Chapter 219
Chief carpenter Kim Mansu's eyes lit up when he heard about the performance bonus Kim Daebung had proposed.
Until now, everyone who had hired him for construction had paid him based solely on the project's duration, whether he worked himself to the bone or took things easy...
“Whether we build the factory quickly or slowly, we'll receive four months' wages either way...”
That meant the shorter they made the factory's construction period, the more profit it would bring to every artisan, himself included.
It was true that the artisans, himself included, were uneducated and ignorant, but they were not naturally stupid or dull-witted...
Above all, this was directly connected to their livelihoods, so they quickly realized that finishing early would benefit them.
Thus, everyone except Kim Mansu worked as hard as they could.
They worked at a speed that even Kim Daebung found quite satisfactory.
“Can you get anywhere sawing that slowly? Put some strength into it and move faster! We need to finish today's work as quickly as possible so we can go to the outskirts of Hanyang, where another job is waiting, and build even a thatched cottage!”
“Yes, Master Foreman (site deputy director).”
“Come on, let's finish today's work quickly! Kim the carpenter, take a few men and go prepare to set up the pillars!”
Before the incentive had been introduced, everyone had been content to work leisurely and without accidents, but now they were all determined to finish the job quickly.
Master carpenter and chief construction supervisor Kim Mansu gave the carpenters under his command careful instructions one by one amid the completely transformed atmosphere at the construction site.
“Starting with the pillar here and counting from the left, through the tenth pillar, the spacing between the pillars should be about six cheok (180 centimeters), and the pillars should be seven cheok (210 centimeters) high. There must be no errors. You know it has to be done right the first time, don't you? That way, we save the time and effort of doing it over.”
“Yes, Master Carpenter.”
“You probably wouldn't think of doing this, but... measure everything with a yuchuk (a measuring ruler used by government offices). Don't ruin the job by relying on your eye.”
“Do we really have to go that far? Just saving the time spent measuring with a ruler would save us several days.”
Kim Mansu quietly picked up a hammer as he looked at the foolish carpenter suggesting that they cut corners.
He looked ready to smash the man's head on the spot while shouting that he was a disloyal bastard.
Then he quietly glanced toward Kim Daebung, who was over there duplicating work in order to create a situation where Hwang Hui and Jo Malseng would be buried in work and suffer when they returned from vacation.
Every carpenter here had heard at least one of the stories about 'Kim Daebung, who sent the Chief State Councillor to Goryeo,' 'Kim Daebung, who beat a fire goblin to death with a hammer,' and 'Kim Daebung, who severely punished every last person selling rotten food.'
To government officials, he was known as the serial-overtime demon and treated like an embodiment of strange and supernatural forces, but to the people, he was the possessor of unmatched love for the people...
To anyone who tried to swindle him, however, he was known as a madman who unfailingly gave them a truly miserable fate.
The carpenters followed Kim Mansu's gaze, saw Kim Daebung there, and immediately came to their senses.
"Lord Jeong Cheomjeong may not have any manual skills, but his eye for things is unparalleled. Judging solely by his discernment, he could easily work as a chief carpenter anywhere."
"So if he catches us doing a sloppy job..."
"Exactly. We'll be seeing Lord Jibu at the Ministry of Justice."
Hearing this, the carpenters suddenly realized, as if they had been struck on the head with a hammer, that they absolutely must not do a sloppy job.
It was nice to do a halfhearted job, finish quickly, and collect more money, but what if a defect appeared or their shoddy construction was discovered?
'I'm dead.'
“Even without measuring with a yuchuk, the difference would be only one chi (3 centimeters) or two chi at most. But this is government work, so we should be precise about everything.”
“Right. If we get caught taking things easy, we're all dead.”
“Yes, Chief Carpenter.”
At that moment, chief carpenter Kim Mansu beckoned the carpenters over.
Then he whispered in a very quiet voice.
“I hear that Lord Jibu is furious because he has so little to do at this construction site. He needs to return to court as quickly as possible and do more work... but he apparently hates sitting around comfortably without anything to do, as if he were on vacation.”
The carpenters did not quite understand what he meant.
Wasn't being able to work leisurely, take breaks now and then, and still receive their salaries without fail the best possible situation?
Then why would he be angry about having little work to do?
It was impossible unless he had been possessed by the ghost of someone who had died from being unable to work.
'Does that man get all hot and bothered when he can't work hard?'
“Let's just do the job properly on our own.”
The carpenters building the papermaking factory began working diligently, aiming to be both fast and accurate.
Meanwhile, another strange rumor about Kim Daebung spread throughout Hanyang.
**
Jo Malseng and Hwang Hui, who had gotten Kim Daebung made a dangsanggwan and received twenty days of leave.
The two had obtained their leave under the pretext of tending to their parents' graves.
Yet they spent only one of those twenty days visiting the graves, using the remaining nineteen to tour all sorts of scenic spots and relax to their hearts' content.
They spread out mats in valleys, drank makgeolli with vegetable side dishes drenched in expensive sesame oil and tender skewered-meat snacks, and even gathered people they were close to for a nanrohoe, a gathering where meat was grilled and eaten.
Even though they had rested and played to their hearts' content, the expressions of the two men when they returned to the palace were not particularly bright.
They had indeed rested well, eaten well, and slept well...
But now their vacation had ended, and they had to return to Uijeongbu.
“After resting to our heart's content, thinking that we now have to report for work makes my heart very heavy. Isn't that so, Right State Councillor?”
“It is exactly as Your Excellency the Chief State Councillor says. Ha, I should resign before I reach your age, too.”
“You haven't lived as virtuously as I have, so you'll have to serve in office longer than I do, if only to atone for your sins.”
"It is true that I have many blemishes, but you cannot exactly say that Your Excellency the Chief State Councillor is spotless either, can you?”
“In any case, I'm cleaner than you, Right State Councillor. So I'll probably be able to resign before I turn eighty. If you don't like that, I have no choice but to carry out the king's command.”
Jo Malseng and Hwang Hui had received a secret order from Yi Bang-won.
He had told them that the moment Kim Daebung rose to the rank of Chief State Councillor, he would grant the two of them special permission to resign.
They had already enjoyed as much power as they could, left beautiful names in the annals, and amassed piles of wealth...
So they accepted Yi Bang-won's proposal for the one thing they had been unable to do: resign.
After all, what good was having money if they had no time to spend it?
Ah, but there was one problem: Yi Bang-won had never told Sejong about this.
And since Kim Daebung would be in his sixties, approaching seventy, by the time he became Chief State Councillor...
Yi Bang-won had even shown his meticulousness by giving the order only 'verbally,' planning to pretend he had gone senile and forgotten it if he was still alive by then.
However, the two lifelong slaves had never imagined that the king would stoop to such a petty trick.
Thus, they believed they would eventually be allowed to resign.
“I hate having to work like this until I die...”
“That Jibu fellow is certainly capable and incorruptible, but he is far too passionate. It makes it extremely difficult for old men like us to keep up with him.”
Whenever Kim Daebung was assigned a difficult task, it was either dealt with quickly or a way to deal with it emerged immediately.
But afterward, mountains of work that every official in the court, himself included, had to do for Joseon's development came pouring down on them.
If the nearly endless cycle of overwork continued and led to more and more late nights, they would have grounds to stop Kim Daebung...
Kim Daebung was also exceptionally good at managing the workflow so that, unless the country faced a major crisis, the officials could not work overtime.
As a result, the officials were able to leave work on time every day, and the health of Hwang Hui and the others improved considerably.
This was because they could get enough sleep.
Moreover, as they regularly secured more leisure time, various recreational facilities and pleasure houses sprang up, and more people began relieving their stress through hobbies or drinking...
Therefore, even if they wanted to curse Kim Daebung, they had very little justification for doing so.
“Still, it is at least fortunate that the Jibu fellow isn't at the Hall of Worthies. Now, then, let's get to work...”
After arriving at Uijeongbu and going to his seat, Jo Malseng could not close his mouth when he saw the piles of documents covering his desk.
“What on earth happened while we were gone? How did so much...”
“Ah, Right State Councillor. These are all matters proposed by His Excellency the Deputy Director, who is in charge of the papermaking factory's construction, saying that they are essential for the country.”
“Kim Eung-gyo (Kim Jong-seo), is that really true?”
“Yes. He finishes his duties as construction supervisor in an instant at the start of the workday, then uses his remaining time to think up various important matters for the country and sends proposals like these... He wrote all of those himself and sent them to Uijeongbu for review.”
Hwang Hui and Jo Malseng let out deep sighs that seemed to make the earth sink as they looked at the size of the pile of documents.
“That Jibu fellow has really been grinding his teeth.”
While the two men were sighing, Maeng Sasong and Heo Jo entered Uijeongbu.
“Chief State Councillor, Right State Councillor... It seems you rested well? Do you have any idea how much we have suffered because of that Jibu fellow, who was promoted to Deputy Director of the Hall of Worthies?”
“I'm sorry. But it couldn't be helped.”
“What exactly couldn't be helped?”
“I want to resign, too.”
Hearing the word 'resign,' Maeng Sasong and Heo Jo could no longer nag him and fell silent.
Hwang Hui was already sixty-seven—by Joseon standards, he had lived long enough to make one wonder how he was still alive.
Even so, he had no idea when he would be granted permission to resign.
“And another thing. If that Jibu fellow becomes Chief State Councillor, won't His Majesty stop working old officials like us to death and finally let us go? He's going to become Chief State Councillor anyway... If we could move that up by ten years... our resignations could be moved up by ten years as well.”
Maeng Sasong and Heo Jo had also been holding ministerial posts for several years by then.
Naturally, they submitted resignation memorials—half sincere and half a customary formality—at least once a year.
Yet whenever those memorials were repeatedly rejected, what they felt was...
They feared that they, too, might end up like Hwang Hui.
“If that Jibu fellow becomes Chief State Councillor at such a young age, what will happen to the other officials?”
After saying that, Hwang Hui smiled.
“But it doesn't matter as long as we resign. I just can't be the one, right? Whoever works under him, as long as it isn't me.”