Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 54

Episode 54 New Weapons (2)

“Then how does the improved gunpowder start a fire? “

“We use the gunpowder made by His Majesty the Crown Prince.”

In response to Choi Hae-san’s answer, King Sejong pointed out the problem.

“Wouldn’t that make it too much of a hassle? Another gunpowder would be put between the wick and the gunpowder.”

The ministers who accompanied King Sejong’s comment all nodded.

Most of them had tattoos, but some had military service, and even those who had not had military service had all heard at least once how to use artillery. And because I saw it in person at the last demonstration, I knew that a wick is absolutely necessary to ignite gunpowder.

Choi Hae-san immediately responded to Sejong’s point.

“We do not use wicks in ceremonial gunpowder. We use copper caps rather than caps.”

“Coffin caps? ”

When Sejong expressed doubt, Hyang quickly wrote a note on a note and held it out to Sejong.

“I write like this.”

“Hmm… Is there a real thing? ”

At King Sejong’s words, Choi Haesan moved the copper plate on one side of the table in front of King Sejong.

“The small one is for the President and the large one is for the artillery.”

“Hmm…”

King Sejong looked closely at the Donghwamo played on the copper plate.

The presidential dragon was slightly smaller than the index finger nail, and the canvas dragon appeared to be about the size of a thumb. King Sejong, who was

examining the object in question, looked at Choi Haesan.

“Is it possible to demonstrate? ”

“I’ve already prepared it. This way.”

Choi Hae-san guided King Sejong and the ministers to a place a little away from where the statue was placed.

The place Choi Hae-san guided was about 20 Jang (about 60 m) wide and 150 Jang (about 450 m) long. It was a very desolate space.

“It is truly desolate.”

King Sejong expressed his impressions upon seeing the place that Choi Hae-san had guided him to.

According to Sejong’s impressions, the space in question was truly desolate.

Excluding the area where the people stood, there were at least 2 sides on all three sides. An earthen wall that appeared to be as tall as a pole was erected. And where people stood, bags filled with earth were piled up to chest height to create a wall. The space inside the wall was dotted with hollow holes. King Sejong

and his ministers were behind the earthen wall. Once we were seated, Choi Hae-san opened his mouth and said,

“Then, let’s start the demonstration. Get started! ”

At Choi Haesan’s order, the craftsmen who were waiting moved a small statue to the front of the demonstration table. On top of the table were copper plates and small wooden barrels.

“The barrel on the left is Gap-style gunpowder, and the container on the right is Eul-style gunpowder. ”

As Choi Hae-san’s explanation continued, the craftsmen poured gunpowder onto a copper plate with a porcelain spoon and inserted a wick. After confirming that the wick was properly inserted, the craftsmen lit the wick and stepped back.

Boom! Farsi style.

Wick. In the fire stand, the Moon-type gunpowder exploded with smoke, but the Eul-type gunpowder ended with only the core burning.

“This time, I will use the Donghwamo using the modified gun barrel. Let’s start.”

When the command was given, the craftsmen brought in two barrels. The craftsmen who transferred the gunpowder from the barrel containing the gunpowder to the barrels put a wad of paper in it and began compacting it with a stick. The craftsmen

who had compacted it tightly held the gunpowder protruding from the back of the barrel. After pulling the barrel, the donghwa hat was put in. After completing all the work, the craftsmen put the barrel of the gun firmly under their right armpit, then held the string connected to the rail in their left hand and stood facing the opposite wall.

“Bangpo, Bangpo, Bangpo! ”

Puff!

” The craftsmen shouted loudly three times and pulled the strings at the same time, and the two barrels fired fire at the same time.

“Oh! ”

“Hoo! ”

As the two guns ignited fire, the subjects let out exclamations of exclamation.

King Sejong looked back at the incense.

“So this is why you don’t use wicks? Hmm… I guess there are fewer restrictions than when using a wick.”

“That’s right.”

“Your hard work is truly great.”

Sejong looked at the incense with an expression of admiration. But Sejong immediately made a stern face. He asked a question:

“You said the name of the gunpowder you made was Pokyun. Could it be that precious silver is used? ”

“no. It uses mercury. Of course, mercury is precious, but it is easier to obtain than silver, and since it is used only for ignition, it costs less than expected.” ”

But. Then, that’s fortunate.”

Sejong’s face brightened at Hyang’s answer that the cost was low. After all, gunpowder is an item that consumes an enormous amount of wealth. Sejong, whose

expression was greatly relaxed, turned his head toward the demonstration site. “

I want to know about the other gunpowder that the crown prince made. General.”

“Yes, Your Highness. Bring the huge milk.”

“Yes.”

At Choi Haesan’s order, the craftsmen came in carefully carrying a small wooden box.

“Tilt the box to show the inside.”

The craftsmen tilted the box so that King Sejong and his subjects could see the inside. . There was a small porcelain bottle in the middle of the box filled with sawdust.

Choi Hae-san took the porcelain bottle out of the box, pulled out the stopper, and tilted it slightly toward the empty ground.

Pyeong!

A drop of water went down the spout of the porcelain bottle. The oil fell to the ground and at that moment, a loud explosion occurred.

“Gasp!” ”

“Egg money! ”

As the ministers were shocked by the unexpected explosion, Choi Haesan introduced them with a mischievous smile.

“This is the bomb.”

“Amazing! amazing! Crown Prince, you are truly amazing! It is truly a piece worthy of the name Cok! General Then, what is the power like? ”

“It is nothing compared to the gunpowder used by our Joseon military. It would be appropriate to say that it is the best tea in the world. Get ready.”

“Yes, General.”

The craftsmen prepared a demonstration to compare the power of black gunpowder and heavy oil.

“Here comes Lee Chong-tong, who made it thick so that we can test its power. The amount of gunpowder used is 1/4 nyang (approximately 9g) in both cases. First, here’s the gunpowder.”

The craftsman poured 1/4 taal of gunpowder into the barrel and fixed the barrel on a tripod that had been previously installed on the floor. Then, he placed an iron stopper that looked like a large mushroom on the muzzle of the gun, which was tilted toward the front. The craftsman, who pulled the lock and put the donghwamo in place, stepped back and shouted loudly,

“Fire! Bomb! Bomb! ”

Boom!

With a loud explosion, the iron stopper flew in a parabolic curve and fell to the ground.

The craftsman retrieved the string connected to the iron stopper and began counting the units.

“1 step! Two steps!… Choi Hae-san quickly explained to King Sejong.

“You can check the distance traveled by coloring in steps.”

“Is that so?”

“50 paces! (about 60m)”

“Now, let’s experiment with huge breasts.”

At Choi Haesan’s gesture, the craftsmen began preparing for the second launch. The hands of the craftsmen who put the Fuhrer to sleep were extremely careful.

“You do it very carefully?”

Hyang immediately answered King Sejong’s question.

“Here comes a very picky guy.”

“But?”

“Bangpo! Bangpo! Bangpo!”

While they were talking, the craftsman who had finished preparing pulled the string connected to the rack.

bang!

With a loud explosion louder and sharper than that of gunpowder, the iron stopper rose into the sky and began to fly far away.

The craftsman who recovered the iron stopper that had flown far away shouted the distance in a loud voice.

“110 steps (approximately 132m)!”

King Sejong was startled by his father-in-law’s shout.

“It flew more than twice as much?”

“That’s right. As its temperament is difficult, its power is outstanding.”

Sejong clicked his tongue when he saw Hyang’s facial expression as he answered.

“Tsk! Judging by your expression, it seems like it’s not the right thing to use easily.”

“That’s right. Given the current situation in Joseon, the huge milk itself is an item that cannot be used.”

“this.”

Sejong couldn’t hide his disappointment at Hyang’s answer and quenched his appetite.

“It’s a shame.”

“I agree.”

The ministers who listened to Sejong and Hyang’s answers also had expressions similar to Sejong’s.

The Crown Prince they know seems to prioritize performance the most, but surprisingly, he is also someone who considers production costs.

However, the fact that the Crown Prince did not mention the cost meant that the government could bear the cost of production. However, the Crown Prince now commented that it was ‘an unusable item.’

“How picky is it that you say that?”

“It’s so picky.”

Hyang explained the reason to Sejong.

-Production itself is impossible in spring or summer when the days are hot. During the synthesis process, high heat is generated, and there is a high possibility that it will explode or catch fire due to the high heat. For that reason, he was only able to attempt synthesis when winter began and had to use a large amount of ice from the ice storage.

-Very careful care must be taken during the synthesis process. Because a highly concentrated acid solution is used, protective gear must be worn to protect the skin of the hands and face. There must also be a ventilation system there.

-If even the slightest impurity enters, the risk of self-destruction increases significantly. For this reason, fragrances had to go through numerous refining processes before and after synthesis.

-Storage is not easy. It is extremely sensitive to shock and explodes immediately if the containers collide with each other or are shaken violently during transport.

If lightning strikes nearby, it explodes immediately. As explained above, if impurities are not removed properly, it will self-destruct over time. It must be stored in a cool place due to the problem of self-destruction. In the case of incense, a burrow was dug in Mt. Mokyeok (Namsan Mountain) to create a storage area.

“For this reason, it is something that can never be used on its own.”

“What a damn thing.”

At Hyang’s explanation, Sejong swore without even realizing it. But this time, the ministers also agreed.

“This is truly a damn thing.”

“The power is really good… but the personality is so dirty…”

Putting his regrets about the huge breasts behind, Sejong moved on to the next step.

“The next gunpowder to be introduced is cotton powder.”

“Cotton powder? Is it called cotton powder because cotton cloth is used? Or is cotton cloth used for gunpowder?”

Sejong, who remembered Choi Hae-san’s explanation when he first saw it, made an expression of disbelief. The same was true for the ministers.

“Making gunpowder with cotton cloth?”

“Of course, cotton cloth catches fire…”

While not only King Sejong but also the ministers were muttering in doubt, Choi Haesan picked up a piece of cotton cloth lying on the table with tongs.

“Light it.”

“Yes general.”

pop!

“Egg money!”

“Oh my!” As

soon as the craftsman set fire to the cloth, the cotton cloth instantly burned with an explosion and turned into ash.

Choi Hae-san, who was laughing at the ministers who were surprised by the binge drinking and started a game, opened his mouth.

“It is made using well-woven cotton cloth and various types of acid. As you can see, it has strong fire power. And… there is the most important thing. Starting with that big oil, it is cotton powder, and Deogap-style gunpowder is smokeless gunpowder.”

“It’s smokeless… does it mean it doesn’t produce smoke?”

“To be precise, it produces less smoke.”

In the subsequent demonstration, cotton powder was shown to be weaker than heavy oil, but sufficiently stronger than black powder.

“The last thing I’m going to show you is Deok-Gap-style gunpowder.”

“Deok Gap-sik? What is the reason for naming it that way?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, Choi Hae-san looked at the incense. Following Choi Haesan’s gaze, King Sejong and the ministers’ eyes were all focused on Hyang.

Hyang scratched the back of his head and answered.

“to… I named it because I thought it was a virtue to ensure that all soldiers who use gunpowder could use it comfortably, and because I thought it was all thanks to Abamama that it was possible to do so.”

“Hmm?

“It’s a little embarrassing, but it’s a pretty good name.”

King Sejong and the ministers nodded at Hyang’s explanation. But Hyang had to smile bitterly.

‘I found out about the gunpowder through the internet and it’s a German manufacturing method, so I can never say that it came from Deokguk, a nickname used to call Dol-il! ‘

Choi Haesan continued his explanation.

“This Deokgap-style gunpowder is a mixture of cotton powder, milk, and persimmon oil (sweet glycerin) in a certain ratio.”

Sejong looked surprised at Choi Haesan’s explanation and pointed out the problem.

“Mixed with forty milk? Didn’t I hear earlier that you said that forty-milk has extremely difficult properties and cannot be used?”

“Cotton powder and persimmon oil neutralized its properties.”

“Is that so? But cotton powder is white, so why is this gunpowder black?”

“It’s because it’s coated with graphite, or the outside is covered.”

In the subsequent power demonstration, the Deok-Gap style gunpowder showed as much power as the bomb.

King Sejong, who saw the power, applauded and loved it.

“It’s truly great! It’s great!”

King Sejong liked it so much that Hyang became proud.

‘As expected, Deokguk! ‘

But this was something Hyang misremembered.

The combination of scents I remember was British, not German. To be precise, it was a combination of Cordite MD.

King Sejong, who was very pleased with the newly created gunpowder, looked back at his ministers.

“Since we have released such good gunpowder, how about mass producing it?”

Hwang Hee asked Hyang at King Sejong’s suggestion.

“What is the production cost?”

“It costs about 30% more than the cost of producing the same weight of gunpowder. However, even if you put in only half of the gunpowder, it has more power.”

Hwang Hee nodded to Hyang’s answer and offered advice to King Sejong.

“Although it costs a lot, it can be replaced by using less quantity, so it would be better to mass-produce it.”

“Captain Woo Ui-jeong is right.”

When the ministers agreed, King Sejong looked at Hyang and Choi Haesan.

“Prepare for mass production of Deok-Gap-style gunpowder.”

Hyang responded to Sejong’s command with a puzzled expression.

“I’m sorry to tell you, but under the current situation in Joseon, mass production of Deok-Gap style gunpowder is impossible.”