Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 130

130 Hwabi (婢, female servant) (2)

‘I have received an order, but it is best to take it easy. Then… pre-checking is essential!’

Hyang, who had just been brought in to enjoy the ‘Happiness Time of Fragrance’, first checked the prerequisites.

“First of all, something came to mind. If a maid (privately owned female servant) wants to marry a foster wife, how about notifying her master and receiving a document stating his permission? In the case of a government wife (a female servant who served at a government office), a permission document is obtained from the relevant government office.”

Heojo immediately responded to Hyang’s words.

“In the case of private money, it will literally be ‘bodhisattva’ or permission. “Sabi will probably never be able to get married in her lifetime.”

In response to Heojo’s answer, Hyang nodded to the whale.

“I guess so.”

“And in the case of government fees, they won’t try to get married.”

“yes?”

“Many of the government officials are women from noble families.”

“Ah…”

In response to Heo Jo’s answer, Hyang nodded without realizing it.

* * *

If an official or nobleman committed a serious crime (mostly treason) and was put on trial, his relatives were implicated and suffered disgrace.

It was common for adult men to be beheaded or hanged to death, and for young boys and women to become government slaves.

In this way, many of the women of the noble family who became government officials bowed down – at least on the outside.

Women who became private secretaries for various reasons, such as giving it to a public servant rather than a government official, were similar.

The reason why these women, whose status was downgraded to those of the lowly, gave up their lives was because of the faint hope of a possible ‘lottery’.

Sejong’s wife’s family, Shim On’s family, also had a record of being reinstated in the early days of King Sejong’s reign, except for Sim On, so they clung to that glimmer of hope.

And he sacrificed himself to achieve that hope.

* * *

After listening to Heo Jo’s explanation, Hyang gathered his thoughts for a moment and asked another question.

“Although Abamama has issued an order, it is not an easy task considering the resistance of the owners who have slaves. So what if we take the next best option and make all the children born to a governess and a servant girl into government servants?”

Heo Jo responded immediately.

“All Sanobi want to become government slaves. Even now, many Sanobi are coming in waves to become government slaves. So, of course, everyone will be desperate to find a husband who is a sheep in order to become a government slave.” (Note 1)

“Huh…”

Hyang looked dejected at Heo Jo’s answer.

Hyang, who was dazed for a moment, soon came to her senses and answered Sejong.

“I have received orders from Abama, so as a subject, I will do my best to find the answer.”

“I will trust the crown prince.”

“I will do my best.”

Hyang responded as if making a promise to herself, bowed to King Sejong and left Gangnyeongjeon.

King Sejong, who was watching Hyang leave Gangnyeongjeon, asked Heo Jo when the scent completely disappeared.

“What if? “What do you think would have happened if the royal ceremony had not been conducted and the crown prince had not distinguished himself so much?”

Heojo, who had been silent for a moment in response to Sejong’s question, opened his mouth.

“My Majesty the Emperor… If that were the case, then God. No, all the ministers would have insisted on the slave-servant mother-in-law law. “If we don’t do that, there is a high possibility that Joseon will fall into civil war.”

“It’s a civil war…”

Sejong muttered with a bitter expression.

‘If it’s Yifan, it’s worth it.’

Heo Jo was a renowned man of principle. The first principle he set was ‘peace in Joseon’. For this purpose, those who insisted that laws that were considered unjust must be followed were false. Therefore, he was a strong advocate for the ‘Prohibition of Suing Complaints Act’.

According to that principle, even when the Ryu Jeong-hyeon incident happened in the past, it was Heo Jo who initially supported Ryu Jeong-hyeon but later turned to supporting King Sejong.

As King Sejong blurted out his words, Heo Jo looked even more serious.

“majesty. It’s not too late now. “You have to deal with Grand Prince Yangnyeong.”

“But he is still my brother. And now that the public sentiment is following me and the crown prince is showing outstanding ability as I proceed with the performance, let’s move on.”

“…I follow your orders.”

When King Sejong decided to keep the matter of Yangnyeong buried, Heojo had no choice but to accept it.

Because it was the king’s command.

‘A subject can give advice, but he must not put pressure on the king.’

This was Heojo’s second principle.

* * *

“Nobira….”

Hyang, who returned to his room in the East Palace, muttered softly.

“Would you like to immerse yourself?”

The fragrance gave a short answer to the eunuch’s question.

“I have work to do. For the time being, I will sleep alone. “Tell that.”

“Yes sir.”

The head’s mouth, giving orders to the eunuch, protruded about a dozen times.

“Just keep thinking that the heir is late. “I’m about to throw it all away.”

Hyang, who was left alone after sending out the inner coffin, sat at the desk and muttered.

“Nobira… It’s really not easy. To put it bluntly, it is the economic and military base of the people, whether local Toho, noblemen, or Sarim…”

While checking the situation of Tanggeum, Hyang grumbled and recalled the words of Teacher Samcheonpo for the first time in a long time.

-The Joseon Dynasty is rich in research, as it has many records of the Joseon Dynasty and other documents. Thanks to this, the people who are overflowing with pa and ka are characters from the Joseon Dynasty.

Shall we go back to the nearest period?

First of all, Lee Myung-bok and Min Ja-young.

There is a lot of talk about whether they were people who made every effort to protect the country during the period of imperialism, or whether they were delusional people who dreamed of reviving the outdated autocratic monarchy and maternal government.

Above him is Jeongjo, who is controversial as to whether he is a reforming monarch or Tazza, a master of go-stops.

Is King Yeongjo the prime suspect in his brother’s death and a power addict who killed his son, or is he a seasoned politician who maintains an exquisite balance of power?

Gwanghae: Is he crazy or is he a master of balanced diplomacy during the Ming and Qing transition periods?

The most famous of them are Chungmugong, who sparked controversy as to whether he was a saint who saved the country or was overhyped because the military regime sucked it up, and Won Gyun, who is said to have been overly criticized on the contrary.

And the person who has started to appear these days is our ‘Sejong the Great’.

Those who criticize King Sejong are famous for the ‘Prohibition of Complaints and Complaints’ Act, the ‘Slavery Conspiracy Act’, and the ‘Compulsory Civil Policy’. Those who criticize King Sejong on this basis evaluate him this way.

‘A despot and a ruler of the wealthy.’

But what?

If it was only for the wealthy, why was Hunminjeongeum created? In order for those with wealth to be comfortable, the best way is to turn all the lower classes into poor people, so why did they create Hunminjeongeum?

Is it because of intellectual vanity, wanting to show off how smart you are? Do you think this makes sense? Don’t you feel like something is out of alignment?

* * *

“Is this ultimately a compromise for regime stability?”

Hyang, who was thinking about Teacher Samcheonpo’s words, muttered with a serious face.

According to Mr. Samcheonpo’s ‘publicly acknowledged miscellany’, the compromise between the Joseon royal family, who were former warlords from the north, and the powerful people in the southern region of Joseon, resulted in the ‘Act on Prohibition of Complaints by Buryers’ and the ‘Law on Mother-in-Laws’.

Taejong, who had strengthened his royal authority, created the ‘Prohibition of Prosecution of Prosecution Act’ along with Sejong to extend central power to the local areas.

The local feudal lords in the breadbasket area, who lost their military base due to the private army revolution and the conquest of Tsushima Island, had to accept the Law on Prohibition of Complaints.

On the contrary, since around the time of King Sejong’s accession to the throne, he had taken advantage of the annual poor harvest to accelerate land use and disease – Mr. Samcheonpo gave examples of those who aggressively accumulated wealth during the IMF period – and the local feudal lords who had regained control of local economic power pushed for it and King Sejong had no choice but to accept it. This was the ‘Slave Servant Act’.

Teacher Samcheonpo, who was talking about his own nonsense like this, concluded his remarks as follows.

-It was King Sejong who inherited King Taejong’s powerful throne, so why did he have to be pushed aside only 10 years later? Firstly, the problem of aftershocks in the north, and secondly, the problem of primitive land transportation in Joseon at the time.

If an anti-government movement using military force breaks out in the south, it is difficult to arbitrarily withdraw the military power concentrated in the north, and even if we try to suppress it by moving the troops scattered in the south, it is difficult to set the right time due to the poor road conditions. Then, the damage to both sides only increases.

So there was some kind of agreement. With the ‘slave-breeding law’. ‘I will guarantee your profits to some extent. So listen carefully to what the center says.’ That’s right.

Hyang, who was reflecting on Teacher Samcheonpo’s words, chuckled.

“Now that I think about it, every time we solve that nobleman’s nonsense, it’s so plausible that we end up wondering if he’s an alien…”

Hyang, thinking of Teacher Samcheonpo, chuckled and continued.

“Looking at the situation these days, I wonder if it really was an alien.”

* * *

The next day, Hyang went to work at Area 51 and visited Jang Yeong-sil.

While waiting for Jang Yeong-sil, Hyang muttered softly.

“As expected, it’s a cliché, but you have to do what you have to do.”

After a while, Jang Yeong-sil, who was called, politely bowed to Hyang.

“Did you call me?”

“It’s been a long time, Jang Jeongrang. So, is the matter going well?”

At Hyang’s question, Jang Yeong-sil’s face turned pale and she suddenly knelt down.

“I’m sorry! “No usable results have been obtained yet.”

At the sight of Jang Yeong-sil kneeling and confessing, Hyang whetted his appetite and ordered.

“Stand up. And I have a long story to tell to get you to sit in the chair.”

“yes.”

Hyang sat Jang Yeong-sil on a chair and checked the situation.

“It’s been a while since Anyeo started development, right?”

“We are entering our second year.”

“But what’s the problem?”

“In order to act on your own, you need an organ that provides the power to move. “Since the steam engine has not yet been developed, we are conducting research to use spring power.”

“Wow….”

‘I used that, but it didn’t work so I broke it and all the parts flew off!’

“It’s heavy because it’s a mainspring, but will Anyeo’s frame hold up?”

“That’s why we’re trying to make the framework out of iron.”

“Then the weight…”

Hyang, who was discussing An-yeo, urgently stopped talking.

“No, no. This isn’t urgent. “The summoning of Jang Jeong-rang today is in accordance with the urgent order given by the Chief Minister.”

When King Sejong was mentioned, Jang Yeong-sil straightened her posture and looked very nervous.

“Please order.”

“I need to make some looms.”

“You mean the loom?”

“exactly. If you look at the loom now, you will see that the process of weaving cloth requires a lot of human power and hands. “Take care of this and make a machine that uses water power or axial power to weave cloth and spin thread.”

“Hmm…”

At Hyang’s command, Jang Yeong-sil was lost in thought, tapping her fingers on the desk.

“Why would it be difficult?”

‘Do I have to do this again? ‘I have a lot of work to do…’

Jang Yeong-sil shook her head as Hyang-bi asked cautiously.

“No, first we have to see the loom in person and conduct research, but it seems like there is a possibility.”

“I understand. Let me arrange for the loom right away. “I will give you one year for development.”

Jang Yeong-sil responded to Hyang’s words with an embarrassed face.

“If you give me a little more time….”

“It’s a mistake.”

“… yes.”

“Then go and get ready first. “I will arrange for the loom and send it to you soon.”

“Yes sir.”

After sending Jang Yeong-sil away, Hyang looked in the direction of Gyeongbokgung Palace and grumbled.

“How are we going to get the budget for this?…”

* * *

After passing the burden on to Jang Yeong-sil, Hyang went to the record office and checked the records.

“Simply in the textile industry alone, results cannot be easily achieved…”

Hyang, rubbing his dry eyes as he looked through the huge amount of records, muttered to himself as he unfolded a blank piece of paper.

“If you insist that it is property, then it should be treated as property.”

* * *

Four days after receiving the order from King Sejong and handing over the burden to Jang Yeong-sil, Hyang took a bundle of papers and went to see King Sejong.

“I am submitting a report because I think I have found the answer to Abama’s commandment.”

“Speak.”

King Sejong and the ministers focused their attention as they waited for the answer that Hyang would give.

Standing in the center of Gangnyeongjeon, Hyang took a deep breath and opened her mouth.

“Abamama ordered us to find a solution to the slave’s problem. Accordingly, I think we should proceed by combining several policies and items based on my thoughts.”

“Several measures must be used in combination…”

As Sejong pondered Hyang’s words, Hyang immediately continued.

“yes. However, the priority is to secure a mountain for those who have been exempted from duty and to make those who have slaves realize that the more slaves they have, the more they lose.”

Hyang took a moment to catch his breath and opened his mouth while looking at the ministers.

“The equipment for the anti-aircraft industry is currently being studied in Area 51. And I think that in order to change the perception of slave owners, we need to change the tax system.”

“Change the tax system?”

Hyang nodded in response to the ministers’ questions.

“Yes, the slave said it was property, so it should be treated as property.”

* * *

(Note 1)

This is an adaptation of King Sejong’s question-and-answer conversation with ministers regarding the slave lordship law and the lord mother law in the 14th year of King Sejong (1432, the year of Imja), using incense as the subject.