Black Corporation: Joseon

Chapter 539

Episode 539: Conspiracy (5)

In response to the captains’ cry, ‘Please make it a document,’ the interpreters said to the customs officials.

“They ask me to document it… but there is a problem with this.”

“You mean the problem?”

“Letters sent by Europeans working at the institute are subject to unconditional censorship.”

The expressions of the customs officials hardened at the interpreter’s words.

“Does that mean it could be a problem if we write it down and give it to you?”

The interpreters answered the customs officials’ questions with perplexed expressions.

“Of course, in the case of research institutes, many of the things being studied are confidential. “But wouldn’t the documents we translated thoughtlessly be able to give other countries a clue to our secrets?”

“I guess so. “Then it would be best to ask above first.”

In some ways, it may be a characteristic of public servants, but it was best to beat on the stone bridge and then cross it.

Inquiries from customs officials and translators went directly up to Seunghwadang through the hands of ministers.

“What do you think?”

The ministers responded to Hyang’s question with expressions that said it was no big deal.

“I’m not writing down the country’s secrets, but about the ‘mandate of heaven,’ so there won’t be a big problem, right?”

“That’s right. In particular, I think it is a good opportunity to inform and educate the people about our virtue.”

“you’re right. “Wouldn’t it be a good thing if their monarch learned about ‘virtuous guidance’?”

Based on the ministers’ answers, Hyang came to a conclusion.

“Then let’s do it.”

After the meeting, Hyang, who was organizing documents, muttered softly.

“Contrary to the wishes of the teachers, it seems like they threw another very large bomb… Aren’t you just pretending not to know even though you know?”

After thinking for a moment, Hyang muttered as he signed off on the documents.

“Does it matter to me?”

* * *

After receiving the order, the customs officials began to produce documents regarding the ‘Mandate of Heaven’. The work was surprisingly slow, but both the customs officials and the translator had passed the civil service examination. Since everyone had basic Confucian knowledge, a war of words arose during the documentation process.

“If you keep doing this, you’ll miss the boat!”

Despite the pleading of the captains on board, the customs officials and interpreters waved their hands.

“Uh-huh! Please be patient! “Even if you interpret just one sentence differently, the meaning can be completely different!”

“But…”

“If it doesn’t work out, I’ll hand it over to the next voyage! for a moment! Hey! Isn’t that what it means there? According to the words of an old sage….”

The captains looked up at the sky as they saw the customs officials and interpreters arguing with blood vessels in their necks.

“Oh my lord….”

After such a fuss, the captain was able to accept the document just before departure.

“If I had more time, I would have taken proper care of it….”

“Oh no! “This is enough!”

The captains, who handed over the documents as if snatching them from customs officials and translators who could not hide their disappointment, hurriedly boarded the ship.

The document, which was carried with a copy on each ship just in case, aroused the curiosity of the captains.

But a problem arose there.

“Shit! “It’s all Latin!”

Those who could speak Latin but could not read or write were the first to fall away. And those who could speak Latin soon fell away.

“What are you talking about?…”

They were interpreters who had learned Latin to deal with monks and scholars who were members of the intellectual class. The sentences they wrote with great care were meaningful and complex. In the end, no one was able to properly understand the documents until they arrived in Lisbon. Even Henry.

* * *

“It is truly meaningful…”

Pedro muttered with a serious face after reading the document brought from Joseon.

Although it was a light read, the content written in the document seemed profound.

“After all, wasn’t it just a country with good dexterity? Or does it mean that in order to have that level of technology, the level of knowledge must also be excellent?”

Pedro realized that he needed to change his perception of Joseon. They were not simply ‘savages with good dexterity’, but people with excellent knowledge.

“At least it will be at the level of Muslims.”

Of course, it was still a good idea to take it one step lower.

Pedro spread a blank sheet of paper next to the document and picked up a pen.

“I’ll have to research it properly. It might be worth it.”

* * *

Afterwards, after Pedro finished his work, he wrestled with the documents. Portugal was a small country located on the outskirts of Europe, but Pedro was famous for his knowledge.

From 1418 to 1428, he made a pilgrimage to major courts and holy sites in Europe, and even wrote a book of advice on governance to his older brother Duarte, who would later become king.

Because he had such knowledge, the more Pedro studied the documents, the more he became fascinated by them.

“That’s profound…”

Pedro muttered, stroking his beard.

-Becoming the monarch of a country is God’s will.

-However, if the monarch takes the wrong path, God warns him of this through the people, and this is the public sentiment.

-Monarchs and countries that ignore God’s warning through public sentiment will eventually have no choice but to be replaced by new monarchs and countries. Because the people will choose a new nation and monarch.

-Of course, abolishing the monarch and the state is unjust. However,

it is not injustice to destroy a monarch and a nation that have betrayed God’s will. This is following God’s will.

Pedro, who had been thinking over the essence of what he had written several times, turned his head. When I turned my head, there was a Bible lying under a wall with a cross and the royal emblem. Pedro, who had been mindlessly looking at the royal coat of arms and the Bible, suddenly opened his eyes wide and dropped the pen he was holding.

Pedro, who was looking at the Bible with trembling eyes, immediately screamed with joy.

“This is fate! “It is God’s will!”

* * *

Pedro explained ‘God’s will’ to Afonso V.

“… Therefore, in this way, God’s will was revealed through the will of the people, and our Portugal was born! Think about it! The mighty Moors, who seemed destined to reign forever on the Iberian Peninsula, have fallen! The Reconquista was a success because we properly followed God’s will! It was because it was God’s will that we were able to escape from the hands of that vile Spaniard and become independent! Why would the Pope break Spain’s will and approve Portugal’s independence? Because everything is God’s will (voluntatem Domini)! “Because we followed God’s will, a kingdom was born and he became a king!”

The longer Pedro spoke, the more hazy Afonso V’s eyes became.

Pedro continued to speak passionately.

-Nobles who died for treason clouded the eyes and ears of the king for their own gain, manipulated state affairs, and extorted the people.

This is an unrighteous act that violates God’s will.

-In some ways, it may have been unfair to execute all the weightlifters without a proper trial.

However, this was only an unavoidable choice to protect the royal authority. And this is according to God’s will.

As it is written in the Bible, ‘It is the Lord who works all things together for good.’

When Pedro finished speaking, the hall was filled with silence. Starting with Afonso V, the surviving nobles and officials all looked at Pedro with dreamy eyes.

After a while, the nobles and ministers began to speak out one by one.

“you’re right! “This is according to God’s will!”

“Since ancient times, the position of king has been determined by God!”

“This is God’s will!”

The surviving nobles eagerly emphasized that it was ‘God’s will.’ This was an effort to avoid being overlooked by Pedro, who completely monopolized power, and at the same time, an effort to alleviate the guilt of having survived.

* * *

As the cheers of the nobles and ministers died down, Pedro continued.

“I’ll say it again, it was God’s will that our kingdom was founded and that your Majesty sat on the throne! However, threatening His Majesty and extorting the people is a way of violating God’s will. Those who follow this path must be resolutely purged! Therefore, I will proceed with the purge and purge at the same time!”

King Afonso V’s eyes sparkled at Pedro’s words.

“What if it’s a purge?”

“We will break down the practice of taking charge of public affairs simply because one is a nobleman and one is under the aristocracy’s control! We will select the right officials to run the kingdom through strict examinations similar to the ones conducted by Joseon in the past! And we will also work on the system to make this kingdom even more prosperous and make your majesty’s reputation known to the public!”

A large-scale reform that later came to be called ‘Pedru’s Reform’ took place.

* * *

A proclamation summarizing what Pedro said that day was once again posted throughout the kingdom.

“It’s reform…”

“It’s God’s will…”

Many people began to argue as they read the contents of the proclamation. But those who moved the most vigorously were intellectuals.

Numerous intellectuals began to debate the legitimacy of Pedro’s ‘will of God’, and young college students began to dream of entering the civil service.

At the same time, interest in Joseon began to rise once again.

“What is the civil service that is practiced in Joseon?”

Eventually, the amount of letters going from Europe to Joseon increased significantly.

* * *

Soon, Pedro’s proclamation spread to many European countries and began to provoke a variety of reactions.

First, a conflict within Christianity broke out once again.

‘God’s will moved the Pope.’

It was precisely because of this part.

“This is proof of the dignity of the Pope! “God’s will is revealed only through the Pope!”

Those who support the Pope argued this, while those on the other side refuted it.

“gibberish! The Pope was simply following God’s will! Why don’t they say that the will of the people is God’s will? Likewise, the will of the Council is the will of God!”

When the religious community became noisy, political disputes also began to arise.

“The king’s position is a God-given position! Therefore, the right of a king is a God-given right!”

“gibberish! It is our nobles who elected that king! “Our choice is God’s will!”

“God’s will is revealed through the people! The will of the people is the will of God! “There is no need for kings and nobles!”

“gibberish!”

The political world also became noisy as those who sought absolute royal authority, nobles who sought the division of power among the nobles, and even those who advocated republicanism, albeit at a beginner level, emerged.

In the midst of this chaos, the gap between Portugal and Spain deepened.

“what? Portugal’s independence is God’s will? So does that mean we have abandoned God’s will?”

Spain sharply ground its teeth against Portugal.

* * *

Meanwhile, Cosimo, who was observing the situation unfolding like this, grinned and muttered.

“I guess I should at least give the Duke of Coimbra a gift of the finest wine.”

Now that Europe is in such chaos, there is no room to look outside.

What he meant was that for the time being, the Mediterranean-centered trade route would be the only overseas trade route, and that the prosperity of the Medici family would continue even longer.