institute and Area 51, people who crossed the boundary began to emerge one after another.

Yi Sun-ji, Kim Dam, and Princess Jeongui, who were standing right in front of the boundary line and blocked by the walls of Neo-Confucianism and social norms, began to cross the boundary line and climb even higher.

* * *

Two days later, the researchers and craftsmen who went to work at the research institute and Area 51 had to be shocked when they saw the bulletin board.

“How many are there in total?”

“I gave up counting…….”

People who were looking at the notices that were plastered not only on the bulletin board but also on the wall next to it, which was not enough, had a hollow expression.

People who were looking at the items ranging from ‘Hard Struggle Ha’ to ‘The Foolish Old Man Removes the Mountains Above’ soon realized one thing.

“Is Jang Chief the proposer for all of them?”

“Is that so?”

“No, this guy has no sense of ethics! What are we supposed to do if you release them all at once like this!”

While they were grumbling at Jang Yeong-sil, the craftsmen of the technical demonstration department came forward to defend him. “That’s not it…….”

‘The Crown Prince shook Jang Yeong-sil!’

‘The Crown Prince ordered him to report unconditionally from now on!’

The people who heard the craftsmen’s words rather had a pitiful expression.

“Chief Jang, that guy, his good days are all gone~”