Black Corporation: Joseon

Chapter 643

Episode 643: Medici, Europe, Jeonjeonrok. (3)

“I have to admit what needs to be acknowledged. “Joseon, or rather the empire, has grown too large for me to deal with it to my liking.”

Cosimo neatly acknowledged the situation.

“But my pride can’t allow me to drag myself along. And you can’t make much profit. Recognition is recognition and benefit is benefit. “You have to dig into the areas you need to dig into and grab the vital points.”

Cosimo thoroughly reanalyzed the situation.

“I feel sick to my stomach about the weapons the Empire said they will sell this time, but I have no choice but to buy them. If you play for a long time to save money, you will inevitably suffer bigger losses. “The situation in Europe is the same right now.”

* * *

Even before Nicholas V called for ‘reflection and repentance,’ Europe was slowly reducing conflicts and coming to a close.

One of the biggest reasons was the ‘fatigue’ of the people and nobles.

Long before the letters from the monks that arrived in Joseon sparked a fire, Europe was suffering from the religious conflict between the Pope and the Council of Basel.

In such a situation, a question asked by Hyang in Joseon fanned the situation and caused an even bigger fire.

As the religious conflict that took place went on for more than 10 years, everyone from the nobility above to the people below felt extreme fatigue.

* * *

In addition, not only religious issues but also economic issues forced closure.

In addition to the war of words between religious people and intellectuals, fierce bloody disputes broke out between those who believed in different doctrines. And as these bloody disputes grew in scale, more and more territories were caught up in these disputes and were devastated.

As a result, farmers and nobles facing economic difficulties began to put pressure on religious figures and intellectuals.

-Is this situation really what God wanted?

The people’s complaints put the strongest pressure on religious people and intellectuals.

As the population decreased significantly due to the Black Death, the position of serfs and self-employed farmers became stronger. And dissatisfaction was increasing proportionally.

The means taken by lords and religious figures to quell the dissatisfaction of these serfs and self-employed farmers was to hold festivals.

In addition to traditional festivals such as Easter and Christmas, additional festivals commemorating the feast days of various saints and saints began to be held.

In this way, many festivals took place throughout Europe, and merchants looking for big trees traveled all over Europe.

What the merchants selling the most at the festival was ‘Mulberry Water’ exported from Joseon.

Meanwhile, this movement of nobles and people was also something that magnates like Medici wanted.

Most of Europe’s nobles were debtors to magnates such as Medici. Nobles, regardless of their rank or the size of their territory, were in enormous debt.

Therefore, in the aftermath of the long-running religious conflict, the number of bankrupt nobles was increasing, and their bad debts were becoming a headache for business magnates.

* * *

“Even if weapons are unavoidable, the conditions imposed by the empire are the problem.”

Cosimo thought again about the ‘40% share’ that the fragrance had offered.

“Now that the empire has turned out like that, I should think again. It’s a shame. If I did well, I could have secured at least 1/4 of the stake.”

As soon as Giovanni, who returned from the Empire, heard about the ‘Joint of the Four Kingdoms’, a plan was immediately formed in Cosimo’s head.

‘If you’re good at this!’

Cosimo did not miss this flash of thought and immediately sent Giovanni back to the empire.

After sending Giovanni back to the empire, Cosimo smiled in conversion.

“It’s not just Portugal that will be in trouble without the money I send.”

Osman was also indebted to Cosimo.

* * *

The Ottomans were growing into an emerging power in the Islamic region, but maintaining that growth was not easy.

In order to expand the territory, the theater continued to expand, which meant that the portion of war expenses in finances was increasing. However, if expansion was stopped, it was certain that those who were benefiting from the war would immediately revolt.

There were two ways to solve this difficult problem.

One was to continue expansion until there was no more land to occupy or until the belligerent vested interests ran out of steam.

The problem was that if there was even a cry in a situation where there was no room to spare, the risk of falling straight into the abyss was very high.

The other was to find another source of income that was not based on territory and take it as the sultan’s. Based on these financial resources, the sultan’s grip on power – military power – was strengthened and then the vested interests were suppressed. If we could control the vested interests, we would be able to stop expansion within a reasonable line and establish a stable national system.

That was why I accepted Cosimo’s proposal. If the trade routes to and from the ‘Land of Flowers’ were to be taken over – if not monopolized – this would be a new source of income for the Sultan. In addition, by attacking the famously wealthy treasure troves of Cairo and the fertile Nile Delta, he was able to divert the attention of the vested interests symbolized by the Sipahi and Timar Islands.

When Murat II accepted the offer, Cosimo supplied a significant amount of military funds and a large quantity of Florentine guns that were copies of Joseon-made guns. And Murat II used the military funds and chief gun he received to strengthen the power of the Janissaries, the sultan’s personal forces.

* * *

Cosimo was confident because not only Portugal but also the Ottomans were on a leash.

“Mehmed II may have spoken loudly to the empire, but that doesn’t mean he can escape from me.”

Mehmed II was the strongest candidate for the next sultan, but Cosimo’s wealth was enough to manipulate the result.

And this was something that Mehmed II also knew. Therefore, Mehmed II could not ignore Cosimo’s words.

“Of course, you can change your words once you become sultan, but you learned something good from the actions of the empire.”

Before a full-fledged competition among sultan candidates took place, a document acknowledging the promise would be obtained from Mehmed II. Of course, ‘in the name of Allah’, as the Empire did.

After sorting out the situation, Cosimo planned to obtain 5/100 of the shares from the Portuguese and the Ottomans respectively. Of course, like it was done with the Empire, it was through a secret agreement that was not made known to other countries. They would find out only after the conflict arose.

If we add the 5/100 that will be obtained from the empire, the share secured by Cosimo’s Medici family will be 1/4 of the total.

With that amount of stake, the Medici family would be able to reap maximum profits by coordinating between the three countries.

However, the emperor of the empire, Hyang, put the brakes on this.

* * *

After analyzing the situation so far, Cosimo filled his empty glass with wine and glared at the map.

“Hmm… Since the Empire gave me a blow, I guess I should also give them a blow, right?”

Cosimo’s eyes were fixed on France.

“It is difficult for Portugal to deal with the Ottomans and the Empire alone. But…”

Cosimo, who quenched his thirst with wine, continued speaking.

“But in France, it’s different.”

* * *

Could it be the butterfly effect caused by the intervention of scent? It ended almost six years earlier compared to the history before the township intervened.

It was Charles VII’s choice to win the struggle against the nobles – even his own son.

– Normandy and Calais remain, but you can take them back later! Now we have to catch those nobles first!

Charles VII, who was impressed by the royal politics of the East that he learned about through letters from monks, began to strengthen royal power in earnest.

Thanks to this, the policy of strengthening the royal power, such as the increase in the standing army, which had occurred in history before the intervention of Hyang, was being carried out in more earnest.

And to strengthen this royal power, Charles VII actively took advantage of divisions in the religious world.

By supporting reformist religious figures and intellectuals preferred by the people and criticizing fundamentalists and conservatives, the power of the nobility, the traditional support force of conservatives, was weakened.

But what was absolutely necessary for all these schemes and tricks was money, and a lot of it. Thanks to this, the relationship between Charles VII and Cosimo was very close.

Cosimo laughed bitterly as he recalled the political situation in France.

“Paris will be in trouble, but Burgundy will be in trouble as well.”

At that time, Charles VII’s son and most powerful political enemy, Louis XI, was living in Burgundy.

* * * Whether

in Paris or Burgundy, France at the time was the country with the largest number of soldiers experienced in actual combat – large-scale battles held at the national level.

“If the weapons purchased from the empire are used here, this boring war will come to an end quickly. And if it is Portugal and France, the Ottomans will not be able to be so stubborn.”

Cosimo, who had sorted out the situation up to that point, pointed his finger at the Suez area on the map and laughed.

“And it’s a canal… We should take advantage of the empire’s mistakes.”

Cosimo thought it was a clear mistake for the Empire to recommend a canal.

“It’s not wrong. Transporting iron horses and railroads also costs a lot of money. And we also have to worry about possible technology leaks. It is also true that the process of getting off the ship, putting it back on the iron horse, arriving at the destination, and putting it back on the ship is complicated and expensive.”

Cosimo filled his empty glass with wine again and continued speaking with a grin.

“But the problem is that while railways and iron horses depend on the Empire for everything, canals do not. Although the excavator Giovanni mentioned is great, it can be easily replaced. All we need to do is hire more workers or bring in more slaves. “Excavators alone are not the answer.”

As Cosimo said, this was a mistake made by the county and imperial officials.

* * *

As King Sejong began to make royal palaces and a full-fledged policy to foster industry and commerce was implemented, private servants, excluding government servants, almost disappeared.

In order to suppress the power of local vested interests opposing the reform policy symbolized by the Sanobi’s light uniform, the government treated Sanobi as property and raised the property tax rate.

Because of this, a large number of Sanobi were exempted from duty and released as adoptees.

This was not just aimed at weakening the power of local vested interests. The purpose was to increase the number of wage workers as a labor force needed for the growing commerce and industry, an important consumer market, and a tax source to cover the ever-increasing finances.

As Sanobi became an endangered species, the concept of slavery faded from the minds of King Sejong, Hyang, and government officials.

Of course, there were still a huge number of government slaves left, but the vast majority of them were political prisoners, so this was not the case.

However, in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, slaves were still an everyday existence and the easiest means of securing labor.

Cosimo was trying to exploit this loophole.

“Why do we need imperial excavators? Slaves work cheaper? And the less the empire’s influence decreases, the more beneficial it is for me.”