Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 154

Jjangra

Hello, Bomb!

154. Seeds of Unrest (3)

Late at night, Gangnyeongjeon Hall.

“Let’s call it a day. You’ve all worked hard.”

“May you rest peacefully.”

As Sejong dismissed the scribes and was changing into his sleeping robe, a eunuch standing outside announced,

“Your Majesty, the Royal Guard Captain requests an audience.”

“Let him in.”

A moment later, the Royal Guard Captain entered Gangnyeongjeon Hall, bowed respectfully to Sejong, and took a seat.

“So, what brings you here?”

At Sejong’s question, the Royal Guard Captain glanced around before speaking softly.

“Urgent news has arrived from Cheonggyecheon [a stream in Seoul, often associated with intelligence gathering].”

At the Royal Guard Captain’s report, Sejong’s face hardened, and he held out his hand.

“Let me see it.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

At Sejong’s command, the Royal Guard Captain took a well-sealed letter from his inner pocket and handed it to Sejong. Tearing open the envelope and unfolding the letter inside, Sejong carefully read the contents.

After reading the letter for a long time, Sejong sighed deeply and handed it over.

“Hoo~. Read it.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The Royal Guard Captain respectfully received the letter and slowly read through it.

The Royal Guard Captain’s face was more serious than ever after reading the letter.

“Have you finished reading?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. You must issue orders to the Left and Right Police Bureaus immediately.”

At the Royal Guard Captain’s request, Sejong shook his head.

“No, I will not. Issuing orders now could repeat the folly of ‘startling the snake in the grass’ [an idiom meaning to alert the enemy prematurely]. Relay the following to Cheonggyecheon: Identify who they are meeting and where they are staying, and do not let ambition cloud their judgment.”

“I will relay your orders.”

“And, can I trust the Royal Guard and the Capital Garrison?”

At Sejong’s question, the Royal Guard Captain answered resolutely.

“The Royal Guard is only loyal to Your Majesty.”

“I will trust only the Royal Guard Captain.”

At Sejong’s words, the Royal Guard Captain saluted.

“I will not fail Your Majesty’s trust!”

As the Royal Guard Captain left, Sejong examined the letter with a troubled expression. Opening the glass cover of the lamp and setting the letter on fire, Sejong muttered as he watched it burn on the copper tray.

“Brother, I hope it’s not you.”

* * *

The Geomgye [secret agents], having received orders through the secret line, immediately began their work. Using Geomgye members skilled in tailing and the beggars of Cheonggyecheon, they began to gather rough information about the individuals in question.

“We found them.”

“Really? Where are they?”

“At the house of the former Minister of Justice.”

At the Geomgye member’s report, the Bukchon Geomgye leader’s face turned serious.

“The former Minister of Justice… Seo Dal’s father?”

“Yes.”

At the Geomgye member’s report, the leader clicked his tongue.

“Tsk! He’s finally making a move.”

At the leader’s words, the Geomgye members all nodded. Everyone in Hanseong knew about the bad blood between Sejong, the Crown Prince, and former Minister Seo Seon and his son, Seo Dal.

“Are you going to report this immediately?”

At the Geomgye member’s question, the leader shook his head.

“No. Gather more information. Which of our guys is good at climbing walls? It seems like we’ll have to play mouse again after a long time.”

At the Bukchon Geomgye leader’s words, the Geomgye members began to sort out those who were good at such things.

Similar events were taking place in the Geomgye of Dadong and Unjongga.

“The problem is that there are many overlaps and the information isn’t well organized.”

The Dadong Geomgye leader pointed out the problem at a meeting of the leaders. The other leaders all nodded at the Dadong leader’s point.

“I think it would be best to join forces and move together this time.”

“Let’s do that.”

According to the leaders’ agreement, a kind of temporary joint headquarters was created. Geomgye members who were good with their minds and served as strategists gathered in one place to analyze the information brought by the members of each Geomgye.

“The guys gathering in Hanseong right now are coming from the Giho region.”

“Unexpected? I thought they would be coming from the troubled Samnam region these days?”

“The Giho region… I guess it can’t be helped. It’s too far to come from Samnam.”

The strategists of each Geomgye began to put together a big picture by gathering the information coming in.

As they created this picture, the strategists realized that they were missing something important.

“This is a bit unsettling, isn’t it?”

“What is?”

“Can Minister Seo really pull this off alone?”

“There are other nobles too.”

“Those nobles are just feathers, the problem is that Minister Seo can be the body, but he doesn’t have the head. The head. After carrying out a major event like ‘invading the palace (犯闕, daegweol-eul chimbeomham) [a serious act of treason],’ can he just step back?”

The other strategists nodded at the point made by the Bukchon Geomgye strategist, who knew the ways of the nobles well.

“That’s true.”

“It’s impossible for Minister Seo himself to ascend to the throne….”

As the strategists were searching for a suitable answer to the question, ‘Who is the head?’, the Dadong Geomgye strategist suddenly jumped up from his seat.

“Gwangju!”

“Gwangju? You mean Gwangju in Jeolla-do?”

“You idiot! Gwangju in Gyeonggi-do!”

“Ah!”

The other strategists were horrified at the Dadong Geomgye strategist’s words.

Grand Prince Yangnyeong was in Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do.

Yangnyeong was more than qualified to be the head. He was originally the eldest son of the late king and the crown prince before being pushed aside.

“If it’s that nobleman, then the fact that the guys from the Giho region are gathering isn’t just a matter of distance!”

“The guys from Giho are the main force!”

The picture began to come together quickly when Yangnyeong was placed as the head.

* * *

Although he was pushed out of the position of Crown Prince, Yangnyeong still lived causing trouble.

He continued to cause trouble with alcohol and women, and he caused problems by wandering around to hunt.

Yangnyeong, who suddenly appeared, conscripted the residents of the town as beaters, claiming that they were needed for hunting, and squandered the wealth stored in the government office and the monopoly bureau by holding banquets, which frequently led to appeals from local officials and officials from the Ministry of Taxation and Finance who said they could not live.

In addition, he openly violated the order not to enter Hanseong and frequently visited the palace.

As a result, appeals from the officials to punish Yangnyeong poured in, but Sejong did not accept them. For Sejong, Yangnyeong was a political Achilles’ heel.

* * *

At the strategists’ reports, the leaders immediately issued orders.

“Send someone to find out where that nobleman is right now!”

“No!”

The strategists opposed the leaders’ orders.

“Hanseong is in our hands, but other places are foreign to us. We’ll be exposed immediately!”

“That’s right! It’s better to follow that nobleman from the moment he enters Hanseong!”

“He may already be in Hanseong! First, report to His Majesty and search Hanseong again!”

At the strategists’ words, the leaders sat back down and sorted out the situation.

After exchanging their opinions, the leaders immediately came to a conclusion.

“First, we report to His Majesty.”

* * *

The report written by the Geomgye was immediately sent to Sejong.

“Seo Seon, huh….”

“Shall we arrest him immediately?”

Sejong, confirming the name written in the report submitted by the Geomgye, gnashed his teeth and repeated Seo Seon’s name, and the Royal Guard Captain asked.

At the Royal Guard Captain’s question, Sejong shook his head.

“No, I will not act rashly now. Instead, Royal Guard Captain, have the Royal Guard quietly prepare. They will probably move soon. Because that kind of thing will happen.”

“Understood.”

At Sejong’s command, the Royal Guard Captain bowed his head and answered.

Sejong, who was burning the letter, suddenly remembered something he had forgotten and hurriedly turned to the Royal Guard Captain.

“Royal Guard Captain!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“How much does Seo Seon know about the Royal Guard’s armaments?”

At Sejong’s question, the Royal Guard Captain paused to recall before answering.

“He knew about the deployment of the Gapsik Jangchongtong [a type of long-barreled musket].”

“What about the Gapsik Masangchongtong [a type of horse-mounted musket]?”

When Sejong mentioned the Gapsik Masangchongtong, the Royal Guard Captain immediately realized the point of the question.

“At that time, it had not yet been deployed, but Minister Seo would have anticipated that as well.”

“I suppose so? Then prepare the Bigeokjincheonleis [a type of cannon] as well. But, no rumors should spread.”

“I will obey your command.”

“Absolutely no rumors should spread.”

The Royal Guard Captain immediately gave an answer to Sejong’s request.

“We can use Area 51.”

“That’s right. I’ll tell the Crown Prince about that issue.”

The weapons used by the Royal Guard and the Capital Garrison were regularly maintained in Area 51. It was not just the maintenance of weapons. Area 51 was the place where the soldiers of the Royal Guard and the Capital Garrison conducted live-fire training.

After the Royal Guard Captain left, Sejong looked at the letter that had turned to ashes. The reason why he could not show this letter to the Royal Guard Captain was because of one name written in the letter.

“Brother. Please, restrain yourself.”

* * *

Although there were ominous movements in Hanseong, Sejong did not stop his offensive against the local gentry.

The last and most devastating attack on the local gentry was the ‘tax reform.’

-From this year onwards, taxes will be collected from everyone who earns income.

-The tax rate will be determined based on the property and income they have.

The new tax system, called the ‘property income tax,’ was to collect taxes from everyone from tenant farmers to local gentry.

-Self-cultivating farmers pay taxes ranging from a minimum of 4 pun to 6 pun [currency units], depending on their yield, houses, fields, and the number of livestock they raise.

-Tenant farmers also have their tax rates determined based on the same criteria, but pay taxes ranging from a minimum of 1 pun to a maximum of 1 pun 5 ri [currency units].

-However, if the area of the rice paddies cultivated by the tenant farmer is larger than the average area of the self-cultivating farmer, and the yield is also greater than the average of the self-cultivating farmer, the same tax rate as the self-cultivating farmer will be applied.

-Tenant farmers who properly pay their taxes will have their rights and interests protected by the state.

There were complaints about the fact that even tenant farmers were being taxed, but the complaints soon subsided. The tax rate was also low, and it was because of the clause that the country would protect them if they paid their taxes properly.

It was a reasonably good system for self-cultivating farmers as well. The tax rate was slightly higher, but the tribute disappeared altogether.

However, the local gentry were hit with a tax bomb.

The first digit of the tax rate differed depending on whether the house they lived in was a thatched house or a tiled house, and the tax rate changed depending on how many kan [a unit of measurement for houses] the house had.

The fields they owned were also taxed differently depending on the area and yield.

The biggest problem was slaves. The tax rate changed depending on the number of slaves they had and how many slaves were of working age.

And this tax rate was a progressive tax rate.

As a result, the taxes that the local gentry had to pay were different in scale compared to the self-cultivating farmers.

The lowest payer paid 30% of this year’s yield, and an average tax rate of 46% was applied. There were quite a few people who were subject to an enormous tax rate of 58%.

However, the local gentry whose names remained on the hyangan [local registry of prominent families] were subject to more lenient standards.

-These are people who have done their best for the country, so they should be treated with respect.

Another attack was launched on the local gentry, who had to pay unexpectedly high taxes.

-All taxes will only be accepted in currency!

-Currency can only be exchanged at the National Joseon Mint, which will be established this time.

The local gentry, who were at least smart, quickly began to find answers to Sejong’s announcement.

“They’re telling us to emancipate the slaves on our own.”

“The yield is what’s left after paying what’s due…. We’ll have to use hired laborers from next year, even if not this year.”

Those who quickly found the answer were those who had worked in the court until recently and had retired.

Others, that is, most of the local gentry, chose to resist rather than accept the situation.

“Let’s write a petition!”

“That’s right! That’s right!”

Once again, petitions poured in, and news began to spread that local gentry would flock to the capital to protest.

While receiving the reports, Sejong sorted out the situation.

“It would be fortunate if it ended with a protest, but there is a possibility that stupid people will cause trouble. Then, something will happen in Hanseong, taking advantage of that gap. Since there is a limit to the forces that the other side can put into the palace, they will not miss this opportunity.”

Traditionally, when the Jurchen people of the north or the Japanese pirates of the south caused trouble, the troops guarding the palace moved to the front lines.

Therefore, those who attempted to invade the palace would be hoping that the local gentry would rise up.

Knowing that, Sejong had even created a disguise plan, mobilizing the Royal Guard Captain and a small number of military officers.

Sejong sighed deeply as he sorted out the situation.

“Hoo~. We need to sort out what needs to be sorted out this time….”