Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 629

629. Their Choice (9)

With such intentions, Hyang immediately approved Heo Hu’s proposed negotiation.

The envoy from the Ryukyu Kingdom, believing they had achieved the best possible outcome, bid farewell to Hyang, raising his voice.

“Your Imperial Majesty, your grace is boundless! Our kingdom will never forget your benevolence and the goodwill of the Empire. The trust between our two nations will last forever!”

“I also hope for the same.”

“It shall certainly be so!”

The envoy, bowing deeply at Hyang’s words and reaffirming his commitment, backed out of Geunjeongjeon.

Emerging from Geunjeongjeon, the envoy sought reassurance from Heo Hu, who had accompanied him for the send-off.

“The military equipment and garrison troops that the Empire promised to provide will surely arrive, won’t they?”

“Indeed. As I said before, once the agreement is properly signed by our envoy who will go with the garrison troops, things will proceed immediately. However, if the signing falls through, our people will return on the spot.”

The envoy immediately responded to Heo Hu’s words.

“That will absolutely not happen!”

“It must not.”

* * *

Not long after the envoy from the Ryukyu Kingdom returned, the Empire also began to move in earnest.

These movements naturally caught the attention of foreign merchants and officials staying at the port of Mokpo, and reports were sent to their respective countries.

In this process, a strange sense of consensus began to form among the foreign officials staying at the trade port.

-It is necessary for officials in charge of diplomacy to reside in Seoul, the capital of the Empire.

Until now, only small-scale officials had been stationed in Mokpo, a major trading port. Of course, even these officials were mostly interpreters rather than high-ranking officials with decision-making power.

The Empire also had interpreters, but deploying their own interpreters who could speak the Imperial language could minimize losses.

* * *

The deployment of foreign interpreters to the trade port began around the end of Gyeongjang.

It was precisely when Joseon began to show its presence as a rising power in international trade.

As a result of King Sejong actively accepting Hyang’s proposal at the time, the Sayeogwon (司譯院, Office of Interpreters) trained interpreters who could speak the languages of countries trading with Joseon, in addition to Ming and Japan.

These newly trained interpreters were very different in character from the existing interpreters. They were not only in charge of simple interpretation but were also highly educated in the culture and laws of the relevant countries.

And these trained interpreters played an active role in Mokpo’s trading port, as well as in the trading ports of various countries, to maximize Joseon’s interests.

Seeing this, other countries also began to train interpreters who were fluent in the Joseon language.

And these trained interpreters stayed at the port of Mokpo, helping their own merchants with trade or mediating disputes.

* * *

Each country’s court, having received documents from these interpreters containing such information, began to seriously consider it.

Regardless of East or West, it was extremely rare for countries sharing borders to have good relations.

Moreover, Joseon, which had brought Ming to its knees, changed its name to the Korean Federal Empire and became the strongest power in the region, and was now a supplier of the latest weaponry.

Therefore, it was necessary to find out as quickly as possible what was happening between the Empire and other countries, especially those with whom their own country had poor relations.

To this end, it was necessary to have an official of a certain rank reside in the Empire’s mainland, in its capital.

Having reached this conclusion, the countries began to send envoys to Seoul to negotiate on this matter.

* * *

Meanwhile, Norihiro, who had just arrived at the Waegwan (倭館, Japanese trading post) in Busanpo, smacked his lips as he heard rumors about the various events that had taken place between the Ryukyu Kingdom and the Empire.

“Oh dear… I’m a step late.”

Morihiro, the previous head of the family, Mochiyo, the current head of the family and the shogun of the shogunate, and Norihiro all had the long-cherished desire of ‘Datsuwa Nyujo (脫倭入朝, Leaving Japan and Entering Joseon).’ [This refers to a desire to emulate Joseon’s advancements and governance.]

This was not simply about breaking away from the outdated practices of the backward country of Japan and becoming a developed country like Joseon.

It was about discarding the old ways, achieving strong centralization, and then expanding their power like Joseon to become a great power.

The first thing to do for this purpose, centralization, was almost complete through the establishment of the shogunate.

There were still quite a few impudent guys who were rebelling against them, so they were negotiating with the Empire to suppress them.

Once they finished cleaning up internally, they would 본격적으로 [in earnest] increase their power and expand their influence outside of Japan.

The problem was that Ryukyu was absolutely necessary for this external expansion to be successful.

For Japan, Ryukyu was more than just a stopover. It was because of an unexpected weakness that Japan had.

Japan lacked the technology to build large ships. And because of this problem, they had no long-distance navigation skills.

There were Gyeonmyeongseon (遣明船, ships sent to Ming Dynasty) that carried envoys from Japan to Ming, but their size was small compared to the ships operated by Joseon or Ming at the same time.

However, Ryukyu, which traded not only with Ming but also with Daewol (Dai Viet) and Siam in Southeast Asia, had the technology to build large ships and long-distance navigation skills.

Therefore, Japan had to get Ryukyu into their hands. However, before Japan could do anything, Ryukyu had entered the shadow of the Empire.

Norihiro, regretting his lateness, spat out a rough Joseon curse.

“Shibal! Damn Shimazu bastards!” [Shibal is a Korean curse word, and the Shimazu clan was a powerful Japanese clan.]

* * *

Norihiro, who took a train from Dongnae to Seoul, visited Geunjeongjeon to greet Hyang.

“Thank you for your hard work in coming. I hope you achieve good results.”

“Your Imperial Majesty, your grace is boundless!”

After paying his respects to Hyang, Norihiro continued his meeting with Heo Hu at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“So, have you come to a conclusion?”

At Heo Hu’s question, Norihiro cautiously opened his mouth.

“Yes. In broad terms, it has been concluded that it is reasonable to accept the Empire’s proposal.”

“In broad terms?”

As Heo Hu frowned slightly, Norihiro immediately continued.

“The license fee is too excessive!”

“Excessive? Two nyang [a unit of currency] of Imperial silver for one Eulsikjangchong (乙式長銃, Type B Matchlock Rifle) and ten nyang of Imperial silver for one Eulsik Hwacha (乙式火車, Type B Hwacha)? Do you know how much the price of a new product is?”

“Of course, it is a very cheap price compared to buying new products, but we have to pay for the steel needed to make the matchlock rifles and hwachas, and we also have to pay for the copper plates containing the priming powder, don’t we? You have to consider that part too!”

At Norihiro’s protest, Heo Hu asked back with an indifferent expression.

“How much does it cost to make that much steel in Japan? No, can you even make it?”

“…”

Norihiro’s mouth was shut at Heo Hu’s point.

* * *

Heo Hu’s point was a painful one.

It was a well-known fact that Japan’s ironmaking technology was one to two generations behind Ming and Joseon.

Contrary to this fact, the excellence of Japanese swords was famous in China and Joseon. However, these were masterpieces made with the utmost effort of each swordsmith, and mass production was absolutely impossible.

Therefore, these excellent Japanese swords could only be owned by famous samurai or lords, and most of the lower-ranking warriors or ordinary soldiers had to go into battle with low-quality Japanese swords or spears.

Because of this background, a famous general belonging to the Ouchi family was impressed when he saw the Joseon Suseokchong (手石銃, hand cannon) brought in for the battle with the Muromachi shogunate.

“The quality of the steel is so good for a weapon given to dozens or hundreds of soldiers! The steel, which is not at all lacking in making a masterpiece, is so common!”

In the end, Ouchi, who once again realized their backward level of technology, devoted all their efforts to kidnapping Ming artisans in the war between Joseon and Ming.

Even though they put all their efforts into bringing Ming artisans and their families to Japan, Shogun Mochiyo could not be happy.

– In order to mass-produce high-quality steel, you need high-quality ore, high-quality firewood, and skilled artisans. But all you have now are skilled artisans!

– Even if you use iron sand for the ore problem, firewood is the problem! Mass production is impossible with charcoal alone!

Mochiyo could only sigh deeply at the answers commonly given by the artisans brought from Ming.

“Then we have to find it.”

In the end, according to Mochiyo’s orders, miners directly under the shogunate and troops to escort them scattered to Honshu and Kyushu.

In this process, lords who rebelled against the Ouchi shogunate carried out sabotage, and as a chain reaction, Ouchi promoted the licensed production of Eulsikjangchong and Hwacha.

“Now that it has come to this! Let’s wipe them all out!”

* * *

“Still, the license fee is too expensive! Iron materials and priming powder can be said to be reasonable prices considering their high quality and rarity, but I think it is excessive to charge such a high price while giving us only a few blueprints for the Eulsikjangchong and Hwacha.”

Heo Hu’s expression changed fiercely at Norihiro’s words.

“A few blueprints? Did you say a few?”

Heo Hu growled in an angry voice.

“Does it seem like it’s simply connected because Gapsik (甲式, Type A) is followed by Eulsik (乙式, Type B)? Do you know how much effort so many artisans put into making that one design? No, not only the artisans but also His Majesty, who was the Crown Prince at the time, put in a lot of effort together! But you dare say only a few!”

To tell the truth, Hyang enjoyed that time so happily.

Whatever the truth, Heo Hu, who was very angry, jumped up from his seat and stretched his arm towards the door.

“Get out right now! I will no longer discuss the license!”

Norihiro, surprised by Heo Hu’s order to leave, prostrated himself on the spot.

“I am sorry! I misspoke! Please, calm your anger!”

‘Even if I am the head of the family, I will be ruined if this negotiation fails! It would be fortunate if I could commit seppuku [ritual suicide], but at the very least, I will be beheaded!’

“Get out right now!”

“Oh, Daegam (大監, high ranking official)! I made a mistake!”

Whether it was because Norihiro desperately begged using the word ‘soin’ (小人, a humble word to refer to oneself), Heo Hu, who calmed his anger by taking several deep breaths, strongly warned Norihiro.

“I will never forgive you for insulting His Majesty again. Keep that in mind.”

“I will engrave it in my heart!”

Although Heo Hu had completely taken the lead with a commotion, Norihiro was also persistent.

“Our country is poor. Please lower the license fee even a little.”

“Then why don’t you just buy it instead of making it yourself?”

“There are still many unruly people who rebel against the shogunate, so there are many disturbances.”

“Oh ho~. Why are you trying to solve everything with tyranny? You have to impress them with good words and virtue.”

“They are not the kind of guys you can talk to….”

At Norihiro’s words, Heo Hu muttered inwardly.

‘Look who’s talking!’

After a tedious tug-of-war, Heo Hu came to a conclusion that was not a conclusion.

“I will report to His Imperial Majesty and get an answer.”

“Please make sure that good results come out!”

At Norihiro’s words, Heo Hu replied with a slightly embarrassed expression.

“As I said before, the Eulsikjangchong and Hwacha are items that His Majesty also shows affection for….”

“Still, I beg you!”

Heo Hu, who sent Norihiro out, smirked and organized the documents.