There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 422

423. The World Now (3)

The City of Eternal Night.

This term originated from Kaifeng, the prosperous capital of the Song Dynasty, where lights burned late into the night. In present-day Nanjing, however, the term carried a slightly different connotation.

It was well past midnight, yet lights still shone in government offices throughout Nanjing.

Moreover, these were electric lights, a novelty that, just a few years prior, would have been a spectacle even in Hanseong [Seoul].

“Goodness, even when I studied in the capital, I was nearly shocked to see electric lights,” Seo Yu-jeong, a junior official (Wonoe-rang) in the Nanjing Ministry of Rites, muttered as he wrestled with his documents.

The red-hot filament cast a dim glow.

Of course, this was only possible in Nanjing, a major city directly connected to and influenced by Zhili [region directly governed by the central government], along with its coastal and inland areas.

Most of the inland regions continued their traditional way of life.

However, these regions, where ‘Joseonification’ [integration into Joseon’s systems and culture] was prioritized, accounted for the majority of the country’s wealth, making them far from insignificant.

Many struggled to adapt to the rapidly changing world, but Seo Yu-jeong was not among them.

He had passed the Jinshi [highest-level civil service examination] during the reign of Seonjo, but the war and the fall of the Ming Dynasty had nearly shattered his dream of holding office.

Some spat and left, decrying the barbarian takeover, while others hoped the new emperor would seek out virtuous men to serve.

In Seo Yu-jeong’s eyes, they were equally ignorant of the times.

Foreigners had held power for centuries.

Compared to that long history, the 80-year reign of the Ming Dynasty, a brief period of Han Chinese unity, was an anomaly.

More importantly, even if Joseon were to fall, it would endure for at least a century. Who would reward him for clinging to his principles until his bones turned to dust?

As a figure who, in another timeline, had instigated the Tumu Crisis [a major military defeat of the Ming Dynasty] to restore Emperor Zhengtong, his ambition was considerable.

The problem was that this ambition could only be realized if Joseon offered opportunities for advancement.

Joseon adopted the Ming Dynasty’s governing structure wholesale, bringing hundreds of officials, including Chief State Councilor Yi Do, from Zhili.

There was no disruption of state affairs, and the emperor’s edict to ‘widely seek out virtuous men,’ which some had secretly hoped for, never came.

Joseon officials, dispatched throughout the Central Plains, meticulously surveyed the population and yields of each region, swiftly classifying, compiling, and reporting the data.

After some negotiation, the Hyangyak [village regulations] that effectively governed rural society actively cooperated with the new dynasty, allowing Joseon to extend its reach to the most remote corners of the Central Plains.

Only those like Seo Yu-jeong, who had always aspired to serve in the central government, were left grasping at straws.

However, as the saying goes, knock and the door will open.

Around that time, an order was issued requiring all officials to learn the national language and script [Korean Hangul].

He actively proclaimed his loyalty to Joseon and was appointed to the court, even attending the training institute in Hanseong.

Even after securing a position, the competition didn’t cease.

To succeed among the Joseon officials arriving from Zhili each year and the Han Chinese officials already serving in the Nanjing court, one needed considerable expertise.

Fortunately, he possessed the technical skills that Joseon valued.

Historically, Seo Yu-jeong was seen as an opportunist, but he also demonstrated exceptional abilities in civil engineering.

However, construction projects now required concrete and cement, known as Gungiltto [special type of soil] and lime soil.

Most technical documents from Zhili were written in the newly established national script (Gukja) [Korean Hangul], leaving those who hadn’t learned the Joseon language and script at a distinct disadvantage.

If the hierarchy between Joseon and Han Chinese were clearly defined, he wouldn’t have to struggle so hard for every inch of progress.

However, the Joseon court didn’t explicitly establish a hierarchy based on ethnicity.

Even during the census, if someone presented a revised family register claiming descent from a Joseon ancestor, their claim was rarely questioned.

After so long under Joseon rule, in regions like Liaodong and Liaoxi, with their large populations of Goryeo [ancient Korean kingdom] descent, most had long since assimilated and identified as Joseon people.

Seo Yu-jeong didn’t want to go that far, but he had to do what he could.

That was why he was poring over case studies written by Zhili engineers late into the night.

Water management was the emperor’s concern.

The Yellow River, which flooded every few years, was an uncontrollable monster.

If the Yellow River truly raged, it could devastate the entire country.

Therefore, Seo Yu-jeong resolved:

‘If I can successfully complete the Yellow River project, rising to the rank of Minister is not an impossible dream.’

The Yellow River was difficult to manage, but the manpower and resources allocated to it were substantial.

Wasn’t the discontent arising from the massive mobilization of people for Yellow River embankment construction one of the reasons for the mighty Yuan Dynasty’s collapse?

However, he had heard that Joseon had carried out large-scale construction projects with a surprisingly small workforce.

Advanced construction materials and equipment must play a significant role.

Even though they undertook civil engineering projects on a national scale, they hardly consumed any manpower, so by carefully examining the engineers’ case studies…

“…Huh!”

When he looked up, having briefly dozed off, the clock’s hour hand had moved considerably.

Seo Yu-jeong hurriedly tore the paper stuck to his cheek and stood up.

The clothes draped over his shoulders slipped off.

“This is…?”

Seo Yu-jeong picked up the garment, his expression turning terrified.

It was a Gonryongpo [ceremonial robe], the blue robe worn by a Prince.

Seo Yu-jeong felt goosebumps rather than gratitude.

‘Hasn’t the Chief State Councilor left work yet?’

The Chief State Councilor’s office, brightly lit, was visible in the distance.

It was past two o’clock, and he was still working.

How was this Nanjing court even functioning?

* * *

“Why is he still so healthy?”

Yi Do thought, arms crossed.

Feigning illness was the easiest excuse when resigning.

However, the Emperor, under the guise of caring for his younger brother, even sent the royal physician to check his health, making it impossible to fake an illness.

Of course, as he considered brotherly trust the greatest virtue, he wouldn’t have deceived his brother even without such measures, but at this point, he felt he had been sufficiently overworked.

But since no noticeable disease had appeared, he himself was perplexed.

‘Why is there nothing wrong with me?’

Looking back, it was all thanks to his brother, who had diligently trained him since childhood, building up his basic physical strength.

Otherwise, wouldn’t he be living his whole life squandering the body that had been briefly built up, since he was born into a family with martial blood?

In the original timeline, symptoms like eye disease, arthritis, and spondylitis appeared early on, and he was slowly becoming a walking infirmary, but now there was nothing particularly wrong.

His physique was more imposing than others, but originally, a large build was a symbol of a hero, so it was something to be proud of.

Even so, his workload had recently decreased considerably.

The emotional reunion with his eldest son was only temporary, and his sons, who had begun to arrive in Nanjing one by one, wouldn’t let him enjoy any delicious food.

Brainwashed by their cousin, even his son, Grand Prince Imyeong, snatched the candied apple from his father’s hand not long ago.

‘Adding sugar to sugar! If you eat such unhealthy food, your morning and evening exercises will be pointless! How can you face His Majesty, who worries about you day and night, if you do this!’

‘No, that was also developed by my brother…’

To be lectured by his son, of all people, he felt he could vaguely understand the feelings of his grandfather, Yi Seong-gye [founder of the Joseon Dynasty].

‘Surely, he only told me to be the Chief State Councilor until the country stabilized.’

However, even now that Joseon’s rule was firmly established and communication with Zhili was connected, he was still serving as the Chief State Councilor, which was truly puzzling.

In the meantime, he had released the Gangnam warehouses according to the harvest in Zhili, implemented the ‘Joseon-style’ civil service examination, laid telegraph lines linked to relay stations, and reorganized the ports… Hadn’t he done enough?

That being said, he couldn’t tolerate neglecting the work he was entrusted with.

Yi Do picked up the memorial in front of him.

“Appointment of the Six Ministries’ Ministers? I should report this to my royal brother. The Hanlim Academy’s [Royal Academy] request to reorganize the cabinet… can be ignored.”

His workaholic tendency to find work even when there was none was essentially encouraging his continued service, though he didn’t realize it.

The scholars of the cabinet were mostly selected from the Hanlim Academy, but that didn’t mean the cabinet and the Hanlim Academy necessarily agreed.

Above all, factions existed even within the Hanlim Academy, which was responsible for advising the king. One faction was the old royal family led by Prince Yeong, and the other was the newly appointed Confucian scholars from the Central Plains.

Yi Do had so far used the advice of the new forces, the Clear Stream Party, as a shield to abolish the economic benefits given to the old royal family, thereby reducing the financial burden, but he couldn’t ignore them completely.

They were also a symbol that he had given legitimacy to his royal brother, and weren’t they also his brother’s in-laws?

If he was careless, it could be seen as a power struggle between the Yi clan and the Zhu clan.

No, that would be fortunate; he might hear that a powerful member of the royal family was trying to eliminate the maternal relatives of the Crown Prince.

Getting caught up in such political strife was absolutely forbidden.

He felt sleepy from working late into the night, but unlike the absent-minded official who had been dozing off earlier, he had a secret weapon.

“Shall I drink a cup of Gahwahwa (嘉嗅窪) [Coffee]?”

Kahwah, that is, coffee, had been introduced to the Central Plains some time ago.

Since Yu Jeong-hyeon first introduced it, claiming to have tasted it in Mocha, Emperor Yi Je had been working hard to obtain coffee seeds.

Once, he packed a lot of Biak [a type of aphrodisiac] from Cheonghaejin and tried to trade for the seeds, but he was told that they couldn’t easily give up the seeds, which were more precious than gold, unless he handed over the Biak manufacturing method itself.

Then, the wise people of Cheonghaejin decided to teach him other uses of Biak.

The Biak that had been offered in exchange was converted into gunpowder.

There was a brief commotion, but anyway, he had given Biak and received coffee, so it could be considered a successful transaction.

After obtaining the seeds, the next problem was finding a suitable place to plant them.

The Emperor, from some unknown source, claimed that Gahwah, grown in the highlands of hot regions, had the best aroma.

However, he couldn’t clearly specify where that was, so he had to find it himself.

The place chosen as the coffee production area was Yunnan (雲南) [province in southwestern China].

Even in modern times, it’s where 98% of China’s green beans are produced.

Now that this Gahwachha had become an indispensable drink for the poor Joseon officials despite its expensive price, its popularity was truly surpassing Hyeonju [traditional Korean liquor] and Hwanda [another type of traditional Korean liquor].

Its popularity wasn’t limited to the country.

It had become a popular product that Joseon merchants packed and sold when they traveled abroad.

Especially in those faraway barbarian countries that couldn’t resist Joseon-made products.

* * *

The price of Joseon goods jumps several times the moment they cross the Suez.

This was partly due to the high profits from the Suez transit trade that the Mamluks [a ruling dynasty in Egypt] were taking, but it also meant that the demand for Joseon goods was very high in the Western world.