There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 29

“The Hanyang Merchant Association?”

“Yes, the rumors are spreading like wildfire throughout Gaeseong. They say it’s a new merchant association being formed in Hanyang.”

Oh Jong-su had already heard about the large-scale construction of markets in Hanyang.

Many Song merchants were planning to open branch stores there.

However, it couldn’t compare to Gaeseong’s markets, which had been around since the Goryeo Dynasty. Besides, Oh Jong-su made his money through foreign trade, which was Song’s specialty, so he didn’t pay much attention.

It was the same even after hearing the news now.

“What merchants would form an association in markets that aren’t even finished yet?”

“They say it’s an order from the Hanyang authorities.”

Oh Jong-su scoffed at that.

“So, the young prince is trying to be clever. It won’t work just by scraping together any old peddlers.”

The scheme was obvious.

Unable to easily retaliate against the Song merchants’ tactics, the prince intended to develop Hanyang to keep them in check.

But merchants are an exclusive group.

Especially among the Song merchants, there were many who had suffered due to the government’s policies during the Goryeo Dynasty.

Many distrusted anything the government did, so the only people the Heir Apparent could gather would be the petty merchants who had been rooted in Hanyang from the start.

“I decided to supply dyes at the original price, but he’s still standing on his pride.”

Of course, he had benefited by naturally removing the scapegoat manager and taking over his territory, but still.

The plan to sell dyes at a high price had fallen through.

From Oh Jong-su’s perspective, he resented the Heir Apparent Lee Je even more.

“Even if the Heir Apparent steps in, only a small number will join him.

It will end with a few minor merchants acting rashly. Don’t worry about it.”

Oh Jong-su spoke decisively, but his subordinates didn’t seem to think so.

“Great Merchant, this isn’t just a matter of a few Hanyang merchants gathering. Do you know who’s leading the Hansang (Hanyang Merchants)?”

“Who is it?”

Oh Jong-su asked indifferently, but his face turned pale at the following answer.

“It’s Baek Dal-won, Baek Dal-won!”

===

Baek Dal-won, who had fallen from grace with the Princes’ Revolt several years ago, had reappeared.

And with the backing of the court.

“They say you have to join the Hanyang Merchant Association to receive market stalls!”

“They say merchants who can’t join the Hansang won’t even be able to set foot in Hanyang!”

Baek Dal-won relentlessly spread rumors.

As he had a strong influence on peddlers, spreading rumors from Hanyang to Gaeseong was a piece of cake.

“That Baek Dal-won is leading the Hansang?”

“Not just anyone, but Baek Dal-won, the former head of the Five Provinces Peddlers’ Association.”

Naturally, the merchants belonging to the Song Merchants engaged in fierce power struggles.

“No, still, with the Song Merchants glaring at us, it’s a bit much to join them…”

“The Song Merchants have had prestige since our great-grandfathers’ time. How can we switch to the Hansang now?”

“Hey, the ban on maritime trade has been lifted in the Great Ming Dynasty, and the crackdown is getting tighter every day. How long do you think smuggling will last? If the sea routes are blocked, the Song Merchants will lose an arm.”

Whenever two or three Gaeseong merchants gathered, they would talk like this.

“No, still, how can the Hanyang markets compare to the Gaeseong markets? The quantity and quality are worlds apart.”

“That’s true now, but don’t you know what it means to move the capital? When the relocation is complete, Gaeseong officials and people will move to Hanyang en masse. Are you going to trade while only looking at the customers who remain in Gaeseong?”

“They’re building an 800-section market in Jongno and a 500-section market in Dongdaemun. Soon, the Hanyang markets will be bigger than the Gaeseong markets!”

“If we don’t join the Hansang now, we’ll be stuck holding onto dead Gaeseong balls!”

Even this alone caused divided opinions among the Song Merchants, but the rumors that followed completely captured their attention.

“They say Baek Dal-won has a tight grip on the Heir Apparent’s special products through his connections with the Grand Royal Father!”

“No, are you talking about Baekja powder [a highly prized cosmetic powder]?”

“Of course! They say you’ll soon be able to get Baekja powder in Hanyang, which you can’t get in Gaeseong!”

“Hmph, the day Gaeseong chases after Hanyang’s tail isn’t far off.”

With the rumors about the falsely prestigious Baekja powder spreading, the conflict within the Song Merchants completely exploded.

“What on earth is the Great Merchant doing?”

“You won’t give us our dyes at the normal price, and you’ve taken the payment in silver but can’t open up the sea routes!”

“Have you made any effort to bribe those around the Heir Apparent?”

Those who were dissatisfied with the Great Merchant’s policies were already showing signs of joining Baek Dal-won.

“The atmosphere among the stewards is unusual.”

“Some are even secretly selling off their land and warehouses.”

Excluding those who had too firmly rooted themselves in Gaeseong, there were many who were considering moving to Hanyang depending on the market conditions.

Baek Dal-won’s appearance was the final nail in the coffin.

“You fools! The reason the Song Merchants have been able to stand up to the king is because we’ve united to assert our interests! Why don’t you understand that!

The Hansang are practically the government’s puppets. How can you join them!”

“They seem optimistic that Baek Dal-won is such a skilled person that it won’t turn out that way.”

The Joseon mercantile world, which only Gaeseong had monopolized and led, faced a huge change brought about by the Heir Apparent.

The Song Merchants soon began to split in half.

===

Although he had completely passed the Hanyang Merchant Association’s affairs to Baek Dal-won, he was receiving regular reports on its progress.

Seeing the division of the Song Merchants and the flood of membership requests to the association, he felt full without even eating.

‘How does it feel to have half of your business taken away after trying to scam people?’

Surely Great Merchant Oh Jong-su must be wearing a constipated expression.

It was a shame he couldn’t see it in person.

As he twirled his brush, he heard a sound from behind.

“H, Heir Apparent…”

It was Hwang Hee, whose eyes were darkly circled.

‘Is he a zombie?’

“This is the quantity of timber and stone needed for the construction of Changdeok Palace, as well as the number of laborers to be mobilized from each province and the plan for securing them.”

He accepted the documents Hwang Hee handed him.

There was definitely nothing strange about them.

In the first place, it wasn’t a task where corruption could occur.

Hwang Hee, trembling, said to him as he examined the documents.

“I’ve been up for three nights. P, please don’t give me any more work…”

“You still have the energy to talk, so you must still be doing alright.”

He said sharply.

The emotions Hwang Hee left behind aroused sadness and anger in him.

He couldn’t end it with just this.

“T, that’s ridiculous…”

Hwang Hee, who had accumulated long-term fatigue, fainted upon hearing his words.

‘Tsk, tsk, he’s gone off to dreamland.’

He thought about waking him up and giving him more work, but decided to let him off the hook since he had finished the work he was assigned.

‘I’ll give him more work when he wakes up.’

He looked across the room.

Meng Sa-seong and Heo Jo were also handling their work excellently with the practical advice of Choi Hae-san.

In fact, without them, it would have been impossible to complete the outline of Hanyang’s construction and calculate the necessary materials and labor in such a short time.

They were certainly worthy of being the people who assisted Sejong’s reign.

‘If only they didn’t fight so much.’

“Why are you trying to use my Nurungi [a type of cow] like a pack animal?”

“Isn’t it actually a pack animal?”

“Nurungi is like my own child! Besides, it’s my personal property, so the magistrate can’t touch it arbitrarily!”

“Isn’t Nurungi eating feed from the government? We’re just asking it to earn its keep since it’s eating government rice. Why are you being so stingy?”

Meng Sa-seong, who was trying to protect his beloved cow Nurungi, clashed with Heo Jo, who couldn’t stand seeing anyone, human or animal, idle.

“Moderate exercise is good for cows too. If one cow joins in, it will reduce the labor of five people returning to Gaeseong.”

“Then use the magistrate’s cow!”

“I don’t have a cow.”

“What have you been doing all your life that you haven’t raised a cow?”

‘I shouldn’t fight so childishly when I grow up.’

What were these grown adults doing?

As he was thinking that, he heard a deep voice from behind.

“Won-ja [the title for a prince].”

He knew without even turning around.

It was Grand Royal Father Yi Seong-gye.

“Is the work all finished?”

It was mostly finished.

The on-site inspection, zoning, and Hanyang construction plan were all completed.

Detailed calculations remained, but he could leave that to Hwang Hee.

All that was left was to return to Gaeseong.

‘But if I go back…’

He squeezed his eyes shut.

Then he said.

“Let’s see, the dye contract has been signed, but the supply of ironware is also a problem. I need to stay in Hanyang and research ways to increase iron production…”

“That’s something you can do later when you come back to Hanyang. Now that you’ve completed your mission, you must return to Gaeseong.”

Damn it, it’s not working.

There was a clear reason why he was reluctant to return to Gaeseong in his heart.

‘It’s because Yi Seong-gye mentioned marriage.’

Getting married now would be a huge mental blow in many ways.

He didn’t have the confidence to play real house with a girl his age.

‘And my father is Kill Bang-won [a nickname for his ruthless father].’

He would arrange a marriage with a family that was easy to control, but there was a non-zero chance that he would destroy his in-laws if things went wrong.

If that happened, he would feel sorry for his in-laws.

‘I want to delay it as much as possible.’

At least until he was old enough to immerse himself in married life and had the power to prevent his in-laws from being destroyed.

So he sighed.

“Can’t I not go?”

“Really? Then don’t go. Live here.”

Yi Seong-gye said like a mother leaving a child at the mart [supermarket].

‘If only I could!’

He scratched his head.

But he couldn’t just stay alone in Hanyang.

He followed Yi Seong-gye with the feeling of being dragged to the slaughterhouse.

As they returned to Gaeseong, the escorting officials cheered, but his head was filled with complicated thoughts.

‘Who is my marriage partner? Is it Yangnyeong Daegun’s wife from the original history?’

But he didn’t even know who Yangnyeong Daegun married in the original history, so it was practically meaningless to worry about it.

‘I should have studied history harder.’

It’s all because I only studied for the Korean History Proficiency Test.

Cursing the rote learning of history, he headed to Gaeseong.

Unlike when he came, it was difficult to go up with so many things packed.

‘I’m worried if there are any missing documents.’

He had clearly checked everything carefully before leaving Hanyang, but he felt uneasy as if something was missing.

It was a kind of gas valve syndrome [the feeling of forgetting to turn off the gas valve].

‘I wish I could use that excuse to change the subject.’

As Gaeseong approached, all sorts of thoughts came to mind.

He felt like whatever will be, will be, but when the scheduled moment approached, random thoughts came to mind.

– Ppoooo!

But he heard a faint sound of music from the direction of Gaeseong.

The closer they got, the louder the music became.

– Ppoooo!

The sound of Daechwita music [traditional Korean military music] could be heard even outside the castle.

He asked Yi Seong-gye.

“What kind of festival is being held?”

“Ah, it seems they’re preparing for our entry.”

Yi Seong-gye said in a calm voice.

“Are they preparing even this kind of thing because me and Grandfather are entering Gaeseong?”

He blinked.

He didn’t think there was such an event when he came back from Geumju last time.

“The matter of establishing a successor is approaching, so it seems they’re trying to establish authority.”

“Successor?”

Yi Seong-gye immediately rebuked him.

“You rascal, you seemed to understand right away when I told you last time, but now look at you pretending not to know.”

Then he went on about being cunning and whatnot, but he didn’t understand at all.

The only thing he could understand was what came next.

“I’m talking about your Crown Prince investiture ceremony.”

Uh.

That was news to me.

End

ⓒ Pitkong