Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 700
Episode 700: Sixtieth Birthday (7)
However, the professors were not discouraged and persistently looked for opportunities.
“Having a tool to break the seal means that there will come a time when you will need to break the seal! “I’m looking for that opportunity!”
“Machines are bound to break down! “I’m aiming for that time!”
While the professors were circling around looking for an opportunity, the Empire’s technicians were carefully assembling the equipment, checking its condition, and making full preparations.
“You can’t just focus on the railroad construction! “We must also proceed with the construction of a military port!”
“Check the inventory of materials and equipment properly!”
The Imperial Railway Corporation employees and military administrators in charge of managing supplies struggled fiercely with the template and report in front of them.
“It is fortunate that there is support from the Corps of Engineers for the construction of the military port.”
“It is said that in addition to the Corps of Engineers, there will be a significant amount of manpower support from the Army.”
Hearing his subordinate’s report, Manho Kang Dong-il, the administrative officer in charge of the construction of the military port in the Suez region, breathed a sigh of relief.
“Whoa~. “Thank goodness.”
A subordinate expressed doubts about Kang Dong-il’s words.
“We already don’t have enough workers, and the land dogs are whining that we are giving our children to the seals. Wouldn’t it have been better for us to get slaves too?”
Kang Dong-il glared at the subordinate who made the problematic statement.
“How are you going to get that budget? Are you going to go to the Ministry of Finance and get burned?”
“Of course, there are budget issues, but if we resell it after construction is completed, wouldn’t we be able to minimize budget consumption?”
“Where are you going to sell it? To do it right, you have to maintain at least 5,000 at all times, right? “Where are you going to sell the 5,000 after construction is over?”
To Kang Dong-il’s point, the subordinate immediately responded as if he had already thought about it.
“Why not sell it to a railroad construction company? I heard that although the distance is only 400 ri (approximately 160 km), it is expected to last 10 years because of the desert. “Why not use that site?”
Kang Dong-il, who had been thinking about his subordinate’s words for a moment, shook his head.
“Not possible. Even before the creation of the title, the empire had made it a policy to reduce slaves. But are they openly buying and selling slaves? It will leave a blemish on the honor of the military, and indeed the Navy. So it doesn’t work.”
“However, it is a very useful measure when considering increasing the efficiency of construction progress and efficient budget execution.”
“I can’t do it because of the budget.”
“yes?”
Kang Dong-il explained in more detail to his subordinate who couldn’t understand what he was saying and just blinked.
“If you look at the big picture, the entire county is living off the budget. And the budget received in that way is shared between the Army and Navy. The problem is that we have never had a good budget. However, it’s not so much that it’s hugely debilitating, but it’s just enough to slightly depress you. But are you willing to tarnish the Navy’s reputation just to save a few bucks? Wouldn’t that be possible? Right now, the Army gophers are going to trip over him and hit the Navy budget first, right?”
The subordinate, who understood the problem through Kang Dong-il’s explanation, immediately bowed his head.
“sorry. Su Guan’s thoughts were short!”
Kang Dong-il nodded at his subordinate’s apology, but did not forget the warning.
“Whether you are a commander fighting the enemy on the front line or an administrator fighting numbers at a desk, you have to look broadly and think deeply to get ahead. I will look after you this time, but if you make this mistake again, I guarantee you that I will make you live without success. Don’t forget that there are still many empty positions in the Records Office.”
At Kang Dong-il’s warning, the subordinate broke into a cold sweat and repeatedly bowed his head.
“I will keep each bone in mind!”
“Then go back and recheck the numbers in the report and take a look again at the measures regarding the binary that will arrive soon!”
“Yes old!”
Kang Dong-il, who had given his subordinates a lot of work to do, looked out the window and let out a long sigh.
“Whoa~. “Isn’t there a smart guy somewhere?”
* * *
The second team arrived at the Suez site, where numerous mid-level executives were struggling while being run over here and there.
With the arrival of the second camp, which was larger than the first camp, the empire was almost able to complete its preparations.
The professors, who were once again looking for an opportunity with eagle eyes, froze when they saw the huge transport ship docked at the dock.
“A chimney on a ship? no way!”
“The Empire has already put steam engines on its ships!”
When the professors saw the steamship blowing out black smoke from the chimney, they ran to the ship without question.
“oh! Oh oh!”
“It’s so big!”
The professors who saw the steamship right in front of them repeatedly let out exclamations of exclamation. No, it wasn’t just professors. The workers who rushed to get work and the allied soldiers guarding the port all had their eyes fixed on the huge ship in front of them.
The professors, who had been staring blankly at the huge ship like a castle floating on the sea, soon came to their senses and began to observe various parts of the ship.
What caught their eyes was the ship’s name plate attached to the stern.
The plaque made of copper was as large as the ship. The name of the ship was engraved on the plaque in Imperial and Latin.
“Magna Orientem (大東方)?”
The professors who read the Latin names engraved on the plaque thought for a moment and nodded.
“It’s a fitting name for a ship.”
“The Empire is the strongest in the East… so it’s a fitting name.”
However, this Daedongbang was a subtle ploy to divert the direction of European shipbuilding.
* * *
‘We are misleading Europe by creating wheeled ships that are much less efficient than pinwheel propulsion systems.’
Under this plan, a new large transport ship was built.
Construction went smoothly because of the experience accumulated since the first steamship was built.
But the scent constantly adds spice to this.
-Build the structure that supports the ship to its maximum size using only wood.
-A lot of colorful decorations are added to the outside.
In addition, the transport ship that came out as a result of adding various seasonings was not only large, but also quite flashy in appearance.
When the launch was completed safely and it was time to decide on a name for the ship, the name chosen by Hyang was ‘Daedongbang’.
When Wan heard the name chosen by Hyang, he immediately objected to Hyang.
“Your Majesty took great care to decide on the name, but for someone of that size, wouldn’t ‘Daejoseon’ be better?”
Hyang smiled and shook his head at Wan’s suggestion.
“Prince. “What was the purpose of building that boat?”
Wan, who took a moment to remember Hyang’s question, immediately bowed his head.
“ah! Soja’s thoughts were too short! “I’m just intoxicated by its size!”
“But it’s good to know right away.”
Meanwhile, the ministers who were listening to the conversation between the two from behind all had the same thought.
‘Your Majesty’s naming skills are still not good.’
Hyang muttered to himself, as if he knew what these ministers were thinking.
‘If you think about the fate of that ship, Daedongbang is a good choice.’
The origin of the Great East was ‘the Great Eastern.’
In history before the intervention of perfume, the Great Eastern was the largest ship of its time. The purpose of the ship was to build a ship that could travel around the world without resupplying fuel.
But the future of the Great Eastern, which was thus born, was bleak.
With the opening of the Suez Canal, the route from Europe to the East was greatly shortened. However, the Great Eastern was so large that it could not pass through the Suez Canal at the time. Of course, we had to travel around the African continent and our profits were always in the red.
In the end, the Great Eastern disappeared from history without much activity.
That’s why Hyang gave that name to the newly created pear.
-An item that appeared to be ahead of its time but eventually became outdated.
* * *
Whatever the background, Daedongbangho docked at the dock was an object of wonder.
“The cargo is coming out endlessly!”
“Such a huge payload!”
While the workers and soldiers were amazed at the enormous cargo capacity, the professors nodded as they looked at the smokestacks and the huge wheels on the sides of the ship.
“That’s right… a steam engine and wheels… it’s a good combination.”
“I think we can apply it too.”
“I’d like to take a look at the engine department.”
While the professors were burning with a passion for learning and research, the alliance officials who had heard the rumors were becoming serious in a different sense.
The conversation started about the inconvenience caused by the ship’s safety.
“The Great East… That means the East is ahead of us.”
“And they are the strongest in the East. In the end, it would be correct to see that they are proclaiming that they are stronger than us.”
“It’s arrogant, but it’s probably right now.”
While they were talking like that, the French official suddenly looked back at the Portuguese and Ottoman officials with startled eyes.
“Now that I think about it… I heard that the empire once recommended the construction of a canal. Is that right?”
“That’s right.”
“So then the empire was already setting its sights on Europe?”
The Portuguese and Ottoman officials could not hide their surprise at the mutterings of the French official, whose face suddenly turned serious.
“What do you mean?”
In response to the Portuguese official’s question, the French official shared his thoughts.
“Look at the size of that boat. “Right now we only load cargo, but what if we load cannons instead of cargo?”
In response to the French official’s point, Portuguese and Ottoman officials imagined the expected map.
‘Even now, the Empire’s front lines are famous for carrying enormous numbers of cannons. But with a ship of that size, just one or two ships would be enough to take on a sizable fleet!’
As the Portuguese and Ottoman officials’ expressions became serious, the French official added more force to his voice.
“With the waterway connecting Suez to the Mediterranean Sea completed, what if warships as big as that ship enter the Mediterranean Sea through the waterway? “The worst thing like the Mongol invasion of the past will happen again.”
“Right. Was it against this background that the empire requested a military port?”
“Then shouldn’t we think about turning all treaties into nothingness?”
The Portuguese official shook his head at the Ottoman official’s words.
“That is impossible. “Considering the economic losses we have seen so far, it is impossible to cancel.”
Following the Portuguese official’s words, the French official also added.
“As long as there are no waterways, the nightmare I described will not happen. Just guarding against the empire is something that cannot be done without being lax even for a moment.”
“Let’s send the report back home.”
“Let’s do that.”
After reaching a consensus, the officials quickly began writing reports to send home.
In this way, Daedong Bangho brought about an unexpected butterfly effect.
-As long as there is a military danger to the empire, the canal will never be dug!
-Be as careful as possible not to provoke the empire carelessly! We must not give the empire an excuse!
In this way, the creation of the Suez Canal was pushed back considerably. In addition, the West’s advance into the East was also carried out very cautiously. This was because most of the eastern region was under the influence of the empire.
Later, Wan and the ministers who heard the rumor through the merchants looked at the incense in amazement.
“Is this really what you thought about?”
“No, I think I was lucky.”
The answer came with a humble smile, but Wan and the ministers all thought differently.
‘You said that, but you clearly calculated it up to that point!’
‘I can’t believe there was such a deep meaning to that clumsy name!’
‘As expected, His Majesty’s heart is deep and meticulous!’