Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 672

672. Birds of a Feather (2)

Hyang’s expression, as he read the proposal, shifted from disbelief to curiosity.

“Hmm…. How did you come up with this idea? Who conceived of this idea first? Bring them to me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

About half a *sh辰* [approximately one hour, an old unit of time] after Hyang’s command, a young naval officer entered Geunjeongjeon Hall.

After the naval officer gave his military salute and took a seat, Hyang began to question him.

“You’re the one who initially proposed this idea?”

“It wasn’t entirely my doing. Duke Gwangju first brought the matter to my attention.”

Hyang’s eyes gleamed at the naval officer’s reply.

“Duke Gwangju? Dooga?”

“That is correct.”

“Hmm….”

Hyang, lightly stroking his chin as he gathered his thoughts, issued an order to Min-shin.

“Summon Duke Gwangju.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Shortly after, Dooga, looking gaunt, entered Geunjeongjeon Hall and paid his respects.

“You don’t look well. What’s wrong?”

At Hyang’s question, Doo replied with a slightly embarrassed expression.

“I’ve been overseeing the navy’s year-end settlement preparations….”

“Ah….”

At Doo’s answer, all the ministers inside the hall nodded in unison, muttering inwardly.

‘Year-end settlements are indeed a pain….’

‘Even the mighty Ministry of Finance is helpless before year-end settlements….’

Every year, as autumn approached, all government ministries of the Empire began preparing for the year-end settlement. If there were no errors in this year-end settlement, there would be no issues in budgeting for the year after next.

Thanks to this, a saying circulated among the officials:

‘If a war breaks out during the year-end settlement preparation period, the officials will pick up their guns and rush to the front lines even before the soldiers do.’

Hyang, knowing this situation, avoided further mention.

‘You’re following in Pyeongwon’s footsteps, I see.’

* * *

After Gyeongjang successfully settled into orbit, Sejong brought members of the royal family into the court to work.

He had to navigate various political issues, but they were still of the same bloodline and were talented individuals who had received a solid education.

Following Sejong’s decision, the royal family members who entered the court were assigned to various organizations based on their aptitudes.

Jinpyeong, who went to Area 51 and the railroad construction company, and Anpyeong, who went to the Cultural Administration under the Ministry of Education, were prime examples.

When the royal family members arrived as a kind of parachute appointment, the working-level officials initially reacted with either indifference or negativity.

However, it wasn’t long before the working-level officials welcomed the royal family members.

Perhaps because they were assigned according to their aptitudes, their work skills were excellent, and they didn’t flaunt their royal status recklessly.

And best of all, when budget battles broke out, if they put the royal family members—Sejong’s children, no less—in front when negotiating with the officials of the Ministry of Finance, most things were simply approved.

Eventually, when the royal family members came forward in this way, either the Minister of Finance or Kim Jeom himself had to step up to deal with them.

Thanks to this, they didn’t have much fun afterward, but several departments, especially the military, still dragged the royal family members into the budget department.

“It’s definitely better than nothing!”

* * *

Hyang, looking at Doo with a slightly pitiful face, soon composed himself and began to speak.

“Why did you think of putting Bigu [flying ships] on a ship?”

At Hyang’s question, Doo answered immediately.

“The sea is much wider than land. Just as there are roads on land, there are sea routes in the sea. However, compared to the roads on land, the width is incomparable. It is not easy to survey these sea routes by ship. However, Bigu, especially self-propelled Bigu, can survey a wide area of the sea from the sky, making them the optimal equipment.”

Hyang and the ministers all nodded at Doo’s answer.

Hyang continued to ask questions.

“Why did you remove all the sails and masts and install only steam engines?”

“To safely launch the Bigu into the sky and bring them back down.”

“Wouldn’t steam engines alone provide sufficient speed? No, the speed would be there, but they wouldn’t be able to go far, would they? Isn’t one of the biggest drawbacks of the Assault Turtle Ship the issue of cruising range?”

Hyang’s point was valid.

The Assault Turtle Ship, the strongest warship in the Imperial Navy, had a shorter cruising range compared to the Challenger-class warship. If it were simply cruising, it could go from Seonamdo to Taiwan with about 10% overload of coal. However, that was in the case of cruising. If they anticipated engaging in combat along the way, a supply ship to replenish coal would have to move along with them.

Doo immediately addressed Hyang’s point.

“The ship I have planned is not for combat but to operate the Bigu from the rear of the fleet. Therefore, there will be almost no need to move at combat speed. According to my calculations, a hull the size of a large merchant ship operated by civilian merchants, with the speed of a Panokseon [traditional Korean warship], would be able to independently navigate from Tsushima to Seonamdo, or from Seonamdo to Temasek, without a coal supply ship.”

“Is the armament and defensive power of the hull weaker than that of the Challenger-class for the same reason?”

“That is correct. As I said before, the purpose of this warship is to operate the Bigu from the rear of the fleet. I believe that securing only the minimum self-defense capability is sufficient.”

Doo’s answers were seamless, and the purpose was reasonable. Because of this, Kim Jeom and Minister of Finance Park Jong-woo were secretly preparing to open their wallets.

‘Hmm…. How much additional allocation should I make?’

However, Hyang frowned slightly and continued to ask questions.

“As you know, Bigu have almost no defensive capabilities.”

“However, Bigu can ascend to such a high altitude that bullets cannot reach them. Defensive power will not be an issue.”

“Do you really think that operating Bigu over the sea will be as useful as you expect?”

“Ordinary Bigu would not require a separate ship. This is because they cannot move on their own and drift aimlessly with the wind. However, in the case of the self-propelled Bigu that we have introduced this time, they can head to where they want on their own. And since they have a considerable cruising range, they are optimal for surveying the vast sea.”

“But even if they go that far and find the enemy first, there is no way to quickly notify them, is there? Of course, there are light communication devices, but light communication devices also have their limits, don’t they?”

“That part is also written in the proposal….”

Hyang interrupted Doo.

“I have read the proposal. According to that plan, you need six Bigu and at least three *Hae-eung-geup* [sea eagle class] warships at a time.”

* * *

The Bigu operation method that Doo and the naval officers had in mind was as follows:

-First, six Bigu are mobilized at a time. And the Bigu move in pairs of two.

-Looking at the flight path of the Bigu, they draw three concentric circles centered on the fleet and divide them into three zones, assigning one pair of Bigu and one *Hae-eung-geup* warship to each zone.

-If the Bigu in the outermost circle discovers the enemy, they immediately turn around and approach other Bigu flying in the inner circle to transmit information.

-The Bigu that receives the information relays the information to the *Hae-eung-geup* warship moving in the inner circle or heads to the fleet headquarters to transmit the information.

* * *

Hyang pointed out the problems with this operation method.

“According to this plan, more funds than expected will have to be invested. This is because the funds required to build the *Hae-eung-geup* warships, Bigu, and dedicated warships are large, but the funds required to train them will be even greater. Think about it. Even if you set a course and move in the vast sea, they will move in different directions due to various circumstances. Do you think it will be easy to accurately link them? Of course, you will have to accept several times the appropriate number of personnel and filter them out, and even after that, you will have to maintain their skills through continuous training. This means that it will cost more than you think. Therefore….”

Hyang paused for a moment, then finished his words with a truly regretful expression.

“I am truly sorry, but this plan cannot be implemented now. It is only possible after a method of fast and accurate communication over long distances is developed.”

“If that is the case….”

“It is on hold for now. The deadline is indefinite. If you want to move up the deadline, request the research institute to research communication methods.”

At Hyang’s decision, Doo bowed his head and replied.

“I obey your command.”

And Kim Jeom and Park Jong-woo unknowingly let out a sigh of relief, then were horrified and looked around at the people around them.

“Hoo~. Heop!”

* * *

That night, Hyang, sitting alone in Gangnyeongjeon Hall, put his hand on his forehead and grumbled.

“Ah~. I crave electricity and I crave rubber.”

Hyang licked his lips and continued.

“The electricity part is being researched now, so that’s okay, but rubber is the problem….”

When Hyang assigned the mechanics homework in the past, he also included research on electricity, which he named Noegi [electric power], as an assignment.

Thanks to this, research on this is in full swing at the research institute.

Of course, it was the highest grade in the Challenge Log, but Hyang was still making optimistic predictions.

However, rubber was the problem.

* * *

As trade with Southeast Asia became fully established, Hyang argued to Sejong that an investigation into rubber was necessary.

“You need to investigate the sap of the trees that grow in those countries? Why?”

“Looking at the current situation in Joseon, sap from various trees, starting with pine resin, is being used in various places. The trees that grow in those southern countries are very different from those in Joseon, so if we examine their sap, we may find something that will help us.”

“Hmm….”

Sejong, who had been pondering Hyang’s words, made a decision some time later.

“I have given orders to the navy.”

“Thank you!”

In this way, sap was collected from Southeast Asia and India and entered into analysis. However, there was nothing related to the rubber that Hyang was desperately looking for, except for what was collected in India.

However, the rubber brought from India was concluded to be ‘not profitable,’ and at that time, Hyang also put his hand on his forehead and grumbled.

“Do I really have to send people to Central or South America…. No, sending them is one thing, but what excuse do I make? ‘I saw it in a dream.’ Or ‘I have divine energy’ or ‘I saw it in the books of the *Seoi* [mysterious books] ‘? Hmph! I wouldn’t believe it either!”

Hyang shook his head and could not hide his disappointment.

“The conclusion is that I have to shut up and wait until the Americas are discovered….”

After coming to that conclusion, Hyang’s thoughts went off on a tangent again.

“But if the people I send actually see the brutal human sacrifices of the South American empires, they will immediately rise up and demand that they be wiped out.”

* * *

Hyang, dredging up past memories due to the rubber problem, sighed again.

“Hoo~. I went to Shinji, but I’m still not properly digesting North America…. Population is really a gangster….”

Sejong, who was staying in Shinji, was actively integrating the North American region, but he was not making proper progress.

The biggest reason was that there were not enough people to send from the mainland to Shinji.

In a situation where the natives of Shinji, who had been annexed to the Empire, were being taught and put into the expansion work, the biggest problem was the lack of personnel to educate these natives.

Because of this, those who would be in charge of education were selected from among the natives and educated, but it would still take a lot of time before they were put into the field.