Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 987

The conference room instantly erupted in chaos, ministers shouting over one another. The uproar showed no signs of stopping, so Han Myung-hoi, seated at the head of the table, slammed his hand down.

Bang!

“Silence! Be quiet!”

At Han Myung-hoi’s command, the ministers fell silent. He glared at them, his neck straining with anger.

“What a spectacle for the ministers of the Empire to put on! Does anyone think I don’t know how to shout?!”

“We apologize for the disgraceful display.”

“Sorry.”

The ministers apologized to Han Myung-hoi one by one, but his scolding continued.

“If there’s a problem, you should point it out and find a solution. Is shouting all you can do? Is being loud enough? If that’s the case, bring a trumpet next time! Honestly, with people like this!”

“We said we’re sorry…”

“Tsk!”

Cutting off the ministers with a click of his tongue, Han Myung-hoi fixed his gaze on the Minister of Finance.

“I am well aware that the Empire’s finances are determined by its revenue. I also know that you consider balancing revenue and expenditure as the ultimate goal. However, unexpected major events can happen at any time, and there are preparations made to deal with them, aren’t there? I believe this situation is one of those cases?”

The ‘preparations’ Han Myung-hoi mentioned referred to the silver produced from the Empire’s silver mines. In the Empire, silver served as currency, while gold was a means of accumulating wealth. Both silver and gold mines were directly operated by the Empire as state-run mines. Therefore, the gold and silver extracted from these mines were immediately stored in the vaults of the Imperial Ministry of Finance.

The Empire strategically used these precious metals to guide the economy in the most beneficial direction. At Han Myung-hoi’s prompting, the Minister of Finance replied with a troubled expression.

“Of course, it is possible to solve the problem by opening the vault and releasing the silver. However, the problem lies in what comes after. Building just one museum, or whatever it is, isn’t the end of it, is it? If we’re not careful, silver could be released to an uncontrollable extent. If that happens, the Empire’s economy will be thrown into complete chaos.”

“But haven’t we been doing well so far? Aren’t you being too alarmist?”

At Han Myung-hoi’s words, other ministers nodded in agreement. The Minister of Finance, feeling challenged, was about to speak when Im Soon-wook interjected.

“Then would you like to take on the job of the Ministry of Finance? How about it, Prime Minister? Would you like to take it on? Alarmist? Is that what you call it?”

“Ahem! Cough! I apologize for calling it alarmist.”

“Ahem!”

Im Soon-wook responded with a loud cough, watching Han Myung-hoi quickly back down and apologize. However, they couldn’t keep rehashing the same arguments, so Im Soon-wook proceeded to share his thoughts.

“Judging from what I’m hearing, the size of that museum must be enormous. His Majesty said we’re not building the Forbidden City [a vast palace complex in Beijing], but to add a little exaggeration, it could be as big as the Forbidden City or the Epang Palace [a legendary, never-completed palace of immense scale]. Consider the amount of artifacts being excavated in Gyeongju right now.”

At Im Soon-wook’s point, the ministers nodded almost unconsciously.

* * *

Even now, almost every day, about ten crates were arriving at Sugang Palace from Gyeongju. Initially, they were supposed to go through Gyeongbok Palace [the main royal palace in Seoul] first, but as the volume increased, Hyun changed the procedure.

Starting with Han Myung-hoi, ministers and vice-ministers, unable to resist their curiosity, gathered to watch and exclaimed in admiration. However, as the enormous amount of artifacts continued to arrive, they gradually grew weary of it.

“Only a fraction of Gyeongju has been excavated, and there’s this much? Just a fraction?”

“Even though it’s an ancient capital of a thousand years…”

* * *

Knowing the situation in Gyeongju, where artifacts were still pouring out, the ministers all nodded at Im Soon-wook’s point. Confirming that the ministers understood, Im Soon-wook put more emphasis into his voice.

“Right now, that much is coming out of Gyeongju alone, but if we consider the old sites of Baekje [ancient kingdom in southwestern Korea] and Goguryeo [ancient Korean kingdom in the northern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula and southern Manchuria], and the old sites of Buyeo [ancient kingdom in Manchuria and the northern Korean Peninsula] and Balhae [a multiethnic kingdom in Manchuria and the northern Korean Peninsula]… it might end up being as big as the Forbidden City. I don’t know about the Epang Palace… Anyway! That being said, we can’t just let the artifacts of our ancestors rot, so it’s become a troubling problem. Therefore, I think the best way is to build the museum like a child growing into an adult.”

“Like a child growing…”

Han Myung-hoi, pondering Im Soon-wook’s suggestion, asked to confirm his understanding.

“Are you saying that we should start within the limits of the budget and gradually increase the size?”

“That’s right. To reiterate, even looking at Gyeongju alone, we have no idea how many more artifacts will come out in the future. Since expansion will definitely continue for generations, let’s not overdo it from the start. Instead, we must secure a proper and definite location for the museum. Villages are still continuously being built outside the four main gates of Seoul.”

At Im Soon-wook’s words, the ministers all nodded. Han Myung-hoi, also nodding, grumbled quietly.

“Who said, ‘Send people to Seoul and horses to Shinji and Bukji’… really…”

* * *

During this period, Seoul’s real estate problem was severe. As the Empire’s territory expanded and became more prosperous, the number of officials responsible for the Empire’s administration gradually increased. The number of local officials increased the most, but the number of officials working in Gyeongbok Palace and Yukjo Street [the main administrative street in Seoul] in Seoul also gradually increased.

As a result, agricultural land could no longer be found inside the four main gates. Replacing the lost agricultural land, residential areas and markets took their place. Nevertheless, housing in Seoul was always scarce. Therefore, Wan and Hyun had to adjust the administrative districts of Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province [province surrounding Seoul]. First, Seoul was changed to Seoul Province, and the nearby areas were transferred from Gyeonggi Province to Seoul.

Afterward, four stations were built near the four main gates of Seoul, and railway networks were established with the nearby areas. In addition, railways connecting these stations with the railways in downtown Seoul were constructed separately. Of course, it was not completely finished and was still under construction.

-It would be more efficient to connect those four stations directly to Seoul Station instead of building them separately.

Such petitions continued, but Wan and Hyun did not accept them for the following reasons:

-If connected directly, the inside of Seoul will become too chaotic with people entering and exiting in a disorderly manner.

-More people will come all the way to Seoul to buy documents that can be purchased at the local markets and exclusive sales offices in their villages for the sake of showing off. This will make it difficult for those engaged in commerce outside of Seoul, so we must prevent this as much as possible.

-Also, even though they have become insignificant, the four main gates are the gates of the fortress defending the capital. Therefore, they must be able to be closed if necessary.

However, the problem was that people were flocking to Seoul itself. And to solve this, various solutions had been mobilized since the time of Sejong [fourth king of the Joseon dynasty]. However, this problem still troubled the Emperor and the ministers.

“Why is that?”

At Hyun’s complaint, Hyang replied simply.

“Because the power is in Seoul.”

“Ah…”

* * *

In this way, the construction of the museum began. The court chose the area near Gwanak Mountain [mountain in southern Seoul] as the site for the museum. Hyang had a strange expression as he read the report on this.

“Back then, it was the site for the university, and now it’s the site for the museum… This is also a strange connection. Come to think of it, how will the saying ‘If anyone asks about the future of the nation, raise your head and look at Gwanak’ change? Will it change to ‘If anyone asks about the glory of the Empire, raise your head and look at Gwanak’?”

As a side note, in the distant future, the Imperial Museum located in Gwanak became the largest museum in the world. It was also nicknamed ‘the museum with the least amount of other people’s things.’ This was because many of the artifacts held by famous European museums were looted from places like Africa and Egypt.

However, the most famous evaluation was this:

‘To see everything in the Imperial Museum, even if you dedicate your entire life, it will not be enough.’

Another story was also famous.

-Things you should never challenge even if you dedicate your entire life:

Seeing everything in the Empire’s three institutions (관)-Archives (기록관), Herbarium (식물표본관), and Museum (박물관).

* * *

“One thing leads to another… More money to spend… Sigh~.”

The Minister of Finance, looking through the report, sighed deeply and glared at the Minister of General Affairs in front of him.

“What did the Prime Minister say?”

“He didn’t even go. It’s obvious he would just say to discuss it with you.”

The Minister of Finance nodded at the words of the Minister of General Affairs and stood up.

“Sigh~. Okay. Let’s go together.”

Shortly after, Han Myung-hoi, after checking the report submitted by the Minister of General Affairs who came with the Minister of Finance, looked at the Minister of General Affairs with shining eyes.

“Are we selecting people to do record-keeping work at the Archives? Has the number of criminals going to the Archives finally run out?”

“….”

“Just kidding, tsk?”

Han Myung-hoi smacked his lips at the silent answer given by the Minister of General Affairs and the Minister of Finance.

* * *

Those who went to the Archives were mainly officials caught for bribery or other corruption, those who solicited them, and those who committed crimes such as forgery of documents and fraud. Once convicted, almost all of their assets were confiscated, and they had to perform record-keeping duties at the Archives for a set period.

This record-keeping work was less physically demanding, but the mental fatigue was immense, making it one of the worst forms of punishment. High-ranking officials expected that crimes warranting the Archives sentence would decrease significantly, but the number of personnel was steadily replenished each year. Therefore, among high-ranking officials, this joke was circulating.

“Seeing that the Archives never runs out of people, it seems that the ‘Theory of Innate Evil’ is correct.”

* * *

“But suddenly, there’s a shortage of people at the Archives, what’s going on?”

At Han Myung-hoi’s question, the Minister of General Affairs replied in a nonchalant voice.

“What else could it be? The amount of work has increased too much.”

“The amount of work has increased?”

“Do you know how much documentation is coming up from Gyeongju right now? Documents recording the restoration process of Seokguram [a famous stone grotto temple], accounting documents related to the costs incurred in the restoration process, documents coming out of other excavation sites in Gyeongju… What is the iron rule of the Archives?”

At the question of the Minister of General Affairs, Han Myung-hoi answered immediately.

“From beginning to end… all documents are completely organized and recorded. Hmm~. Certainly, the amount of work will increase.”

“It’s not just Gyeongju, there’s also the encyclopedia.”

“Oh dear……”

At the answer of the Minister of General Affairs, Han Myung-hoi grasped the seriousness of the situation.

“A flood of documents has occurred.”

“Flood? It’s a tsunami.”

In the end, Han Myung-hoi called the Deputy Prime Ministers.