Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 498

498. Lord of War (4)

“The Katana Master has arrived!”

Following the retainer’s shout, the old blacksmith and his apprentices knelt before Mochiyo. Mochiyo approached them and said,

“There is something I need you to examine.”

The title ‘Katana Master’ referred to the most skilled sword craftsman in the domain. Therefore, Mochiyo spoke to him with respect.

At Mochiyo’s words, the Katana Master respectfully replied,

“What is it that you wish me to see?”

In response, Mochiyo ordered a nearby samurai,

“Bring one of the boxes containing the firearms sent from Joseon and open it.”

“Yes, sir!”

At Mochiyo’s command, the samurai brought one of the stacked boxes and opened it.

“Hmm.”

Mochiyo walked towards the opened box and let out a soft exclamation. Inside, four long rifles were securely arranged.

Seeing the gun barrels gleaming silver in the sunlight, Mochiyo repeatedly thought to himself,

‘Truly amazing! Such beautifully shining steel! I could easily mistake them for famous swords!’

Mochiyo, who had been staring at the gun barrels as if entranced, quickly shook his head.

‘Pull yourself together! Don’t be fooled by appearances!’

Hastily regaining his composure, Mochiyo took one of the rifles out of the box and handed it to the Katana Master.

“This is a Joseon musket. Compare it to what we have made and what we have seized from the Bakufu [Shogunate]. Check it here, right now.”

“Yes, sir!”

Answering Mochiyo’s command, the Katana Master immediately instructed his apprentices in a low voice,

“Go and bring the matchlock we made and the captured musket.”

“Yes, sir!”

While the apprentices were fetching the guns, the Katana Master carefully examined the long rifle from Joseon.

“Hmm. Hmm. This is… Unbelievable….”

As he examined the Joseon long rifle, the Katana Master uttered a string of words that sounded like both admiration and lamentation.

“Is there a problem?”

The Katana Master, who had been staring at the Joseon gun as if mesmerized, answered Mochiyo’s question with a sigh.

“No matter how I look at it, it seems that there is someone in Joseon blessed by Oinari-sama (お稲荷様, the Japanese god of blacksmiths). Such a device could not come from an ordinary smithy.”

“Is it that impressive?”

“Yes.”

Just then, the Katana Master’s apprentices returned with the matchlock they had made and the captured Ming musket.

The Katana Master compared the Ming musket with the Joseon long rifle and began explaining to Mochiyo.

“If you look closely at the muzzle, you will see that this Ming musket is made by rolling and joining the barrel. However, the Joseon musket has no seams.”

“No seams? Is that important?”

At Mochiyo’s question, the Katana Master nodded.

“The absence of seams means that it was made from a single tube from the beginning. That means it can contain the power of the gunpowder more effectively. Also, there is no risk of it bursting due to poor seam joining.”

“Then was it cast?”

At Mochiyo’s question, the Katana Master shook his head.

“It wasn’t cast either. It couldn’t be this smooth with casting, and cast iron will break if it receives a strong impact. If such cast iron were to withstand the power of gunpowder, it would require a complicated refining process, and it would be difficult to achieve such a smooth surface. Haa…”

Once again, the Katana Master sighed deeply and concluded.

“In conclusion, Joseon has made a gun barrel by refining the best steel—steel good enough to be used for famous swords—into a strong pipe. If we only consider the gun barrel, it is at a level that even Ming cannot match. However, the fact that they can send so many boxes of these can only be described as the blessing of Oinari-sama.”

The Katana Master’s evaluation, invoking the fox-god, was the highest praise.

However, the Joseon artisans who later heard the story from the envoy smiled wryly and muttered.

“The blessing of a fox spirit? If that were possible, we would have scoured all the mountains in Joseon and caught every Gumiho [nine-tailed fox, a mythical creature] to solve it.”

“There is a Crown Prince in Joseon who is scarier than a fox.”

* * *

Due to Hyang’s involvement, many parts of Joseon changed, but the ironware sector saw the most significant transformation.

Until Sejong’s reign, Joseon’s ironmaking and smelting technology lagged behind Ming.

During the development of the curved artillery piece, Wangu (碗口) [a type of cannon], there was an attempt to make it with iron castings like Ming, but it failed repeatedly because the heat treatment technology was inferior. (Note 1)

However, as Hyang intervened, the situation completely reversed.

The mass production technology of steel, which would have been passed down by a small number of people until the late Joseon period and then disappeared during the colonial era, led to the establishment of a full-scale large steel mill.

After that, with constant encouragement and incentives, the level of Joseon’s ironmaking and smelting technology rose almost vertically.

Thanks to that, the technological level, which was behind Ming in the early days of Sejong, surpassed Ming by a wide margin in the late Gyeongjang era.

In addition, the development of steam engines accelerated this progress.

The emergence of a powerful power source, incomparable to manpower or animal power, made it possible to produce higher quality iron materials in large quantities.

This was also confirmed by Hyang’s analysis.

“Even if I analyze it as objectively and conservatively as possible, it seems to be above the level of the early Industrial Revolution….”

Hyang muttered with a serious face after analyzing the situation in Joseon.

“What is needed to continue growing in the future is the market and the population. The population is being addressed by encouraging childbirth, expanding the territory, and integrating natives into Joseon. The problem is the market…. Looking at the current situation in Joseon, most of the advanced technologies are being applied to the military first….”

Hyang tapped the desk with his finger and muttered, looking into the distance.

“I shouldn’t say this…. I wonder if a war will break out somewhere? If possible, I hope it’s far from Joseon…. It would be great if it broke out in Europe. Why are the people who used to fight every day so quiet?”

While he was subtly hoping for a war to break out in Europe, a civil war broke out in Waeguk [Japan].

Hyang glanced at the sky after hearing the report of ‘Civil War Breaks Out in Waeguk’ and muttered.

“Anyway….”

* * *

Mochiyo dismissed the Katana Master after hearing his evaluation.

“Is that so? Thank you for your trouble. You may leave.”

At Mochiyo’s words, the Katana Master bowed politely and stepped back. Even as he retreated, his eyes remained fixed on the rifle from Joseon.

With the Katana Master’s high praise, the high-ranking samurai around him focused their attention on the box.

Having received the Katana Master’s commendation, their interest grew even more.

However, those with reservations spoke first.

“The long rifle from Joseon is excellent, but the production time will likely be long, proportional to its excellence. On the battlefield, quantity is as important as quality. A major battle will surely take place in the spring, and if we do not secure enough long rifles by then, there will be a problem. If the number is small, it would be better to produce more matchlocks and melt the steel from those guns to make good quality spears and swords.”

At these negative remarks, the envoy who had been to Joseon immediately stepped forward and retorted.

“Joseon said that up to 300 units are possible per month!”

“300 units per month!”

Not only the opposing samurai but also Mochiyo himself was greatly surprised by the envoy’s statement.

The maximum production of long rifles in Ouchi’s territory was 30 units per month.

That was the situation even though they had gathered all the blacksmiths in the territory.

The biggest reason for the low production volume was that the blacksmiths were not only making guns.

Most of the things related to war, from spears and swords to arrowheads and iron pieces for armor, had to go through the hands of the blacksmiths, so the production volume was low.

In that situation, if 300 guns arrived each month, Ouchi’s worries would be solved immediately.

The discussion shifted dramatically at the envoy’s statement. However, the samurai of the military faction, wary of the envoy who was a member of the civilian faction, continued to nitpick.

“However, the price is too high. 12 silver nyang [currency] per unit! The matchlock produced in our territory is 7 silver nyang per unit! If we were to push it, we could buy two units from our territory for one Joseon-made gun!”

The civilians of the civilian faction protested against the military faction’s opposition.

“You shouldn’t just think about the price, you should also think about the time! No matter how hard we try in our territory, it’s only 30 units a month! But Joseon can provide 300 units a month! A major battle will take place in the coming spring, so is the price really the main concern now!”

“That’s right! Considering the time, it’s a price we can afford!”

“Still, it’s too expensive!”

As the voices of both sides grew louder, Mochiyo shouted.

“Silence! What kind of disgrace is this!”

At Mochiyo’s rebuke, the retainers immediately shut their mouths and bowed.

“I-I apologize!”

Mochiyo, having silenced the civilian and military factions, turned to the envoy.

“You must have known about the price issue as well?”

“Yes, sir! I knew about the price issue. However, there is also the issue of time, and the performance of the Joseon-made long rifle is so excellent that I couldn’t ignore it.”

“Excellent? Still, isn’t it just one long rifle?”

“The Joseon long rifle does not use a match!”

“Huh?”

At the envoy’s answer, not only Mochiyo but also the samurai of the military faction focused their attention on the envoy.

* * *

The samurai who had accompanied the envoy all had shining eyes after seeing the demonstration.

Despite their bickering, they were still samurai who would go to the battlefield. If there was a weapon superior to the enemy’s, they would naturally be interested.

“When shooting a matchlock, the most important part is managing the match, but it will be much easier if a flint is attached like that.”

“I was always bothered by the match when reloading after firing, but it’s good that I don’t have to worry about that.”

“Since there is no need to worry about the match, the firing speed will be much faster.”

While the samurai were giving positive evaluations, the envoy delivered the final blow.

“The Joseon long rifle is not just about this.”

The envoy took out a spike-type bayonet from one side of the box and attached it to the long rifle.

“If you combine the bayonet like this, you can also respond in close combat.”

“Oh!”

In the end, Ouchi decided to purchase a large quantity of Joseon-made long rifles.

* * *

The next day, after the purchase of the Joseon-made long rifles was decided, Mochiyo called his retainers together.

“Looking at the Joseon-made long rifles we saw yesterday, and the Joseon blades I saw at the mines or the Joseon trading post, the quality is very excellent.”

At Mochiyo’s words, the retainers all nodded.

‘Joseon’s blades are so good that even their kitchen knives are like famous swords.’

This kind of joke was circulating throughout Waeguk.

“Therefore, apart from purchasing long rifles and gunpowder from Joseon, we will also purchase a large quantity of long swords. The blacksmiths in the territory will be in charge of producing spearheads, arrowheads, and armor. Just doing that will reduce the burden on the blacksmiths in the territory, and we will be able to arm ourselves more fully.”

At Mochiyo’s declaration, an elder retainer pointed out the problem.

“However, there will be a problem with finances.”

“First, we will use what comes out of the silver mine, and if there is still a shortage, we can pay it back after we win! Winner takes all!”

In this way, Ouchi placed an order for a large quantity of weapons to Joseon.

Hyang, who heard the story through the envoy, looked at Kim Jeom. Seeing Kim Jeom’s face, who couldn’t hide his smile, Hyang muttered inwardly.

‘You must be grinning from ear to ear!’

* * *

Note 1) Joseon’s Weapons and Armor. Written by Min Seung-ki. Garam Planning.