There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 163

< The Enrique of the East (2) >

Lee Bang-won was silent for a long time.

*Was the story too sudden?*

The maritime trade of Goryeo and the world network of the Yuan Dynasty were collapsing, gradually being forgotten and closed off.

So, I didn’t believe Lee Bang-won would easily sympathize with my thoughts.

However, considering the achievements made through trade with Ouchi, and the decent profits earned from dealing with the Ming Dynasty, wouldn’t it be possible to think more proactively?

And once we achieve some success, Lee Bang-won might take the initiative without me even saying anything.

‘This one time is the problem…’

I was inwardly contemplating whether I should further persuade Lee Bang-won.

However, Lee Bang-won, who had been gazing at me silently, simply tossed out a single question.

“Are you confident?”

“If you’re talking about the ban on maritime activities or other issues, I’ll manage somehow…”

I was about to launch into a lengthy explanation, but I stopped myself.

Then, looking directly at Lee Bang-won, I said,

“Of course, I am confident.”

When have I ever lacked confidence?

At my answer, Lee Bang-won chuckled and said,

“Then that’s settled. I, your father, will take care of those minor issues.”

“……”

Is it okay to decide on a national long-term plan so easily?

I’m suddenly feeling uneasy.

===

The proposal to ‘go out to sea’ that I presented to the court surprisingly did not face fierce opposition.

Paradoxically, it was due to the immense currents of Anheungnyang [referring to the difficulty of inland waterway transport], which seemed to offer no solution.

“So, shouldn’t we dig a canal at Gulpo?”

Ha Ryun relentlessly pushed for the Gulpo Canal, but it was concluded that attempting offshore navigation would be much cheaper.

Of course, there were those who cast dubious glances at Joseon’s navigation skills….

“The open sea is dangerous, is it really alright?”

“Heo, do you not trust the technology of the Great Ming?”

With such a stern rebuke, the non-expert officials quickly cowered.

“Ah, of course, we must trust it.”

In this era, anything learned from China, not just Confucianism, held such strong authority.

In reality, the Ming Dynasty currently possessed more advanced technology than us.

It’s fortunate that this pro-Ming sentiment brings such positive effects.

Thus, instead of digging a canal, I was given a different mission.

“Heave-ho, heave-ho!”

“Ptooey, ptooey! I got seawater in my mouth!”

“You’re really making us work without rest! The days in Hangzhou feel like a dream!”

The Joseon craftsmen shouted as they were drenched in saltwater.

The docks used to build the treasure ships in Hangzhou were being erected here and there on Byeollan Island.

Mobilized laborers from Gyeonggi Province were building embankments, and docks for constructing ships were being built in between.

Thanks to all the heavy equipment that had been used for the construction of Hanyang being moved here, the number of personnel itself was greatly reduced.

“Byeollan Island was a thriving port in the old Goryeo Dynasty, so with a little effort, we can restore it and use it again.”

Unlike the ports near Hanyang, which are difficult to access, the mouth of the Yeseong River is deep enough for even the massive treasure ships to navigate without difficulty.

Of course, Byeollan Island was not chosen solely for these practical reasons.

When the news that Byeollan Island was being revived spread, the people of Gaeseong all came out to welcome me.

Even though Joseon had moved its capital to Hanyang, the five-hundred-year glory of Gaeseong could not decline in an instant.

However, the people of Gaeseong, who were gradually feeling a sense of crisis as they were relegated to a satellite city of Hanyang, a kind of outskirts, had no choice but to welcome this project to revive Byeollan Island with open arms.

The Song merchants, who were based in Gaeseong, were the same.

“Your Highness, is there anything you would like to order us to do?”

“If you just tell us, we will help in every way, hehehe.”

For the Song merchants, who were unable to access the Hanyang market after being denied stalls in the city, a breakthrough was desperately needed.

So, now that Byeollan Island was being rebuilt, they offered to actively cooperate.

‘In the end, they’re just sniffing around for scraps.’

However, forming a monopoly with only the Han merchants was not my intention.

‘Especially since the Song merchants are knowledgeable about overseas trade, right?’

They were the ones who traded with the Song Dynasty.

“In about two or three years, Gaegyeong will have a port as large as any other.”

By then, the ships we made with our own hands will all be built.

And around that time, our officials will return from Zheng He’s voyage.

Shouldn’t we set sail under our own name then?

‘I need to prepare thoroughly in the meantime.’

To open up overseas trade, the most important thing is what goods we can take and sell.

Although it is an era where it is profitable just to bring something back, we cannot unilaterally drain gold and silver.

So, I was preparing two new products.

One of them was sea ginseng, the ginseng of the sea [sea cucumber].

It is easy to distribute in dried form and is commonly used as a food ingredient or medicinal herb, so if the market is developed, it could bring us enormous profits.

I had already discussed this with Irrbuka and Choi Heung-rip around the time of the last Nadam [Mongolian festival].

‘I heard it’s being caught in huge quantities around Vladivostok.’

There’s no need to worry about the supply.

And the other was something I decided to develop by chance.

As I watched my younger sibling chewing something with a pounding heart, Do suddenly spat something out of his mouth.

“Ew.”

“Hey, you idiot, this precious thing!”

I was horrified to see the already tattered food.

What a waste.

My younger sibling said with a tearful face.

“I thought it was meat.”

“It’s more precious than meat. Others can’t eat it even if they want to.”

It was like seeing my old self when I chewed on something from the school lunch, thinking it was sweet and sour pork, but it turned out to be eggplant, but I had no choice but to scold Do.

It was an outrageously expensive food.

What I fed him was shiitake mushrooms imported from Yamato [ancient Japan].

Originally, shiitake mushrooms were a famous specialty of Gangwon Province, especially Daehwa-hyeon.

I don’t know about gold of the same size… but it was an incredibly valuable ingredient in this era.

‘Of course, its value plummeted after cultivation became widespread.’

Then, conversely, if we could cultivate shiitake mushrooms, we could rake in money, right?

I picked up a shiitake mushroom with chopsticks and said as if doing a favor.

“Before long, this will also become a food that you can eat as much as you want in a few years.”

“I like a world where I can eat as much meat as I want.”

“You’re already eating too much.”

You’re already eating well with beef, chicken, and even the pigs and sheep I brought from China and Mongolia.

The reason I’m making such bold statements is thanks to a book called Nongseo (農書) [agricultural book] that was included among the books I brought in.

‘Why is the book’s name like this?’

It’s a book about farming, so Nongseo is right, but is it right to use this as the title?

This book, simply titled Nongseo, was written by a man named Wang Jeong of the Song Dynasty.

Our officials, who were collecting books brought in from the Ming Dynasty, discovered the shiitake mushroom cultivation method and reported it to me.

‘As expected.’

It’s called the impact cultivation method, where you plant the spawn on a piece of wood and beat it to wake it up.

‘But if this had worked well, shiitake mushrooms wouldn’t be so expensive.’

However, I, who came from the modern era, knew a more efficient method.

It was the log cultivation method.

Select logs that are good for the fungus to grow on, dry them well, carve grooves, and plant the spawn.

Then, store it in the shade and water it every seven or ten days to grow the spawn.

‘Of course, it won’t be as easy as it sounds.’

I expected all sorts of trial and error, but if we invest enough money and time, wouldn’t we be able to see results in a few years?

“Red ginseng, shiitake mushrooms, and sea cucumbers.”

The three treasures of stamina are all complete.

Regardless of East or West, ancient or modern, the demand for strong stamina is overflowing.

Of course, it would be a considerable exaggeration to say it like this, and the reality is that it is expensive because it is used as a valuable medicinal herb or food ingredient.

As I was harboring such grand plans in my heart, Do said in a disappointed voice.

“Please make something made of meat instead of this.”

I’ve decided.

I’ll have him eat eggplant sweet and sour pork for dinner tonight.

===

Although it’s already in the past, selecting the personnel to accompany Zheng He’s fleet was not easy.

The sailors who would learn navigation skills and the lower-ranking officials who would practically investigate the culture and climate of the visiting countries had to do as they were told, but the problem was with the responsible personnel.

“Wouldn’t the eunuch Zheng He himself go from the Ming Dynasty?”

“Although he is an eunuch, he has the emperor’s strong trust, and he is said to be the second-in-command among the eunuchs after Hwang Eom.”

To move with Zheng He and keep pace with the Ming Dynasty, Joseon had to send a high-ranking official of similar stature.

“Then who on earth should we send?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

The court officials were worried, but none of them volunteered to go.

For Joseon people, being told to go out to sea and travel around for two or three years was no different from being told to take a SpaceX trip to Mars.

‘If a storm hits, the ship will capsize, and if I die, they won’t even be able to find my body, so why would I go out to sea?’

‘If I go out and die, where will they hold my memorial service?’

At that time, the one who was reluctantly pushed out was Vice Minister Nam Jae.

It wasn’t just because of the spirit he showed when he bravely accompanied Prince Jeongan to the Ming Dynasty when no one else wanted to go.

Nam Jae didn’t want to go to the southern barbarian countries, let alone the Ming Dynasty.

The reason was elsewhere, it was because he was impeached as a member of Lee Geo-yi’s faction when Lee Geo-yi and his son were purged.

Although he was not punished thanks to Taejong’s protection, he was still wary.

There was also the fact that his younger brother, Nam Eun, was purged during the Revolt of the Princes.

So, Nam Jae was in a situation where he was out on a foreign assignment, half voluntarily and half involuntarily.

He was just the person in charge, but the one who practically took charge of the work was Yoo Jeong-hyeon, a middleman who faithfully carried out the Crown Prince’s orders, running around every port he visited.

Nam Jae said, clutching his dizzy head from seasickness.

“Ugh, Zheng He said that the next destination is a place called the Three-Buddha Kingdom (Srivijaya Kingdom) [an ancient Malay kingdom].”

Yoo Jeong-hyeon nodded at Nam Jae’s words and said.

“I don’t know where that is.”

“Neither do I.”

The Zheng He fleet, which based its route on the voyage data of Yuan Dynasty’s Wang Dayuan, was scheduled to return to the Ming Dynasty via Champa, Java, Sumatra, Aceh, Calicut, and Palembang.

Currently, they were moving from Java to the Three-Buddha Kingdom, that is, Sumatra, but what did it matter?

Nam Jae was already suffering from unfamiliar voyages, and he was about to go crazy trying to memorize the names of the unheard-of southern countries.

“I never knew there were so many countries in the world.”

They thought that Ming, Jurchen, and Japan were all there was to the world.

However, once they left Joseon, even though they were barbarians, every land they went to was full of people and countries.

“There are so many countries, whether it’s Siam (Thailand), Champa, or Java.”

“Ugh, stop…”

Nam Jae blocked his ears.

“The only country I’ve even heard of is India. I’m already dying of seasickness, so why are you making me so upset?”

Nam Jae clutched his head and pleaded, but Yoo Jeong-hyeon didn’t seem to care.

He clapped his hands and said.

“Ah, Your Excellency, you mentioned India, which reminded me. I heard a strange rumor when I left Java the other day.”

Nam Jae wasn’t even curious, but Yoo Jeong-hyeon proceeded with the story on his own.

“They say that there is a mountain of saltpeter in India. So, the Indians who learned how to make gunpowder from the Yuan Dynasty are busy collecting saltpeter and selling some of it.”

“……Really?”

Then Nam Jae raised his head.

He knew the situation in Joseon, which was desperately trying to find saltpeter [potassium nitrate, a key ingredient in gunpowder].

‘Wait a minute, then the last place we’re going is a place called Guri (古里國) in India, right?’

Guri was Calicut, a city in southwestern India.

Even in this era, Wang Dayuan called it a key point of the Indian Ocean network, so the Zheng He fleet had set its destination there.

Nam Jae nodded meaningfully.

If this rumor is true, we may be able to solve one of our chronic problems.

“This may be a chance for us to make a contribution, ugh, guweeaeck!”

I need to solve the seasickness first, though.

< The Enrique of the East (2) > End

ⓒ Pitkong