I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 268

< Fraternizing Asia (2) >

Whether they liked it or not, the outbreak of a large-scale war ruthlessly injected a cold dose of reality into all the parties involved.

Even countries that had lived detached from reality until now could no longer escape this harsh truth.

This was especially true for countries with limited information dissemination in pre-modern societies.

Even if they could control information about a war in a neighboring country, it was impossible to hide a war they were directly involved in.

Joseon [historical Korean kingdom] was no different.

In fact, Joseon had no reason to hide the results of this war.

The court called this war the Second Naseon Conquest and continued to proclaim it as a historical victory for Joseon.

Moreover, General Lee Beom-gyu, who had actually fought and returned in triumph from the north, described in detail how the Yeonggils [English/British] operated their warships, spitting with disdain as he spoke.

“It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that there is a difference of dozens… no, hundreds of years. It’s embarrassing to admit, but I think the gap between Joseon and Yeonggil is as vast as the difference between ancient Joseon and present-day Joseon.”

“Heo! What disrespectful words are those? Are you suggesting that we are hundreds of years behind those Westerners?”

“…To be honest, that’s exactly what I’m suggesting.”

“Even though Yeonggil is a military power, the country’s technology isn’t necessarily limited to the military field!”

Although more and more people were realizing the differences between the two countries through exchanges with Yeonggil, the deeply ingrained concepts of nearly 500 years wouldn’t change so easily.

Among the high-ranking officials who revered the Way of Confucianism, there were still many who denied the need for enlightenment and modernization.

“Your Majesty! General Lee Beom-seok is clearly overwhelmed by the Yeonggil warships and is unable to think objectively.”

“Is the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel indirectly suggesting that I, who admired the Yeonggil warships in Dongnae, am lacking in virtue?”

“Ah, no, Your Majesty! How could I ever dare to…”

“You can see from Ambassador Kim Jwa-geun’s report that Yeonggil is not just a country with strong military power.”

The city is incomparably more developed than Hanseong [old name for Seoul], and the wealthy illuminate their mansions at night with gas lamps that emit dozens or hundreds of times brighter light than candles.

In addition, all sorts of rare and precious objects whose principles are unknown were described, and Kim Jwa-geun was now at a point where he could handle such novelties without feeling any sense of bewilderment.

“Or are you now implying that Ambassador Kim Jwa-geun’s report is nothing but lies?”

“No, I’m not saying it’s a lie. But isn’t there a bit of exaggeration…”

Recently, the court had been divided into two factions: those who promoted enlightenment and those who sought to postpone it.

Those who advocated for enlightenment were the Andong Kim clan, led by Kim Jwa-geun.

Those who wanted to postpone it were the Pungyang Jo clan, centered around Jo Byeong-gi.

However, neither the pro-enlightenment nor the pro-retention groups were united by any particular conviction.

The Andong Kim clan was originally indifferent to enlightenment, but Kim Jwa-geun’s experience as an ambassador to Yeonggil, and Yeonggil’s recent momentum, was so frightening that they were now jumping on the bandwagon.

Then, did the Pungyang Jo clan oppose enlightenment based on some profound Confucian principles? Of course not.

Even now, the current king had been keeping the Andong Kim clan in check and suppressing their power. If enlightenment was achieved, or if they grew closer to Yeonggil as the Andong Kim clan claimed, wouldn’t the balance of power tilt even further?

With this calculation in mind, they were opposing it for the time being.

Seeing the state of this court, I feel that my slightly alleviated illness is threatening to return.

Should I just replace them all and fill the empty seats with young and fresh officials?

However, in this land of Joseon, there is no guarantee that young people will necessarily be active in enlightenment.

Since what they have seen, heard, and learned since childhood exists, there are many who worship Confucianism even more extremely.

Rather, there may be more people among the high-ranking officials who have had many opportunities to come into contact with Yeonggil recently and have actually been on warships who have more open minds.

So what can I do? I have to diligently inform them of the reality and correct their thinking to make them useful.

Fortunately, a timely opportunity has presented itself.

“Listen, everyone. Previously, Yeonggil proposed holding a huge technology exhibition called the World’s Fair, so how about introducing Joseon’s technology and spirit to the world? I thought there was no reason to refuse, so I gladly agreed to participate, and preparations are in full swing in the capital of Yeonggil.”

“I agree with the policy of imprinting Joseon’s existence on the countries of Europa.”

“Do others think so too?”

“I heard that Japan is also participating this time. I think we, Joseon, should go beyond simply participating and work hard to leave a more impressive result than Japan!”

Although it is unlikely, if we are evaluated as being behind those Japanese pirates, this is not just a matter of wounded pride.

Lee Hwan, seeing all the officials burning with a fighting spirit, now had a rough idea of how to create the desired momentum.

We must unconditionally bring in Japan and Qing to provoke Joseon’s national pride.

After pretending to ponder for a moment, he looked around at the officials and opened his mouth again.

“This World’s Fair is a place where the eyes of the whole world are focused, so I think it is a great opportunity to showcase the spirit of our Joseon. Therefore, I would like to use this fair as a platform to prove that our Joseon is a respectable independent country. Does anyone have any objections?”

“Your Majesty. When you say independent country…”

“I will completely *jeongni* [Korean: 정리 – to 정리 (jeongni) something is to organize, tidy, or settle it] our relationship with Qing. Haven’t we discussed it several times before?”

“……”

The moment has finally come.

Because it was such a weighty and sensitive issue, even the officials who reflexively spoke first did not open their mouths and remained silent.

Breaking away from the relationship of paying tribute to Qing and moving towards a new order.

However, since it is obvious that the Qing Dynasty will be furious and retaliate, we will first use Yeonggil as a shield to neutralize Qing’s backlash.

“Your Majesty. However… there is still much debate among the *yusaeng* [Korean: 유생 – Confucian scholars] of this country as to whether Yeonggil is truly that kind of country.”

“I have taken that into account, so don’t worry. I will send an envoy to celebrate this World’s Fair, so let them see and confirm with their own eyes.”

“…Yes?”

“Appoint Chief State Councilor Kim Heung-geun as the person in charge and Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel Jo Byeong-gi as his assistant to form a congratulatory delegation to be sent to Yeonggil. And since not only Yeonggil but also the civilization of the West will be gathered in one place, record everything you see there in detail and report it to the court.”

If I forcibly expose them to audiovisual materials, they will have eyes to see and brains to judge, so they will have no choice but to realize the seriousness of the situation.

If I add a spoonful of justification here, everything will be perfect.

“And. I say again, we must never allow those powers of Europa to recognize our Joseon as being inferior to Japan, so do your best at the fair!”

“Yes! We will do our best to show the spirit of Joseon!”

Indeed, if something like this happens in the future, I must bring up Japan.

The effect is amazing.

* * *

Just as public opinion suddenly changes 180 degrees when Japan is involved, Japan also often handles matters related to Joseon with more care than usual.

The Tokugawa shogunate had been actively using *tongsinsa* [Korean: 통신사 – goodwill embassies sent from Joseon to Japan] from Joseon to enhance the authority of the shogunate since the beginning of its reign.

In particular, they even deceived the Dutch East India Company in Japan by calling the Joseon envoys tribute missions.

Unlike Ryukyu, Joseon was a fairly large country, so Japan had been promoting itself as a powerful country with colonies of that size.

However, Japan did not like the fact that Joseon was rapidly becoming closer to the British Empire.

It’s not just about keeping Joseon in check because it might become stronger.

If they just trade and establish diplomatic relations, no one will say anything.

The shogunate could not help but suspect their hidden intentions as Joseon was trying to get involved with Yeonggil even by fabricating their genealogy.

They were the first to insert the bloodline of Tokugawa, but that was fine.

At first, they thought that the other side was just making a fuss because they were doing it, but recently, the King of Joseon even left the palace and boarded a ship with Kirian.

If Joseon is clinging to Yeonggil and plotting something, it is difficult to predict what kind of negative impact it will have on the authority of this country… no, the Shogun in the future.

“Joseon is showing signs of participating in the World’s Fair on a large scale?”

“Yes. This is perfectly confirmed information.”

“…We were supposed to participate in that too, right?”

“Yes. We have decided to introduce Japan’s excellent culture under the leadership of the consul in London.”

“It is a place where the world’s leading powers participate. It is a golden opportunity for our Japan to be in the spotlight, so we must successfully complete the work. Japan must be the most *jumok* [Korean: 주목 – attention-grabbing] in Asia. Not Joseon.”

With the victory in the recent war, even though only half of Sakhalin came into Japan’s hands, the Shogun’s authority, which had been falling day by day, began to soar again.

-The great power of Europa, Russia, could not resist the Shogun’s preemptive, fast, swift, ruthless, and efficient operation.

-The Shogun’s elusive strategy that defeated Russia, which even the Qing Dynasty could not resist. The only leader who can assist His Majesty the Emperor and make this land even greater is the Shogun!

In the face of this great victory, the daimyo [Japanese feudal lords] from all over the country began to pledge their loyalty to the Shogun, and Satsuma and Choshu were becoming increasingly isolated.

If they tighten the leash a little more, they will be able to get rid of those *buran yoso* [Japanese: 不安要素 – elements of instability] and rebuild a powerful shogunate like in the old days.

For that reason, it is necessary to continue to show a winning streak externally.

That was the status of the shogunate that Ieyoshi was advocating.

The partner of Asia chosen by the world’s strongest power, the British Empire.

If we can firmly secure this position, we can enjoy an effect that is incomparable to the past when we used Joseon, Ming, and Qing to enhance our authority.

In addition, other countries in Europa will not dare to look down on Japan, so there is no need to worry about signing unequal treaties.

“No matter what happens, we must be the *juingong* [Korean: 주인공 – protagonist] of this fair. We must keep in mind that there should be no country that stands out more than us in Asia.”

“Yes!”

The Asian countries known to be participating in the fair this time are Japan, Qing, and Joseon.

The remaining countries have not yet established proper relations with Western countries, so they cannot participate.

After achieving solid results here, we will steadily accept Western civilization and develop Japan into the strongest power in Asia.

Continued success and confidence in the future.

The Shogun’s ambition was growing even bigger.

* * *

Two weeks before the opening ceremony of the Expo.

The preparations were all finished, and the arrangements for the welcoming event to invite dignitaries from each country were in full swing.

The London Expo in the original history was the first start of the World Expo, so there were quite a few shortcomings, but many parts were changed under my command.

Like the Expos held a dozen years later, the sections of the participating countries were clearly divided to create an environment where each country could showcase its own characteristics.

In addition, amusement parks were created using the large site, and accommodation facilities were expanded on a large scale in preparation for the large number of people who would gather.

In the case of Asian countries, a whole section was decorated with the concept of the mystery of the East, so I think it will attract considerable attention.

Since the world’s attention is focused on it right after the end of the war with Russia, and France, Prussia, the United States, and Spain are forming a subtle rivalry of pride, there are many topics of conversation.

It is truly a promised festival of success that cannot fail.

At that time, when I was about to prepare for the final *mamuri* [Japanese: 마무리 – finishing touches], an unexpected visitor arrived.

“Your Majesty. An envoy from a country in Asia wants to see Your Majesty. What should I do?”

“Is it because of the Expo? Qing? Joseon? Or Japan?”

“No. It is a country that has not yet established official diplomatic relations with its home country, but this time they sent an envoy saying that they would like to see Your Majesty and discuss it.”

“Then why did they come to me instead of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? Is it because they are from Asia?”

“Yes. I don’t know what the name is… Ryuchu? Rochu? It was a name like that. Since it is an Asian country, the pronunciation is not accurate, so I wrote it down as I heard it, so it may not be accurate. Almost no one knows if it is a remote island country, so it is currently difficult to confirm…”

I’ve never heard of that name before. Was there such a country in Asia?

After pondering for a moment, I put the name that just came to my mind into my mouth, just in case.

“Was it Ryukyu?”

“Ah, yes. I think that’s right. Do you know the country?”

“Of course. I’ll make time for them, so tell them to come tomorrow or the day after tomorrow.”

The aide’s eyes widened for a moment at the rather unconventional response, then he bowed his head and stepped back.

I can’t believe they would send someone all the way here from Okinawa.

Qing and Joseon. And Ryukyu and Japan.

A combination of those who want to break away from the tributary relationship and those who do not want to let go.

Just by looking at it, I have a strong feeling that it will be a very interesting event.