Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 450

Episode 450: Prophecy. (1)

Two days later, Henry and his party visited Gyeongbokgung Palace.

“Hoo~.”

After passing through the Geunjeong Gate, Henri looked at the scene in front of him and let out a light exclamation.

Gyeongbokgung Palace, located with Bukaksan Mountain in the background, had a very wonderful atmosphere.

“Wonderful…”

Enrique entered Geunjeongjeon, admiring the sight of Gyeongbokgung Palace in perfect harmony with nature.

From Gwanghwamun, through the courtyard of Geunjeongjeon, to the entrance of Geunjeongjeon’s stairs, Henry entered Geunjeongjeon while being inspected by guards lined up on either side, and the image of King Sejong caught his eye.

There was a high platform at the end of the road between the officials lined up on the left and right, and a middle-aged man was sitting on a chair on the platform.

And on the right side below the platform, a young man wearing clothes similar to the king was looking at Henrik and his group with eyes full of curiosity.

‘It seems like that young man is the rumored number one prince.’

While Henry was guessing his identity by looking at his scent, Pedro, Henry’s closest associate, came forward and introduced Henry.

“His Majesty the King, Prince Henrique of Viseu, Prince of Portugal, Duke of Viseu, Grand Master of the Knights of Christ, and uncle to His Majesty the King.” .”

The interpreter, who thought for a moment about Pedro’s introduction, which included a long list of modifiers, told King Sejong.

“My name is Henrique de Avis, Prince of Portugal and the King’s uncle.”

“is it?”

King Sejong, who had a strange look on his face as the translator became considerably shorter, again expressed his doubts.

“But a prince? “Is he a great general?”

Hyang immediately responded to Sejong’s words.

“I think Daegun would be the best fit.”

Sejong nodded lightly at Hyang’s words and introduced himself.

“Tell them that I am the king of Joseon.”

“yes.”

In response to King Sejong’s question, the interpreter immediately translated into Latin.

“The great King of the Great Joseon Kingdom has abdicated (Ipse est magnus rex magnus Joseon regnum).”

This introductory speech was Hyang’s work.

The interpreter, who first heard this sentence, looked at the fragrance with a puzzled expression.

“If you use the word ‘Your Majesty’ or ‘Your Majesty,’ if you do it wrong, you may cause problems with your superiors.”

“Are people from the Ming Dynasty present at places where Portuguese people meet?”

“no.”

“Then how would the Ming Dynasty know?”

The inn immediately nodded at Hyang’s words.

“ah! That’s right! Then no problem! Rather, it should be done this way! “There’s no need to look funny to them!”

“yes!”

* * *

Henry’s face stiffened slightly at the introduction, which did not reveal his name but simply referred to him as ‘King’, but he soon corrected his expression.

‘It is said that there are countries that consider the king’s name sacred and do not reveal it without permission. I think this country is like that too.’

After that, the greetings of the meeting ceremony continued according to the formalities of both parties.

Once the somewhat tedious meeting process was over, King Sejong got straight to the point.

“What is the reason why a person in such a high position as Daegun came all the way to Joseon?”

Henrik answered Sejong’s question with a smile.

“So far, we have obtained a lot of Joseon products through Alexandria. I was very impressed by its outstanding technology, quality and beauty. “I have always dreamed of visiting Joseon, and now I have the opportunity.”

“What do you think when you come here?”

“It was truly a beautiful country. Nature is beautiful, and the people of Joseon in particular were truly beautiful, with smiles never leaving their faces, regardless of age or gender. “Isn’t this the world that politicians dream of, where the people are always smiling?”

The last words spoken were Henry’s sincerity.

Sejong agreed with Henry’s words and nodded.

“yes. “Isn’t it what a monarch must do to ensure that his people lead a peaceful life?”

“That’s right.”

The atmosphere was friendly throughout.

Henrik held the coffee cup brought by the eunuch and savored the aroma of the coffee with a happy face.

“I never thought I would find a café here.”

“It’s been a while since I came here, and the number of people enjoying it is increasing.”

* * *

As King Sejong said, the number of people enjoying coffee was increasing, especially in Hanseong. At first, officials working overtime were the main consumers, but soon it was becoming a familiar drink not only to the upper class but also to the general public.

“It’s already been over 10 years since we brought it in…”

Hyang scratched his head as he checked the report.

“But you like it so much? As someone said, is liking coffee imprinted at the DNA level?”

Hyang, who was talking to herself like that, looked at other parts of the report.

“Maybe soon there will be a tea shop that only sells black bean tea? Then chatting and applauding? Hmm… How should I write Chinese characters….”

It was the scent that led me down a side path again as I fell into a daydream.

* * *

Henrik, who was holding the cup while enjoying the coffee, suddenly looked at the cup with surprised eyes.

“What about this cup?”

The coffee cup, which had a warm, clear milky white sheen, was surprisingly thin.

Seeing Henry unable to take his eyes off his coffee cup, Sejong smiled slightly and asked.

“Do you like the teacup?”

“It is truly beautiful. And this is my first time seeing a porcelain cup this thin.”

“We also started making it a while ago.”

“Is that so?”

In response to Sejong’s question, Henrique fixed his gaze on the teacup again.

‘This makes money!’

And the eyes of Kim Jeom and Hyang, who were sitting on one side watching the meeting, began to shine frighteningly.

‘It’s worth spending money on a kiln!’

‘yes! If you can’t recognize it, it’s not an eye, it’s a knothole!’

* * *

‘I already got a kiln with good firepower!’

The scent that completed the kiln, which can produce much higher temperatures than existing ones, could not be satisfied with carbide alone.

“I wonder what would be good…. There was definitely something there….”

Hyang seriously considered how to use the newly developed kiln.

“Metal smelting is basic, so there’s no need to mention it… There was something there, I definitely saw it somewhere…”

Hyang, who was so worried, held a teacup in his hand to cool his head. The moment I put the teacup to my mouth, Hyang jumped up from his seat.

“This is it!”

Hyang, who came up with ‘Bone China’ or ‘Golhoe Porcelain’, soon gathered potters together and started experimenting.

“You want to mix powder from burned cow bones?”

The potters, who were skeptical at first, gradually began to produce good results and began to focus on their work with more enthusiasm than incense.

In a way, potters were closer to artists. Potters who realized that they could make materials that would bring them closer to the best pottery they had dreamed of, enthusiastically experimented.

As a result of the passionate work of the best experts in ceramics – regardless of manufacturing method or material – satisfactory results were produced a year before Prince Henry arrived in Joseon.

“Then let’s mass produce it!”

“You mean mass production?”

When the fragrance mentioned mass production, the potters looked slightly offended. This was because I didn’t like the idea of making a large-scale bowl with such good ingredients.

“Shouldn’t we spread the word about these good products?”

In this way, Goholhoe porcelain came to be made in three grades.

Things that even ordinary people can buy with a little bit of thought and more money are

things that ordinary people have to think about a lot to buy.

Something that only those with real money can afford.

The number of flowers was determined accordingly.

And after hearing the results and pricing policy, Kim Jeom immediately summoned the Minister of Finance and Economy and ordered them to do so.

“Open the safe!”

As a side note, I had to worry about the fragrance right before deciding on mass production.

This was due to a problem with the supply of bone powder used in bone pottery.

“Can we get enough beef bones?”

The county, filled with worry, soon ordered officials to investigate how many cows and pigs were slaughtered in Joseon.

And after receiving the results, Hyang shook her head.

“Such meat addicts!”

More cows and pigs than expected were being slaughtered and served on the people’s tables.

“This kind of consumption in an era without refrigerators!”

* * *

“Are you going to sell this too?”

Sejong answered Henry’s question right away.

“It has great value as a product and its beauty can make the name of Joseon known more widely. Shouldn’t we sell it?”

In response to Sejong’s answer, Henry immediately made a suggestion.

“We, Portugal, want to have a monopoly.”

However, King Sejong shook his head at Henry’s suggestion.

“It’s impossible. We have already promised supply to that Arab Mansur leader. Therefore, you can divide and sell, but you cannot monopolize. “Because I made a promise in my name as the king.”

“It’s a bit disappointing.”

Henrik couldn’t hide his regret, but his expression soon corrected.

“So, will you sell it if I pay you for it?”

“Isn’t that obvious? “Within the quantity that our Joseon Dynasty can sell, we will sell it to Mansur’s merchants or Portugal at the same price.”

“Thank you so much!”

Henrik expressed his sincere gratitude.

“And since it’s not appropriate to talk about business here, let’s talk about that with the practitioners later.”

“All right.”

Henrik immediately accepted Sejong’s decision. Now, it happened accidentally because of that teacup. It was not appropriate for him, the prince, and King Sejong to discuss and decide directly.

The eyes of Henry’s aides lit up when they heard his decision.

‘It’s your chance!’

‘If this thing goes well, you can gain even more wealth and power!’

I never saw my close associates so burning with their ambitions.

Kim Jeom and the Minister of Finance and Economy are smiling wryly.

‘Come on! Let’s have a fun consultation!’

*

…

After Joseon pottery entered Alexandria through Mansur, there was a widespread perception that Joseon was unconditionally the best in pottery.

In such a situation, with the introduction of Gohlhoe porcelain, the pronoun meaning ceramics became ‘Joseon’. And Goholhoe porcelain was called ‘Bone Joseon’.

Before the intervention of incense, the synonym for porcelain in history was ‘China’, and Gohlhoe porcelain was called ‘Bone China’, but it was changed to Joseon.

And later, a fierce war of words broke out between China and Korea over this notation.

“The origin of ceramics is us!”

“Are there just one or two countries that made pottery? “Whenever something comes up, these guys insist that it’s from them!”

“Earthenware and pottery are different! “They learned pottery skills from us!”

“So what? “Who are these people who go crazy when they think of Goryeo?”

“Anyway, it’s wrong to call ceramics Joseon! “It has to change!”

“The European kids call us that because they want to, so why are they being such a damn thing to us? So if you’re going to make it, why don’t you make it properly!”

And Japan could not even intervene in such a war of words.

* * *

As the meeting was nearing its conclusion, Hyang joined the conversation.

“Abama soja, can I talk to them for a moment?”

“I allow it.”

“thank you.”

After receiving permission from King Sejong, Hyang asked Henrique.

“I heard that among the group I came with were monks from the West Region. Where are they now?”