Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 477
Episode 477: Daehyeongjeong (代理聽政) (2)
After leaving Geunjeongjeon, Hyang stopped walking towards Donggungjeon and tilted his head.
‘From what I learned at first glance, I did some proxy cleaning, but has that already happened? Is it possible that Abama’s health is deteriorating without you knowing about it? No, if you look at the fact that the medical doctors are not saying anything, it’s not like that… Then is there a butterfly effect caused by what I did?’
Hyang felt that the time for vicarious cleansing was coming sooner than he expected, and he thought about the reason.
However, this was a misjudgment of the scent. To tell the truth, it was a coincidence.
* * *
Even in history before Hyang intervened, in the 24th year of King Sejong’s reign, King Sejong summoned his trustworthy subjects and announced his intention to govern by proxy.
The basis for King Sejong’s request for proxy administration was because of his health.
“My eye disease has become so severe that I am unable to handle important official duties. That’s why I want to have the crown prince act as a proxy.”
However, the ministers, starting with Hwang Hee, strongly opposed King Sejong’s demands.
In the end, King Sejong became angry and kicked out the ministers.
“No need to say any more!”
King Sejong, who dismissed the ministers, complained to Do Seung-ji.
“It’s been 10 years since I suffered from eye disease. Especially in the last five years, it has become even worse. “I regret not cooking properly when it first got worse.”
In history before Hyang intervened, King Sejong always suffered from his health.
Therefore, from the 19th year of King Sejong’s reign (1437), the authority to approve administrative affairs was transferred to the crown prince.
And from the 24th year of King Sejong’s reign, all external events that required a lot of time and labor, such as command of ancestral rites and military training at Jongmyo Shrine, were handed over to the crown prince.
And the spare time earned in this way was invested in the study of Hunminjeongeum. (Note 1)
* * *
However, in the history after Hyang intervened, only the period of mention of Daecheongjeong coincided and the situation was completely different.
The first issue was King Sejong’s health.
Thanks to the Hyang’s ‘Project to Make a Strong and Healthy Pig’, King Sejong’s health was in quite good condition. Of course, there were some aftereffects from the mild stroke he suffered early in his reign, but they were not serious. And the problem of diabetes, a famous chronic disease in Sejong, was prevented from getting worse through consistent diet control and exercise.
And in the case of the eye disease in question, after intensive examination and discussion by medical doctors, it was concluded that it was not a complication caused by hyperthirstia, but deterioration of eyesight due to excessive overuse, and the decision was made to make glasses.
“How bright it is! “The letters are clearly visible!”
King Sejong, who wore glasses, was very satisfied, and glasses were soon provided to elderly people with similarly poor eyesight.
And Kim Jeom, who took the glasses, immediately looked for the scent.
“Degradation….”
“Yes, we will think about mass production and reasonable price.”
“Thank you!”
* * *
Next, from a political perspective, the psychological burden on King Sejong was greatly reduced.
After the purge of senior ministers, symbolized by Ryu Jeong-hyeon, the government’s subjects established themselves as King Sejong’s great hands and advisory bodies, not as rivals for power.
The next biggest factor was the butterfly effect brought about by the scent.
From the early days of Gyeongjang, the government actively carried out flood control projects and imported large quantities of grain from the Gangnam region to minimize damage from poor harvests.
In particular, importing large quantities of grain from the Gangnam area was the best choice.
In the early years of King Sejong’s reign, there was a famine almost every year – although the area and scale of the outbreak gradually decreased – but the damage was made up with grains imported from Gangnam.
If the people had properly recorded their family registers, they could have met their basic needs, not just the minimum amount for survival.
As sheep were supplied, not sheep that could barely survive, but sheep that could at least survive as human beings, the people were able to endure with hope for the future.
In addition, the profits earned by selling products made through active commerce and encouragement of industry to other countries led the entire Joseon Dynasty in a positive direction.
As a result, the Joseon people showed almost absolute loyalty to King Sejong.
In addition, through the encouragement of commerce and industry, Joseon’s society broke away from its existing closed and fixed structure and changed into an outward-looking and resilient structure.
In addition, the population began to increase rapidly as the damage from diseases decreased due to the spread of soap, which was one of the by-products of incense, and soybeans, which were close to gambling, and the strengthening of public and personal hygiene.
As positive news came in from all directions, Sejong’s psychological burden was greatly reduced.
As stress was reduced and the scale of continuous health care increased, with the help of a more efficient administrative organization, King Sejong was able to run state affairs with some free time.
And using this spare time, King Sejong saw the completion of Hunminjeongeum faster than expected.
Of course, the role of the papers secretly stolen from Hyang’s room could not be ignored.
The final influence was Hunminjeongeum.
Eliminating the process of transcribing Korean words into Chinese characters has led to a tremendous increase in efficiency not only in administration but also in all areas of society.
The increase in efficiency brought about by this Hunminjeongeum was so great that the Japanese who studied abroad, learned public administration, and trained in practical work in Japan seriously considered it.
-How about abandoning hiragana and katakana and introducing Hunminjeongeum?
* * *
After thinking for a while, Hyang eventually shook her head and walked away.
“No matter how much you think about it, there are more than one reason. “Then, it’s good for your mental health to completely format it and just say ‘Qué será será.’”
It was a scent that I chose to completely turn off.
This was the method my doctor taught me when I was suffering from depression in the 21st century.
* * *
As soon as it became clear that the ‘Representative Government’ was not a political conspiracy, the ministers actively responded to King Sejong’s wishes.
“I want to create a temporary organization so that the crown prince can carry out his duties smoothly. If you look at the records of the old Tang Dynasty, there is a system called the Crown Prince Cheomsabu (太子詹事府), so I would like to refer to this and create a temporary institution called the Cheomsawon (詹事院). “What do you think?”
The ministers answered King Sejong’s question right away.
“As you wish.”
Once the bill to establish Cheomsawon was passed, Sejong moved on to the next step.
“As the crown prince acts as a proxy for the government, I would like to have him face the south (in the direction of where the king sits) to receive inquiries and conduct state affairs.”
As soon as these words were out, the ministers immediately stood up.
“Absolutely not!”
“This is absolutely unfair!”
“Please inform me!”
Amid a stronger rejection than expected, Hwang Hee explained why it was impossible.
“The royal meeting is the place where the king hears and makes judgments about political affairs. “Your Majesty is going to the south to receive inquiries from many of your subjects, so how dare the palace of Donggung remain and receive inquiries as if you were the Most High?”
In the end, faced with great opposition from ministers, King Sejong decided to build Seomyeon rather than Nammyeon. (Note 2) * *
*
Once the establishment of Cheomsawon was decided, the building to operate Cheomsawon began to be built. .
Gyejodang (繼照堂) was built inside Geonchunmun (建春門), the eastern gateway of Gyeongbokgung Palace. The role of this building was to receive inquiries from subjects.
And Seunghwadang (承華堂), where the Hyang would conduct government affairs, began to be built.
Of course, this process did not proceed easily.
“Anyway, when the proxy administration begins, business will mainly be done at Gangnyeongjeon, so why not have the crown prince do business at Geunjeongjeon? “I think it would save money and be more efficient than building a new building, right?”
The ministers were once again shocked by King Sejong’s proposal.
“Absolutely not!”
“This is absolutely unfair!”
“Please inform me!”
Once again, Hwang Hee came forward and presented the reason why it was impossible.
“Geunjeongjeon is where His Majesty the Prime Minister meets with envoys and conducts state affairs. Therefore, it is disrespectful for the crown prince to use this place. “Also, although the Crown Prince acts as proxy, His Majesty said that he personally handles foreign affairs and defense personnel, so it is impossible to hand over Geunjeongjeon to the Crown Prince.”
In the end, after all this pain, new buildings were built in the East Palace.
* * *
While King Sejong and the ministers were playing tug-of-war and creating a precedent for proxy administration, Hyang was also busy moving around.
“It’s good to entrust the management of the research institute and Area 51 to Jeong In-ji, but it’s a bit uneasy.”
Although Jeongcho survived for a long time compared to the history before the intervention of Hyang, he was so old that he was unable to work properly and had no choice but to resign.
And although Jeong In-ji was the right person for that vacant position, Hyang was very uneasy. This was because one of the leading figures in the Gyeyujeongnan was Jeong In-ji.
“The problem is Jinpyeong, who is stuck in Area 51. Hmm….”
Hyang, who was looking around for a solution, soon found the answer.
“I can’t help it. “It is best to leave Jeong In-ji in charge of managing the research institute and leave Area 51 to General Lee Cheon.”
Hyang took a breather by entrusting Area 51 to Lee Cheon, a founding member of Area 51 along with Choi Haesan, and moved on.
“And I should add Lee Sun-ji under Jeong-in-ji. “If it’s Lee Sun-ji’s personality, Jeong-in won’t be able to do what she wants.”
Lee Sun-ji, an industry-academic monster, was as famous for his harsh words as for his mathematical talent. It wasn’t just that they spewed out harsh words randomly, but there were also few people who cursed those who were at fault. In addition, he had a surprisingly confrontational personality and was the type to immediately say that he was wrong if he made a mistake.
Therefore, Hyang used Yi Sun-ji as a check on Jeong In-ji.
* * *
After much deliberation, Hyang selected the people in charge of the research institute and Area 51 and began selecting the officials who would work at Cheomsawon.
Hyang’s eyes sparkled as he examined the letters of the candidates sent from each department upon Hyang’s request.
“uh? Are you here already? You get promoted pretty quickly, right? Does that mean you still have the ability?”
The person who caught Hyang’s attention was Han Myeong-hoe.
With Han Myeonghoe’s Seogyeongdanja in front of him, Hyang was troubled.
“how will we do it? Would you recommend it to Abama when she goes to Shinji? Or should I put it aside and roll it?”
Hyang, who was seriously contemplating, soon selected Han Myeong-hoe’s Seogyeongdanja separately.
“There’s a famous movie line, right? ‘Friends are close, enemies are closer.’”
It was the scent that decided to roll Han Myeong-hoe, who was Grand Prince Suyang’s most important staff member, right next to him.
“If you are truly talented, you can stick a straw and use him as the second Hwang Hee, or else you can use him as a madangsoi in Geunjeongjeon.”
Having decided to deal with Han Myeong-hoe, Hyang searched for the Seogyeongdanja again.
Hyang’s eyes lit up as he searched through the Seogyeongdanja.
“uh? Was there interest? ah! You all said you were alumni, right? Hmm….”
Hyang-hyang was lost in thought again.
“Should we tear it apart or gather it up and monitor it?…”
Hyang, who had been thinking deeply, soon came to a conclusion.
“It’s a lust for power that’s enough to cause a revolt. That level of desire… If you are near the highest power, you will never want to be pushed out. To do that, you must be that loyal, right? Hmm…. We will see whether he will become Chise’s successor or a waste of money.”
The Seo-gyeong members selected at the same time as the words were Kwon Ram and Seo Geo-jeong.
* * *
Note 1) The Annals of King Sejong, read in one volume. Written by Park Young-gyu. Woongjin Knowledge House.
Note 2) Daericheongjeong edition of Our History Network.
http://contents.history.go.kr/front/km/print.do?levelId=km_023_0040_0030_0010&whereStr=