Black Corporation: Joseon

While the princess was causing a stir in her search for her stepmother, the royal court was also in chaos. The cause of the disturbance was the sugar monopoly’.

“The decision to monopolize sugar has been made, but how should we go about it?”

In response to Sejong’s question, the ministers immediately offered an answer.

“We believe it would be best to transfer the retail rights to suitable merchants.”

Following that, the ministers heatedly debated, arguing whether the wholesalers or the merchants of Gyeonggang were better. However, to Sejong’s ears, it sounded like “I received a bribe from the wholesalers,” “I received a bribe from the merchants of Gyeonggang.”

As he quietly watched the ministers wrangle, Sejong’s face gradually hardened. Finally, Sejong slammed his desk with his fist and shouted.

“Silence!”

At Sejong’s shout, the arguing ministers closed their mouths and bowed their heads immediately.

Over the heads of such ministers, Sejong continued to scold, “Are you ministers even listening and thinking about what I’m saying? It’s only been a few days since I declared my intention to implement reforms and discussed preparations for reform policies!”

“Look back at your answer to my question just now! Was that an answer for the sake of reform? Or was it for the gifts that will come to your homes? Was it an answer for the sake of Joseon? Or for your own granaries?”

At Sejong’s scolding, the ministers bowed their heads in unison.

“We deserve death!”

“We deserve death!”

The ministers, who had all begged to be killed, started to break out in a cold sweat at Sejong’s continued words, “You say ‘deserve death’, ‘deserve death’, but… Depending on how this policy is formed and the results it yields, I’ll decide whether to grant your wishes.”

“Gasp!”

Shocked by Sejong’s warning, the ministers all raised their voices in unison.

“We will do our utmost!”

“We will devote our lives!”

Seeing the ministers trembling as they answered, Sejong glared at the chief state councilors who were bowing down in front of him.

“I will say this to the chief state councilors. I appointed you to the seats because I trusted your assessment. However, I have recently been quite disappointed.”

“Your majesty!”

“I deserve death!”

The chief state councilors bowed their heads to the ground. Sejong’s gaze at them was cold.

“I hope you do not disappoint me any further. I warn you, if you fall short of the rumors I heard about you, there will be no reason for me to keep you in your position. Do you understand? Left State Councilor and Right State Councilor.”

“We will keep it in mind!”

“We absolutely will not disappoint you!”

Hwang Hui and Maeng Saseong, who were publicly singled out, answered with pale faces dripping with sweat.

Contrary to the frozen atmosphere of the ministers, Sejong continued the meeting in a dry voice, “Now, let’s move on to the next agenda.”

“Yes! The next agenda is….”

“Next is….“

“Tsk!”

Sejong clicked his tongue as he watched the ministers hurry to check the next agenda. Their frantic behavior was not at all to his liking.

Since Hyang had reincarnated and started to interfere in earnest, many variables had arisen. Among those variables, some were expected by Hyang, but many were not.

One of the unexpected variables was that Sejong’s assessment of the ministers had become mercilessly high.

‘Why can’t they think like a 10-year-old child?!’

‘Why can’t they think ahead? If I have to tell them everything, why should they even occupy the positions of state councilors or ministers’

By themselves, compared to the solutions Hyang provided sometimes even in advance, Sejong’s evaluation standards became Hyang-centric. And the victims of such raised hurdles were Hwang Hui and Maeng Saseong.

“I’ve heard from Father that their abilities are excellent. The surrounding ministers’ evaluations were the same. But why?”

They were talented individuals recognized even by Taejong, Sejong’s father.

However, upon examining the abilities of the two men occupying the positions of State Councilors after their appointments, Sejong could not hide his disappointment.

“Am I too demanding? Or was the evaluation of these two overrated? The latter seems unlikely, given the number of people saying the same thing. The former also seems unlikely, as their lack of ability is plainly visible….”

Sejong had to contemplate deeply, observing Hwang Hui and Maeng Saseong who were underperforming compared to his expectations.

“Can I really trust them with important duties? For the success of the reform, someone more capable than anyone else is needed.”

As Sejong’s disappointment grew, so did the misery of Hwang Hui and Maeng Saseonng. Because they took over after highly respected veteran ministers were purged, for the sake of survival and retaining their power, they had to do their best. However, immediately upon occupying the state councilor’s position, what they faced was the colossal wall of ‘reform.’

“That whole family is full of monsters!”

After reading about 20 books related to the reform, Hwang Hui, drinking with Maeng Saseong, lamented.

If King Taejong, the predecessor, maintained his regime by terrorizing his ministers, the current king was oppressing his ministers with work. Not just throwing work at them and leaving it, but making everything meticulously with high quality, and then evaluating how the ministers handle it.

If the ministers simply followed, they would become wasteful bureaucrats draining the budget. It was only by finding shortcomings in the policy and improving upon it that they could justify their title as ministers.

In the case of the state councilors, they had to produce a solution that was not just a simple improvement but one that resulted in a better outcome.

Of course, these were not formal standards officially established by Sejong. However, each time the ministers put forth a countermeasure, they could feel it clearly. And the rumors about it had already spread all over the capital.

At the end of the day, men emptying their cups at the tavern brought up the hottest topic in the capital as a side dish to their drinks.

“What’s the most common phrase you hear at the Ministry of Justice these days?”

“Is this your best?”

“You got it right!”

“Well, now it’s my turn. Do you know what the next common phrase is?”

“It’s less than what I heard….”

“Ha ha ha! Exactly! And finally….”

“Tsk tsk tsk!”

“Ha ha ha ha!”

The men sharing the conversation laughed and emptied their cups. It was a sight of haughty noblemen having their noses cut down.

However, the expressions of the noblemen who happened to overhear the rumor were not very good. It was because those were the most common words they actually heard from their superiors. And the origin of it all was Sejong.

“Is this your best?”

Every time Sejong asked this question, the ministers had to sweat profusely. And for Hwang Hui and Maeng Saseong, there was one more sentence added.

“It’s less than what I heard….”

Finally, while irritably clearing away the report, Sejong clicked his tongue.

Eventually, within a few months of becoming state councilors, both of them felt an overwhelming desire to throw in their letters of resignation.

“I want to quit!”

※※※

In the end, the ministers who had been reprimanded by King Sejong had to wrack their brains to come up with a new plan.

“Surely… we must deploy directly from the Ministry of Taxation?”

“From the Ministry of Taxation? To the eight provinces of Joseon? How far?”

“For the land trade to work properly, it must at least reach the Provincial Office…”

“If we do that, the Ministry of Taxation’s office will be completely empty!”

“Then what are we supposed to do? If we entrust it to the merchants, we’ll all be dismissed.”

“No, it’d be a blessing if we just got dismissed. Have you forgotten what happened before?”

All the ministers knew that King Sejong wanted the Ministry of Taxation to manage directly. However, due to the lack of officials, they couldn’t come up with a clear answer and kept going in circles.

In the end, Hwang Hui stepped forward to solve the situation, which was like a squirrel running in a wheel.

“Let’s look at the past.“

“Look at the past? Hmm….”

As King Sejong murmured while stroking his beard, Hwang Hui further explained.

“Yes, Your Majesty. For the fiscal expansion through land trade to work properly, the Ministry of Taxation must directly govern. However, the number of officials in the Ministry now is too insufficient. Therefore, we can supplement this number by referring to the past.”

Hwang Hui’s explanation continued, but King Sejong’s expression did not improve much. After a moment of contemplation, Sejong tossed the topic to Hyang.

“A bit lacking… Crown Prince, what is your opinion?”

Upon receiving the toss from Sejong, Hyang immediately responded, “Implementing the civil service examination would be a good idea, but it is urgent and costly.”

“That’s true.”

“So, if I may voice my opinion, I would suggest immediately deploying the Confucian students from Sungkyunkwan to practical work.”

“The Sungkyunkwan students?”

“Yes, Father. Please think back to the events of the Year of the Tiger.”

“Year of the Tiger? The Year of the Tiger… Ah!”

In the fourth year of Sejong’s reign, the Inspector General of Jeolla Province submitted a petition.

-The Sungkyunkwan students who were taking care of their old and sick parents were appointed as local schoolmasters to serve their parents. However, as these students were restricted from taking the civil service exam due to their insufficient attendance at Sungkyunkwan, they asked for a solution.

Upon receiving the petition, King Sejong allowed Sungkyunkwan students, who were taking care of their aged parents, to take the civil service exam regardless of their attendance days.

As Sejong seemed to recall, he nodded, and Hyang continued.

“The biggest goal of the Sungkyunkwan students is to pass the civil service exam and become an official. Then what is the problem with deploying them to practical work a few years earlier?”

Hyang’s words were interrupted by Hwang Hui.

“Crown Prince’s suggestion might seem reasonable at first glance, but what is the purpose of taking the civil service exam? It is to select those who are competent. Just because they are Sungkyunkwan students, if we recklessly send them to official positions, we might inadvertently cloak the inept.”

As Hwang Hui pointed out the problem, Hyang made a frustrated expression.

“What about the exams the Sungkyunkwan students take every month? Why not preferentially select those with good grades? And, it would be even better to see this as a kind of exam. The administration will run smoothly when those who know the practical work become officials, right?”

At the mention of practical work, some of the ministers sighed and nodded. Especially, the heads of the Secretary and the Inspector in charge of the Ministry of Taxation were nodding significantly.

Meanwhile, Hyang’s words continued, “Especially, there is a reason why the students must be involved in budget-related work. Those who understand the importance of the budget can create proper policies, not just empty table talk. Therefore, it can arguably be their most important examination.”

“…I think your point is valid.”

Unable to counter Hyang’s argument, Hwang Hui had no choice but to surrender. Seeing this, Sejong made his decision.

“Send orders to Sungkyunkwan to pay special attention to the officials of the Ministry of Taxation. Moreover, establish the Ministry of Taxation’s direct sale offices at least down to the army unit level.”

“We will heed your command.”

The ministers bowed their heads in response to Sejong’s decision. The loudest voice came from the Minister of Taxation, whose personnel reinforcement had been determined – a predictable result.

However, Hwang Hui’s face was scrunched up. This was because Sejong’s gaze at Hwang Hui was not very friendly.

In the end, Hwang Hui, who retired from the office that day, had to drown his anger in alcohol.

“Damn the rich!”

* * *

During the nationwide establishment of the Ministry of Taxation direct sales offices, an urgent message arrived from the Ming dynasty.

“The Ming Emperor is dead!”

The Ming Emperor was dead. Upon receiving the urgent message, Sejong discussed countermeasures with the ministers.

“Form a condolence delegation as quickly as possible.”

“We obey your command.”

“Do you know anything about the young heir, who will become the new Emperor?”

At Sejong’s question, the ministers fell silent. Sejong clicked his tongue at this.

“Tsk!”

The ministers reflexively exclaimed as soon as Sejong clicked his tongue.

“Your Majesty, please calm down!”

“Fine! You find a face-reader who is known to be tactful and include him in the condolence delegation right away! Also, choose someone who is good at diagnosing by observation among the medical officials and include him in the delegation as well!”

“We obey your orders!”

* * *

While the delegation was hastily being organized to mourn the death of the Yongle Emperor, Sejong sought out Hyang.

“Will you also get books through this delegation?”

“Although it is not a good reason to send a delegation, wouldn’t it be a waste to miss this opportunity? It will not be so cumbersome once the embassy in Shandong is completed.”

“I see.”

At Hyang’s answer, Sejong nodded his head and took out a piece of paper from his sleeve and handed it to Hyang.

“Then, please bring some books related to this.”

“Yes? Yes.”

Hyang, who received the piece of paper and read the contents, looked at Sejong with round eyes.

“Father. Is it phonology (Studies on phonetic)?”

“That’s right.”

‘Could it be? Already?’

Hyang asked Sejong about the reason, barely holding back his trembling heart.

“Father, may I ask why?”

“Because I’m frustrated. Really frustrated. The ministers who fill the office are only ministers in name. They are rice thieves. What need is there for ministers if they can only do as they are told? New people are needed. However, looking at the situation in Joseon, that is not an easy task.”

Sighing with his head down, Sejong continued his words, “There are too few people. No, there are plenty of smart people, but it’s not just one or two who are buried because they don’t know the damn Chinese characters. Then, if we create characters that they can easily learn and spread them, they can also have opportunities, and I can also recruit competent people, wouldn’t that be a win-win?”

Hyang unknowingly nodded at Sejong’s explanation. However, Hyang wanted to know more.

“But why phonology?”

“Because all the letters I saw in the books you brought were letters expressing sounds. I thought it would be more comfortable to read and understand if it expressed sounds rather than meanings.”

“Then, Father, you could issue the order yourself, couldn’t you?”

At Hyang’s question, Sejong chuckled, “Those damn ministers will surely not let that go without a fuss.”

“Ah…”

And so, Hyang was tasked with procuring what Sejong requested.