Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 596

596. Opening the Sky – Rolling Again Today (4)

The ‘Simultaneous Wedding Promotion for the Wan-du-seul Brothers’ stirred up various opinions, even among the officials.

“Isn’t this problematic? It’s unprecedented, utterly unprecedented!”

“That’s true, but all three are the same age…”

“Still, there are differences between the legitimate and illegitimate sons. Holding their weddings simultaneously could cause issues later on.”

“That’s also true… But consider their ages. If we prioritize the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate, we’ll miss the opportune time. It’s fortunate it’s just these three, but think about the remaining Grand Princes, Princes, Princesses, and Royal Concubines.”

“That’s also a problem…”

Such debates were also prevalent among the ministers.

“Considering their ages, they are indeed late. So, I understand His Majesty’s haste.”

Kim Jong-seo opposed Hwang-hee’s statement.

“Even so, allowing them to hold weddings simultaneously without regard to the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate sons is something we must prevent. It could cause problems with the royal authority.”

“With His Majesty and the Crown Prince as they are, would there really be a problem with the royal authority?”

Hwang-hee’s rebuttal prompted Kim Jong-seo to explain the issue again.

“Looking only at the present, there may not be any problems. However, we must consider the future. If such a thing happens again in the future, this event will be used as a precedent. The problem is that if the royal authority is unstable, unlike now, a major succession crisis will occur.”

Kim Jong-seo’s point made the other ministers nod.

“Indeed…”

“The Minister of General Affairs makes a valid point.”

Most of those present had personally experienced the transition from Goryeo to Joseon [two previous Korean dynasties]. They had witnessed firsthand the tragedies—especially the two Princes’ Revolts—that arose from a wavering royal authority and an unclear succession.

Kim Jong-seo’s words caused Kim Jeom to wear a troubled expression as he spoke.

“The problem is that the ages of the three are seventeen. Considering the time it takes for the selection process and wedding preparations, Eun-pyeong-gun—Seul’s title—will be twenty before he can hold his wedding. If that happens, the weddings of the remaining Grand Princes, Princes, Princesses, and Royal Concubines will all be delayed. The situation that occurred because of the Crown Prince will be repeated.”

“Oh dear… Tsk!”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk! How vexing!”

Kim Jeom’s words caused the gathered ministers to click their tongues in unison.

As Hyang’s wedding was delayed, the weddings of Hyang’s younger siblings, including Jin-pyeong and An-pyeong, were postponed one after another.

It was against etiquette and considered disloyal for the sons to marry before Sejong’s eldest son, especially the legitimate heir, had his wedding.

And this time, the same thing was highly likely to happen with the Wan-du-seul brothers’ weddings.

Kim Jeom continued speaking.

“Even in private homes, twenty is considered a late age to worry about marriage. How much more so in the royal family, where the problem is even greater. No matter how much distinction there is between legitimate and illegitimate sons, the weight is different when the name of the royal family is involved, isn’t it?”

At Kim Jeom’s point, the ministers nodded silently.

* * *

Regardless of whether they were Crown Princes, Grand Princes, or Princes, the men of the royal family married at least one or two years earlier than ordinary people. This was to marry early and produce many healthy offspring.

This was the contradiction of the royal family. Grand Princes and Princes could be seen as the Crown Prince’s strongest competitors. In particular, Grand Princes were the closest rivals.

However, they could not have fewer descendants. No matter what, the royal lineage could not be broken. Therefore, the contradiction of knowingly increasing competitors arose.

* * *

Kim Jeom continued speaking.

“There are royal family issues, but there are also economic issues. This year, a discount event at the monopoly stores is already planned to commemorate the victory. But the weddings of the Grandson [the King’s grandson, i.e., Hyang’s son] and the two Prince Lords will continue every year? And then, the weddings of the Grand Princes, Princes, Princesses, and Royal Concubines will continue, and if the Grandson immediately has a Great-Grandson…”

Kim Jeom paused there, cleared his throat, and continued.

“The discount event at the monopoly stores will continue almost every year. This means that controlling prices will become extremely troublesome.”

Hwang-hee immediately raised an objection to Kim Jeom’s words.

“Hasn’t the discount event at the monopoly stores been held almost every year already? I don’t think it will be a big problem.”

Park Jong-woo, the Minister of Finance, stepped forward at Hwang-hee’s point.

“Chief Vice Minister Im Soon-wook has already come up with a new plan because of that issue.”

Im Soon-wook, who had gone out as the president of the railroad corporation, had recently returned as the First Vice Minister of Finance. This was the same as saying that he was almost appointed as the next Minister of Finance.

Hwang-hee’s eyes twinkled at the words ‘new plan’.

“What is the new plan?”

“It is to conduct the discount event at the monopoly stores on a regular basis. The discount event will be held at a fixed time and for a fixed period every year. However, the discount rate and the items that are discounted will vary each year. This will reduce unnecessary consumption and promote the consumption of products that are difficult to sell.”

“Hmm…”

Hwang-hee, who was calculating while listening to Park Jong-woo’s answer, expressed doubt.

“It seems that there is not much difference between regularizing it like that and holding a discount event because of the royal family’s celebrations every year. Why is it difficult to control prices?”

“We can set a plan by setting the time and period when it is regularized, but isn’t that not the case with the royal family’s celebrations? We can’t make price control a gambling game, can we?”

Park Jong-woo took the words as soon as Kim Jeom’s words were finished.

“We should also think carefully about holding discount events whenever there are royal family celebrations. Looking at the current situation, royal family celebrations and national celebrations will continue to occur for the next few years, and several celebrations may overlap in one year. If discount events continue every time, people may not make normal purchases and only wait for discount events. Then it will be more troublesome.”

“Oh dear…”

The faces of the ministers, including Hwang-hee, were distorted at Park Jong-woo’s explanation. More than 20 years after the Gyeongjang [a period of economic reform] began, the ministers’ economic sense was no less than what Hyang called ‘the vanguard of capitalism’. Thanks to this, they immediately realized what problems would arise from what Park Jong-woo was saying now.

‘If normal purchasing activities do not continue, the market will collapse, and the merchants will collapse. Then the economy will collapse…’

‘Then all the blame will be directed at His Majesty, and we will take the blame.’

The ministers, who had thought that far, simultaneously uttered curses.

“Damn it!”

“What a mess!”

“May three generations suffer from endless ailments!”

The ministers, who relieved their feelings by spewing out curses, continued the meeting.

“Certainly, there are many things to consider in this matter. Let’s report this to His Majesty and decide on a direction to resolve it.”

The ministers all nodded at Hwang-hee’s decision.

While overcoming that crisis and preparing for the next agenda, someone muttered softly.

“It’s the Crown Prince again this time. If the Crown Prince had married early…”

The ministers who heard the grumbling sighed at the same time.

“Hoo~.”

‘I can’t curse because it’s the Crown Prince…’

Ironically, Hyang was worried about the ‘Sejong Everything Theory’, but among the ministers and officials, the ‘Crown Prince Everything Theory’ was more prevalent.

‘It’s the Crown Prince again.’

‘It’s the Crown Prince this time, too.’

Hyang was involved in most of the events that shook the country, whether good or bad.

* * *

“Hmm… There certainly seems to be a problem.”

Sejong stroked his beard and nodded after listening to the ministers’ points.

“What should we do?”

Sejong, who was muttering softly, turned his head to Hyang.

“What do you think?”

‘Oh no!’

Hyang wore a troubled expression at Sejong’s question. It was clearly asking for Hyang’s opinion, but the meaning was different.

‘You caused this, so you come up with the answer!’

“Please give me a moment.”

“I will.”

Hyang, who had obtained a brief respite from Sejong, frantically racked his brain.

After desperately racking his brain, Hyang barely managed to find a plausible answer.

“First of all, I think it’s a good idea to hold the discount event at the monopoly stores on a regular basis every year. Even the most frugal person will open their wallet for a discount event, so it will be a vitality that will move the market vigorously.”

“Hmm. That’s right, that’s right.”

Seeing that Sejong’s reaction was not bad, Hyang breathed a sigh of relief and continued.

“The problem is when national and royal family celebrations occur. In my opinion, it would be good to apply different levels to the monopoly stores’ regular events for each item.”

“How do you apply it?”

“Taking the royal family’s wedding as an example, in the case of the Crown Prince or Grandson’s wedding and childbirth, add five days to the event period, three days for Grand Princes and Princesses, and two days for Princes and Royal Concubines. The discount rate should also be differentiated in the same way. If we do this, I think it will be fine because there will be almost no one waiting for the discount event all year round.”

“That’s good.”

Sejong, who was nodding at Hyang’s answer, looked back at the ministers.

“What do you think?”

“I think it’s a very good alternative.”

“It’s not an event every time a celebration occurs, but it’s adding or subtracting the period at a fixed time every year, so I think it will be very useful.”

When Hwang-hee, Kim Jeom, and Park Jong-woo answered positively, the other ministers showed similar reactions.

“Then, create a good plan based on the Crown Prince’s proposal.”

“I will obey the order.”

“The monopoly store issue is over, and let’s do this for the Grandson and Grand Princes’ weddings. It is problematic to hold the weddings at the same time, so let’s avoid it, but let’s have all three weddings within the year. And, as the Crown Prince suggested, how about handling the discount event at the monopoly stores all at once?”

“It is a truly reasonable decision.”

The ministers all agreed in unison to Sejong’s proposal.

‘If we finish it within a year, it’s good because it reduces troublesome things, right!’

This was the ministers’ inner thoughts.

* * *

After solving the problems related to the Grandson, Sejong, Hyang, and the ministers began a full-scale inspection.

“Has the compensation plan for the soldiers and people who died or were injured in this war been prepared?”

“Yes. We will compensate according to the laws established in the past.”

“That’s right. Hmm…”

Sejong, who was looking at the report while listening to the ministers’ answers, turned to Hyang.

“The evaluation of the wounded soldiers’ treatment center that you insisted on creating is very good. It will be a great help thanks to you.”

Hyang bowed his head and answered at Sejong’s praise.

“I have only done what I had to do for the safety of the country and the royal family.”

Sejong smiled and muttered at Hyang’s humility.

“You rascal…”

* * *

The wounded soldiers’ treatment center was a place aimed at treating and rehabilitating wounded soldiers who had become disabled through wars or various accidents.

It was a place that mainly helped wounded soldiers lead normal lives through the development of assistive devices such as artificial limbs, crutches, and wheelchairs, and rehabilitation treatment. At the same time, it mainly treated and cared for severely ill patients such as quadriplegics.

When Hyang first insisted on opening this treatment center, Sejong and all the ministers showed negative reactions.

“The intention is good, but is it really necessary?”

“His Highness’s intention is truly beautiful, but considering the cost involved…”

“Isn’t it better to leave the care to the families and provide appropriate support?”

In response to these negative reactions, Hyang further emphasized the necessity.

“Think about it. No matter how much the country supports, there is a limit. That means that the families in charge of care will eventually become impoverished! They became disabled for the sake of the country, but if all that remains is poverty, who will come forward? And which people will try to protect the king and the royal family who created such a situation? It is absolutely necessary to protect the safety of the royal family and the country!”

“Still…”

“What is the reason why the former dynasties and countries, including Jeonjo [previous dynasty], collapsed? It is because the people abandoned them! It is absolutely necessary to prevent the people from abandoning the country and the dynasty!”

In the end, the treatment center was created according to Hyang’s claim, and it shone in this war.