Chapter 178: The Latter Half of the Gyeongjang. (3)
The clerk pointed out the harsh reality.
"If you live like that, how will it end? Others save money to buy houses, open shops, or purchase fields, but what will you do completely penniless? Others hold weddings, have children, and see their grandchildren, but do you want to spend your life alone in a small rented room, hugging a cheap liquor bottle and scratching your groin while looking pathetic? Since you've already been emancipated and become commoners, shouldn't you buy a house, hold a wedding, and start a family?"
At the clerk's words, the slaves nodded blankly with entranced expressions.
"But what if you just save your wages as you receive them? Won't you be unable to sleep properly day or night worrying about thieves? Isn't that right?"
"You're right..."
When the slaves nodded, the clerk at the loan office raised his voice.
"That's why! Open an account at the loan office! Open an account and deposit all the wages you earn from working! Only withdraw money when you need it! Then your money will accumulate! As you know, the loan office is run by the state! Your money won't be swindled! Not only that, but interest is also paid! If you deposit 1 nyang of silver, 12 won of interest accrues in a year! How good is that? Go outside and dig up the ground right now! Does 12 won just appear out of nowhere?"
At the clerk's words, the slaves shook their heads vigorously. Watching them, the clerk continued in a gentle voice.
"This is all a method thought up by His Majesty the King and the court who took pity on you. Think about it well! By His Majesty's grace, you became commoners! If you've become commoners, shouldn't you try to live properly at least once?"
That day, dozens of accounts were created at the Joseon Loan Office located in Gijang-gun.
* * *
The same events that occurred in Gijang-gun were reported throughout all of Joseon.
After confirming the report organized by the Ministry of Taxation, Sejong looked back at his ministers with a satisfied expression.
"They say 'ten spoons make one meal'... When gathering the funds of those who received emancipation and came out, truly a large sum of money is created. On top of that, securing the manpower to put into road construction has become easier."
"That is correct, Your Majesty."
"Not only that, replenishing the manpower for the textile mills has also become easier."
At Sejong's words, all the ministers bowed their heads and responded.
Oddly enough, the one who first thought of this was not Hyang, but Sejong himself.
* * *
After organizing the 'Tax Law' and 'Slave Law,' Sejong was examining reports on future events when a thought suddenly occurred to him.
'The wealth received when being emancipated doesn't seem like a small amount at all?'
Having this thought, Sejong immediately ordered the Ministry of Taxation to estimate how much wealth would come out through emancipation.
"More work again..."
While complaining, the officials of the Ministry of Taxation faithfully followed the order.
As they calculated the estimated amount, the faces of the Ministry officials grew increasingly serious.
"This is quite a lot?"
"If this wealth is released all at once, there could be problems with prices..."
The Ministry officials wrote a report with serious expressions and submitted it to Kim Jeom.
After reading the report, Kim Jeom's face became serious.
"If mishandled, a big incident could occur."
Kim Jeom immediately rushed to the State Council.
The ministers of the State Council also recognized the gravity of the situation and put their heads together.
"If the slaves are emancipated all at once like this, it will certainly be a problem. Not only the price issue, but crime and housing problems will also become major issues."
"Hmm... Then should we limit the number of those who can be emancipated per year?"
"That's a somewhat acceptable method. Then the burden on the officials would also be less."
The ministers, having reached an agreement, submitted the relevant proposal and the State Council's opinion to Sejong.
At that sight, Kim Jeom felt something ominous.
"What is this? This uneasy feeling?"
* * *
His ominous premonition hit the mark exactly. For Sejong, having received the ministers' report, became furious like fire.
"Limit the number of people receiving emancipation? Do you ministers have minds or not! Do you think the landowners, who will surely be desperate to reduce their tax burden, will accept this order! And those who worked side by side received emancipation, but do you not know what thoughts those who didn't receive emancipation will have!"
At Sejong's rebuke, the ministers urgently had to bow their heads.
"We are terrified, Your Majesty!"
"Our thoughts were short! Please kill us!"
Looking at the ministers and officials bowing their heads, Sejong continued.
"Now, when people receive one thing, it is human nature to want to receive one more. Therefore, rather than placing restrictions, I believe the proper way is to think of a solution that both sides can accept. Think again and submit your answer!"
At Sejong's stern command, the ministers had to bow their heads repeatedly.
* * *
Issuing orders to the ministers was not where Sejong stopped. Sejong himself also pondered repeatedly to find the correct answer.
"Hmm... Some good answer..."
Sejong, who was looking through not only the policy proposals Hyang had created but also the reform measures he had created himself, stopped his hand at the 'Joseon Loan Office' section.
"Create deposit and loan accounts for ordinary people at the loan office?"
After reading and mulling over that part several times, Sejong slapped his knee with his hand.
"This is it!"
The next day, Sejong explained his thoughts to the ministers.
"...Therefore, let us persuade as many as possible of the slaves who received emancipation and became commoners to supply personnel to the road construction sites and textile mills. This will also be helpful to the trading companies, so they will not have any complaints."
At Sejong's words, all the ministers nodded.
"We can only admire Your Majesty's wisdom!"
When the ministers did not object, Sejong continued.
"And send loan office officials to the places where emancipation is confirmed, to absorb as much as possible the wealth those who received emancipation brought out into the loan office. Anyway, looking at the progress of the reforms, isn't it set to create deposit and loan accounts targeting ordinary people at the loan office?"
"That is true."
"Therefore, make it so that accounts are created for those who receive emancipation this time! Then other people will see that and also create accounts at the loan office. What do you think?"
The ministers, thinking carefully about Sejong's words, nodded one by one.
"Truly a brilliant plan!"
"If done properly, the court can secure more funds, and market prices can also be controlled!"
The ministers unanimously supported Sejong's plan.
Meanwhile, Hyang, who heard this news, opened his eyes wide and could not hide his surprise.
"Father thought of this? Could it be. Does Father also?"
With a face saying 'could it be,' Hyang continued his thoughts, then soon shook his head.
"Stop it, stop it. If I'm wrong, I'll get hit by a stone."
In any case, while it was a good method even by his own thinking, Hyang judged there was something slightly lacking. Eventually, Hyang decided to secretly add some MSG and visited Sejong.
"What brings you here?"
"I saw the plan Father proposed regarding the upcoming slave emancipation. It was truly a brilliant plan."
"I put some effort into it."
"Presumptuously, may I add my spoon to it?"
"You?"
Sejong paused for a moment at Hyang's words, then nodded.
"There hasn't been a case where things went wrong when you got involved. Fine. I permit it."
Once Sejong's permission was granted, Hyang immediately explained his thoughts.
"If those who received emancipation create accounts, have the trading companies directly deposit the wages paid to workers into these accounts."
"Directly deposit?"
"Yes. Anyway, the payment to trading companies is made by the Ministry of Taxation through the loan office. Therefore, order the trading companies to create a register recording the names and accounts of the workers, and based on this, directly deposit into the workers' accounts. Then there's no need to do the work twice, and tax evasion can also be prevented as much as possible."
"Hmm..."
Sejong, after mulling over Hyang's words, soon nodded.
"That's right! That would be good!"
Thus, the first case of workers' wages being directly deposited into banks was created.
* * *
Hyang's MSG didn't end there.
Hyang continued his explanation in the gathering of Sejong and the ministers.
"If we just forcefully tell them to create accounts, there's bound to be backlash."
"That is true."
"They might even feel like they're being robbed."
At Hyang's point, Sejong and the ministers nodded. After wetting his throat for a moment, Hyang continued.
"Therefore, the loan office staff must persuade those who received emancipation to create accounts."
"Persuade? That's not an easy task."
At Sejong's point, Hyang nodded.
"That's right. Therefore, we need to target their most anxious part."
Hyang borrowed an advertisement from a certain bank in the 21st century to create the art of persuasion.
It was exactly the method the loan office clerk in Gijang-gun used to entrance the emancipated slaves.
After watching Hyang's demonstration, Sejong and the ministers looked at Hyang blankly. After a while, the ministers, still with blank faces, looked at Sejong.
"Your Majesty, we also need to create accounts."
"I had the same thought."
Having confirmed the effectiveness, Sejong and the ministers accepted Hyang's proposal without a second word.
Once the method was decided, the officials who would handle work at loan offices nationwide were summoned to Hanseong.
Hyang once again demonstrated the 'art of persuasion' to the officials dragged to the Crown Prince's residence.
And that day, the loan office officials created accounts in their own names at the loan office.
* * *
"Anyway... it is certain that the Ministry of Taxation officials and loan office staff in charge of this work did their job properly. Therefore, provide the promised rewards."
At Sejong's command, the ministers bowed their heads again.
"We obey the command!"
Thus, Sejong gained another 'world's first' title.
- The first person in the world to officially use an incentive system.
Of course, there had been systems that recognized merits accumulated on the battlefield and gave rewards, but he became the first person to officially use a reward system for general work, not war.
* * *
Amidst these large and small commotions, when spring of the Gyeongsul year came, nationwide road construction began.
At the rumor that road paving construction connecting all of Joseon was progressing, young people who had received emancipation and left the countryside, and those who couldn't find work in the cities, flocked to the construction sites.
That wasn't all. From villages near where construction was taking place, quite a few farmers also visited the sites.
The reason farmers visited the construction sites was because of the transplantation method.
As mentioned before, one of the biggest advantages of the transplantation method was that it required less labor.
The transplantation method didn't need many people except during rice planting and harvest times.
Thus, farmers who ended up idle for even just a month or two stepped into the construction sites intending to do side work.
It wasn't just farmers. Peddlers and vendors who learned that those participating in the construction would receive regular monthly wages gathered around the sites, creating small marketplaces.
As these things overlapped, more and more of Joseon's people came to engage in economic activities in fields other than agriculture.
* * *
If large-scale emancipation was one axis that brought about a great migration of Joseon's population, the other axis was the enormous amount of fields that had become state land through the 'Giyu Rebellion.'
-The court is looking for those who will tenant the confiscated fields this time. Priority is given to commoners who have established households.
-The rent for state fields is 30 percent like the palace fields, and the tax rate imposed on tenant farmers follows what is prescribed by law.
At the court's announcement, the buttocks of tenant farmers all stirred at once.
"30 percent! Right now the rent on the land I'm tenanting is 50 percent!"
"Are there state fields around here?"
"Is that the problem? Even if it's a thousand li away, if I can tenant land, I should go!"
In the end, many tenant farmers began to move, leaving the places where they had lived until then to receive tenancy of state fields.