Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 601

601. Opening the Heavens – The Foundational Law Debate (4)

Thus, after overcoming many hurdles, the Foundational Law gradually established a more solid system.

In this process, Sejong, his ministers, and Hyang often spent sleepless nights engaging in heated debates. However, it was through such intense discussions that the system of the Foundational Law was refined.

Among them, Hyang was the most shocked.

‘Seriously! What era am I living in right now!’

Hyang was experiencing genuine culture shock.

Parts that were expected to cause major controversy passed smoothly, while Sejong and his ministers frequently engaged in fierce debates over seemingly trivial matters.

And when such debates dragged on, Sejong and his ministers all looked to Hyang.

“What does the Crown Prince think?”

“What are the Crown Prince’s thoughts on this?”

Each time he received such questions, Hyang broke out in a cold sweat.

Because there were more unexpected issues than anticipated.

Thanks to this, Hyang had to desperately rack his brain every time he was asked for his opinion.

“There is merit in what Father has said, and there is also merit in everyone’s opinions. Therefore, I would like to think about it a little more.”

Having avoided the immediate crisis with that answer, Hyang had to desperately rack his brain.

‘Think, you head! If I mess up, the image I’ve built up so far will collapse in an instant!’

The image created by Hyang’s achievements so far was that of being ‘omniscient.’ It was because of that image that the regency was proceeding smoothly.

Even though Sejong was supporting him from behind, he was largely absent from the day-to-day proceedings. Therefore, if the ministers decided to object, it was entirely possible. However, the reason that didn’t happen was because of the reputation Hyang had built up through his accomplishments.

In any case, thanks to such desperate efforts, knowledge learned from the 21st century, and practical experience, Hyang was able to come up with decent compromises.

And Sejong and his ministers, upon receiving these compromises, all praised him.

“As expected of the Crown Prince!”

“Indeed! To be so outstanding is truly a great blessing!”

Each time praise from Sejong and his ministers was given, Hyang lightly bowed his head and uttered words of humility.

“You flatter me.”

‘Haa~! I barely got through that crisis!’

Each time he overcame a crisis, Hyang analyzed the cause.

“Why did this happen? I must find out the cause! Otherwise, the future will be painful!”

After desperate analysis, Hyang was able to determine the underlying reasons.

“Is the conclusion ‘the road not taken’? Or is it ‘the third way’ [a compromise between two extremes]?”

* * *

The political system that Sejong created with the Foundational Law was difficult to find a precedent for.

It was neither a constitutional monarchy nor an absolute monarchy. And it certainly wasn’t a republic.

“If you delve into it, it’s closest to a constitutional monarchy….”

Hyang clicked his tongue as he reviewed the analysis. Clearly, based on the Foundational Law, it resembled a constitutional monarchy.

However, considering the famous proposition, ‘Reign, but do not govern,’ it couldn’t be definitively categorized as such. That was because the emperor was given considerable authority, starting with the right of veto.

However, it was also difficult to classify it as an absolute monarchy. The emperor had considerable authority, but institutional mechanisms were specified in the Foundational Law that prevented him from exercising that authority arbitrarily. In addition, clauses regarding the people’s human rights and various other rights were clearly codified.

The ideology of the ruling powers at this time also played a role.

One of the justifications for the dynastic revolution that changed Goryeo to Joseon was ‘to save the people who have fallen into misery.’ Therefore, policies that emphasized the welfare of the people were created.

Also, one of the fundamental tenets of Neo-Confucianism was ‘royal rule’ [rule by virtuous example]. Therefore, while acknowledging the absolute power of the monarch, they also emphasized the importance of checks and balances.

And, as always, the Great Reform [a period of significant social and economic change] played a major role. As the center of the economy shifted from agriculture to commerce and industry through the Great Reform, a large number of problems arose that were difficult to solve with the existing Neo-Confucian way of thinking. To solve these problems, new ideas had to be developed, and Sejong set ‘Hongik Ingan’ [Benefit all mankind] as the guiding principle.

The ‘Hongik Ingan’ advocated by Sejong was effective as a political justification and useful as a practical solution, so it was accepted without resistance by the ruling class as well as the general public.

Of course, there was also some distortion in the process.

The saying ‘Benefit all mankind’ was reinterpreted by some as ‘If it’s good for you and good for me, that’s all that matters.’

Thanks to this, institutions were created to monitor them, legal clauses were established, and manpower was steadily supplied to the record office and mines.

And the reason why this change in mindset was possible was because the current ruling class was not dogmatic.

* * *

Just before the Great Reform, Hyang had dismissed Ryu Jeong-hyeon and the veteran ministers who supported him as ‘Neo-Confucian Taliban.’

However, it was more accurate to see this as using Neo-Confucianism as a tool for political maneuvering rather than viewing them as genuinely dogmatic.

The veteran ministers, who had survived Taejong’s reign of terror, used Neo-Confucianism as a weapon to suppress the young Sejong, who had not been in power for long, and create a system of ‘weak monarch and strong ministers.’

However, as the veteran ministers were purged on a large scale due to Sejong’s counterattack, the possibility of dogmatism was greatly reduced.

In addition, the collapse of the local gentry due to the Giyu Rebellion [a political upheaval] that occurred in the middle of the Great Reform also contributed to nipping the seeds of dogmatism in the bud.

In the history before Hyang’s intervention, the Sinjin gentry class [newly emerging scholar-officials], which was the core of power and the center of thought in the mid-Joseon period, had collapsed.

Thanks to this, a contradictory political structure symbolized by the Foundational Law was created, which had elements of Neo-Confucianism but was too ambiguous to definitively categorize as such.

* * *

“However, it’s a bit of a stretch to say it’s completely ‘the third way.’ It feels familiar for some reason….”

Thanks to this, Hyang, who was diligently searching his memory, was able to find the closest answer.

“Is it a modern constitutional monarchy… It feels a bit lacking, but this is probably the most accurate assessment.”

The reason Hyang said ‘it feels lacking’ was because of the existence of slavery and the system of guilt by association [punishing relatives for the crimes of an individual].

The Joseon social hierarchy was clearly specified as ‘Yangcheon system (the system of distinguishing between the commoners and the baseborn)’ in the Foundational Law.

Here, the baseborn were limited to slaves, and those who had been recognized as outcastes until then, such as entertainers, were all classified as commoners.

And this slave aspect was significantly different from the history before Hyang’s intervention.

Looking at the situation in Sejong’s time in the history before Hyang’s intervention, the number of private slaves was increasing and the number of government slaves was gradually decreasing. The number of people who wanted to become government slaves, who were more easily freed from their status, increased, which greatly reduced the need for government slaves. In addition, the number of private slaves was greatly increased by prohibiting marriage between commoners and the baseborn, applying the principle of ‘one baseborn, all baseborn’ and the law of following the mother.

However, as Sejong wielded all power due to Hyang’s intervention, the situation was reversed.

As private slaves were taxed to weaken the power of the local gentry, the number of private slaves decreased rapidly, and conversely, the number of government slaves increased dramatically.

This was due to the Giyu Rebellion and the system of guilt by association.

Similar to the decrease in private slaves, government slaves had also been decreasing. Like female entertainers such as government entertainers (Gwan-gi) or private entertainers (Sa-gi) and female doctors (Ui-nyeo), the jobs that government slaves had previously held were opened to commoners, and most of those who did those jobs were also freed from their status and became commoners.

The reason why the number of government slaves increased rapidly in this situation was because those who were implicated in the Giyu Rebellion were all demoted to the status of slaves and forced to work in mines or dangerous areas.

Sejong, who had solidified his power, could not give up the slaves – specifically, government slaves – and the system of guilt by association in order to prevent dangerous situations that might occur in later generations.

“Wouldn’t penal labor be a little better to look at?”

When Hyang suggested changing it to penal labor, Sejong refused immediately.

“Penal labor has a set period or can be pardoned. So it won’t work.”

“…Yes.”

Hyang bowed his head at Sejong’s firm answer.

‘Is this the limit after all? But even if I were the ruler, there would be no other answer than this. It is highly likely that it is still premature.’

* * *

As an aside, the existence of this Foundational Law became a source of conflict among historians.

‘The standard for dividing the Middle Ages and the Modern Age is the Foundational Law. And Joseon’s Foundational Law is the best example.’

Many scholars set the standard for dividing the Middle Ages and the Modern Age as the Foundational Law, and cited Joseon’s Foundational Law as the best example, but many scholars opposed this.

‘The most important thing in the Modern Age is the guarantee of human rights! However, Joseon’s Foundational Law has a slavery system and a system of guilt by association, so it doesn’t fit!’

In the history before Hyang’s intervention, ‘the Foundational Law’ had taken the place of ‘the Constitution,’ and historians were debating whether Joseon’s Foundational Law was a modern Foundational Law.

* * *

Sejong 31 (1449, Gisa Year.)

The debate between Sejong and his ministers over the Foundational Law was concluded in March. After nearly half a year of debate, the Foundational Law was able to greatly improve its completeness.

“You have worked hard.”

Sejong, who received the revised version of the Foundational Law, praised the ministers.

“Thanks to your hard work, we have been able to make the foundation of the empire solid.”

“No, Your Majesty. It was possible because Your Majesty had already paved the way well.”

At Sejong’s praise, the ministers, including Hwang Hee, bowed their heads and offered words of humility.

“Now, let’s print these Foundational Laws and distribute them to government offices across the country. And let’s post a notice asking them to examine this Foundational Law and discuss its problems.”

“Yes? Yes.”

At Sejong’s order, Hwang Hee and the ministers were all surprised, but soon gave up and answered obediently.

‘That’s right! What kind of person is His Majesty!’

‘It would be strange if these words didn’t come out….’

The ministers, who were giving up, soon came up with their own positive ideas.

‘Wait… If we do well, we might be able to catch a big fish for the first time in a while?’

* * *

According to Sejong’s order, the Foundational Law was distributed to government offices throughout Joseon – from the northeastern region, which had already been Joseonized, to Daeseol Island and Jongjang Island – and notices were posted.

“Examine the Foundational Law and discuss its problems?”

The people who examined the contents of the notice entered the government office and raised their voices.

“I have come to examine the Foundational Law!”

At those words, the officials, exhausted from fatigue, raised their hands, pointed to one side, and answered.

“Go over there and stand in line.”

“Yes?”

In the direction the official pointed, people were lined up in a long queue.

* * *

The people’s reaction to the Foundational Law was quite enthusiastic. The number of people who wanted to read it was so large compared to the number of distributed law books that documents requesting additional distribution poured into Hanseong [the capital] from all over Joseon.

“I didn’t know the people would be so interested in the law.”

At Lee Sa-cheol’s words, Hwang Hee immediately answered.

“The law has the biggest and fastest impact on the people.”

Lee Sa-cheol nodded at Hwang Hee’s point.

“Ah….”

“Still, it is true that the response is more enthusiastic than expected. It seems that writing in Jeong-eum (Korean alphabet) [Hangul] played a big role.”

All the ministers nodded at Kim Jeom’s words.

Meanwhile, Sejong, who received the report, had a pleased expression.

“It is truly a good thing. How can it not be a good thing that all the people examine the law so diligently and come to know it?”

“That’s right.”

While answering that way, Hyang was thinking something else inside.

‘They are people who have the phrase ‘according to the law’ stuck to their mouths, but now they will fight over a few clauses and a few paragraphs.’