< Chapter 39: Laughing at Fandom, Crying at Fandom. (4) >
Chapter 39: Laughing at Fandom, Crying at Fandom. (4)
"A ship has entered Jemulpo!"
"Is that so? Did they all arrive safely?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
By order of the Yongle Emperor, Sejong, who had procured hunting falcons, dispatched the Falcon Submission Envoy (Jin-eung-sa). Naturally, merchants accompanied the diplomatic mission, and they returned having secured significant profit.
It went without saying that they had also extracted generous return gifts for the falcons offered as tribute. And as always, half the funds received from the merchant group were used to purchase rice. Given the large sum involved, the rice was transported to Jemulpo using Ming ships.
"Have the books and goods arrived as well?"
"Yes, Crown Prince."
While Sejong and the ministers were interested in the grain, Hyang's attention lay elsewhere.
What Hyang was interested in were the books recording Zheng He's expeditions and the goods optimal for exclusive trade.
Two days later, an enormous number of chests arrived at the palace.
The chests were placed in the front courtyard of Geunjeongjeon Hall, and to verify their contents, not only Hyang and the ministers but even Sejong came out to the courtyard.
When the chests were opened and the contents examined, the scholars of Jiphyeonjeon looked at Sejong with surprised eyes.
"Y-Your Majesty. These all appear to be originals, not copies."
"What?"
* * *
Though the court was in an uproar over the nationwide expansion of smallpox vaccination, there were still mountains of work to be done separately from that, and Sejong and the ministers proceeded to handle matters through discussion.
"Were the falcons to be sent to Ming resolved well?"
"The Falcon Masters (Eung-sa) of the Falcon Office (Eung-bang) have captured and are transporting five of them."
At the ministers' answer, Sejong replied with a furrowed brow.
"Five... The Falcon Masters and the people must have suffered greatly."
"We are overwhelmed with gratitude."
"Please research a compensation system for this."
"We accept your command."
Having thus settled the matter of the falcons to be offered as tribute, Sejong and the ministers moved on to the next agenda item.
"What would be good to receive in return for the falcons offered as tribute?"
"First, sulfur and copper would be best."
The Minister of War mentioned sulfur without missing a beat. In a situation where gunpowder weapons were becoming increasingly important, the supply of sulfur and copper was essential.
However, since sulfur was not produced in Joseon, most had to be obtained from China and Japan, making procurement quite difficult.
The same was true for copper. No, copper was even more difficult (難易度) to obtain than sulfur. Copper also was not produced in Joseon, but the problem was that both Ming and Japan had high domestic consumption, making it a mineral that was not easily exported.
Ultimately, copper and sulfur accounted for the largest portion of tribute trade between Ming and Joseon, with the remainder being books and cotton cloth.
After continued discussion, the general framework was set to request sulfur and copper as the Minister of War had suggested.
"And what else would be good?"
The moment Sejong's words fell, Hyang stepped forward.
"There are books we must obtain!"
"Books we must obtain?"
At Hyang's statement, the attention of Sejong and the ministers focused on him.
"So, what books? Most common classics are all available in our Joseon."
"They are not classics. They are the records of Zheng He's voyages."
"Zheng He's voyage records?"
When Sejong expressed doubt, the Minister of Rites spoke up as if he knew.
"Ah! There is a eunuch named Zheng He among the Emperor's eunuchs."
"But what are these voyage records?"
"He is said to have led a fleet and embarked on an expedition by the Emperor's command."
"Ah! I have heard rumors of that as well."
At the Minister of Rites' answer, Sejong nodded. It wasn't just Sejong. Most of the ministers also nodded their heads.
In the 5th year of King Taejong, the court had been in an uproar with rumors that a eunuch, by order of the Yongle Emperor, was leading a grand fleet composed of enormously large ships on an expedition.
At that time, the Joseon court, having obtained information that such a massive fleet was setting out, had gone into emergency mode.
-Where is the destination of that great fleet? Joseon? Or Japan?
While Taejong and the court, tensely on edge, kept a watchful eye, word came that the fleet in question was heading not for Joseon or Japan, but further out to the outer seas (外洋). Only after confirming that the rumor was true could Taejong and the court loosen the tension.
"But why are those voyage records necessary?"
At Sejong's question, Hyang rather wore a puzzled expression.
"Pardon? Why are they necessary? They are worth a thousand gold!"
Though it was Sejong who asked, seeing that the ministers also wore similar expressions, Hyang felt his blood pressure rise.
'This man, no! These men are really!'
Having realized the gravity of the situation, Hyang explained why Zheng He's voyage records were important.
-Zheng He visited countries that our Joseon has not been able to reach, and those records are precisely the voyage records.
-If we obtain those records, we can learn which countries possess what our Joseon needs.
-It's not just about learning about the countries. We can learn in advance the sea routes to get there, the time required, and the dangers, allowing us to reduce trial and error.
"Hmm... Is that so? Hmm... Perhaps..."
"Hmm... Hmm..."
After hearing Hyang's explanation, Sejong showed signs of gradually understanding while nodding his head, but the other ministers still showed reactions of not quite grasping it.
At that sight, Hyang felt his blood pressure rise to the point of becoming despondent.
'These men are really... they're not even country grandfathers ignorant of the world...'
Steel his mind again, Hyang gave an example that was easy to understand.
"Think of the gak-gung (horn bow), the most important weapon of our Joseon soldiers. Among the materials that go into the horn bow, the most important is su-u-gak (water buffalo horn). But where do we currently obtain this su-u-gak? We mainly obtain it from Ming. But does Ming easily give it up?"
"Not at all."
At Hyang's question, the ministers all answered in one voice. Joseon's horn bow was famous for its powerful force. Because of this, Ming did not sell much of the water buffalo horn, the key material for the horn bow. Therefore, Joseon had even asked them to sell water buffalo instead, but until now, there had been no response (默黙不答).
Because of this, the Joseon court, which strictly forbade illicit trade (密貿易), actively encouraged smuggling when it came to water buffalo horn.
Ultimately, a significant portion of the water buffalo horns that Joseon needed had to be imported through Japan and Ryukyu (琉球).
When the ministers immediately understood, Hyang added to his explanation.
"Are water buffalo only found in Ming's Jiangnan? They exist in Japan's southern provinces and Ryukyu as well, but I have heard that in Dai Viet (大越) and Xianluohe Kingdom (暹羅斛國, old name for Thailand), water buffalo are common. Especially in the case of Xianluohe Kingdom, an envoy came during the time of King Taejo, but there has been no proper trade since. What was the reason? Was it not because they didn't know the way there?"
"Ah!"
At Hyang's words, the ministers all exclaimed in realization. It was an incident that existed in their memories as well.
* * *
During Taejo's reign, an envoy came from Thailand and offered tribute, and Taejo was also interested in trade, but no significant results were obtained, and it ended vaguely (有耶無耶). No, vaguely was actually a good expression. At the time, most of the ministers thought, 'We were deceived!'
Furthermore, from Taejo to Sejong, most of the ministers who moved the court believed that one of the biggest reasons for Goryeo's fall was commerce.
-The powerful families who colluded (野合) with merchants fell into luxury, national affairs became corrupt, and all that harm was passed entirely to the powerless common people.
Thanks to sharing that belief, the court ministers and the scholar-gentry of private households, based on Neo-Confucianism, had acted as follows:
-To avoid such a situation, scholar-gentry must be frugal, and the state must be based on respecting agriculture and suppressing commerce (務本抑末).
Though they said that, the main source of income for the scholar-gentry, who were both the intellectual class and landlords, was the crops produced by farmers.
Ultimately, there was little change in the difficult lives of the common people, including the farmers.
Eventually, the ministers who came to operate national affairs based on such thinking came into conflict with Hyang, leading to the purge of the Chief Ministers, the Chief Censor, and the Inspector General.
Ultimately, Hyang's argument was accepted, and it was decided to obtain Zheng He's voyage records.
And, an envoy departed for Beijing along with the cages containing the falcons.
* * *
"You have worked hard coming here."
"We are overwhelmed by the Imperial Grace (皇恩)."
At the Yongle Emperor's congratulatory words (致賀), the Chief Envoy (正使) and Deputy Envoy (副使) expressed their gratitude and bowed their heads deeply.
The Yongle Emperor, looking with pleased eyes at the falcons in the cages, spoke.
"Well then. Since we have received something precious, we must give a return gift. What does Joseon desire?"
"We desire sulfur and copper."
At the Chief Envoy's answer, the Yongle Emperor looked at the standing Cabinet Grand Secretary (內閣大學士).
"Grand Secretary, consult with the envoys and provide an appropriate amount of sulfur and copper."
"We accept the Imperial Command."
Having given the order, the Yongle Emperor looked at the Joseon envoys and spoke.
"And is there anything else you desire?"
"Though it is shameful to say, we desire copies (寫本) of the records of the expeditions conducted by the eunuch Zheng He."
"Oh? Zheng He's expedition records?"
The Yongle Emperor showed curiosity at the interpreter's words.
"Why does Joseon desire that?"
At the Yongle Emperor's question, the Chief Envoy, prostrated deeply, explained the reason.
"Our Joseon is a small nation located in a corner of the vast world, and we do not know how wide the world is. But this small nation, by virtue of Your Majesty the Emperor's virtue, has come to know that many countries exist in this world. This alone is cause for gratitude (感泣), but we have heard that Zheng He, by Your Majesty's command, has spread Your Majesty the Emperor and the Empire's majesty to the Four Seas (四海). Though we, Joseon, have come to know the world's vastness by the grace of Your Majesty and the Empire, we are in the position of a frog that has just escaped the well and does not know the breadth of the Yangtze River (長江). We desire copies of the records to know the breadth of the Four Seas and the majesty of the Empire that has spread across those Four Seas."
It was words that made even the interpreter transmitting them cringe.
Of course, this dialogue was not created by the ministers. It was a line Hyang created during a mock dialogue (模擬對談) held with the ministers and even Sejong gathered together.
Hyang, who created that dialogue, returned to his room, scratching his arms and grumbling.
"Argh! It's so cringe I'm getting goosebumps! Goosebumps! I really sucked up to him! Even though I said it myself, argh! Goosebumps!"
"Puhahaha!"
Having heard the words through the interpreter, the Yongle Emperor laughed loudly (破顔大笑). The Yongle Emperor, who laughed so hard he wiped away the tears that had formed, spoke.
"This current King of Joseon truly has virtue! He knows his place well! Better than his father or grandfather!"
At the Yongle Emperor's words, the Joseon envoys clenched their teeth. But enduring this, the envoys bowed their heads deeply.
"We are overwhelmed by the Imperial Grace!"
"Indeed! If a small country in a corner wishes to know the breadth of the Four Seas, we should give it! Grand Secretary, transcribe copies and send them to Joseon!"
"We accept the Imperial Command!"
When the Yongle Emperor's command fell, the Joseon envoys raised both arms high and shouted.
"We are overwhelmed by the Imperial Grace! Ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand ten thousand years!"
* * *
Thus, the records written by Zheng He came to Joseon.
The problem was that not copies but originals had come.
"Is this an administrative error?"
"Could this become a problem?"
Facing an entirely unexpected problem, not only Sejong but also Hyang and the ministers were worrying when a scholar of Jiphyeonjeon, who was opening other chests, found a sealed letter (封書).
"There is a sealed letter here!"
Receiving the sealed letter contained in an expensive silk envelope, the Minister of Rites broke the seal, read the contents, and tilted his head.
"What is it?"
"It is a letter (書札) from the Cabinet Grand Secretary."
"Let me see."
Receiving the letter from the Minister of Rites, Sejong read the contents and made an even more puzzled expression.
"I understand even less now."
At the reactions of the Minister of Rites and Sejong, Hyang interjected.
"May I read it?"
"Yes, read it."
Receiving the letter, Hyang immediately checked the contents.
The content of the letter was simple.
-This was obtained through proper procedures, so Joseon should not doubt it nor inquire about it.
Having read the letter's contents, Hyang tilted his head.
'This, no matter how I look at it, feels like...'
No matter how many times he read it, the atmosphere the writing gave off was this:
-Just put it away! Hey! I said it's not stolen goods! Just put it away! And don't open your mouth either! Shh! Shh! Hey! I said just put it away!
Thinking and thinking again, Hyang recalled memories of the 21st century and muttered to himself.
"So it really was a chicken rib (鷄肋)?"
"Chicken rib? Crown Prince, do you know what that means?"
When Sejong, having heard Hyang's muttering, asked, Hyang nodded.
"Yes, though it is my personal opinion..."
Hyang began to explain.
< Chapter 39: Laughing at Fandom, Crying at Fandom. (4) > End
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