Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 483

Episode 483: Ouchi, Giant Soldiers (1)

All the ministers headed to Geunjeongjeon in response to an urgent report sent through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Hyang and King Sejong were already waiting for them inside Geunjeongjeon.

Meanwhile, King Sejong was preparing to go to Shinji at Gangnyeongjeon, but due to the importance of the matter, he summoned the ministers to Geunjeongjeon.

This was because if something went wrong in the Japanese or Ming countries, the repercussions would immediately hit Joseon.

* * *

“ruler. First, let’s consider the current situation.”

Following King Sejong’s words, Minister of Foreign Affairs Heo Hu stepped forward and began to explain the outline.

“The current king of Japan. So, the shogunate’s general, Jok-ri-seung, died 20 days ago.”

“What is the cause of death?”

“It is known as disease death.”

“Soldier… From what I understand, I heard that the King of Japan was very young?”

“I turned 10 this year. “I was six years old when I first ascended to the position of shogun.”

A small commotion arose among the ministers who heard Ashikaga Yoshikasu’s age. However, the uproar soon subsided and the ministers listened to the Foreign Minister’s explanation.

“Hmm…”

Sejong, who had been thinking deeply about something while listening to Heo Hu’s explanation, opened his mouth.

“So, has the new king of Japan been decided?”

“yes. “This is a report that it seems certain that Jok Ui-jeong, the third son of Jok Ui-gyo, the previous king of Japan, will become the new king of Japan.”

“How old is he again?”

“Now comes eight.”

Heo Hu’s explanation caused a small stir in Geunjeongjeon once again and then disappeared.

“Hmm… that’s strange.”

Sejong, who was analyzing Hu Hu’s explanation, asked Hu Hu a question.

“Considering the authority of the shogunate, the age of the Japanese king is too young. “Aren’t there any suitable people among the brothers of the Christian religion?”

“Most of them became monks, and the remaining one was exterminated in the last civil war.”

Sejong snorted at Heo Hu’s answer.

“joy! It is known that Jokri-gyo became a monk, returned to secular life, and became the king of Japan. But since I became a monk, I am not qualified? Do you think it makes sense?”

“….”

At King Sejong’s point, all the ministers fell silent. Seeing this, King Sejong called Hwang Hee.

“What does the Prime Minister think?”

“I understand what those who wanted to promote Jokguijeong were thinking, but these words were too profane to say out loud…”

Hwang Hee trailed off, and the other ministers nodded silently as well.

Sejong opened his mouth in response to Hwang Hee’s answer.

“It would be a waste of words to be called regent. If you look far away, there will be the Ten Sangshi of the Later Han Dynasty, and if you look closer, there will be the warrior groups of the former Dynasty.

Setting up a young and weak monarch and manipulating state affairs.

As far as I know, the reason Jokri Monk ascended to the throne of Japan was as a result of an agreement between the families holding the position of Kanrei.

So, the same goes for the new king of Japan, right? Just like everyone else who tried to take action as soon as I ascended to the throne.”

In response to King Sejong’s question, the ministers bowed their heads in silence.

* * *

Now, much of the authority was distributed to ministers, but King Sejong was a despot. In front of such a person, it was impossible to say something like the monarch’s power was shared among the subjects.

And although he did not clearly say who it was, King Sejong once again warned by mentioning the faction of Ryu Jeong-hyeon, a senior minister and contributor to the founding of the country.

-Do not carelessly covet the king’s power!

Because of this, Hwang Hui and the ministers kept their mouths shut.

* * *

After warning the ministers, King Sejong held the meeting again.

“If a child were to become the king of Japan again this time, what do you think would happen to the political situation in Japan?”

Heo Hu was the first to answer King Sejong’s question.

“The three families in charge of Gwanryeong took the lead. There, the seven families who inherited the key institutions of the shogunate, called Samgwansajik (三管四職), came together to agree. “Although he is a symbolic entity, he cannot express his dissatisfaction right away because he has the emperor and court, symbols of the Japanese nation, on his back.”

As soon as Heo Hu finished speaking, Kim Jeom opened his mouth.

“It may be so, but there is a high chance of conflict occurring. “There were quite a few lords who were dissatisfied with the tyranny of Jok-ri’s religion, and the period when Jok-ri-monk was king of Japan was so short that they did not have enough time to build a foundation.”

Heo Hu raised a counterargument to Kim Jeom’s words.

“However, if you look at the process of suppressing the civil war that broke out due to the assassination of Jokyo Bridge, the power of the seven families that maintain the shogunate is formidable. Even though they are dissatisfied with it, there are quite a few families that insist on being loyal to the shogunate.”

Kim Jeom raised a counterargument again to Heo Hu’s counterargument.

“Even if they insist on loyalty, aren’t they already halfway out of the shogunate? These are people who call themselves “so-and-so country” by adding the word “nation” to their territory and commit unscrupulous acts. “If they were so stubborn about loyalty, why would the Kamakura Shogunate fall?”

“Nevertheless, there are no people who would easily condemn and revolt against the current shogunate. The habits of the Japanese are so cunning that they often target their backs whenever they find the slightest opportunity. In other words, it’s not that you can’t move because you’re afraid of the shogunate, but that you can’t move because of the lords around you.”

Starting with the war of words between Heo Hu and Kim Jeom, the ministers in Geunjeongjeon were divided into two groups and engaged in a fierce war of words.

The reason why the ministers of the government were so interested in the future of the Japanese country and started a war of words was because of Japanese pirates.

When the Japanese nation fell into chaos, they were the ones that immediately started to be established. Of course, given the power of the Joseon Navy, subduing Japanese pirates was not a problem.

However, as the saying goes, ‘Ten police officers cannot catch a thief,’ there was a significant possibility that it would penetrate the Joseon Navy’s perimeter and cause damage.

Therefore, the most important issue was whether to focus on the stability of the shogunate or the outbreak of civil war. This was because all of Joseon’s policies moved according to that point.

* * *

While the ministers were engaged in a fierce war of words, Hyang just watched quietly.

As the ministers’ excitement subsided to some extent, Hyang joined the conversation.

“From what I have heard so far, it seems that the biggest reason why internal strife is difficult to occur is because it is difficult for the great lords to train with each other. Is that correct?”

Heohu immediately nodded and answered Hyang’s question.

“That’s right. As I said before, training is difficult due to the cunning habits of the Japanese. No, on the contrary, it can be seen as close to impossible.”

“But isn’t another habit of the Japanese people to be subservient to the strong? Wouldn’t it be possible for such a strong person to increase his power by subjugating surrounding fiefdoms?”

Heohu immediately responded to Hyang’s point.

“Of course, there are habits like that. However, for that to be possible, you need at least a military power that can overwhelm him even if all the surrounding territories train. No, military power is military power, but sufficient finances….”

At that moment, Heo Hu stopped talking as if he remembered something. At the same time, Kim Jeom opened his mouth.

“There are entities that have both military power and finances. “We have all forgotten the Daenae clan.”

Jo Mal-saeng responded to Kim Jeom’s words.

“It was worth it. Looking at Daenae’s actions so far, isn’t it safe to say that she is Joseon’s territory, not the Japanese territory?”

The ministers all nodded at Jo Mal-saeng’s words.

* * *

As Jo Mal-saeng said, the Ouchi family was enough to be called ‘another Joseon’. Ouchi was Joseon’s most sincere economic colleague, including the development of silver mines and the opening of trading offices.

This was true not only from the economic aspect, but also from the cultural aspect. It created basic educational facilities modeled after Joseon’s social democratic schools and encouraged commerce and industry.

In addition, he made significant changes to the administrative organization within the territory by actively utilizing international students who returned after gaining knowledge and practical skills in Joseon.

As a result, Ouchi society and culture were almost Joseonized.

On the other hand, based on the growing economic power and funds coming from the silver mine, the military began to be strengthened properly.

The ashigaru, the lowest infantry, was not filled with forcibly conscripted peasants or mercenaries, but was filled as much as possible with properly trained regular troops.

The ashigaru, equipped with uniform weapons and uniforms, were raised as elites through rigorous training.

Of course, in addition to this standing army, there was a considerable number of conscripts, but most of these conscripts were only responsible for building camps or supplying rear supplies.

The biggest feature that differentiated Ouchi from other fiefdoms was the ‘large-scale use of gunpowder weapons.’

Ouchi copied in large quantities the copper guns introduced from Joseon and the artillery imported from the Ming. Additionally, gunpowder craftsmen were brought in from the Ming Dynasty to manufacture gunpowder, an essential element for operating such weapons.

Ouchi tried to conceal the existence and size of this artillery unit and the gun unit as much as possible. As part of such efforts, Ouchi did not project military power externally as much as possible.

For example, Ouchi was asked to bring in troops to suppress the rebellion that broke out after Yoshinori was assassinated, but he held out until the end.

-You can’t take out soldiers because of the Japanese pirates!

Mochiyuki Hosokawa, who received Ouchi’s reply at the time, had to mutter with a bitter smile.

“‘It’s hard because of Japanese fish’? “The family that controls half of Kyushu and the western half of Honshu?”

* * *

When Ouchi became a candidate, the weight tilted slightly toward the “breakout of civil war.”

“I think… if it’s Mr. Daenae, there’s a pretty high chance he’ll do something?”

Hwang Hee agreed with Sejong’s analysis.

“It seems quite likely. With the power Daenae has accumulated over the years, she has the ability to execute. “The problem is the will to execute.”

Heo Hu accepted Hwang Hee’s words.

“I guess the will must be sufficient. Your Majesty, do you remember when the family head of the Daenae clan changed a few years ago? Although the former head of the family was old at the time, she was in sufficient condition to maintain her position. Nevertheless, I believe that the reason for changing the head of the family was for the sake of improving water quality.”

Following Heo Hu’s words, Hwang Hee concluded.

“Considering the bad relations between the Japanese kings of the shogunate and the Daenae clan, it is believed that the Daenae clan has a good chance of raising an army.”

Sejong nodded at Hwang Hee’s conclusion.

“I agree. “Then, if a civil war breaks out in Japan as we expect, what do you think Joseon should do?”

At King Sejong’s question, Daejeon became noisy again.

The ministers who were engaged in a war of words were largely divided into three groups.

-Active intervention.

The chaos in Japan could also have a negative impact on our Joseon Dynasty. Therefore, we must actively intervene.

-Active wait-and-see.

There is no justification for actively intervening. If Joseon intervenes without justification, they will unite and resist us. Therefore, we must only protect the sea between Joseon and Japan and never intervene.

-Passive intervention.

It is true that there is not enough justification to actively intervene. However, just taking a wait-and-see approach is risky. Therefore, the right answer is to intervene appropriately at the right time.

As the three ministers were once again engaged in a fierce war of words, King Sejong looked back.

“What does the Crown Prince think?”