Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 759

Distributed by Ajit Novel (formerly Ajitun Novel).

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759. Encounter (4)

In the process of Shinji’s imperialization, the natives were rapidly changing their lifestyles.

More and more natives left their ancestral tribal lands in search of new opportunities.

Having learned new farming methods—such as deep plowing and fertilization using cattle, horses, steam tractors, and steel farming tools—from farmers who had migrated from the Empire’s mainland, the natives left their tribes to establish their own farms instead of remaining on the tribal communal land.

“To be precise, I don’t think they’ve completely abandoned their old ways, have they?” Hyang asked, after reviewing the report from the Land Management Bureau under the Ministry of Finance.

* * *

Hyang’s point was accurate.

The natives had left their lands, but they hadn’t gone as far as the imperial citizens did in severing ties.

It was a distance that would have been considered a complete severing of ties in the past, but not anymore.

The natives had also acquired cattle, horses, and carts brought in from the Empire’s mainland.

What used to take a full day or two could now be traveled in half a day with a cart pulled by oxen or horses.

Therefore, it was no longer difficult to visit relatives still remaining in the tribe.

Seeing how well their relatives and siblings who had left the tribal lands were doing, the remaining people began to leave the tribe one by one.

* * *

“It would be more accurate to say that the territory of the tribe has simply expanded, rather than completely abandoning the tribal lands where they lived,” Hyang concluded.

The Director-General of the Land Management Bureau bowed his head after hearing Hyang’s explanation.

“Ah! That is correct. We were short-sighted.”

“Look more broadly and think again. Don’t forget that each and every policy you design and implement will determine the future of this Shinji.”

“I will engrave it in my heart!”

“Then rewrite the report and bring it back.”

“…Yes.”

The Director-General, looking dejected, gathered his documents and left Hyang’s office.

Watching the Director-General’s back as he trudged away, Hyang muttered inwardly, ‘One way or another, we’re inevitably going to have to adopt something like the American model.’

The American culture, where a car is almost essential due to the vast land and low population density, was slowly beginning to emerge.

Having been rebuked by Hyang, the Director-General of the Land Management Bureau returned to his office and immediately shouted, “Gather all the executives!”

Startled by the shout, the executives gathered, and the Director-General yelled at the top of his lungs, “You guys! Are you going to work like this! Do I have to hear from His Majesty that I’m not doing my job properly? Huh!”

* * *

Meanwhile, Hyang was lost in other concerns.

“If this goes wrong, it could become a matter of public order.”

Both the imperial citizens who had migrated to Shinji and the natives who had newly become independent lived far apart from each other.

There were no problems with bandits or robbers yet, but the intrusion of wild beasts was a problem.

“Of course, I did say that each household could have a bow….”

Bows were allowed in every household, as they were used as weapons, survival tools, and for recreation by the mainlanders. Each household was allowed to have two or three bows.

The same was true for the natives.

Thanks to this, the Shinji monopoly office managers unexpectedly recorded decent sales of Korean traditional bows [a type of composite recurve bow].

This was because the natives, after seeing the performance of the Korean traditional bows, abandoned their primitive bows and purchased them.

However, bows were clearly long-range killing weapons, so strict control was necessary.

Initially, the majority opinion was to ban the sale of bows, but Sejong, who was overseeing Shinji again, opposed it.

“The military force in charge of defending Shinji is currently very insufficient. In this situation, banning the sale of bows is not reasonable.”

Afterward, Sejong’s alternative was to engrave serial numbers on both bows and arrows and record who they were sold to each time.

“Will it be effective when both bows and arrows can be made directly?” Many people expressed doubts, but Sejong replied, “Of course, you can think that way. But aren’t bows and arrows only truly effective when made properly by artisans?”

The opposition fell silent at Sejong’s point. This was because Sejong’s point was correct.

* * *

The arrows used for Korean traditional bows had been shaped over many years to fit the bows perfectly. Therefore, the arrows used for Korean traditional bows could not be used for Ming’s bows or Japanese bows. The opposite was also true.

It was impossible for ordinary people to make such bows and arrows themselves. In particular, Korean traditional bows were composite bows, making it even more difficult.

The same was true for arrows. Making straight arrow shafts and attaching feathers required advanced skills. If the feathers were even slightly crooked, the arrow was likely to fly in the wrong direction.

Thanks to this, bows and arrows were quite expensive, and most arrows had the owner’s name or a symbol that only the owner knew engraved between the feathers.

* * *

Hyang, who took over the operation of Shinji in place of Sejong, added a little something to this.

He added a place to engrave serial numbers on the arrows and made the engravings deeper.

If the engraving was removed for impure purposes, it would not perform properly.

There, Hyang added a trick.

He borrowed an idea from an American comedian he saw on the internet in the 21st century and raised the price of arrows.

Of course, he didn’t just sell them at a high price. He also implemented a policy of giving discounts if people brought in broken or old arrows.

As a result of the implementation of these policies, the management of bows and arrows became very easy.

After reviewing the report, Hyang chuckled and muttered softly, “Hooray for capitalism.”

* * *

Although strictly preventing individuals from arming themselves arbitrarily, the problems of public order and safety due to low population density became a concern again.

“But allowing gun ownership is out of the question….”

After much deliberation, Hyang eventually came up with his own solution.

The first step was to create self-governing corps in units of 30 households.

The self-governing corps would build a high tower in the center of the village to monitor all directions.

In addition, each house was distributed with well-sealed signal-purpose Singijeon (rocket arrows) [a type of Korean rocket artillery].

In the event of an emergency, they were to break the seal and fire the Singijeon. Then, the self-governing corps that confirmed the Singijeon would move.

And a company (隊, 25 people) sized army was stationed to be in charge of public order and safety in units of 150 households.

In the event of an emergency that would cause the self-governing corps to move, the emergency situation was announced in all directions through the light communication device installed in the watchtower, and the company in charge of the area was made to alert the upper unit of the emergency and dispatch at the same time.

In such cases, speed was essential, so the members of the self-governing corps had to be familiar with riding, and the garrison was deployed as cavalry.

Creating such a complex system, Hyang made a firm expression.

“Gun freedom? Don’t be ridiculous!”

* * *

Among the occupations chosen by the natives of Shinji to break away from their old ways, soldiers were chosen as much as self-employed farmers.

In order to imperialise Shinji and defend against the European forces that would soon approach across the Atlantic, it was urgent to expand military power.

However, there was a limit to bringing troops from the Empire’s mainland.

Myung had already had its momentum broken through two wars, and the pro-imperial regime had been established in Japan, but it was impossible to be completely relieved.

Therefore, the Empire actively recruited natives into the military.

The natives also thought favorably of joining the military. This was due to the tradition of considering it an honor to become a renowned warrior and the characteristics of the Imperial Army, where ability and rank were determined regardless of origin.

Sejong and Hyang assigned almost 70% of the natives who joined the military to the Navy.

-It is more efficient to deal with European forces at sea from the beginning than to stop them after they land.

Here, ‘deal with’ meant ‘eliminate’.

Taking over Sejong’s decision, Hyang had a bitter expression.

“If someone who knows my identity saw this, they would be cursing at me….”

From the perspective of the 21st century’s values that emphasize ‘life’ and ‘human rights’, this decision was very cold and inhumane.

In particular, Hyang was certain that the record of Sejong, who was famous for his love for the people (愛民) [caring for the people], making such a decision and Hyang taking it over would definitely be a problem for future generations.

“But if we allow Europe to advance without proper preparation, we will have to wage a fierce long-term war. We have no choice but to be ruthless until the preparations are complete.”

Emphasizing the justification to himself, Hyang organized his emotions.

“Curse if you want! It’s after I die anyway!”

* * *

According to Sejong and Hyang’s decision, the Shinji-based Imperial Navy rapidly grew in size.

As it grew larger, the Navy began to actively explore the surrounding area instead of simply focusing on defense.

As the Navy’s exploration range gradually expanded, the map recording the east coast of Shinji began to record a wider area with increasing precision.

Hyang, confirming the maps that were gradually expanding to the south and north, stroked his chin with a serious expression.

“The north is fine, but the south is the problem.”

In order to properly draw the map of the east coastline, proper surveying was essential. And, in order to properly survey, it was necessary to land.

The problem was the civilizations in that southern region.

“A military clash will definitely occur. If we simply attempt peaceful negotiations or annexation, the entire Empire will rise up immediately.”

Hyang, knowing the problems of the civilizations in the area, was deciding that military suppression was the only answer.

Having made that decision, Hyang uttered a small curse.

“Damn human sacrifice….”

Unlike the history before Hyang’s intervention, dogmatic Neo-Confucianism had not taken root in the Empire.

However, even with the Empire and its people having much more flexible values, human sacrifice was unacceptable.

-A tragedy committed by still uncivilized people

No matter how much Hyang argued this, the imperial citizens would not accept it.

If this was carelessly ignored, there was a considerable possibility that the imperial authority, which was just taking hold, would collapse.

Therefore, Hyang was certain that if the Navy came into contact with the indigenous people of Central and South America, a massacre disguised as war would follow.

* * *

While Hyang was worrying about those in Central and South America, intelligence related to Shinji was sent from the mainland.

After confirming the intelligence sent from the mainland, Hyang sighed deeply.

“A definite butterfly effect.”

According to the intelligence, the story of the ‘western route’ had begun to surface in Europe.

“Then there’s no choice.”

After confirming the intelligence, Hyang began to write an order to be sent to the Navy.

After finishing the review of the written order, Hyang sighed softly.

“Why does it have to be Order No. 65? I’m uneasy….”