Black Corporation: Joseon

Chapter 282

The agenda regarding the ‘Hanseong Circular Train’ and the ‘Officials’ Housing Complex’ was decided. However, the agenda related to the railroad did not end there.

A week later, a state council meeting was held at Geunjeongjeon Hall.

“Then, the next agenda is about the ‘Establishment of the Third Ironworks.'”

As the ‘Third Ironworks’ was brought up as an agenda item, the atmosphere of King Sejong and the ministers became heavy.

“Didn’t the Second Ironworks in Musan begin producing iron not long ago?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, Jeong Yeok, the Minister of National Development, promptly answered.

“That’s correct, Your Majesty. However, the amount of iron required by the people of Joseon is continuously increasing, and it’s becoming difficult for the First Ironworks in Anju and the Second Ironworks in Cheongjin to meet that demand.”

“Is it that severe?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

At Jeong Yeok’s gesture, a lower-ranking official who had been waiting in the back stepped forward with a diagram. After bowing to King Sejong, the lower-ranking official hung the diagram on a screen and stepped back.

Jeong Yeok turned the cover of the diagram with a pointer.

As the cover was turned, a large line graph with various colors was revealed.

“This line represents the monthly production of the First Ironworks. The next line represents the monthly production of the Second Ironworks. And this line is the total sum of the production from both ironworks, and the last one is the consumption of iron throughout Joseon.”

King Sejong examined the graph while listening to Jeong Yeok’s explanation, showing an intrigued expression.

“The people are consuming a lot of iron?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Looking at the graph hung by Jeong Yeok, the graph recording the amount of iron consumed in Joseon showed a steep upward trend.

Meanwhile, Hyang, who was looking at the graph, had a different thought.

‘These gentlemen are using graphs to the fullest extent, aren’t they?’

When they first learned about graphs, the ministers and officials had reacted with “What is this item used for?” But now, graphs and charts were appearing like licorice in a pharmacy.

“What is the reason for the people using so much iron?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, Kim Jeom answered on behalf of Jeong Yeok.

“There is an increasing trend of replacing items previously made of wood or earthenware with iron. The most famous example is the ‘water bucket.'”

***

As the reform progressed, individuals who became wealthy emerged. While there were merchants, surprisingly, blacksmiths also accounted for a significant number.

The blacksmiths were able to acquire wealth thanks to the ‘Intellectual Property Office.’

The blacksmiths immediately registered the new products they devised at the Intellectual Property Office. The registered items were then introduced throughout Joseon through the official gazette.

Among the products introduced this way, the useful ones were immediately sought after by merchants who either made production contracts or paid royalties to mass-produce them in their own guild workshops.

Through this process, various items experienced what was called a ‘big hit.’

The most famous among them was the ‘water bucket.’

Previously, people used buckets made of wood or suitable-sized earthenware to draw and carry water, but the water bucket took their place.

As soon as it was released in the market, the water bucket monopolized the love of housewives. It was light and sturdy, making it convenient to draw and carry water, and it was also useful for boiling laundry or cooking glue in the kitchen.

Thanks to this, the blacksmith who created the water bucket became wealthy enough for ‘three generations to live in luxury.’

***

Kim Jeom, who had been explaining using the ‘water bucket’ as an example, continued.

“With the mass supply of well-refined wrought iron from the ironworks at low prices, many of these items are being produced. In particular, the mass production of sturdy farming tools is greatly benefiting agriculture.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, thanks to that, tax revenue is steadily increasing.”

“That’s excellent news.”

At Kim Jeom’s words, King Sejong’s face brightened.

Seeing this, Hyang muttered to himself.

‘Indeed, the rice of industry.’

***

As a large quantity of iron materials – guaranteeing above-average quality – were supplied at low prices from the two ironworks, Joseon’s iron culture flourished.

It was thanks to the state taking responsibility for the iron smelting process, which consumed the most resources in the production of iron products.

Blacksmiths across Joseon could obtain the iron materials they needed through the state-run stores to create their products. This was a blessing for the blacksmiths. Less skilled blacksmiths acquired superior materials compared to when they made them themselves, and skilled blacksmiths could easily and quickly produce even higher-quality iron materials with a little extra effort.

The items made with this supplied iron, especially farming tools, demonstrated superior efficiency.

When reclaiming agricultural land or plowing furrows in fields, the newly made farming tools did not easily break and could plow deeper furrows compared to before.

As proper deep plowing methods were utilized, agricultural productivity increased.

***

“I understand, but wouldn’t it be better to expand the two existing ironworks instead?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, Kim Jeom moved to stand beside Jeong Yeok and began explaining.

“That’s one method, but it also has problems, Your Majesty. In the case of Anju, expansion construction has already been carried out, and the location itself is difficult to expand further.”

“What about the Second Ironworks in Cheongjin?”

“The Second Ironworks has limitations in the materials themselves, making it difficult to ensure profitability.”

At Kim Jeom’s words, King Sejong’s expression became serious.

“What is the issue with the materials?”

“Firstly, regarding the iron ore, the quality of the iron ore mined in Musan is somewhat inferior. Additionally, the quality of the coal mined in Aoji is also significantly poor.”

As Kim Jeom mentioned, the iron ore mined in Musan and the coal produced in Aoji had quality issues.

***

In the history before Hyang’s intervention, the iron mine discovered in Musan had problems.

The Musan iron mine was discovered during the colonial period. Although it was an open-pit mine, making extraction easy, the iron content was only 37-40%, so Japan did not pay much attention to it.

However, as Japan’s imperialistic behavior intensified, the Musan mine began to be fully developed.

The coal from Aoji was the same. The coal mined from the Aoji coal mine was lignite. It ignited easily but produced a large amount of ash and had lower calorific value.

This was the fundamental problem that prevented the production of the Second Ironworks from easily increasing.

***

“So, we need to build the Third Ironworks?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Is the funding sufficient? No, seeing that the Minister is taking the lead, it seems there is ample funding.”

At King Sejong’s words, Kim Jeom answered with a small smile.

“That’s correct, Your Majesty. Although we will need to be frugal for a while, completing the ironworks will allow us to solve even greater difficulties, so it is something we must do.”

“So, are there any suitable candidate sites?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, Jeong Yeok stepped forward again and answered.

“Yeonil County, Your Majesty.”

“Yeonil County?”

At King Sejong’s question, Jeong Yeok immediately turned the page on the screen. The new page depicted a map of Yeonil County and the nearby Ulsan and Dalcheon County.

“This is Yeonil County.”

“Why that location?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, Jeong Yeok pointed to Dalcheon County and explained.

“Here, in Dalcheon County, there is a large iron mine. Although it is difficult to obtain fuel for the blast furnaces, and the surrounding areas are all farmland and urban areas, making it challenging to locate, considering the size of the iron mine alone, it has sufficient profitability.”

“Isn’t the fuel issue still a problem?”

At King Sejong’s point, Jeong Yeok immediately turned the page.

The next page depicted a map of the entire Joseon. Jeong Yeok traced the eastern coast with the pointer and continued his explanation.

“If we lay railroad tracks along the flat land of this eastern coast and transport coal mined from Gangwon Province, it will be resolved immediately.”

“What about the means of transportation?”

“The Iron Horse, Your Majesty.”

“The Iron Horse?”

At the mention of the ‘Iron Horse,’ King Sejong briefly analyzed the situation.

‘They came up with this plan in less than a week after seeing the Iron Horse?’

King Sejong soon glared at Hyang.

‘It was you, wasn’t it?’

In response to King Sejong’s unspoken question in his gaze, Hyang answered with a slight smile. Seeing this, King Sejong let out a small sigh.

“Phew~.”

‘Now he’s even manipulating the ministers to move as he wishes. He must be afraid of getting scolded if he speaks directly. But you know what? Thanks to him, my work seems to be getting easier.’

King Sejong looked at Hyang with a meaningful smile.

‘What I’m currently researching seems like it will yield results in about two years, so let’s see then.’

At King Sejong’s enigmatic smile, Hyang suddenly felt a chill run through his body.

‘What’s this? Suddenly feeling chilly?’

Anyway, King Sejong soon focused on the agenda.

“If we use the Iron Horse like that, there’s no need to build it specifically in Yeonil County, is there?”

At King Sejong’s point, Jeong Yeok answered while pointing to Dongnae.

“It’s right in front of the Japanese settlement.”

“If the Japanese pirates are the problem, then Yeonil County is even more…”

King Sejong stopped speaking while examining the map and nodded.

“Janggi County and Heunghae County will block them from both sides. I understand.”

Having heard the explanation, King Sejong turned to the other ministers.

“What are your opinions?”

At King Sejong’s question, the ministers took a moment to organize their thoughts and began to speak one by one.

“I believe it is reasonable.”

“As the people of Joseon increasingly require iron, it is something we must do.”

“That’s right, Your Majesty. If the demand increases but the supply is insufficient, there may be a resurgence of illegal mining to seek unjust profits.”

Before the ironworks were established, illegal mining was prevalent in Joseon. However, as the ironworks began supplying iron materials with guaranteed performance, illegal mining had become outdated. Nevertheless, if a situation of supply shortage occurred, illegal mining could flourish again.

Seeing that most of the ministers were in agreement, King Sejong reached a conclusion.

“Very well. I approve the construction of the Third Ironworks. I ask all of you to work together to ensure that the necessary tasks can be carried out smoothly.”

“We shall obey your command!”

***

After the meeting, Kim Jeom, who had returned to the Ministry of Finance and Taxation building, quickly assessed the situation.

“Have you finished compiling the list of items and quantities to bring back from Ming? Surely it’s not still incomplete, is it?”

“Here it is!”

As Kim Jeom’s voice became sharp, a subordinate official quickly ran over and submitted a thick report.

Kim Jeom turned the cover of the report and swiftly checked the items and quantities.

“Hmm…”

Flipping through the pages and verifying the numbers, Kim Jeom handed the report back to the official standing in front of him.

“The quantities are too small. Adjust them and come back.”

“It’s already more than double, though?”

“You fool! Is doubling something to boast about? In my days, let me tell you! If you paid tribute to Beijing and brought back double, they would scold you, saying, ‘Did you just go and play around?’ Tripling was the bare minimum, quadrupling would get you a ‘You did some work, huh?’ and quintupling was needed to be evaluated as ‘You’ll be successful!'” Where do you get off whining about doubling?”

“If we’re not careful, it could cause diplomatic issues…”

“You fool! Why are you worrying about that? That’s for those fellows in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to worry about!”

“Still…”

“Do you want to take the antler medicine bestowed by His Majesty instead of me?”

“I’ll revise it right away!”

As soon as Kim Jeom finished speaking, the official grabbed the report and disappeared. Seeing this, Kim Jeom clicked his tongue.

“Tsk! These days, the lads only know the tricks and not the essence!”

Kim Jeom’s voice resounded throughout the building.

The problem was that the administrative buildings located in the area called “Six Ministries Street (Six Ministries Street)” were tightly packed together, and right next to the Ministry of Finance was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

As a result, the officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building had to grit their teeth while trembling as they held their brushes.

“Grrr!”

***

Note 1) Jeong Yeok, a civil official during the reign of King Sejong of Joseon, from the Haeju Jeong clan, holding the position of Chanseong. Comprehensive Information System of Korean Historical Figures.