Black Corporation: Joseon

Chapter 613

Episode 613: The Beginning of the Empire – Today is like yesterday. (1)

The day after the coronation ceremony, a considerable number of people lingered in front of the monopoly booth.

People wandering in front of the monopoly store, acting like people just passing by, had their eyes fixed on the bulletin board next to the entrance to the monopoly store.

“It’s open!”

As the entrance to the monopoly store opened, the eyes of the people wandering around were fixed on the entrance.

As soon as the official who opened the door to the retail store entered, the people milling around could not hide their disappointment.

“this! “It was a disaster!”

“I was just wondering!”

“no way! “I just missed breakfast!”

Those who were wandering around the entrance of the monopoly store, wondering if there might be a discount event, looked back several times and walked away from the monopoly store.

The servant who came out with a broom to clean the entrance clicked his tongue when he saw these people.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk… Have you, stupid people, forgotten that this is also a government office run by the country? “The policy has already been decided, but do you think there will be a fluke?”

* * *

There were many problems that arose as various events were held one after another, starting with the Qing Dynasty and the emperor’s enthronement to the wedding of the next descendant, but the one that had the greatest impact on the people’s lives was the discount event at the monopoly.

When a discount event was held at a retail store, nearby stores also held discount events.

Because of the discount event at the monopoly, people who came with fat wallets stopped by the store and bought a lot of items.

The sales made by the people who were lured by the lure of leisure and discounts brought by fat wallets were considerable.

Therefore, the government officials and Sejong County had to grapple with the issue of the number and duration of discount events this year.

Most people would like it if discount events were frequent and the period was long, but if they did something wrong, there was a high possibility that the market would not run properly. This was because there was a high possibility that stores would close due to people waiting for discount events and not spending.

In the end, after much deliberation, the government made the following announcement:

-This year, there are a lot of happy events, so it doesn’t seem like a good idea to hold a discount event every time.

And since the discount event continues every year for various reasons, it was decided that it would be a good idea to make it a regular event.

Therefore, the five days before Chuseok are designated as the discount event period every year.

Also, if a major event occurs in the country, three to five days are added to this period.

According to this decision, this year’s discount event will be held for 15 days before Chuseok.

There are no additional discount events before or after that.

Most of the people who saw the contents of the room were immediately lost in one question.

“But why is it Chuseok?”

But the merchants nodded and expressed their admiration.

“I heard that the government is full of big merchants!”

“I told you that even beggars don’t starve on Chuseok! “This is the time when there is the most money, so sales will be certain!”

In this way, the ‘Monopoly Store Grand Discount Event’, boasting history and tradition, was born.

Among foreigners, an event called the ‘Five Days of Madness’ was born.

* * *

Two days after the coronation ceremony, many people gathered on the banks of the Hansu River.

It was to watch the joint training conducted by the Army, or rather the Army.

Although the training had been held several times before, this time a particularly large number of people gathered.

This was because of the news that one could see the army’s great victory in the last battle against the Ming without any obstruction.

Behind the gold ropes and wooden fences placed to prevent the entry of non-officials, guards were watching the surroundings with stern eyes, and the people were gathered and taking up seats on the slope behind the golden ropes and wooden fences.

And among the people, merchants selling all kinds of snacks were walking around, raising their voices.

“They’ve done all their business in the last few days!”

“Keep doing the same thing these days!”

The excited merchants raised their voices even more as the snacks they brought with them were selling like hotcakes.

“Buy it for a million bucks!”

“Fuck you! “Fuck you!”

* * *

Meanwhile, foreign envoys and government officials who had come for the coronation ceremony sat in the temporary stands created inside the wooden fence.

Among those who settled down like that was Henry and his group.

“Are you saying you are that confident because you are conducting military training in front of foreign envoys?”

Henry immediately responded to Mehmet II’s point.

“Wouldn’t you say so?”

“And considering the location of Joseon, or the Korean Empire, you probably think it wouldn’t matter if it was revealed. And didn’t Joseon defeat the Ming Dynasty? Maybe it’s to show strength to people like us. Or is it giving you a choice?”

“A choice?”

“Isn’t this an unspoken hint that if we advance to the East later, Ming will be better than Joseon?”

Mehmed II nodded at Giovanni’s words following Henry’s.

If he had set out to promote Joseon, Joseon was in a very difficult place.

Coming to the sea, I did not have the confidence to deal with the Joseon battle lines I saw on the way.

In order to invade Joseon by land, they had to cross through various countries, mountain ranges, and deserts, starting with the Bengal Sultanate.

If you absolutely had to advance to the East, it was much more advantageous to aim for the Ming, as Giovanni said.

The Ming Dynasty had a territory so large that it was even rumored in the Ottoman Empire and there were many people.

The problem was military power, and if it lost to Joseon, which was much smaller than itself, it would not be a big problem.

Mehmet II, who was thinking about that, smiled without even knowing it.

‘There are a lot of problems that need to be resolved before then… starting with the succession issue right away.’

With the reinstatement of his father, Murat II, the succession competition was once again on fire.

Even after winning the succession competition and taking power, there were many problems. There was the problem of the Mamluks, who were currently fighting, but Byzantium, which was in a truce for a while, also had to be resolved.

It didn’t end there. In order to properly trade with or advance into the East, Timur and the Black Sheep and White Sheep dynasties also had to be resolved.

‘Simply securing the Suez area will only result in losses. Only by properly taking control of all nearby areas can we gain the upper hand against those heretics.’

Mehmed II, who had been thinking about that, glanced at Henrik and Giovanni sitting next to him and muttered to himself.

‘Well, those heretics may be thinking the same thing as me.’

His guess was almost correct.

‘If the Mamluks are eliminated, the eastern route will be in the hands of Portugal. In that case, we have to seek fame. ‘Because it will be easier than Joseon.’

‘We must create a clear base in the east. However, many of the military strategic points are already occupied by Joseon or diplomatic relations have been established with Joseon. Then, after all, there is only name.’

All three people, who confirmed Joseon’s military power on the way, began to think of the Joseon minister, Ming, as prey.

The biggest reason they thought the Ming was prey was because they were defeated by Joseon, which was smaller than them.

* * *

“Your Majesty the Emperor and His Majesty the Emperor are eating!”

At the shout announcing the arrival of King Sejong and Hyang, the envoys and officials sitting in the stands stood up and saluted.

Sejong and Hyang gave a light response and sat down, and soon after, training began.

* * *

The faces of Henrik and his group, who returned to their lodgings after observing the training that lasted for almost half a day, were white.

Henrique barely entered the room, putting strength on his shaking legs, and as soon as he sat down on the chair, he let out a long sigh.

“Whoa~.”

“Haa~.”

This was also the case for Giovanni and Mehmed II.

After pouring water into the glass on the table and drinking it several times, Henrik’s complexion returned as if he was able to breathe.

Henrik drank another glass of water and shook his head.

“This is it… It’s unexpected. Should we think again from the beginning?”

“I think so.”

“I agree. “I think it would be accurate to say that the Ming Dynasty is not weaker than expected, but that Joseon is stronger than expected.”

Giovanni, who was nodding at Henry’s words, added.

“Bigyeokjincheonroe shotgun boxcar….Whew~. “There are so many weapons capable of mass destruction…”

Following Giovanni’s words, Mehmed II spoke.

“That’s true, but it’s a long gun that can fire rapidly and has a superior range. Even if there were 10 million soldiers armed with such a long gun, we would be able to wipe out the Mamluks within a year.”

It was Henrik and Giovanni who nodded loudly at Mehmet II’s words.

The training presented by the Korean Empire Army gave shock and fear to Henry and his group as well as the envoys in attendance.

* * *

The expressions on the envoys’ faces were calm until they saw the demonstration of artillery fire fired at Hansu.

The range was longer than that of the cannons they were familiar with, but the power of the shells that did not contain peony did not seem to be much more advanced than their own artillery.

However, from the demonstration that followed, all the Shinigami’s faces began to turn white.

“From now on, the training assumes a situation of defending against approaching enemies. Please look to your right.”

After hearing the interpreters’ words, the heads of the envoys all turned to the right.

It was a place where a curtain had been placed to block the view until a little while ago, but soldiers came out and began to remove the curtain.

Where the curtain was removed, there were at least 1,000 scarecrows and hundreds of wooden horses.

“Hoo~.”

Henry and his party ended with a light exclamation, but the faces of the envoys from countries with contact with the Ming, including Japan and Yugu, became serious.

The armor worn by the scarecrows and the barding on the wooden horse were all used by the Ming army.

And the weapons equipped by the Ming army were of far superior quality compared to those equipped by the soldiers of their homeland.

What Joseon wanted to say was simple.

‘Someone much stronger than you all lost to us. ‘Don’t be picky.’

‘It could be a bluff.’

There were quite a few envoys who thought that those scarecrows and wooden horses might be a bluff. But the firepower test that followed shattered their thoughts.

The start was a big hit.

Puff!

With a heavy explosion, the thunderbolt that tore through the sky fell behind the place where the scarecrows were gathered and exploded.

Quack!

The scarecrows and horses nearby rose into the sky and fell to the ground due to the explosion of the bigyeokjincheonroe.

Following the bombardment of the Bigyeokjincheonroe, the fire from the freight cars swept through the middle part of the scarecrow group, and the scatterguns destroyed the lead group of the scarecrow group.

“Waaah~!”

Finally, the infantrymen waiting behind ran forward with shouts, established a defensive line, and started shooting.

This part was the decisive blow. The place where the infantry stood shooting at the scarecrows and horses was much later than where they expected. Most of them were sitting or prone, reloading quickly.

* * *

The three people, who stayed up all night with their eyes wide open due to shock and fear, headed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as soon as daybreak.

“huh?”

“uh?”

“this!”

The three people who arrived at the entrance to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs simultaneously looked frustrated.

Envoys from all over the world were gathered at the entrance to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Henry, who was looking at the envoys’ faces, smiled and looked back at Giovanni and Mehmet II.

“It would be strange if you didn’t come.”

Meanwhile, Heo Hu, who received a report that envoys were lining up at the entrance of the government building, smiled slightly and gave orders to his subordinates.

“Go to the Ministry of Finance and Tell this. ‘Guests have arrived.’”

“Yes!”

After dismissing his subordinate, Heo Hu took a sip of black bean tea and muttered.

“This kind of work should be left to the experts.”