Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 373

Episode 373: Stagnation – Stillness (7)

When the letter sent by Angelo was made public, the shock spread widely.

Among professors at famous Italian universities, the verification process and calculation formula were re-verified based on the records written by Angelo.

After an intense verification process, the scholars all sighed.

“It fits.”

“There are a few things that don’t fit well, but compared to existing theories, the number is very small. “I think this part will need to be reviewed again when more precise astronomical observations become possible.”

“More than anything… what the first prince of Joseon said is relatable. ‘The truth must be concise.’ Honestly, haven’t Ptolemy’s laws long since lost their original simplicity?”

The reaction of the academic world was moving towards acknowledging the theories that came from Joseon.

And what followed was the ‘Restoration Movement’.

‘Let’s go back to the beginning by restoring the learning of the ancient Greek and Roman era!’

‘The truth is concise!’

Under these claims, the ‘Restoration Movement’ began to take place, which soon led to the ‘Literary Revival’.

It started at least one generation earlier than history before the intervention of incense.

* * *

While the restoration movement was taking place in academia, the religious world was falling into chaos.

After the division into Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy in the 11th century due to the Great Schism, Western Catholicism was feeling the rupture whether it knew it or not.

This kind of rupture in Catholicism was caused by the ‘Avignonese Captivity’ and the ‘Great Schism of the Western Church (Magnum schisma occidentale)’.

In the end, it was finally possible to close the issue through the Council of Constance, which lasted from 1414 to 1418. However, barely a generation later, the plosive sound came out again.

However, this could not be said to be entirely due to the scent that was conveyed through Angelo’s letter.

This was because it was already a close call situation.

Eugenius IV, who became Pope in 1431, had a written agreement with the cardinals to become Pope.

-Half of all church revenue is shared with the cardinals.

-Discuss spiritual and secular issues with the cardinals.

In other words, the reign of Eugenius IV began in the form of a kind of oligarchy.

Eugenius IV worked to weaken the power of the Colonna family, which had produced his predecessor, Pope Martin V.

It was natural that the Colonna family, which had secured many castles and territories thanks to the power of the previous Pope, rebelled against this.

However, the two opposing forces immediately signed a truce.

This was due to the emergence of a powerful enemy called the ‘Council’.

*

…

His predecessor, Martin V, convened a council to reform the church. However, soon after, Martin V died and the Council ratified by Eugenius IV reacted hostilely to the papal forces.

This was because the Council insisted on the ‘supremacy of the Council’ and the Pope insisted on the ‘supremacy of the Pope’.

In this situation, one word uttered by Hyang started the fire.

‘God’s providence is infallible, but can we be confident that doctrine is infallible?’

Over this topic, a catastrophe occurred that led to numerous arguments, bloodshed, and collusion between the small and old factions, the conciliar supremacists, and the pope supremacist progressives and conservatives.

Of course, Hyang predicted the situation to some extent.

“From what I remember, the Reformation happened almost a century ago, but since it exploded beyond a critical point, there are probably still many dissatisfied people. Since ancient times, religion and politics have been where the most persistent people gathered. If you do well, you will be busy with self-destruction for a while. Then Joseon will be able to buy time.”

I made my own plan, but I was secretly worried about the scent.

“Could it be that this is a counterfire to prevent a big fire?”

But Hyang soon gave up his thoughts.

“Que Sera Sera. (It will happen as it happens.) Normally, when you have a fire pit, you don’t think about what’s going to happen. Are they going to come all the way here to Joseon and argue?”

It was a very irresponsible remark that ended up tarnishing Angelo’s letter.

* * *

However, these words created chaos even in unexpected areas.

The area was an Islamic area.

The words of incense passed down through merchants who traded with European merchants and politicians who were keenly aware of the movements of European countries stimulated many Islamic imams (religious leaders).

“Is our life now following the teachings of Muhammad and the Quran?”

As a result of this self-reflection movement, many sects other than those represented by Sunni and Shia emerged.

And it was a natural result that the ruling class at the time, Sunnis and Shiites, oppressed them.

In the end, countries within the Islamic sphere of influence also had to experience serious internal strife.

In this process, there were some who achieved unexpected luck, a representative example being the Eastern Roman Empire. The Ottoman Empire, mired in internal strife, was on the verge of the last few steps toward destroying the empire, and had time to catch its breath thanks to its halt.

* * *

Later, historians who studied the history of this period said the following about Angelo’s letter.

‘The fact that something like this happened with just a few lines of sentences is proof that the accumulated dissatisfaction among those living at the time was great.’

While writing theses, scholars sharpened their teeth.

“This person, Hyang, is probably just hanging out in Joseon! Why are you making such a fuss! “Should this be limited to Korean history or included in world history?”

“The one who wrote it down and delivered it in a letter is worse than the one who made a fuss!”

“The worst person is the one who didn’t even bother with that part!”

Due to issues with the interpreter’s qualifications, most of these letters were censored by the county directly, but they did not remain in official records. Thanks to this, historians only cursed the helpless interpreters.

And in relation to this part, many European historians commented as follows.

There have been several incidents where movements in the East had a great impact on the West.

A famous example is the migration of the Huns. There is a large-scale Mongol expedition and the Black Death.

However, when thinking about what happened through ‘Angelo’s Letter’, we must consider Lee Hyang, the first prince of Joseon at the time, as the biggest one. Because of just one person, Europe and the Islamic region at the time had to go through an era of great turmoil for nearly a generation.

Because of this, some radical historians evaluated incense like this.

“The greatest villain of all time.”

And when these words came out officially, the Korean government politely said them.

“Do you want to die? Do you want to die? Do you want to sleep?”

* * *

While Hyang was watching the grill going on outside, a grill was being made in an unexpected place.

Anseong, Gyeonggi-do.

“lily. “Someone came from Hanseong.”

Choi Man-ri, who was reading the scriptures in the Sarangbang room, got up from his seat and went outside when Nobok said something.

As Choi Man-ri went outside, the man standing carrying the luggage bowed deeply and said.

“Hello, Nari?”

“Okay, this is my first time seeing you. Who is it?”

“yes. “I came from Ilhyangdang in Bukchon.”

Choi Man-ri’s face was filled with joy at the man’s words.

“That friend sent you here? “So, is that friend okay?”

“Yes, master, you work overtime every day, but you are fine.”

“Yes, yes….”

Choi Man-ri, who was smiling at his acquaintance’s safety, got to the point.

“So, what brought you here?”

In response to Choi Man-ri’s question, the man unpacked his luggage and took out a large bundle and a letter.

“I came because you told me to tell you this.”

“okay? “Bring it.”

The man politely laid down the bundle and letter on the floor of the main room. Choi Man-ri, holding the letter in his hand, ordered the man.

“I’ll give you room and board, so you can rest for the night.”

“Thank you, Nari.”

* * *

Choi Man-ri returned to the Sarangbang with the bundle and the letter and opened the envelope of the letter.

“Look at Ganghosanin (江湖散人)…”

Choi Man-ri hummed and began to read the letter. However, the further down he went, the lower Choi Man-ri’s voice became and his expression became more serious.

-Sang created our Joseon’s own alphabet. Although it was unfamiliar at first, it was easy to learn and easy to use, so I think its usefulness is incomparable.

So I’ll make a copy and send it to you so you can take a look.

If you are that good, you will know its usefulness even if I don’t say much about it, so use it well and return to Hanseong.

Aren’t your age and literary skills too precious to spend leisurely in the wee hours of the night?

To summarize the contents of the letter, it was as follows.

-The letters created by the king are very good. So praise this, get points, and come back.

“Huh~. Are you telling me to act treacherously? “I guess I got the wrong person.”

Choi Man-ri nervously put down the letter and glared at the bundle. At first, I wanted to order a servant to burn it in the furnace. But he was also curious. And even though he fell behind, he also had ambitions.

“Okay, let’s see how well you made it.”

Choi Man-ri untied the knot of the bundle and placed the books on the table.

* * *

After the first visit (about 2 hours).

“What a scary letter!”

Choi Man-ri looked at the books with eyes filled with horror beyond surprise.

Papers filled with sentences written in Hunminjeongeum were scattered around Seotak and its surroundings.

In less than half an hour (about an hour) after turning the cover of the first book, I was able to know how to read and write, and I was able to write sentences at will before one hour had passed.

Because of this, Choi Man-ri was not only surprised but also consumed with fear.

“Even though I was stuck in Jiphyeonjeon rather than Geunjeongjeon, I was not unaware of the movements of the palace. But I’ve never heard of something like this being made. That means…”

Choi Man-ri, who was tracing his memories, lamented.

“also! “The king and the crown prince did everything!”

It occurred to me that the crown prince had obtained books on phonology and books from foreign countries through envoys.

The scholars and other officials of Jiphyeonjeon, including themselves, considered it a useless book and passed it over, but it was obvious that Sang was involved in this matter.

“That can be seen as something that started at the same time as the stadium began. “It is said that it took almost 10 years to create it, but does it mean that not just one, but two people created a character with this level of perfection?”

Choi Man-ri, who reviewed his conclusion, shook his head.

“Are those two people actually real?”

However, there was something Choi Man-ri did not expect, and that was that Hyang was a reincarnation.

In history before the intervention of Hyang, Hunminjeongeum, created by King Sejong, was an excellent script from the time of its creation, but was still in a raw state. It was refined over time to become the Hangul of the 21st century.

However, with the intervention of Hyang, the changed Hunminjeongeum reached a high level of perfection.

Choi Man-ri, who was examining the papers with fearful eyes, soon bit his lip.

“We have to stop it! “You can’t use this!”