Black Corporation: Joseon

Chapter 307

“Truly remarkable!”

Emperor Xuande, who received the chandelier as tribute, exclaimed in admiration and said to Lee Maeng-gyun, who had gone as an envoy.

“The skills of Joseon’s craftsmen are indeed extraordinary!”

“Moved by the grace Your Majesty has bestowed upon Joseon, the craftsmen have done their utmost. I heard that it is difficult to make even 3 of such works in a year.”

“3 in a year…”

Emperor Xuande, who fell into thought while trailing off, pondered for a while and then spoke.

“Listen, envoy. Joseon shall offer those 3 products as tribute for the next 5 years. Of course! I will generously reciprocate.”

At Emperor Xuande’s words, a small commotion arose among the Ming officials present. Emperor Xuande, who had raised his hand to stop the Privy Council from speaking, continued.

“This is a precious item that can be proudly passed down through generations. Therefore, when we receive the tribute, we will hang 1 in the palaces and halls of the Forbidden City, and the rest will be bestowed upon loyal subjects. It will be my reward for those who strive for me and the empire.”

“I shall follow your command!”

Lee Maeng-gyun, who received an enormous amount of sulfur and copper—half of what Joseon imported in a year—as a reciprocal gift, reported the Emperor’s words to King Sejong. Hyang, who was listening to Lee Maeng-gyun’s words beside him, muttered softly.

“That fellow is not easy either. There will be a fierce competition for loyalty, won’t there?”

***

The crystal chandelier, which sparked a loyalty competition in the Ming court, also became a topic of utmost interest in Alexandria.

Many merchants and people were paying attention to the products that would be released at the auction house and market, but there were also quite a few who were interested in other aspects.

And representing such individuals was Prince Enrique.

When the merchants from Aden were about to come to Alexandria, Enrique, disguised as a merchant, entered Alexandria with his subordinates.

Enrique’s goal was not trade.

– First, negotiate with the merchants from Aden and have one or two of them join the voyage. Through them, confirm the existence of Joseon, the ‘Land of Flowers’.

However, even after more than a month in Aden, the merchants did not come, and Enrique began to prepare to abandon the plan.

Right at that moment, a subordinate who had gone out to the city returned and reported to Enrique.

“Merchants from Aden are coming! But it’s not just the merchants from Aden! People from the ‘Land of Flowers’ are also coming along!”

At the subordinate’s report, Enrique immediately ordered him.

“Tell the innkeeper that we will continue to stay!”

“Yes, sir!”

“And dispatch people! We need to gather as much information as possible!”

“Understood!”

***

After half a month had passed, all of Alexandria was abuzz.

“Merchants from Aden have arrived!”

“People from the ‘Land of Flowers’ have also come!”

“Wow!”

Amidst the Alexandrians’ clamorous chatter, Enrique, who had climbed to the rooftop of the inn, could see Oh Ha-seok’s group passing through the city gate.

“Amazing, truly amazing!”

Enrique exclaimed in admiration as he watched Oh Ha-seok’s group’s procession.

There were nearly 100 camels carrying large and small wooden boxes. Considering that the number of camels carrying luggage was only around 30 to 40 during the last visit, it was an astonishing number.

Enrique, who had been estimating the number of camels, made a calculation.

“How many ships have come? At least 3, perhaps?”

Among the dhows favored by Arab merchants, the cargo capacity of the largest ships was equivalent to what 10 camels could carry on average.

If it were a short distance, they would move with a cargo load requiring about 15 camels, but for long-distance travel, the maximum was about 10 camels’ worth. It was due to the space occupied by the food and water to be loaded on the ship.

In fact, the merchant named Mansur was said to always lead 3 ships when traveling to and from Joseon. And the average number of camels carrying cargo when he came to Alexandria was 30.

So Enrique calculated that there were at least 3 ships from Joseon.

***

When Oh Ha-seok presented the chandeliers to the mayor of Alexandria and the Sultan, this news immediately spread throughout the city of Alexandria.

The influential figures who had visited the city hall upon hearing the rumors and the servants who had accompanied them chatted with their acquaintances about the incredible item they had seen, and that story quickly flowed into the city of Alexandria.

While Italian, European, and Arab merchants were focusing their attention on the products brought by Joseon, Enrique issued orders to his subordinates.

“After visiting the Alexandria City Hall, did the Joseon people go out?”

“No, they did not.”

“Hmm…”

Enrique, who pondered for a moment at the subordinate’s report, spoke.

“Try to make contact with the people from the Aden merchant group who came with the Joseon people.”

“Are you thinking of meeting the Joseon people?”

“First, obtaining information about the Joseon people is the priority. We need to secure information such as the customs of the Joseon people and the ships they came on.”

“Understood.”

Following Prince Enrique’s orders, the subordinates cautiously approached the people of the Mansur merchant group. However, they were able to obtain information from an unexpected place.

The place where they obtained the information was a tavern.

Not all of those employed on Mansur’s merchant ships were Muslims.

A considerable number of Copts (Coptic Christians of Egypt) were working as sailors, and they were relieving the fatigue of the long voyage by drinking at the tavern.

Interestingly, even the sailors of Muslim origin were enjoying alcohol beside them.

The occupation of a sailor was that arduous.

For the sailors of the Mansur merchant group, there was nothing more delightful than coming to Alexandria.

Because after sharing a few stories about distant Joseon, free drinks would pour in.

For the people of Alexandria, stories from the far East were not a waste of the price of a drink.

Thanks to this, the sailors could go from one tavern to another, drinking for free.

“Who will buy a drink for me and my companions? I shall tell you the tales of Joseon!”

At the shout of a sailor with a bushy beard, Enrique’s subordinate, José, immediately stepped forward.

“I will buy you a drink!”

“Oh! You are someone who has crossed the Mediterranean! May the Virgin protect your voyage!”

Expressing gratitude with exaggerated gestures, the sailor chugged the mug of beer as soon as it was handed to him.

As he and his companions emptied their mugs, José ordered more beer.

“Ooh! Thank you, good sir! What shall I tell you about?”

“I’m curious about the ship made in the ‘Land of Flowers’. How many have come here?”

To José’s question, the sailor raised his right index finger and answered.

“One.”

The sailor’s answer caused a commotion among the onlookers nearby.

“Only one, you say?”

“No way, that’s impossible!”

Almost everyone living in the port city of Alexandria knew about ships.

Therefore, all the onlookers showed negative reactions.

However, the sailors of the Mansur merchant group chuckled and mocked the onlookers.

“You don’t know much about the East! Don’t you know how big the ships that came from Qitai were?”

When ‘Qitai’ was mentioned, the onlookers recalled the rumors they had heard about the Zheng He fleet and muttered.

“It seems the countries in the East have the technology to build such large ships.”

“The East is amazing…”

As the onlookers quieted down, José asked again.

“How big is the ship?”

To José’s question, the bushy-bearded sailor looked at his companions.

“It looked to be at least 120 cubits (approx. 58m), didn’t it?”

“It should be around 120 to 140 cubits (approx. 62m). Probably.”

At the sailors’ words, not only José but also all the onlookers nearby gaped in astonishment.

None of them had ever seen ships that large.

“Is it really that big?”

To José’s question, the bushy-bearded sailor nodded and replied.

“It has to be that big to carry so many cannons, don’t you think?”

“Cannons? How many did they load?”

As José hastily asked, the sailor waved his empty mug. José shouted to a passing employee.

“Bring a whole barrel here!”

“Oh, how grateful!”

As a barrel full of beer was placed on the table, the sailors readily answered.

“There seemed to be at least several dozen.”

“Several dozen? Even for a 120-cubit ship, isn’t that too many?”

“Nah! They’re not as big as the cannons used in sieges. But they were more than enough to sweep away the pirates we encountered on the way from Joseon to Suez. Hey! How many pirate ships did we sink on the way here?”

“At least over 40.”

“To add, about 30 ships attacked us in the southern seas of Qitai, but they were all sunk by 3 Joseon ships.”

“Wow…”

José, who had been uttering only exclamations at the sailors’ stories, asked again.

“If it’s that big and powerful, it must be slow, right?”

“Damn fast.”

“Really?”

“If you don’t believe me, go to Suez and see for yourself. I don’t lie while getting free drinks.”

At the sailor’s words, José shook his head.

“According to your description, it’s an incredible ship.”

“It’s incredible. Even our merchant leader was tempted to buy one but gave up because of the cost.”

“Wow…”

***

Returning to the inn, José reported to Enrique what he had heard from the sailors.

“Can we trust their words?”

“There may be some exaggeration, but I think it’s true to some extent.”

“Hmm…”

At José’s report, Enrique leaned back in his chair, letting out a sigh that was either admiration or lamentation.

“A ship over 120 cubits?”

The most advanced ship currently built in his homeland, Portugal, was the caravel, which had a length of 48 cubits (approx. 21m). Of course, there were larger ships among the galleys, but there were no ships of 120 cubits.

However, the ship that had come from the East was at least 120 cubits.

‘But it’s too large a quantity to be a lie.’

If the quantity brought by over 100 camels really came from a single ship, then those words were likely to be true.

After pondering for a long time, Enrique put down his pen and muttered.

“Is the technology of the East ahead of ours? If so, by how much?”

While he was pondering over this unresolved question, another subordinate entered the room and reported.

“Tomorrow, goods from Joseon will be exhibited at the auction house.”

“Understood. Good work. Go and rest. You too, José.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

After sending the subordinates away, Enrique took a deep breath and sorted out the situation.

“We’ll be able to tell to some extent by looking at the items that come out tomorrow.”

***

The next day, people gathered at the largest auction house in Alexandria.

Those who exuded wealth at a glance entered first and took the front seats, while those who had come to view the Joseon goods to be auctioned off took seats on the second floor.

“Then let’s start the auction!”

The auction began with the auctioneer announcing the start.

The auction proceeded, starting with the auction of slaves brought from Africa and Europe, but people’s attention was focused on the Joseon goods that would come out last.

“Uh… Finally, here is an item from Joseon, the ‘Land of Flowers’, located in the far East. It is a ‘hanging candelabrum’ made of ‘crystal glass’.”

As the auctioneer’s introduction ended, 8 sturdy men came up carrying the chandelier covered with cloth.

As the men carefully put down the chandelier, the auctioneer explained.

“This item is of the highest grade even by Joseon’s certification standards. Only 3 of them are available at this auction. We will start the auction for the first one.”

Having finished the explanation, the auctioneer removed the cloth covering the chandelier.

In an instant, the auction house was filled with exclamations.

“Ooh!”

“Amazing!”

Amidst the exclamations erupting from all directions, the auctioneer called out the starting price.

“Then we will start at 20,000 gold ducats!”

As soon as the auctioneer finished speaking, hands rose from all directions.

The competition to obtain the chandelier was fierce.

The auction, which started at 20,000 gold ducats, had surpassed 60,000 ducats at one point and was approaching 70,000 ducats.

Oh Ha-seok, who was watching the proceedings from the back of the auction house while listening to Mansur’s interpreter, muttered with a dumbfounded expression.

“They quoted 20,000 nyang of gold to the Emperor of Ming… Here, they might make enough money to build a Challenger-class warship if they do well.”