Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 239
Episode 239: Secret Envoy (1)
Izuhara, Tsushima Island.
“It’s finally coming.”
As he watched the Joseon envoy ships entering the port escorted by three Panok ships, Taipei Governor Do Doo-ung-wa muttered with a very nervous expression on his face.
* * *
Two months ago, Do Do-woong-wa received a letter from the Joseon Dynasty through a merchant from Waegwan.
‘I have something important to discuss with the Japanese shogun, so I will send a messenger in two months.’
“suddenly? why?”
Dodoungwa, who confirmed the letter sent by the Joseon Dynasty, fell into confusion.
Since the creation of Joseon, there have been several occasions when Joseon sent messengers to the shogun. However, there has never been a time when information was unilaterally announced in this way.
Looking at the procedures so far, Joseon sent a messenger to reply to the ‘Japanese King’s Letter’ sent by the shogunate’s shogun.
When Joseon said it would send a telecommunications company, numerous negotiations followed from then on.
First, I had to decide on a good time to visit. The first thing to avoid was a time when typhoons were frequent and public safety was unstable due to drought and other natural disasters.
Next is the quality of the affairs of the telecommunications company. The number of Tongshin Jeongsa (通信正使) dispatched to the Japanese Empire was limited to Danghagwan of the third rank.
Dodoungwa was taken aback because the news agency was only launched after several months of various negotiations.
“Joseon rarely does anything in such a hurry…”
Feeling vague anxiety, Dodoungwa gave orders to his vassals.
“Tell the merchants who went to Waegwan to find out more about the situation in Joseon!”
“hot!”
“Then what should I do with this letter?”
“Send it to Kyoto. “They need to prepare too.”
“hot!”
And two months later, Joseon ships flocked to Izuhara.
* * *
A pier was connected to the ship, and Joseon envoys came down from the ship.
As the envoys got off the ship, Do Do Woong Wa, with his expression straightened, welcomed the Joseon envoys with joy.
“welcome! Welcome to Tsushima!”
The government official, who heard Dodoungwa’s words through an interpreter, bowed respectfully and responded.
“Thank you for your welcome. “My name is Nam Ki-ju, who came as a messenger under the order of His Majesty the Prime Minister.”
“Welcome!”
After a brief meeting at the dock, Dodoungwa and the messenger moved to Kaneishi Castle in Izuhara.
* * *
A splendid banquet was held at Doju’s mansion. While drinks were being exchanged and various stories were being exchanged, Do Do-woong-wa looked at Nam Ki-ju.
Do Do-woong-wa’s lips were smiling as he looked at Nam Ki-ju, but his eyes were not smiling.
‘This is someone whose true feelings cannot be understood!’
Do Do-woong-wa, looking at Nam Ki-ju, was tensed inside. Nam Ki-ju, the communications officer who came this time, was polite and polite. Although it is a small island, the island owner who rules Tsushima Island was never in a low position. Therefore, although the news agencies that have visited this place so far have been polite on the outside, their eyes are full of feelings of belittling Dodoungwa.
However, no emotion could be found in the eyes of this man named Nam Ki-ju. Although he was polite and spoke in a gentle voice, Nam Ki-ju’s eyes showed no emotion. Nam Ki-joo’s eyes were as transparent as glass.
In the end, Dodoungwa had to open his mouth first.
“By the way. “Nam, where did you do government work before working as a news agency?”
Nam Ki-ju gave a short answer to Dodoungwa’s question.
“I was in the hospital.”
“Byungjo?”
Upon hearing the answer, Dodoungwa’s face instantly stiffened.
Until now, among the messengers sent by Joseon, there has never been a former soldier in charge of government affairs. They were all civil servants.
Of course, even if he was a member of the military corps, it was not necessarily possible to quickly conclude that he was a military officer. But Dodoungwa’s sixth sense was giving him a sharp warning.
‘It’s definitely a military attaché! ‘It also happened on the battlefield!’
Considering the rank of the envoys that Joseon sent to the Japanese, if the person in front of us named Nam Ki-ju was actually a military officer who had experienced the battlefield, he would have at least held the official position of Cheomjeolje.
* * *
Do Do-woong-wa, who was very nervous, forced a smile and led the conversation with Nam Ki-ju.
“But why did His Majesty the Lord send a messenger so suddenly?”
To Dodoungwa’s question, Kiju Nam put down his glass and answered.
“You may think suddenly, but there are twists and turns. Do you remember what happened near Mureung Island a few months ago?”
“yes.”
To Nam Ki-ju’s question, Do Do-woong-wa nodded. Unfortunately, many lives were lost when they were caught while fishing near Joseon.
Nam Ki-ju continued speaking calmly.
“At that time, Joseon took this issue seriously. “If you look at the current situation between Joseon and Japan, trade is gradually increasing.”
“That’s right.”
Dodoungwa felt sick as he answered Nam Ki-ju’s words.
* * *
As Nam Ki-ju said, the volume of trade between Joseon and Japan was gradually increasing. However, in this process, Tsushima Island was gradually being pushed back. Even in Waegwan, which would have been centered around merchants from Tsushima in the past, merchants from Tsushima were gradually being pushed out and merchants from other territories were increasingly gaining ground.
“This was planned by Joseon!”
Dodoungwa gritted his teeth upon hearing the situation. Joseon officials in charge of Waegwan expelled Japanese merchants from Waegwan if they caught even the slightest hint.
And most of the merchants who were expelled were those from Tsushima Island.
Dodoungwa gritted his teeth, but there was no solution. If you think about it, Joseon had a justification, and if it wanted to use force, Tsushima could have become a battlefield again.
Because of this, Dodoungwa had to endure it.
* * *
Nam Ki-ju continued, whether or not he knew Do Do-woong-wa’s feelings.
“Under such circumstances, Japanese fishermen were caught near Mureung Island. The problem is that the weapons came from their ships. In other words, a situation has arisen in which our government has doubts as to whether these people are real fishermen or pirates.”
“That part, as I already said, is for the fishermen’s self-defense…”
“That may be true, but isn’t it something we can’t easily believe, having suffered from Japanese pirates since the end of the Goryeo Dynasty?”
“That’s right…”
At Nam Ki-ju’s point, Do Do-woong-wa could only nod helplessly.
Nam Ki-ju, who took the lead, finally got to the point.
“As trade between Korea and Japan increases, many merchant ships are traveling back and forth. “Our government has no choice but to worry about the safety of these merchant ships.”
“So… Your Majesty the Prime Minister sent you to discuss that matter?”
“That’s right.”
There was no longer a smile on Dodoungwa’s face. Do Do-woong-wa, with a stiff expression on his face, asked Nam Ki-ju.
“What measures has your Majesty the Lord taken?”
“I’ll let you know because it also involves Tsushima Island. “We, Joseon, want to rent Tsushima’s port.”
“You mean our Tsushima port?”
“That’s right.”
* * *
As the conversation between Nam Ki-ju and Do Do-woong became more serious, the banquet hall became quiet. Dodoungwa’s vassals and Joseon’s envoys all listened to the conversation with serious faces.
“A port… do you want this place, Izuhara?”
Nam Ki-ju shook his head in response to Do Do-woong-wa’s question.
“no. “Do you have a map of Tsushima Island?”
In response to Nam Ki-ju’s question, Dodoungwa called out to his retainer in a harsh voice.
“Matsumura! map!”
“hot!”
* * *
After a while, a map depicting the topography of Tsushima Island was spread out on a large table with the dishes cleared away.
Nam Ki-ju pointed to two places on the map with his finger.
“We, Joseon, hope to borrow the area of Cheonmo Bay (now Aso Bay) and Daeseonwol (now Ofunako City) on the other side. “Cheonmo Bay is to ensure the safety of ships departing from Busan, and Daeseonwol is to protect ships departing from the Japanese mainland.”
“Hmm…”
Do Do-woong-wa, who was looking at the map while listening to Nam Ki-ju’s explanation, had a complicated look on his face.
Cheonmo Bay, which Nam Ki-ju first pointed out, was the area where the Joseon army first anchored when attacking Tsushima Island.
Dodoungwa, who had been quietly examining the map, looked back at Nam Kiju.
“Do you, Your Majesty, wish to cede these places?”
In response to Dodoungwa’s question, the retainers looked at the dried needles. This was because Tsushima Island might have to prepare for war according to the words that came out of the mouth of the Joseon Tongsinsa.
However, the answer that came out of Nam Ki-ju’s mouth was unexpected.
“His Majesty the Lord wants to rent it.”
“lease? “You want to rent it?”
“That’s right.”
Dodoungwa didn’t immediately understand Nam Kiju’s answer, so he asked again.
“Are you sure you want to borrow it?”
“That’s right.”
At Nam Ki-ju’s answer, Do Do-woong-wa’s mind became a complete mess. A method emerged that was completely incomprehensible to him, or to people of this era.
‘I need some time to gather my thoughts!’
Dodoungwa, who needed time to organize his thoughts, called his retainer.
“Matsumura Ocha (お茶)!”
“hot!”
Dodoungwa, who gave orders to his retainers, looked back at Nam Kiju and opened his mouth.
“This story seems a bit long, so let’s have a cup of tea for a moment.”
“thank you.”
* * *
“Please eat. “This person is a famous tea ceremony teacher in Kyoto.”
“thank you.”
When Nam Ki-ju bowed his head and expressed his gratitude, the tea ceremony teacher also politely reciprocated and expressed his gratitude.
“It is an honor to serve tea to someone from Goryeo, famous for its tea ceremony.”
The tea ceremony flourished on the Korean Peninsula until the Goryeo Dynasty. This was the influence of Buddhism. However, with the advent of the Joseon Dynasty, tea culture began to decline little by little as it advocated the doctrine of Sung Confucianism and Buddhism.
However, up until this time, it had a tea ceremony culture that was more advanced than that of Japan.
As he drank tea, Do Do-woong-wa worked hard to organize his thoughts in a much softer atmosphere.
‘He clearly said he was borrowing it. Is it really simply borrowing? So what is the price? Preservation of my position? Or something more?’
He said he was organizing his thoughts, but his mind became more and more complicated.
* * *
After enjoying the tea, the group moved to the map again.
Dodoungwa, who was examining the map, asked Nam Kiju.
“I’ll be honest with you. “His Majesty the Lord said he would rent it, but how will Joseon use it?”
“As I said before, the purpose is to protect merchant ships traveling on the sea route between Joseon and Japan from the Japanese. It would take too long for our front line to move for this purpose from Dongnae. Therefore, we plan to build a port in the Cheonmo Bay and Daeseonwol areas and use it as an anchorage for the front lines and a place for merchant ships to take refuge when encountering bad weather.”
“How many wires will you have to lay down?”
“There are about 10 to 20 ships on each side.”
“Hmm…”
As Dodoungwa pondered, one of the retainers standing behind him came up and whispered softly. Dodoungwa, who was nodding his head while listening to the retainer’s words, looked back at Nam Kiju.
“To borrow means to pay. “Your Majesty, how much do you intend to pay?”
“The two places combined cost 20 nyang of silver each month. “If Tsushima Island residents are hired as laborers, that portion will be paid separately.”
At Nam Ki-ju’s answer, Dodoungwa’s vassals immediately fell into turmoil.
“quiet! Be quiet!”
After calming down the commotion of his vassals, Dodoungwa made a request to Nam Kiju.
“It’s late today, so I’d like to talk about the rest tomorrow. How is it?”
“That’s right.”
In that way, the day’s work was over. Nam Ki-ju, who returned to the prepared accommodation, looked out the window while writing a report.
Nam Ki-ju, looking at the place where Dodoungwa and his retainers were, muttered softly.
“Your head might hurt a bit.”