Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 853

Their Ambition (4)

In the history before Hyang intervened, Edward IV played the biggest role in the downfall of the Medici family.

Or, to be more precise, Edward IV was the one who severed the Medici family’s lifeline as it struggled for breath in its final moments.

Lorenzo de Medici was reasonably competent in diplomacy and politics but incompetent in managing the family’s core business, the bank.

Thanks to this, the 16 branches he inherited from his great-grandfather went bankrupt one after another, leading to the Medici family’s downfall.

Among these bank failures, the incident involving Edward IV was the bankruptcy of the London branch in 1472.

* * *

The biggest source of income for Italian city-states, including Florence, was the woolen cloth business.

To make famous Italian woolen cloth, high-quality wool was needed, and the largest supplier of this wool was England.

England had already been making great efforts to foster the woolen cloth industry since the time of Edward III.

They scouted woolen cloth artisans from Italy and the Benelux region to settle in England and restricted the import of woolen cloth.

They blocked the import of low-priced goods and prioritized high-priced goods, even limiting the quantity.

Thanks to these policies, England’s woolen cloth industry grew significantly.

However, where there is light, there is darkness.

As the internal woolen cloth industry in England grew, the amount of wool coming into Italy decreased significantly.

To solve this, they used wool from Spain and other countries as substitutes, but the quality was not as good as the wool exported from England.

Eventually, in a meeting to import English wool, Edward IV demanded a large loan.

Lorenzo’s Medici family had no choice but to approve this loan against their will.

And Edward IV neatly defaulted on this loan, and the London branch of the Medici Bank went bankrupt.

The reason Edward IV could do this was that it was not the Medici Bank or the Medici family of the past.

The powerful financial resources and political power of Cosimo de Medici’s time had long disappeared, so Edward IV defaulted without worry.

* * *

However, as history changed with Hyang’s intervention, the relationship between the Medici family and England also changed a lot.

First of all, Cosimo and Giovanni lived longer, and the division of labor between Lorenzo and Giovanni was properly established.

Giovanni was initially evaluated as mediocre, but he was definitely more capable than Lorenzo. In addition, his performance and experience gained over time traveling between the Empire and Italy turned him from just an ordinary merchant into a cunning old fox.

The Medici Bank also became more solid, returning more profits than Cosimo had spent.

Thanks to this, European monarchs, including Edward IV, still had no choice but to be mindful of the Medici family.

In addition, the market situation changed by Hyang’s intervention made England and Edward IV struggle.

It wasn’t that Hyang deliberately used tricks, but it was the result of the butterfly effect.

* * *

Thanks to Hyang’s generous help, Sejong and Joseon [Korea] opened their doors early.

And following Joseon, Ming [China], Waeguk [Japan], and other Asian countries also began to open their doors one by one.

At first, the entire trade consisted of importing and selling oriental goods, starting with items from Joseon, symbolized as the ‘Land of Flowers’.

However, a merchant is a merchant.

“There’s a limit to just bringing in and selling goods from the ‘Land of Flowers’ or the Orient. We need to have things to sell as well.”

To gain greater profits, European merchants tried to export European products to the East.

However, the European merchants who challenged the Eastern market suffered setbacks.

“I forgot why Eastern goods were popular in Europe….”

The merchants could only smile bitterly.

The reason why products from the East, including Joseon, were popular in Europe was not just because they were ‘strange objects from a distant foreign land’.

They had superior quality and beauty compared to European goods used for similar purposes.

And at the pinnacle of that was Joseon, called the ‘Land of Flowers’, and later, the Empire.

Therefore, they could make reasonable profits targeting Southeast Asian countries, which were largely underdeveloped, but they had no choice but to see deficits in Northeast Asia, especially in the largest markets, the Empire and Ming.

To be precise, the merchants did not see deficits, but European countries had no choice but to see deficits nationally.

To break away from the one-sided trade relationship, European merchants worked hard to penetrate the markets of the Empire and Ming.

In the process, woolen cloth and expensive lace emerged as promising products.

Woolen cloth exported from Europe, especially Italy, attracted the attention of the Empire’s fashionistas.

The Jurchen people in the northern part of the Empire and the Mongolian nomads also produced woolen cloth. However, the quality of European woolen cloth was superior to that. Also, the quality of dyeing was superior to that of the northern regions or Mongolia, so European woolen cloth began to be used for winter clothes by the people of the Empire.

As woolen cloth began to be sold in the Empire, Italian merchants, including the Medici, began to focus on exporting woolen cloth.

“The Empire’s winter is famous for being harsh! It can definitely sell well!”

However, contrary to expectations, the sales of woolen cloth were sluggish.

While Italian woolen cloths were sluggish, French laces were gaining popularity among the upper-class women of the Empire and Ming.

The person most stimulated by this was Giovanni. One of the Medici family’s main industries was woolen cloth. As such, their pride in woolen cloth was also high.

“Find out why the people of the ‘Land of Flowers’ are reluctant to use woolen cloth!”

“Yes!”

The results obtained through their own market research were as follows:

-Good for warmth and elasticity, but too heavy and stiff.

“Heavy and stiff?”

Giovanni, who received the report, examined the cloths made by the people of the Empire and Ming. Giovanni, who obtained and examined silk, cotton, and hemp at different price ranges, nodded.

“Indeed….”

In the case of silk and cotton cloth, which were preferred by the people of the Empire, the higher the price, the softer and lighter they were. This was the same for Ming and Japan.

On the other hand, Italian woolen cloth was heavier and stiffer compared to these.

Giovanni, who knew the problem, began to look for wool from Europe and the Middle East to find a solution.

Through that investigation, Spanish wool emerged as a strong candidate.

The wool from Merino sheep had a quality comparable to that of English wool.

In addition, it had a strength that English wool did not have.

The wool was very fine.

So Giovanni turned his purchasing line to Spain.

While producing woolen cloth with Spanish wool, they suffered from an extremely high defect rate in the beginning.

This was because of the artisans who were accustomed to English wool and the looms that were tailored to the characteristics of English wool.

However, as the artisans became accustomed to Spanish wool and the looms were improved, woolen fabrics that could be sold in the Northeast Asian market began to emerge.

And as time passed, soft and light woolen cloths like silk, which were preferred by the people of the Empire and Ming, came out, and woolen cloth from Florence became popular in the Empire and Ming.

In addition, a new trend that spread among the European upper class also played a part.

As ‘Empire style’ became popular, upper-class European women had to wear Empire-style dresses to avoid being ostracized.

To make Empire-style clothes, it was right to make them with fabrics from the Empire, but making them from top to bottom with Empire-made fabrics was too expensive. However, the newly released woolen cloth from Florence was as close as possible to the characteristics of Empire-made fabrics, and the price was reasonably affordable.

Thanks to this, Florentine woolen cloth became popular in European high society.

As time passed, stories about Spanish wool and woolen cloth using it spread among Florence’s rival cities and competitors, and Spanish wool gradually began to push out English wool.

As things changed like this, England and Edward IV were having a hard time.

It wasn’t what Hyang intended.

* * *

“Delivering the secret weapon to Edward of London is not a pleasant task. But it’s unavoidable to prevent France from getting too far ahead. Tsk!”

Cosimo clicked his tongue. Edward IV of England was never a good customer. But he was an essential figure to control France.

France was Florence’s ally, along with Portugal and the Ottomans. But France was a European power.

The country with the largest population and the most fertile land in Europe was France.

In addition, France had recently merged with the Duchy of Burgundy, making it even larger.

If they could just recover from the aftermath of the ‘Hundred Years’ War’, France would be a powerful country that would immediately dominate the European political situation.

“If we fail to stop France’s dominance, our family will be reduced to the French king’s money bag. We must prevent this.”

Giovanni and Lorenzo both nodded at Cosimo’s words.

Although the Alps blocked them, France could strike down on Florence at any time if they wanted to.

The Medici family lending money to the French king and nobles was not only a business aspect but also a way to secure the city’s safety.

If France dominated as Cosimo feared, the French king would become an unfaithful trader. Nevertheless, it was certain that the Medici family would have to continue lending the French king as much as he wanted.

Otherwise, the French king would not only default on the loans he borrowed from the Medici family but also mobilize troops to strike into Florence and carry out looting.

Of course, the capture of Florence could be seen as the worst-case scenario. However, it was certain that the share structure of the Suez Railway would change immediately. It would be difficult to touch the shares of the Ottomans and the Empire, but it was certain that Portugal and Florence would have to bear great losses.

Therefore, Cosimo was planning to steal the secret of the secret weapon from France and leak it to neighboring countries.

And England was chosen as the first target.

“Lorenzo.”

“Yes.”

“If we don’t leak the secret of the secret weapon, what do you think will happen?”

Lorenzo answered Cosimo’s question without hesitation.

“Even if we don’t leak it, they will develop or steal it themselves. But it will be delayed that much more. And France will be ahead by that much time. France, which has gone ahead like that, will fight England again first.”

“Why?”

“Because of Calais [a French city under English rule at the time].”

Cosimo nodded at Lorenzo’s answer and looked at Giovanni.

“Do you think the same?”

Giovanni nodded at Cosimo’s question and answered.

“Yes. Calais will be the spark of war. And we will have to spend money unnecessarily. A lot of it.”