There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 167

“If Your Highness hadn’t intervened, I would have been in deep trouble.”

“Don’t mention it. Is there a reason I wouldn’t save my own people?”

Meng Sasung’s eyes welled up at my words.

‘It’s not just for such pure reasons, actually.’

The position of Grand Censor held by Meng Sasung was, by all accounts, a powerful one.

Although he almost got himself killed for displeasing Yi Bangwon, he could still be used as a sword as long as he held that position.

‘Father may be the one wielding this sword.’

Still, I’ve done so much for Meng Sasung; surely I can borrow it from time to time, right?

Such calculations were subtly at play.

“The country cannot do this!”

“Even if we concede to limiting the inheritance of meritorious subject lands, how can they forbid us from buying more land!”

“It is because treacherous subjects are blinding His Majesty!”

Even the meritorious subjects couldn’t directly criticize Yi Bangwon, so their resentment was focused on Meng Sasung.

Though they had praised Meng Sasung’s integrity to the skies until recently, they refrained from direct attacks.

‘No matter how upright Meng Sasung wants to be, he has no choice but to rely on me in this situation.’

He can’t possibly join Yi Bangwon’s inner circle, including Kim Hanro, now.

I felt sorry for isolating him so suddenly, but it was half his own doing, so there was nothing I could do.

‘Well, he’s just doing his job, so he must feel very wronged.’

However, there seemed to be someone even more wronged than Meng Sasung.

“Your Highness, Grand Prince Uian has come to see you.”

“What, here of all places?”

Grand Prince Uian, Yi Hwa, had come all the way to Gaegyeong [present-day Seoul], leading his old body.

“What shall we do?”

The reason for his visit was all too clear.

Although I am the Crown Prince, he is my grand-uncle in terms of seniority, so I can’t just coldly dismiss his grievances.

However, I nodded readily.

“How can we leave an elder standing outside? Tell him to come in quickly.”

Yi Hwa must have been quite desperate, as he answered even before Noboon could convey my words.

“Then, I shall enter!”

– Creak!

Yi Hwa stepped into the room with a spirited air, but his face soon stiffened.

“Y-Your Majesty…”

“It’s been a while.”

It was Yi Hwa’s half-brother and my grandfather, Yi Seonggye, lying on the warm floor and waving his hand.

No matter how prominent a member of the royal family Yi Hwa was, he had no choice but to prostrate himself before his brother.

He wasn’t just any brother, but the lord he had served his entire life.

‘Of course, he stabbed him in the back properly in the year of Muin [a specific year in the Chinese sexagenary cycle, implying a historical betrayal].’

That might be why he was even more deferential to Yi Seonggye.

‘It’s a good thing he came to Gaegyeong, saying he was bored.’

I don’t know why he came to Gaegyeong instead of Hamheung, but it was a good thing in this situation.

“So, what brings you all the way to Gaegyeong?”

“That’s obvious…!”

“…”

Yi Hwa, who was about to strongly question my words, lowered his voice while looking at Yi Seonggye.

“Please withdraw the Grand Censor’s memorial [formal written statement of grievances or proposals].”

“Is the Grand Censor someone who does what I tell him to do and doesn’t do what I tell him not to do?”

“Everyone knows that the Grand Censor is part of the Crown Prince’s faction.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that my great-uncle would believe such nonsense.”

As I spoke calmly, Yi Hwa beat his chest as if frustrated.

“How can you stop me from buying land with my own money?”

If wealthy people like you buy up all the fertile land near the capital with money and power, how are the independent farmers supposed to survive?

No matter how much we promote commerce and industry, the fact that Joseon [historical Korean kingdom] is an agricultural nation does not change.

‘There’s no development in a country where only these large landowners thrive.’

No matter how much we spread new farming methods and tools, what’s the point of farming if the land itself isn’t yours? There’s a clear limit.

I gently coaxed Yi Hwa.

“That’s why I’m offering you the rights to Cheonghaejin [a historical maritime trading post], isn’t it?”

“Hmph, how much money can that possibly make…?”

Yi Hwa spoke with a distrustful voice, but I had a secret plan to persuade him.

“There’s a way to guarantee you’ll make a profit. Why don’t you take a look at the ships yourself? Bring all the other members of the royal family and meritorious subjects with you.”

“Yes, seeing is believing. Instead of just arguing, why not see for yourself and then decide?”

Yi Hwa, who was about to protest, shut his mouth at Yi Seonggye’s words.

He didn’t exactly look convinced, but he couldn’t argue with his brother, so he kept silent.

‘My brothers should be like this too.’

I shook my head and thought.

===

The role we played in Zheng He’s voyages was simple.

‘This brother here, he overthrew the Yuan Dynasty and became the master of the world~’

It was to stick close to the Ming Dynasty and boost their prestige as much as possible.

For the Chinese, who live and die by face [emphasizing the importance of reputation and social standing], this was a very important matter.

‘That’s why we were able to get so many concessions.’

In any case, the purpose of Zheng He’s voyages was to spread the majesty of the Ming Dynasty, specifically the usurper and son of a monk, the Yongle Emperor, far and wide.

Thanks to that, we were reaping all the benefits.

The flagship built in Joseon was copied from the Ming Dynasty’s treasure ships, but it wasn’t 100% the same.

I had added my own improvements.

‘Specifically, triangular sails.’

Compared to the square sails currently in use, the area receiving wind was smaller, making the speed much slower, but it had a significant advantage that outweighed that.

When I was in the modern era, I had heard why sailboats always had triangular sails.

‘The biggest weakness of sailing ships is that they rely on wind power, so they may not be able to move forward at all depending on the wind direction.’

However, triangular sails allowed the ship to move forward even in headwinds.

That is, because the sail could be rotated around the mast.

‘If you adjust these sails well, you can move forward even in headwinds.’

Was it because of Bernoulli’s principle?

I knew the principle itself, but applying it in practice would require considerable practice…

‘Still, with these triangular sails, you can sail at a constant speed no matter which direction the wind is blowing.’

It meant that the ship could be sailed relatively stably.

This was important for maintaining trade ships, but it was also important for maintaining domestic tribute transport.

“Cheonghaejin will be in charge of this tribute transport.”

‘Making money by going out to sea and trading right away won’t be very appealing.’

Moreover, if you send a ship to the Indian Ocean in this era, it usually takes 1-2 years to return.

The Cheonghaejin tribute transport business was a cash cow to compensate for this.

“Of course, we will have to take a portion of that as freight charges.”

The freight charge was 5% of the transported tribute grain.

Since we can avoid all the dangerous routes such as Anheungnyang, Gwanjangmok, and Ssalssukeunyeo [historically dangerous sea routes], where ships frequently sink, it’s not exactly a loss for the country either.

No one wants to sink 10,000 bags of rice in Anheungnyang again.

“Oh, as much as five percent?”

“Of course, dividends will be given in proportion to the amount of stock held by your great-uncle, but it’s much easier than managing land for nothing.”

Managing tenant farmers is a headache, and landlords worry when there’s a famine.

On the other hand, Yi Hwa’s eyes wavered at the sound of a portion of the tribute grain coming in regularly even if he just lies down.

‘I think it’s working.’

My persuasion that ‘investing in us with the money you’d use to buy land is much more profitable!’ is gradually working.

‘I should drive the wedge in now.’

I said hastily.

“Then, would you like to board the flagship?”

“Uh, that’s…”

A hint of fear flashed across the faces of the royal family members, but they couldn’t easily say no.

‘Other civil officials would never board it.’

However, these were the first and second-generation members of the royal family who had fought alongside Yi Seonggye, so they had a certain pride as former military officers.

They hated backing down like cowards more than death.

Not missing the opportunity, Yi Seonggye shouted.

“Yes! You have to board the ship to know if it’s safe or not! Crown Prince, can we set sail right away?”

“Of course!”

I answered coolly.

The royal family members hurriedly stopped Yi Seonggye.

“Your Majesty, how can you take your sacred body on a ship!”

“It’s truly dangerous!”

It seemed like they were saying that because they didn’t want to ride it themselves, but Yi Seonggye laughed heartily and replied.

“Don’t worry! It’s just the waters off Byeokrando [a specific coastal area]!”

‘That’s true.’

The weather was clear and the waves were calm.

Even if the Dragon King of the West Sea was grinding his teeth at Yi Seonggye, it would be difficult to capsize this ship unless he suddenly caused a tsunami.

As expected, the members of the royal family, dragged onto the ship by Yi Seonggye, were soon surprised to see the flagship slowly moving forward with the wind.

“It’s surprisingly stable…?”

Wanseongun Yi Cheonwoo said with wide eyes.

They had all been on ships at least once, but that was why they were even more reluctant.

The ship shook as if it would capsize even in small waves, and they suffered a lot.

However, this flagship was incomparably larger than ordinary ships and could travel to at least the Indian Ocean without any problems, so the stability was clearly different.

“Can we be satisfied with using such a good ship only for tribute transport that receives 5% of the tribute grain? We can send the ship outside the country to bring rice and sugar from Jiangnan [region in China], and we can bring sulfur from Japan to sell to southern countries.”

“Rice from Jiangnan…”

How great would the profit be if we could bring rice from Jiangnan and sell it in Joseon, where there are frequent famines?

I could feel the royal family members’ calculations changing.

“Your Highness!”

“It seems that we have been mistaken all along.”

‘It’s good to be a landlord with large tracts of land, but this also looks like a lucrative business.’

Since the path to becoming a large landowner has been blocked by Yi Bangwon’s constant checks, Cheonghaejin can suck up all the money that’s idling around.

It’s the result of both carrots and sticks.

‘With the money invested like this, I can build three or four more treasure ships.’

Some of the ships built will be used for tribute transport, and some will be sent overseas.

‘If we just connect to the Indian Ocean network, money will pour in.’

Eventually, Indian Ocean trade will become the central business, rather than tribute transport or trade with neighboring countries.

The reports from Nam Jae and Yoo Jeonghyeon, who finally returned, gave me even more confidence.

===

“India is overflowing with saltpeter [potassium nitrate, a key ingredient in gunpowder]. Its quality is far superior to the saltpeter that comes from Shandong [region in China] or that we mine from our saltpeter fields.”

Envoy Nam Jae and Vice-Envoy Yoo Jeonghyeon.

The expressions of these men, who returned after a year and a half of sailing, were very bright.

I don’t know if it was because they discovered saltpeter or because they returned home.

The stories they told were quite detailed.

I had ordered the officials to record the customs and products of the countries they visited, the interpreters to record the languages used, and the sailors to record the sea routes, but I didn’t expect them to write it down in such detail and so well.

‘I didn’t know, but he seems to be a capable person. I should entrust him with it when we launch the ship this time.’

I thought, looking at Yoo Jeonghyeon, who was wearing a proud expression.

Whether I did or not, Yoo Jeonghyeon replied.

“The Ming Chinese pirate Chen Zuyi conquered barbarian lands and proclaimed himself king, but Zheng He captured him and beheaded him.”

“It seems that there are still many chaotic places in the southern countries.”

“That’s right. The great power dispatched a large army of 20,000 men, so it was safe, but when we send out ships, I thought that even if we take all precautions, we may suffer a terrible accident.”

Yoo Jeonghyeon answered that way, but I wasn’t particularly worried.

The people we send out here also have quite the temper.

(Author’s Note)

The ‘halpunri’ that is mainly used in baseball today is based on the Japanese standard. In Joseon, ‘bun’ (푼) meant 1/10, ‘ri’ (리) meant 1/100, and ‘mo’ (호) meant 1/1000.

End