There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 199

Molten iron poured forth within the steel mill, erected near the Byeolchang [a storage depot] of the Military Supplies Command.

The blast furnaces, initially built when I established the steel mill, had multiplied over the years.

“The scale has grown considerably without my noticing.”

“That’s because the demand for iron never wanes. Numerous artisans and factories have also sprung up.”

This was evident in the diverse weaponry produced annually by the Military Supplies Command and the ironware requested from across the country.

The demand for iron ore surged so high that many workers previously developing gold and silver mines were reassigned to iron mines.

Due to the butterfly effect [a concept where small actions have large consequences], even the severity of punishments in Joseon was somewhat mitigated.

“Because the gulags [forced labor camps] constantly request manpower, even those originally sentenced to death are mostly converted to lifelong labor re-education.”

These death row inmates were grouped and strictly managed separately.

The harshest site among the gulags was their lot, but surprisingly, they seemed to react as if rolling in dung was preferable to death.

“Wouldn’t they also bring prisoners from Bukgye [northern region of Joseon] or Tsushima Island [island between Korea and Japan]?”

The northern regions were originally areas where indirect rule was implemented, and because the people were so rough, they largely carried out punishments on their own. However, there were always those they were reluctant to kill but wanted to get rid of by sending them south.

For us, it was enough to put the criminals they offered into the gulags and work them.

A similar situation occurred on Tsushima Island in the south.

As a result, the gulags seemed to have created a fairly global environment, with Joseon people, Jurchens [a Tungistic people who lived in Manchuria], Japanese, and Han people from Mansan County [region in China] mixed together.

Not that it was any of my concern.

In any case, the mined iron ore headed to Hanyang [old name for Seoul] in droves, and the steel mill near Byeolchang constantly poured out pig iron.

The process of refining this pig iron into steel was a bit more complicated, but the supply of steel was gradually being achieved.

The reason I decided to utilize reinforced concrete was because this foundation was already in place.

“However, the uses of iron are numerous, and if the entire bridge is made of steel frames, the cost will be considerable. Wouldn’t it be better to construct it with bamboo and ‘gon-gilto’ [a type of mixed soil] as Your Highness did before?”

When Park Ja-cheong asked, I shook my head.

“That was only a temporary measure.”

‘When building Hanyang, bamboo roots were used to build some of the fortress walls.’

Back then, the supply of iron wasn’t as robust as it is now.

This was possible because the fortress walls weren’t as high as modern buildings, and various measures were taken to build concrete structures with bamboo roots.

For example, selecting the strongest 4-5 year old bamboo or harvesting bamboo in the fall when the moisture content is lowest.

Also, more concrete was used than when using rebar, and the bamboo was treated to increase its adhesion to the concrete, so it was only used temporarily.

‘Still, if rebar is available, there’s no need to insist on such a pain in the ass.’

Moreover, the distribution range of bamboo wasn’t as wide as I thought.

Because it only grows in warm southern regions, there was a limit to the supply.

‘It seems to be used quite well in the Saemaul Undong [New Village Movement, a modernization project in South Korea in the 1970s], though.’

Of course, this is the story in places outside the northern limit line of bamboo, and in areas where bamboo grows well, bamboo root concrete can be used quite effectively when building single-story houses.

In any case, aside from such limited uses, rebar was far more effective than bamboo. Therefore, the development of reinforced concrete had to be prioritized.

‘It will be difficult, but if this succeeds, the paradigm of construction will change.’

Putting rebar inside concrete is to compensate for the lack of tensile strength in concrete.

The tensile strength of concrete is very small, about 1/10 to 1/14 of its compressive strength, making it difficult to withstand tensile loads.

This was the reason why it was difficult to build buildings with concrete alone.

However, if you put rebar in between to hold the concrete, the tensile strength increases dramatically. If you can use reinforced concrete, it was like taking a step towards developing modern buildings.

‘I must succeed this time.’

No matter the cost.

===

The new officials of the East Palace [residence of the Crown Prince] were observing the workers mixing concrete.

It was the first construction site they had participated in.

“They say it’s management and supervision, but even if I look at it, I don’t understand anything.”

“I thought I learned quite a bit at the training center, but reality is different.”

Among the colleagues who were clicking their tongues, Eo Byeon-gap was constantly scribbling something while looking at it.

“Oh my, you’re writing so diligently because you’re the top graduate.”

“If I don’t understand, I have to memorize it by copying it whole. Isn’t that why we received this memo book?”

They had been given this memo book since the training center, and they had to carry it around and write down all schedules and instructions.

The exact meaning of this word was not known, but based on the notation of ‘memo (每摹)’, the most popular guess was that it meant to always (每) copy (摹) while carrying this book.

Whatever the meaning, many people had become accustomed to memoing even after completing the training center because the training center emphasized memoing so much, and Eo Byeon-gap was one of them.

“Oh, but now is not the time to memo. Look over there.”

Colleagues poked Eo Byeon-gap, who was burying his head and writing.

“It’s Chief Yi of Byeolchang.”

“Chief Yi?”

“Don’t you know? He’s one of His Highness the Crown Prince’s closest aides. He’s from a military background, but he’s skilled in making equipment, so he almost always follows His Highness and takes charge of the work.”

“They say he’s guaranteed to be the Minister of Public Works when His Highness ascends the throne.”

Another advantage of the training center is that it is easy to hear such rumors.

Because the Crown Prince’s actions are so famous, the identities of his aides, so-called the Crown Prince faction, were widely known.

There was Hwang Hee and Maeng Sa-seong, who were competing for the next Prime Minister position, Heo Jo, who was still a Vice Minister but was considered the brain of the Ministry of Rites, Yi Suk-beon, who had a terrible personality but was doing well, and even the slave Jang Yeong-sil.

Yi Cheon also had the experience of specially following the Crown Prince and assisting with various tasks, so such rumors were perhaps natural.

However, unlike the flattering words, Yi Cheon’s face looked exhausted.

“What are you doing here?”

Yi Cheon asked, looking at the new officials.

“Ah, yes. We were ordered to manage the workers and record it. Here’s the memo book…”

Eo Byeon-gap quickly handed over the memo book.

The officials who saw the scene sighed in relief.

‘His Highness the Crown Prince values this memo very much, so make sure to make memoing a habit even when you go to the East Palace.’

‘Damn it, I was exhausted from memoing even at the training center, and now here too?’

They usually complained so much, but when they stood in front of a distant superior, they thought it was fortunate that they had memoed even this much.

However, Yi Cheon flipped through the memo book for a moment, then said with an uninterested attitude.

“Hmm… memo. You’re still civilians.”

“Yes?”

The officials, including Eo Byeon-gap, looked puzzled at Yi Cheon’s tone.

That’s because civilians are the core of the nobility. The current reality was that they had a slightly better image than the military officials, who were another axis of the nobility.

But Yi Cheon’s words subtly revealed a disdain for civilians.

Yi Cheon threw the memo book to Eo Byeon-gap and said.

“This construction is not achieved with a few lines scribbled with a pencil.”

“…”

“His Highness the Crown Prince values field experience very much. There are more things in the field that cannot be known by civilians like you who memo.”

Yi Cheon patted his thigh with a proud expression.

“In the end, construction can only be understood with these two legs running around.”

“That, that is…”

“Still, it’s fortunate that there is a superior like me who will tell you this. Now, let’s roll up our sleeves and make ‘gon-gilto’ ourselves. People who work in the East Palace remember the mixing ratio of ‘gon-gilto’ with their bodies, not their heads!”

The faces of the three people who had dressed up in new official uniforms turned pale at Yi Cheon’s words.

“What are you doing! Pick up the shovels quickly!”

When Yi Cheon urged, they picked up the shovels and ran to the side of the workers.

Yi Cheon, who saw the scene, sighed like an old man.

There will be many things to do in the East Palace that require not only the head but also the body, but they are already making a fuss with just this much.

‘You guys, do you think you can get ahead for free? If you came to the East Palace, you should have been prepared.’

People should be rewarded for their efforts.

Then, conversely, if you’re going to give rewards anyway, shouldn’t you make them work for it?

Yi Cheon, who naturally had such thoughts without realizing it, was indeed being influenced by his surroundings.

===

The earthen bridge of Cheonggyecheon [a stream in Seoul] was easily demolished by the workers with a few axe blows.

“It’s flimsy.”

Because it was a key location connecting Jongno and Euljiro [major streets in Seoul], it had been well-managed until now, but it couldn’t be helped because it was an earthen bridge.

After chopping down the pillars holding the bridge and knocking them down halfway, the lower part automatically collapsed due to the rapid currents of Cheonggyecheon.

The workers quickly pulled out the remains of the earthen bridge and began to drive in the concrete bridge piers.

If the girders and decks are placed on top of it, a great bridge will be completed.

I ordered the officials assigned to the East Palace to carefully record the current construction process.

‘But why are their clothes like this?’

Seeing that there was an unusually large amount of dust on their clothes, it seemed that they were diligently running around the construction site and performing their duties.

They seem like diligent guys.

I’ll give them a high evaluation.

In any case, I thought while looking at the bridge that was being built.

‘I’m completing this before the year is out.’

It cost a bit of money, but the Gwangtong Bridge [a bridge in Seoul] was incomparable to the previous one in terms of its sturdiness.

The same would be true compared to the commonly used stone bridges.

‘It’s a hundred times better than using Jeongneung stone objects [stone figures from a royal tomb].’

I understand my father’s resentment, but that’s not right.

‘More than anything, it’s important that I gained know-how here.’

Although it cost a lot of money and time, it could be said to be a valuable trial and error.

However, Yi Bang-won’s thoughts seemed different.

“Crown Prince. What is all this…?”

“This is the ‘gon-gilto’, limestone soil, ironware, and rice paid as wages to the workers that were consumed this time. The development ended earlier than expected, so the cost was less than expected, haha!”

Looking at me, who was laughing heartily, Yi Bang-won said, trembling.

“If I had used Jeongneung stone objects, I could have mobilized tens of thousands of workers… you say it cost less?”

This is not just a matter of building a bridge, but it is also related to a national project.

However, Yi Bang-won shouted, waving the paper.

“You’re a money-eating monster, a monster!”

“Didn’t I work hard to earn it for you?”

“The problem is that you spend it without even letting it accumulate! Do you think money falls from the sky?”

It’s not like the country’s finances are going to be in trouble right away, but you’re being too fussy.

I said nonchalantly.

“Don’t worry. It will all be resolved soon when the water comes in.”

Saying this makes me sound like a head of household who has put all his money into stocks, but in reality, there are many ways to make money.

It’s about time for the ship launched from Cheonghaejin [historical naval base] to return.