Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 688

688. Obsession Never Rests (2)

“Anyway, this guy is truly mysterious… Huh! Really… Ha!”

Hwang kept chuckling to himself as he meticulously examined the calculating device Jang Yeong-sil had sent.

“How many steps did he skip, seriously?”

The Pascaline calculators made by the young artisans of Area 51 were already ahead of their time.

However, what Jang Yeong-sil created easily leaped several steps beyond that.

Calculators capable of multiplication and division already existed, like the Leibniz calculator.

However, the Leibniz calculator was very user-unfriendly. Only those who had mastered the keyboard layout and usage could properly use it. In short, it was something ‘only relatively smart people could effectively use.’

But the calculating device Jang Yeong-sil made was very intuitive in that aspect. There were separate buttons with arithmetic symbols, making it immediately clear that pressing those buttons would perform the corresponding operation. Inputting the necessary numbers was also easy, simply by pressing the number keys.

Thanks to this, Jang Yeong-sil’s calculating device was somewhere between the Leibniz and Burroughs adding machines.

“Of course, it’s not without its flaws…”

After carefully examining Jang Yeong-sil’s calculating device, Hwang soon found its shortcomings. True to his title as the ‘master of gears and cogs,’ Jang Yeong-sil’s calculating device used numerous gears to perform calculations.

The problem was that the power source for moving this calculating device was manpower. The gears that moved each time a number was entered via the keyboard used the power of a spring. However, to get the final result, a large lever on the side of the calculating device had to be pulled each time.

The lever, similar to the one on a casino slot machine, simultaneously supplied the power to perform the calculation and rewound the released spring.

As a result, Jang Yeong-sil’s calculating device required considerable force to pull the lever.

Hwang chuckled after pulling the lever and continued speaking.

“If this part was perfect too, I would seriously suspect whether this guy is an alien or not, just like with the clock back then.”

* * *

As Challenger-class battleships were being built in large quantities and long-distance voyages to Aden and Suez became commonplace, the need for precise clocks for safe navigation, as well as addressing time differences, became apparent.

The gravity clock using weights, which had initially made Hwang’s presence known, was not suitable for navigation.

Therefore, a request for a precision clock was directly issued to Area 51 in the name of Sejong [King Sejong the Great, a famous ruler of Joseon known for his inventions].

Many artisans worked on solving the task directly given by the king, and with the fantastic collaboration of Jang Yeong-sil, an unconventional talent, and Hwang, the MSG [Master of Gears], a precision clock was finally born.

Afterward, at least three clocks—two precision clocks and one pendulum clock—were placed on the bridges and captain’s cabins of the Empire’s battleships, including the Challenger-class.

And precision clocks, reduced to fist-sized, even though their accuracy was significantly lower, were mass-produced and supplied to the army in large quantities.

This was because keeping time was also very important for the army.

Before long, these precision clocks were released to the public. Artisans who thought it would be profitable flocked to the government offices, wanting to use the intellectual property.

And as time passed, around the time Joseon transformed into an Empire, clockmakers who built brand value while being called ‘luxury goods’ emerged.

Interestingly, the reactions of Ming [China under the Ming Dynasty] and Wa (Japan) to these precision clocks were quite different.

In the case of Ming, it was nothing more than a ‘curious toy.’

Although industry and commerce were as developed as the Empire, the center of the economy was still agriculture. In an agricultural society that moved in units of days and months rather than hours and minutes, precision clocks were of little use.

The same was true for officials and the wealthy. For them, a large pendulum clock with all sorts of fancy decorations was a more suitable item than these precision clocks.

In the case of Wa, it was the opposite.

They were enthusiastic about the precision clocks, with their intricate movements of large and small gears and springs.

And they despaired at the fact that it was extremely difficult for Wa’s artisans to make them.

It wasn’t entirely impossible, but it was due to the fact that they couldn’t make high-quality steel to use for the parts that went into the clocks.

Later, they brought in many artisans from Ming using the Jo-Ming War [likely a fictional war, referencing the historical conflicts between Joseon and Ming], but the gap was still significant.

* * *

Concluding his assessment of Jang Yeong-sil, Hwang came to a decision.

“Sorry to the young friends in Area 51, but we have no choice but to go with this.”

Thus, the mass production plan for the calculating device had to be restarted from the beginning.

Based on the blueprints Jang Yeong-sil sent, the artisans of Area 51 began preliminary production.

This was to identify problems that might occur during the mass production process in advance by making them beforehand, and to ensure proper quality control when dispatched to the corporations in charge of mass production.

Of course, minor improvements continued during the process.

First, different colors were used to divide the numbers into groups of four to quickly identify the place values, and the keys on the calculating device were also color-coded to make them easier to recognize.

And these trial-produced calculating devices were experimentally distributed to the Ministry of Finance and the Imperial Household’s official corporations to evaluate their usability.

The usage evaluation of the calculating devices distributed on a trial basis was enthusiastically positive.

“Why is this thing only coming out now!”

“How much is it? How much do you want? I’ll give you the money, give it to me right now!”

Judging that the marketability was sufficient, the court soon posted a bidding announcement throughout the Empire to select the corporations that would produce the calculating devices.

* * *

The calculating devices, mass-produced by the three corporations that won the bid, soon began to be sold everywhere.

However, the biggest customer was the court.

This was because the Ministry of Finance was not the only place struggling with large numbers that were difficult to calculate mentally.

In particular, the military was as welcoming to the appearance of the calculating device as the Ministry of Finance.

“Try spending three days calculating the supply needs and budget of each unit using only counting rods!”

In this situation, the military enthusiastically welcomed the appearance of the calculating device.

However, before long, the military submitted a proposal to Hwang.

“A portable, small calculating device?”

“That is correct. The calculating device we are currently using is very useful, but it is inconvenient to carry. It is not a problem in the rear, where movement is not required, but it is a big problem in the front lines, where we have to move constantly. And precise calculations are essential to properly use artillery.”

Hwang nodded at Min-shin’s explanation and sighed softly as he looked at the proposal submitted by the military.

“It should be at least 1/4 the size of the current one, even though it is small, and yet it should be able to calculate more than ten digits? Isn’t ten digits too much?”

At Hwang’s criticism, Min-shin bowed his head and replied.

“No, it is not. Even if we only consider the number of bullets consumed by one squad (哨, *sho* [a small military unit, approximately 625 people]) when a battle breaks out, it exceeds millions.”

At Min-shin’s answer, Hwang clicked his tongue and had no choice but to nod.

“Tch! I understand. I will send the proposal to Area 51.”

And the artisans of Area 51, who received the military’s proposal, all cursed at once.

“What the heck!”

* * *

The conditions set by the military were so harsh that the artisans who received the proposal all cursed at once.

Eventually, after several months without an answer, Hwang smiled with satisfaction.

“This isn’t me arbitrarily sticking my spoon in! I’m just adding a little MSG!”

Making an absurd excuse to himself, Hwang began his hobby again after a long time.

“Let’s see… That calculator I bought and broke in Hwanghak-dong [a famous market in Seoul known for selling used goods] would be the best, right?”

Sitting alone in his room after a long time, Hwang spread out the drawing board and excitedly began to draw the design and structure.

* * *

Fifteen days later, the artisans of Area 51 were summoned by Wan.

“Did you call for us?”

Wan, who had summoned the artisans, presented Hwang’s blueprints and immediately got to the point.

“His Majesty has thought of a new calculating device. He said to examine the blueprints that he drew himself, including the shape and structure.”

At Wan’s words, the artisans unfolded Hwang’s blueprints.

“Huh?”

“Oh?”

“This method?”

Seeing the artisans with surprised and defeated expressions, Wan asked again.

“How is it? Is it possible?”

The artisans, who were staring intently at the blueprints at Wan’s question, began to speak one by one.

“It seems possible.”

“There may be a problem with securing durability, but it seems possible.”

“If we choose the materials well, it seems possible enough.”

Wan nodded at the artisans’ positive answers and gave an order.

“Then, bring me a proper design.”

“We obey your command!”

As the artisans, who had received the blueprints, rushed out of the office, Wan sighed softly.

“Hoo… How can His Majesty come up with such ideas… It’s amazing, enviable, and burdensome.”

The artisans who came out also had similar expressions to Wan.

“Elder Jang is like that, but His Majesty is also an amazing person. How can they come up with such ideas?”

“I know, right. To think of making it cylindrical…”

“Hoo… When I see Elder Jang and His Majesty, I feel like I’ve become a ‘firefly under the moonlight’ [insignificant in comparison].”

“The gap is too big, so I don’t even feel jealous anymore…”

Hwang’s work, which amazed Wan and the artisans, was based on the Curta calculator.

It was a mechanical calculator that he had obtained from the Hwanghak-dong flea market and disassembled thoroughly when he was obsessed with steampunk.

* * *

Imperial Era 6 (1454),

The prototype of the calculating device designed by Hwang was finally made.

Due to the limitations of materials, it was larger than the original Curta calculator, but it still satisfied the size required by the military.

In addition, it was capable of performing arithmetic operations up to fifteen digits.

The military officials who received the prototype were very satisfied, and before long, the mass-produced calculating device soon began to be used usefully everywhere in the military.

And before long, petitions began to be submitted to request the civilian sale of this calculating device.

“Why do civilian merchants need this?”

At Hwang’s question, Kim-jeom stepped forward to answer.

“It is said to be very useful for merchants traveling long distances. From peddlers to merchants traveling as far as Suez and Aden, it is said to be a very useful device for those who need a calculating device but are burdened by its large size.”

“Hmm…”

Hwang, who had been pondering for a moment at Kim-jeom’s answer, soon gave an order.

“I will have the Imperial Corporation mass-produce it.”

“Will you not hold a bidding?”

“Although they said that there are not a few people who are looking for it, I think that there are more people who are satisfied with the existing calculating device, so I don’t think it will sell much.”

Kim-jeom bowed his head at Hwang’s explanation.

“That is a reasonable decision.”

* * *

And after a considerable amount of time, merchants from Portugal and Italy flocked in.

“Give me a ‘semtul’ [likely a romanized version of a Korean word for calculator]!”

“Give me a ‘semtultong’ [likely a romanized version of a Korean word for calculator]!”

And the artisans belonging to the Imperial Corporation wore gloomy expressions.

“Starting today, it’s overtime!”

“Huh? Until when?”

“I don’t know either!”