Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 497

497. Lord of War (3)

“Did you call for me?”

“I apologize for summoning someone so busy.”

“Not at all. What brings you here?”

Hyang cut straight to the chase with Yi Cheon.

“I would like you to prepare for the production of the inferior Gapshik Jangchong [a type of long rifle] model that we only created prototypes of before.”

Yi Cheon chuckled slightly at Hyang’s words and replied.

“I have already prepared for it. Just give the order, and we can start production immediately.”

“How did you know?”

“I heard that a messenger went to the Daene clan. If our Joseon is sending a messenger to Waeguk [an old term for Japan], I predicted that a production order for the inferior model would be issued.”

At Yi Cheon’s response, Hyang glanced at the four standing by and opened his mouth.

“Indeed, I feel relieved thanks to you, General.”

“I have been in the military for decades. A general should be able to see at least two moves ahead.”

Hyang glanced at the four again at Yi Cheon’s reply and responded.

“It’s not just generals, is it? Those who desire high positions must all have that mindset. Anyway, if we start production now, how many units can we produce per month?”

“We can produce up to 100 units per month. If we postpone the production of the improved Gapshik Jangchong model, we can produce up to 300 units.”

“Will it not strain the production of the Tubokgu (投爆球, throwing bomb) requested by the Daene clan?”

“The organization in charge of production is separate, so it is fine.”

Upon hearing Yi Cheon’s answer, Hyang immediately issued the order.

“Then, please start production immediately.”

“Yes, I will start production right away. Ah! You will need to send more people to Annam Mountain.”

“To Annam Mountain? Is it because of the flint?”

“Yes. The fire starters are quite popular.”

Hyang nodded immediately at Yi Cheon’s answer.

“The Ministry of Finance will be pleased to hear that. Yes, I will send people. Ah! Please also provide the unit price list for the inferior model and the Tubokgu.”

“I already have it with me.”

“As expected!”

Impressed by Yi Cheon’s foresight, Hyang glared openly at the four. Each time they received Hyang’s glare, the four flinched.

‘It stings, it stings!’

‘Please, just scold us outright!’

* * *

After Yi Cheon left, Hyang handed the documents he received to the four.

“Based on this, set an appropriate selling price and report back.”

“Are you planning to sell them to the Daene clan for money?”

“Then should I give them away for free? Is our Joseon that rich?”

“Ah….”

“And, prepare an order to send to Annam Mountain and bring it to me.”

“Yes.”

The four, who answered immediately, quickly left Hyang’s office.

Left alone in his office, Hyang muttered to himself.

“The ‘Deokjil [being a passionate fan of something]’ I did in the 21st century is helping again.”

* * *

The rifle named ‘Gapshik Jangchong Yeolhyeong (劣型, inferior model)’ was a downgraded version of the Gapshik Jangchong. To be more precise, it was an inferior version of the Kentucky Rifle, which was the prototype for the Gapshik Jangchong. No, it was a flintlock musket, commonly referred to as a flintlock or matchlock rifle.

“Why did you create such a regressed rifle?”

At first, when the blueprints for the prototype were presented, all the staff members expressed doubts. Hyang explained the reason for their doubts.

“We sent Dongchong [copper rifles] to Ming. But the performance of the Dongchong is somewhat lacking, isn’t it?”

The staff members all nodded at Hyang’s words. Hyang continued.

“Ming will develop it into a superior performance based on that. The concern is that the guns developed in that way will flow into countries other than Ming. If there are countries among those that would harm our Joseon, I plan to distribute this to countries that would help us. No matter how urgent it is, we cannot give away our Gapshik Jangchong, can we?”

The staff members all nodded strongly at Hyang’s words. They were the staff members who had participated in the development since it was called Gapshik Jangchongtong. They knew the performance of the Gapshik Jangchong better than anyone else, so they immediately understood Hyang’s purpose.

“It will be far inferior to the Gapshik Jangchong, but it will have overwhelming performance compared to Dongchong or other rifles.”

Hyang nodded at Yi Cheon’s words.

“That is the purpose.”

Yi Cheon, who was examining the blueprints while listening to Hyang’s words, opened his mouth.

“The firing mechanism has become a bit more complicated, but it is not too complex, and since the rifling in the barrel has disappeared, it will actually require less work.”

“That’s the purpose.”

‘This is a musket, not a rifle!’

However, Yi Cheon pointed out a problem in another area.

“The problem is the flint. It is not easy to obtain a large quantity of hard flint.”

Hyang immediately replied to Yi Cheon’s point.

“Regarding that, I heard a rumor when I went incognito to the marketplace. Good flint comes from Annam Mountain (now Gyeyang Mountain).”

“Is that so? Then I will send people to investigate.”

Yi Cheon tilted his head for a moment at Hyang’s words, but soon understood and responded.

‘The Crown Prince’s eccentric behavior was famous!’

Although he is quiet now, Hyang was famous for his frequent incognito outings when he was young.

Of course, most of the reasons for having to go incognito were due to Princess Jeongso’s hunger strikes. He went incognito to find snacks for Princess Jeongso to eat secretly.

However, there were few officials who questioned Hyang’s frequent incognito outings.

“Is there a problem with an outing where he does everything he needs to do?”

This was because Sejong came forward to defend him. No official with enough guts to speak frankly would stand against the strongest royal authority since the purge of Ryu Jeong-hyeon’s faction.

* * *

Anyway, based on Hyang’s words, a large-scale exploration operation began on Annam Mountain.

“Indeed, there are many high-quality raw stones!”

Hyang, who received the report, immediately suggested to Sejong.

“It would be good to process the raw stones and sell them at the monopoly office.”

“Flint at the monopoly office?”

When Sejong hesitated slightly, Kim Jeom, who was the Minister of Finance at the time, immediately jumped out.

“That is a very good idea! The people put a lot of effort into managing the embers! But if there is high-quality flint, that effort can be greatly reduced!”

“Is that so? Then, let’s do that….”

Pushed by Kim Jeom’s momentum, Sejong immediately approved.

And, when the monopoly office sold high-quality flint, the people continued to praise it.

Hearing the story, Hyang muttered inwardly.

‘Searching for data to make a Kentucky Rifle in the 21st century is helpful in many ways.’

* * *

In the 21st century, Hyang – then Jin-ho – who ran a blacksmith shop, made Kentucky Rifles by order of American reenactors. After finishing the production of the rifle, Hyang had a slightly troubled expression.

“The flint is the problem?”

To do an actual test, a suitable flint was needed.

“Should I find chert and break it?”

Searching the internet to find something suitable to use as flint, Hyang learned about Gyeyang Mountain, which was famous for flint in the late Joseon period.

-There was a military officer named Jeong Du-won from the Gwangju Jeong clan. Joseon, which suffered severely in the Imjin War, began to make and research matchlock guns. Jeong Du-won and his subordinates, who were dedicated to this task, realized that the wick or flint to light the fire was as important as the matchlock gun and searched the flint production areas throughout the country. In this way, they found the best raw stone on Gyeyang Mountain.

After that, merchants selling flint in the Joseon marketplace considered the flint of Annam Mountain to be the best.

“Flint from Annam Mountain in Bupyeong! Whetstone from Baromoe!”

The flint from Annam Mountain in Bupyeong and the whetstone from the nearby Baromoe Pass (now Geomam-dong) became known as the best flint and whetstone in Joseon.(Note 1)

Hyang, who saw the record on the internet, seriously considered it.

“Should I go to Gyeyang Mountain once?”

However, his attempt failed. Shortly after, he was severely scolded by a cousin who came to visit.

* * *

As the stock of the inferior Gapshik Jangchong to be sent to Ouchi accumulated to some extent, Hyang sent a person to Ouchi.

-Send a messenger to discuss the purchase of long rifles.

“A messenger from the Daene clan has arrived with the messenger we sent.”

“Let them in.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The messenger from Ouchi, who entered with the eunuch, bowed politely.

“I greet Your Highness.”

Hyang, who received the greeting, sparkled his eyes.

“You, aren’t you dead?”

The messenger bowed his head and replied to Hyang’s question.

“Thanks to the great mercy of my lord, I was fortunate enough to continue my insignificant life.”

“Is that so? Be loyal to your lord.”

“Yes!”

After exchanging words that were more like nagging than blessings, Hyang got to the point.

“I accepted the Daene clan’s request and made a long rifle for the Daene clan to use. But this gun is a monster that eats money, so I can’t just give it away.”

“Then, how much will you give it to us for?”

“If I did it properly, I should receive 20 silver coins per unit, but considering the relationship between the Daene clan and our Joseon, I will only receive 12 silver coins per unit.”

“Gasp!”

The messenger was horrified by the higher-than-expected price. Seeing that, Hyang continued.

“Are there any warriors among those who accompanied you who are familiar with long rifles?”

“Yes, there is.”

“Let him examine it with you. Then he will know its value.”

“Yes? Yes.”

* * *

After a while, Hyang and his people appeared at the archery range created on one side of Gyeongbok Palace.

“This is the long rifle I will give you.”

At Hyang’s signal, a Naegeumwi [royal guard] officer handed the inferior long rifle to the messenger.

The messenger, who received the long rifle, handed it to the samurai who followed him.

The samurai’s eyes widened as he examined the gun he received from the messenger.

“こ, これは! 鉄砲です! (Ko, kore wa! Teppō desu! [This, this is a Teppo!])”

“Huh? Teppo?”

As a very familiar word popped out, Hyang immediately looked at the messenger. The messenger immediately explained.

“The Bakufu (幕府, shogunate) guys call the long rifle Teppo. Because it is made of iron.”

“Huh? Are there people in the Bakufu who have the skill to make long rifles with iron?”

‘Well, the source is obvious, but.’

The messenger immediately replied to Hyang’s question, hiding his feelings.

“Would those guys have the skill to do that? They say they brought it from Ming.”

“Is that so…. Ming….”

As Hyang showed a slight hesitation, the messenger hurriedly continued.

“It was not sent by the Ming court, but merchants smuggled it out!”

“Is that so? The Bakufu must have spent some money.”

The messenger immediately realized what Hyang’s words meant.

‘There is no negotiation. Either buy it or leave it?’

“Hoo~.”

The messenger, who sighed deeply as if giving up, opened his mouth.

“I want to see the performance.”

“Of course, I have to show you.”

* * *

Ten days later, the messenger who returned to Ouchi reported the situation to Mochiyo.

“…So, I decided to pay 12 silver coins per unit. And, I brought 100 long rifles first.”

“12 coins per unit! Even if it’s a Teppo! No, if it’s a Teppo, it should be cheaper!”

Mochiyo shouted.

As Mochiyo said, if you only consider the price of the material, copper was more expensive than iron. And, copper, which was moderately refined, withstood the explosion of gunpowder better.

The messenger immediately replied to Mochiyo’s scolding.

“How could I not know that? But it is also true that a long rifle made of properly refined iron is superior to one made of copper, isn’t it?”

Mochiyo calmed down and asked at the messenger’s answer.

“Are you saying it’s that good?”

“It was made by Joseon, and the Crown Prince of Joseon confidently handed it over.”

“Hmm….”

At the messenger’s answer, Mochiyo stroked his chin and pondered.

The messenger’s words were true. Joseon was a country with far more advanced technology than themselves, and the Crown Prince of that Joseon confidently handed over the item.

After a moment of thought, Mochiyo gave an order to one of his vassals.

“Go and call Katanshi (刀師, swordsmith).”

“Hatt!”

Mochiyo, who sent out his vassal, glared at the messenger.

“I will see the evaluation of the best swordsmith in our territory. If it is sloppy, I will hold you responsible, and don’t expect luxuries like seppuku (切腹, ritual suicide).”

“Hatt!”

* * *

Note 1) Local N Culture. Story Data.

https://ncms.nculture.org/traditional-stories/story/6431