Black Corporation: Joseon

Chapter 694

Episode 694: 60th birthday (1)

“55 percent? Nonsense!”

“Say something that makes sense!”

“Even jokes are oily resin!”

“There is no such thing as a robber!”

No sooner had Kim Jong-seo finished speaking than all the delegates began to scream.

Kim Jong-seo was calm and calm, even though he felt safe from being stabbed right away.

“Here, pour me another cup of black bean tea.”

Kim Jong-seo, who took a sip of the new black bean tea, opened his mouth with an expression that asked what was the problem.

“What’s the problem? Are you saying that instead of our empire paying 70% of the amount you cannot afford to spend, we will only receive 50% of it? “Do you not know how good the conditions presented by the empire are?”

“What good conditions are these!”

At the French representative’s shout, Kim Jong-seo turned his attention to Giovanni.

“I will ask the representative of Florence there. The representative of Florence comes from a famous merchant family. Have you ever seen people pool their money and start a partnership, dividing the shares equally?”

“… I’ve never seen it before.”

When Giovanni answered hesitantly, Henrik immediately joined the conversation.

“The situation is no different from this case!”

“What’s different?”

“It’s a matter between countries! Isn’t this different from simple merchants’ partnership? “There is a difference in national power right now, so we need to take that into consideration as well!”

Kim Jong-seo responded to Henry’s words with a wry smile.

“Should we take into account the differences in national power? “Then, can our empire demand 80%?”

“Look!”

The representative of Osman, who could not hear him, shouted, but Kim Jong-seo paid no heed and spoke point by point.

“First, who controls the sea route from Suez to the Empire? “Have you forgotten who the Duke of Portugal is?”

Henrik answered Kim Jong-seo’s question hesitantly.

“…The Empire.”

“Secondly, where did most of the weapons that brought victory in the war you talk about come from?”

“…The Empire.”

“Then, would the national power of an empire with hundreds of thousands of soldiers armed with those weapons be small or large? For your information, our empire is the country that defeated the Ming you call Kitai.”

“…I acknowledge the strength of the empire.”

Kim Jong-seo was struck by Henry’s answer.

“Then, according to the duke’s logic, wouldn’t there be nothing to say even if our empire demands 80%? “They are providing 70% of the cost of the construction and the country is also the strongest.”

“….”

When Henrik couldn’t answer and kept his mouth shut, the French representative stepped forward instead.

“joy! East of Suez, maybe! But will the empire really be a power from Suez?”

Kim Jong-seo’s smile became even more sinister due to the French representative’s provocation. Kim Jong-seo’s mysterious smile made the representatives instantly realize one thing.

‘interest! Not just a bureaucrat! ‘He has been through the battlefield!’

Kim Jong-seo responded with a smile that seemed to smell like fishy blood.

“Would you like to check? Should our empire join hands with Mamluk Spain and go to war again? Our empire may not be the first to fight, but it will not back down from a fight. And they all won. If you’re confident, give it a try.”

“This one!”

The French representative jumped up from his seat and screamed. Seeing this, Osman’s representative urgently intervened.

“War brings only suffering to everyone! I think the French representative made a mistake in this case! Instead, I apologize! “Let’s stop here!”

Following Osman’s mediation, the French representative sat down again and Kim Jong-seo lightly raised his hand and expressed his apology.

“This was rude. As you get older, you have to be more self-respecting, but that’s not easy. “Hehehe.”

Although he laughed like that, Kim Jong-seo’s eyes were never smiling.

We managed to calm the atmosphere and the conversation continued again.

“To be honest, we shed a lot of blood to win the last war. However, it is difficult to accept that the empire is demanding such a large share.”

Kim Jong-seo nodded at Representative Osman’s candid remarks.

“I heard from the Empire that it was a pretty tough war. But war is war and business is business. “Please think carefully about this.”

“But the reason we went to war…”

“Wait.”

Kim Jong-seo interrupted Representative Osman in a cold voice.

“There is something you must not forget. The Empire doesn’t need to know why you went to war, and I don’t want to know. because? It’s not like we instigated our empire to start a war. Rather, please keep in mind that our empire has suffered great damage as the trade routes have been disrupted by the war you waged.”

Seeing Kim Jong-seo firmly drawing a line, Giovanni let out a long sigh and stood up.

“Ha~. I think it will be difficult to come to a conclusion today. Now that we have heard the conditions of the empire, we also need time to think. “Let’s stop here for today.”

That’s how the first day’s meeting ended.

* * *

After that, a bloody war of words continued for almost two months. Kim Jong-seo and the representatives of the alliance engaged in a fierce battle over the shares of the empire.

There was frequent shouting and swearing, creating a hostile atmosphere, countless adjournments and adjournments were held, and as many foreigners and messengers traveled back and forth across the Mediterranean.

As the representatives of the alliance were having a hard time in Suez, a fierce war of words took place at home as well. And more and more men crossed the Mediterranean to assist the Alliance’s representatives.

Through the process, the representatives’ criticism became sharper, but Kim Jong-seo accepted their attacks with a relaxed expression.

‘Have you ever experienced the Sanghang era and the Tanggeum Emperor? Otherwise, would he have been brushed off by Ministry of Finance and Economy officials as a budget issue? ‘It’s funny, it’s funny!’

Every time Kim Jong-seo saw the representatives making a confident expression, as if they had been caught off guard, he snorted inwardly and handled it skillfully.

“… This is what we need to discuss with our home country.”

And every time something like this came out, Kim Jong-seo was sure to hit the other person’s stomach.

“When I came here, Your Majesty entrusted all responsibilities and rights to me. But I see that you are not like that… Huh….”

‘It’s such a pitiful situation for you to not have the monarch’s trust!’

I was able to guess the content of Kim Jong-seo’s last words without having to listen to them. And each time, the faces of the representatives were cruelly crumpled.

* * *

After such a fierce war of words, the alliance and the empire were able to reach an agreement.

-The Empire is responsible for 60% of the total construction cost.

-The empire supplies iron horses, freight cars and carriages for the construction of railroads and railways.

-The Empire manages the necessary equipment and technicians to avoid disruptions in construction.

-The empire takes 40% of the shares of the joint venture that will manage this railway and port.

But the greatest benefit to the empire was the last item.

-To ensure the safety of the sea route from the Empire to Suez, the Empire can establish a military port in Suez. In return for this, the empire must clearly guarantee the safety of sea routes.

-This military port is recognized as permanent imperial territory.

Kim Jong-seo, who signed the agreement, took the documents containing the agreement and its attached clauses.

“I don’t think I’ll get angry at this level. Now that the agreement has been concluded, the Empire will do its best to keep it.”

“Please keep those words.”

“Don’t worry. Materials and technicians will arrive starting next year.”

When Kim Jong-seo, who had made that assurance, stood up, Henry asked Kim Jong-seo.

“Do you mind if I go and see how the remaining shares are divided?”

Kim Jong-seo smiled slightly and shook his head in response to Henry’s question.

“Isn’t that your problem and not the empire’s problem?”

After leaving the negotiation room and returning to his lodgings, Kim Jong-seo looked at the agreement and accompanying documents and laughed loudly.

“Ha ha ha ha ha! “You caught a big catch!”

In the process of prior coordination with Hyang, Kim Jeom, and other ministers before coming from Seoul, the last item was proposed by Hyang and actively approved by other ministers.

“If we can just build a military port, I can give up to 305 cents. “I won’t hold you responsible.”

Kim Jong-seo responded to Hyang’s words with a stern expression.

“I will risk my life and not go below .400!”

And Kim Jong-seo kept his promise.

That wasn’t all.

Because the construction cost was overestimated, the empire could still make a profit even if it took on 60% of the cost. And the railway to Suez was the beginning. The moment they saw the excellence of the empire’s iron horses and railroads, countries wanting them would flock to them.

Of course, people would stop when they saw the cost of the Suez Railway construction, but by the time the Suez Railway was completed, the empire would be running on a new iron horse that was currently being developed.

-For this reason, even though it is used, I will sell it cheaply. Do you want to buy it?

If a proposal were made in this way, there would be more than one country that would come over.

Finally, the empire was not the only one using the Suez railway.

The Suez Railroad was the optimal means of transporting slaves and other valuable items obtained from the eastern coast of Africa to Europe and other regions.

The Suez Railway was the best means not only for sending goods from Africa but also from India and the Indochina Peninsula to the Mediterranean and exporting goods from Europe.

In other words, this meant that the Port of Suez would grow into the largest trade port spanning the Mediterranean Sea and the Arabian Peninsula in Africa.

And the imperial military port would be built in Suez.

Of course, the allies were not unaware of this. However, since it was insufficient in all respects to seize control of the sea route from Suez to the Empire, it had no choice but to hand it over to the Empire.

After analyzing the future situation, Kim Jong-seo looked towards the east and muttered.

“Is this the reason why you joined the Navy? “How many moves ahead were you able to see?”

* * *

Meanwhile, a large chunk of the empire was taken away, and the representatives continued to fight fiercely over what was left.

“We must not forget the blood our kingdom shed in the last war!”

“That blood! “We shed too!”

“I forgot who supplied the war funds and mercenary weapons!”

The warm atmosphere that had created unity when dealing with the empire disappeared far away, and the alliance representatives engaged in a muddy fight.

After such a fierce war of words, the shares divided were as follows.

Ottoman 2 Portugal 1.5 France 1.3 Florence 1.2

After the distribution, no representative looked satisfied. It was a situation where everyone was dissatisfied.

But Giovanni was smiling inside.

‘I secured 1 percent more than my father told me to secure! No one, including the Empire, has reached the majority! This way, our family can reap the greatest benefits!’

* * *

While the light and dark were changing in Suez, the scent was carrying out another trick and trick.

Hyang called Wan, the head of Area 51, and handed out an order.

“Design and build a ship according to these conditions.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After checking the order, Wan looked at the scent with surprised eyes.

“Are you telling me to build a wheeled ship using a steam engine?”

“Yes.”

“Aren’t wheeled ships using steam engines abandoned because they are less efficient than the pinwheel method we use now?”

“That’s why I’m asking you to make it.”

“yes?”