Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 834

834. Europe’s Pursuit (1)

Not everyone in Europe was solely focused on the ‘discovery of the New World.’

To catch up with or surpass the already advanced Empire in many fields, numerous scholars and engineers devoted themselves to research and development, often working late into the night.

However, the most time-consuming task for them was finding sponsors to fund their work.

They had families to support, and assistants and staff to pay.

Moreover, acquiring materials and essential tools like the Empire’s calculating devices and abaci all required money.

Therefore, they met with nobles and merchants to secure sponsors.

Fortunately, during this period, the Catholic clergy in Europe also began to show considerable flexibility.

Furthermore, European monarchs stepped forward to actively support them.

This was one of the butterfly effects caused by Hyang.

* * *

Back when Seoul was called Hanseong, the question Hyang posed to the monks who crossed the sea to work at the research institute was still ongoing:

-Is holding ancestral rites in gratitude for our ancestors’ grace an act of filial piety, or is it idolatry that violates the Ten Commandments?

-Is your Latin translation of the Bible completely free of errors compared to the original text?

The Catholic Church, already dealing with various complex issues, fiercely debated the answers to Hyang’s questions.

The answer to the first question was still under debate, but it was gradually taking shape.

The answer to the second question was even more dramatic.

The number of monks and theologians who re-entered research with Hebrew or Aramaic scriptures, which were difficult to obtain, greatly increased, and new translations were released to the world.

Moreover, until then, there was only the Latin version of the Bible, but versions translated into English, French, and German began to appear in various forms.

The reactions of the clergy to the emergence of these translations were divided.

One side recognized only the traditional Latin version, while the other welcomed the Bible in their native languages.

In addition, ordinary people welcomed the Bible in their native languages because they could now read the Bible themselves.

As a result, more religious figures became accessible to the common people.

* * *

As the religious community underwent these changes, social perceptions also began to shift.

The most striking examples were alchemists and witches.

Previously, they would have been burned at the stake as heretics or those who sold their souls to the devil.

However, to catch up with the Empire’s advanced iron and alloy technologies, these alchemists became crucial, and instances of persecuting them as heretics greatly decreased.

In fact, the social status of alchemists greatly increased, and the number of those aspiring to become alchemists began to rise.

And finally, alchemy began to be officially registered as a department in universities.

The same was true for witches.

The case of witches was even more dramatic, and the Empire played the biggest role in this change.

Thanks to the active support of Sejong and Hyang, the Empire’s medicine was rapidly developing.

Medical skills were developing rapidly, and pharmacology was also advancing quickly.

And the result was the ‘Hyangyak Jipseongbang’ (Collection of Native Korean Prescriptions).

The Hyangyak Jipseongbang, which was compiled under Sejong’s orders to organize the types and efficacy of medicinal herbs native to the Korean Peninsula, was continuously being revised.

This was because as Joseon transformed into an Empire and its territory gradually expanded, new medicinal herb information continued to come in.

It was not just a record of the names, shapes, and efficacy of medicinal herbs.

-What grows in this land that has similar medicinal effects to what grows in the northern lands, and what grows in the new lands?

-There are medicinal herbs that only grow in the new lands, and the efficacy of these herbs is… (omitted)

As the list of alternative medicinal materials depending on the region, or information on medicinal materials that showed unique efficacy for certain diseases, was constantly revised, the Hyangyak Jipseongbang became increasingly comprehensive.

As an aside, as time passed, those studying medicine and pharmacology in the Empire feared the subjects that used the Hyangyak Jipseongbang as a textbook the most.

* * *

According to Hyang’s decision, the Hyangyak Jipseongbang was leaked to Europe.

Of course, the parts related to the New World were excluded.

European medical practitioners who received the Hyangyak Jipseongbang carefully examined the contents of the book.

“So, for these symptoms, you mix and use this medicinal herb and this medicinal herb?”

The doctors who saw the contents wanted to apply it right away, but there was a problem.

“Which one is a medicinal herb and which one is a poisonous herb? They’re all plants!”

There were professional herbalists in Europe, but their numbers were too small.

The doctors who were looking for a solution were able to find the answer in the preface of the Hyangyak Jipseongbang.

-The temperament of the mountains and rivers of Joseon is different from that of China, so Chinese medicine is difficult to be effective for the people of Joseon.

-Therefore, I ask the elderly and shamans to find medicinal herbs and confirm their efficacy and record them, hoping that they can use this to easily overcome diseases.

“Is that so?”

The doctors who read the preface written with Sejong’s will immediately moved.

They went around to the elderly and herbalists in nearby villages, asking about medicinal herbs and starting to record them.

In this process, the existence of witches was highlighted again.

“Actually, there is an old witch hiding in the deep forest to the west….”

The farmers and herbalists carefully revealed secrets to the doctors with whom they had become close.

The doctors who received the secrets went to the witches. The first reaction of many witches to the visit of uninvited guests was to hide deeper into the forest.

However, with the doctors’ persistent contact and persuasion, the witches shared their knowledge of medicinal herbs.

And, moving further, witches began to get jobs as assistants to doctors.

In this process, many misunderstandings about witches were resolved, and witches who had been hiding only in the shadows began to come out into the light again.

Of course, there were conditions.

-If you openly tell fortunes, perform witchcraft, or cast curses, you will be burned at the stake immediately!

-Swear your faith in God and faithfully perform confession!

Witches who kept these conditions and had a certificate guaranteeing that they were faithfully keeping their promises could live in villages and towns.

* * *

As Europe broke away from religious solemnity, more and more things began to change rapidly.

This was a change that continued at least 100 years faster compared to the history before Hyang intervened.

The first change that was seen was that mercantilism became the mainstream ideology.

Until then, Europe had also despised merchants.

They were very interested in the wealth that merchants had, but they despised the merchants.

Unless they were wealthy merchants like Cosimo de Medici, who controlled European finance, it was impossible to meet with kings, nobles, or high-ranking religious figures. All they could do was deal with the agents they employed.

However, as they came into contact with the way the Empire’s officials treated merchants and the various policies they created to encourage commerce and industry, their values changed.

-If the people live well, the monarch will naturally live well too! Without having to squeeze them!

As values changed like this, mercantilism became the trend among European leaders.

While the leaders’ values were changing, society was also changing.

The Renaissance era had officially begun. Of course, it was a slightly different look from the Renaissance in the history before Hyang intervened.

-Behold! The brilliant appearance of the ‘Land of Flowers’ [a poetic name for the Empire]!

-Learn from the monarch who created that brilliance!

In this social movement, European intellectuals studied Sejong and Hyang.

As this research deepened, a movement to introduce the Empire’s system in addition to the return to the classics began to gain momentum.

-Let’s be like the Empire!

-Let’s change it like the ‘Land of Flowers’!

At some point, the Empire had become an ‘ideal world’.

As this movement deepened, the Imperial language [likely referring to Korean] became another common language after Latin.

Of course, in intellectual society, the Imperial language already had almost the same status as Latin. However, before they knew it, not only nobles but also commoners who were somewhat wealthy had to know a word or two of the Imperial language to be treated well.

* * *

The Empire was a country that they wanted to emulate politically and culturally, and they wanted to make their country like that.

However, economically, the Empire was an object that had to be caught up with and surpassed.

This was because the Empire was reaping so many benefits.

The Empire boasted products with far superior quality.

Therefore, European merchants imported and sold the Empire’s products to people.

This was because importing and selling the Empire’s products was more profitable than selling the products made by their own artisans.

At best, British cast iron cannons and French lace were internationally renowned exports.

British cast iron cannons were popular products in Europe because they were cheaper than bronze cannons, even though their performance was limited.

French lace was a popular product not only in Europe but also in Ming and the Empire.

In particular, it was very popular in the Empire, and it was fashionable among the Empire’s noble ladies to add lace decorations to their sleeves.

-I have no reason to get my sleeves dirty!

It was to show off their wealth with lace decorations.

When French lace was just beginning to become popular among the wealthy, Hyang, who was the emperor at the time, smiled wryly.

“There was a trend among the sons of the yangban [Korean aristocratic class] in the late Joseon period to grow their little fingernails, right? To show off that they can live without working. Hmm….”

After thinking for a while, Hyang made a decision.

“Let’s watch for now. People are already starting to say that we’re taking too much from Europe.”

* * *

In this situation, where the Empire was taking huge profits in most fields except for a few products.

This trade imbalance was a serious problem for the European monarchs who had just become obsessed with mercantilism.

“Too much gold and silver is going into the Empire….”

The European monarchs, realizing the seriousness, began to actively support the development of their own industries.

* * *

The field they supported most actively was the steam engine.

Until the iron horse [railroad] was operated in Suez, it was just a story from a distant country. However, as the iron horse was operated in Suez, the story changed.

The European monarchs and nobles, who directly saw the enormous economic benefits provided by the iron horse, began to actively support the development of steam engines.

And this caused a chain reaction.

To make a steam engine with excellent performance, high-quality iron was needed, which required the development of ironmaking technology.

Not only iron but also alloy parts used in important parts needed performance improvement.

To solve this, the knowledge of alchemists was essential. Thanks to this, the social status of alchemists rose faster and faster.

While Europe, Ming, and Japan were busy moving to reach the position of the Empire, the Empire was also moving.

They were focusing on research and development as they had done so far, and on the other hand, they were moving to monitor the movements of other countries.

Not only the intelligence agencies belonging to the Imperial Army but also the secret envoys were quietly infiltrating Europe.