# Chapter 79: Sim City Hanseong, Sim City Joseon (3)
Whether Sejong had entrusted him with a heavy responsibility or simply reeled him in was ambiguous, but Hyang did his utmost.
The first thing Hyang did was establish an institution with a long name in District 51: the 'Hanseong Fire Damage Restoration Promotion Temporary Headquarters.'
There were several artisans in Hyang's District 51 who had expertise in architecture, as various research-related facilities had been continuously built there.
In the large conference hall of District 51, with Hyang, Jeong Cho, Jeong In-ji, and other executives in the front row and middle managers in the back, Hyang conducted the meeting.
"First, let's confirm the exact damage situation."
"Yes, Your Highness."
At Hyang's command, Lee Cheon, who held the title of 'Deputy Director,' stepped forward.
At Lee Cheon's gesture, soldiers hung a large map of Hanseong on the wall, and Lee Cheon explained the situation with a long pointer.
"First, regarding building damage: in InSun-bu to the north, 106 annex rooms were completely burned; in the central district, 1,630 civilian houses; in the eastern district, 150 civilian houses; in the southern district, 90 civilian houses; 8 annex rooms at JeonOk-seo; and annex buildings and nearby civilian houses around the bell tower, 200 houses. In total, 2,070 civilian houses were completely burned. This figure excludes the palace and court buildings that were destroyed."
"And casualties?"
"Those rescued but died: 9 men, 23 women. Afterward, comparing with household registers, the identified casualties are 23 elderly, 15 children, 46 men, and 89 women."
"The damage is severe."
At Lee Cheon's report, Jeong Cho shook his head slowly.
* * *
However, in actual history, the damage was even greater.
Over 2,400 civilian houses were burned, and regarding the dead, records stated:
- Excluding the elderly and children, 9 men and 23 women died. Those who burned to death in their homes could not even be identified.
However, conducting smallpox vaccination while organizing household registers and land records made it possible to estimate the number of deaths as accurately as possible.
Additionally, the existence of District 51 contributed to reducing fire damage.
District 51 occupied most of Hanseong's southern region—in the 21st century, central Seoul—which reduced civilian houses in the southern area. Another factor was District 51's characteristic of handling various explosives and dangerous materials.
"One mistake leads to a major accident!"
Hyang had enforced disaster response training and fire prevention drills so harshly it could almost be called neurotic.
He didn't just train within District 51.
He also thoroughly conducted training for situations where accidents originating inside might spread outside, or where external emergencies might spread inside.
Thanks to this, the southern region suffered unexpectedly little damage in this fire.
When the fire started to spread, those staying in District 51 immediately went into action.
"Extinguish all unnecessary flames immediately! Disaster response team, get to your positions now! Soldiers on rest, return to your positions! Watchtowers, monitor the situation!"
"Yes, sir!"
Under Lee Cheon's command, who was in charge of District 51's operations, they moved with perfect discipline.
Thanks to the quick response, there was no major danger inside District 51.
"The fire is spreading!"
"Follow Countermeasure 2!"
"Yes, sir!"
The gates of District 51 opened, and wagons equipped with water tanks and pumps rushed outside.
To block the fire spreading from the south, those dispatched from District 51 did their best.
The houses they were protecting from the spreading flames were where their families lived.
Through such desperate efforts, the number of houses destroyed by fire in Hanseong's southern region could be reduced from the original 350-some households to just 90.
* * *
In the process of tallying and reporting the damage, there was something Jeong Cho and others deliberately didn't mention.
However, Hyang pointed directly to it.
"Putting the west aside, Bukchon has almost no damage?"
"That is..."
When Lee Cheon trailed off, Hyang added.
"I know. I was just asking."
"I beg your pardon."
The place Hyang pointed to was the wealthy village of Bukchon.
Bukchon, a luxury residential complex where court ministers and influential scholar-officials lived, suffered almost no damage in this fire.
Rather than easily igniting thatched roofs, most had tile roofs, and each house had high walls and wide courtyards, making it difficult for fire to spread.
Finally, each house had many slaves, so even if fire caught, they could extinguish it immediately.
In the process of fighting this fire, Bukchon's homeowners had made such excuses and didn't easily release their slaves.
"We must prevent the fire from spreading!"
At this, Sejong was grinding his teeth in anger.
"Just wait and see!"
* * *
After confirming the damage situation, Hyang stood up and stepped forward.
Ascending the podium, Hyang looked at those gathered in the conference room and spoke.
"As you can see from the plaque, we have been tasked with rebuilding the areas damaged by this fire."
"By rebuilding, do you mean rebuilding all the houses that burned down?"
At Jeong In-ji's question, Hyang shook his head.
"We lack the resources for that. Our goal is to change Hanseong's structure so that fires like this don't recur. The starting point is the areas destroyed in this fire, and the endpoint is all of Hanseong. The expected duration is 5 years."
At Hyang's words, the eyes of those gathered lit up.
Since Yi Seong-gye's relocation of the capital to Hanyang, nearly a generation had passed. Though Joseon was a society of slow change, it was a time when various inconveniences began to appear compared to the founding era.
"Move the map onto the table."
"Yes, Your Highness."
At Hyang's command, the soldiers removed the large map hanging on the wall and spread it on the large table in the center of the conference room.
Hyang pointed at the map with a pointer and spoke.
"First, the beginning of all work is the maintenance of Cheonggyecheon..."
* * *
"...Thus, we will connect Cheonggyecheon and major streams flowing inside Hanseong with waterways to collect wastewater and discharge it into the Han River. The advantages gained from this are easier wastewater treatment inside Hanseong, clear demarcation between neighborhoods and districts, and quick response not only to fires like this but also to flooding."
The small hall of Geunjeongjeon.
Hyang explained the 'Hanseong Reconstruction Plan' to Sejong and the ministers.
Sejong, having heard Hyang's explanation, stroked his beard.
"The scale is larger than expected."
"We're anticipating a 5-year timeframe. First, reconstruction of areas destroyed by fire is the priority, and afterward, we will gradually expand the areas."
"Hmm, I see... But what is a paved road?"
"Exactly as it sounds—it means paving the roads. Looking at Hanseong's current roads, whenever it rains, the ground turns to mud, making passage difficult for both cattle and horses, let alone people. By paving them, we ensure that even when it rains, passage for people and cattle remains convenient."
"That sounds good..."
When Sejong was nodding, Hwang Hui raised a question.
"By paving roads, do you mean laying paving stones? Wouldn't that require too much budget?"
At Hwang Hui's point, other ministers also nodded.
The officials of the Ministry of Taxation had completely given up on going home, trying to secure the budget for those who lost their homes and property in this fire.
Thanks to this, Sejong had twice issued royal meals for the Ministry of Taxation officials suffering from overwork.
At Hwang Hui's point, Hyang nodded.
"That's correct. Paving stones require a lot of resources. So we won't use paving stones. To be precise, we will make paving stones."
"Make paving stones?"
At Hyang's answer, Sejong and the ministers' eyes began to shine intensely.
"How will you make them?"
"We will use slaked lime (calcium hydroxide)."
"Slaked lime?"
Lime was not unfamiliar in Joseon.
As it was a common mineral, it was widely used in construction. The Sejong Annals Geography contained this record:
- Ganghwa Island's local products include blue orchid stone (a type of turquoise) and rock stone. Blue orchid stone is carved for use as tombstones, and rock stone is cut and refined for use.
Here, 'refined' meant putting it in a lime kiln to bake before use. (Note 1)
"Making roads with lime... will that be possible?"
"It is possible!"
Hyang answered confidently.
At Hyang's confident answer, Sejong made his decision.
"Good! Crown Prince, I trust you! Give it a try!"
"I am eternally grateful for your grace!"
Though he liked and supported the Crown Prince's grand plan, Sejong didn't forget reality.
"Roads are important, but the urgent matter first is providing shelter for those who lost their homes in this fire. How will you handle this?"
At Sejong's question, Hyang answered without hesitation.
"Your words are correct. As I just mentioned, roads are important, but reconstruction of the fire-damaged areas is definitely the most urgent. Therefore..."
At Hyang's gesture, a eunuch turned the hanging scroll.
On the next page of the scroll was a projected floor plan of the areas to be restored after the fire damage.
"This is the projected reconstruction plan for the destroyed areas. As you can see, we have established regulations to dig one well for every five households to secure domestic water and firefighting water."
"Can that many wells be secured?"
At Hwang Hui's question, the Minister of Public Works answered.
"It is possible. Surprisingly, Hanseong is not a place lacking water."
Seoul—particularly the Hanyang region of the Joseon era—was a place with abundant groundwater.
Among the anecdotes told by Hyang's father, uncle, and younger uncle in the 21st century, there was a story that they thought a sewer had burst when water was flowing beside the subway tracks at Jongno Station, but it turned out to be groundwater.
In fact, there was also an article that groundwater management was one of the largest parts of maintenance issues for high-rise buildings in Seoul's Jongno area.
(Note 2)
"Then why are there water merchants?"
At Hwang Hui's question, the Minister of Public Works's answer was simple.
"There is the problem of having to dig somewhat deep."
"This... tsk."
Hwang Hui hurriedly stopped himself from clicking his tongue. In this court, only two people could click their tongues without consequence.
One was Sejong, who started that habit when annoyed, and the other was his son, Hyang.
With the Minister of Public Works's supporting fire, Hyang continued his explanation.
"Digging wells is a plan that kills two birds with one stone. One benefit is providing work for refugees who lost their homes in the fire and giving them the opportunity to gather resources to rebuild their homes. The other is securing domestic water and firefighting water as I mentioned."
"That sounds good... But is there a reason roads must be made straight?"
"Looking at Hanseong's current alleys, they are like a wildly tangled maze. Look at this fire. The thatched houses stuck together caught fire instantly, and the people trapped in the maze-like alleys had to die and be injured by the flames. Therefore, we must widen the roads and organize the layout so that people can easily escape in case of emergency."
At Hyang's words, Sejong and the ministers nodded.
"And, making it this way is also good for public order. Currently, when police officers and auxiliary police chase criminals in Hanseong's maze-like alleys, if they hide in these alleys, they can't be easily found. To solve this, we have to deploy many personnel, which creates gaps elsewhere. But with organized layout, efficiency increases."
"That sounds good."
While Sejong was nodding, Hwang Hui, who was examining the map, pointed to one place.
"Looking at Your Highness's map, public bathhouses appear here and there—are these truly bathhouses?"
"That is correct."
At Hyang's answer, Hwang Hui pointed out a problem.
"If it's a bathhouse, gathering a lot of water is good for fire prevention. However, as seen in the previous dynasty's customs, when men and women gather naked for bathing, it becomes a hotbed of moral corruption."
"I am well aware. Therefore, the new public bathhouses will separate men and women from the entrance, completely separate the buildings themselves, and block the space between the two buildings with a wall."
"Is it necessary to build bathhouses to that extent?"
At Hwang Hui's words, Hyang nodded greatly.
"Of course it is necessary! Only by bathing frequently can we prevent epidemics!"
"Hm?"
* * *
When Sejong and the ministers showed interest, Hyang had a eunuch submit a report.
"This is a medical record targeting those working in District 51 and their families."
"Medical records?"
"Since it's a place that handles many dangerous materials, there are many injured people. Anyway! If you look at the skin disease and other illness sections, you'll see that after bathing regularly, the incidence of skin diseases greatly decreased. Combining the opinions of the physicians who treated patients at the time, not only did skin diseases decrease, but minor illnesses also greatly reduced as the body maintained cleanliness."
"Hmm..."
At Hyang's words, Sejong and the ministers agonized between practical reality and Confucian justification. Seeing this, Hyang added some MSG. (T/N: metaphor for adding flavor/appeal to an argument)
"And, if these bathhouses are used well, it can help with currency circulation."
"How?"
Sejong showed great interest at Hyang's words.
"Wouldn't it be unreasonable to carry cotton cloth and rice every time just to take a bath?"
"Ah!"
Ironically, it was precisely this problem that led Sejong and the ministers to support Hyang's public bathhouses.
-----
Note 1) Song Jong-taek. Professor, Department of New Materials Engineering, Dankook University. Ceramist, February 2009.
Note 2) Field Tracking 1234. June 10, 1999. KBS.