Stirring Up Trouble in the Ming Dynasty (2)

I hate the Ming Dynasty.

And I'm not the only one who hates the Ming Dynasty.

In fact, it's fair to say there are hardly any people in Joseon who like the Ming.

Those rotten Ming bastards slap the title of "honorary civilized nation" on Joseon and treat us like second-class citizens.

Joseon isn't a colony of the Ming; it's an independent sovereign state, so why the hell should we be treated like that?

Just like when the Japanese colonialists ruled us, imposed all kinds of unfair taxes, and dragged away girls to make into comfort women.

Those Ming bastards also take tribute maidens, force us to send 10,000 warhorses every year, and even demand gold and silver that Joseon doesn't produce.

Just thinking about those bastards gets my blood boiling.

'Just as Korea later won independence from Japan, Joseon will soon enough win independence from the Ming as well.'

And when that day comes, I'll make those bastards pay for the blood and tears the people of Joseon have shed.

I think that's both the duty and the right of a Korean who crossed over from modern times to Joseon.

"Could you tell the Minister of Rites that Kim Daebung, the Ministry of War jeongrang, has something urgent to ask of him?"

After hearing me, the government slave immediately went to find his direct superior.

After getting the necessary approvals from a few people in that manner, the government slave came back to me and said,

"Asking to meet the Minister of Rites so suddenly is normally not allowed. However, since it's not just some other high-ranking official... but the famed Kim Jeongrang himself who says he has something urgent to ask, the Minister of Rites will make time specially, or so I was told."

"I see. You've had a hard time passing on the message."

"I only did what I was supposed to do."

He says that, but even after the job is done he has no intention of leaving and keeps looking at me with wistful eyes.

Ah, he's asking me for a tip for his trouble.

If some other official in the Ministry of Rites had acted like that, I'd have been so annoyed I'd have buried him in a mountain of work.

But government slaves are pitiful public-service conscripts who are expected to work without pay for life. I shouldn't be too harsh on them.

"While you're at it, do one more thing for me. After work tomorrow, could you come by my house? I'll give you some rice."

"Oh, you really don't have to... Thank you, sir."

Government slaves don't suffer physical hardship the way active-duty soldiers do.

They're still people who were dragged in and forced to work, after all.

Besides, government slaves spend their whole lives doing public-service duty. It's only right to look after them.

Since they serve a sort of eunuch-like role inside the palace, if you get on their bad side, you can end up doused with filth from the most unexpected place.

If you get on good terms with them, they'll warn you that so-and-so is in a bad mood today, so be careful, or tell you that so-and-so is in a good mood today for this reason, so you should start with a compliment.

So many officials give them a little rice or something else in return for these little errands.

After sending the government slave away, I went to the Ministry of Rites to meet Heo Jo.

Heo Jo looked at me and immediately started scolding me.

"Kim Jeongrang, I'm sure there's a reason you wanted to see me in such a hurry, but Joseon has rules and etiquette, does it not? You're a junior fifth-rank official, so first you should go to the Ministry of Rites jeongrang and ask whether it's all right to meet the Minister of Rites. Then you should ask the associate minister, and after that the deputy minister, in that order..."

"My apologies."

"If some other young fool had done this, I would have severely reprimanded him and made sure he never pulled such a stunt again. But since it's you, Kim Jeongrang, I'll let it pass with just this much."

As expected, Heo Jo really is such an old fogey and stickler for principle.

The other ministers will gladly make time for me if I say I have something urgent to discuss, unless it's a very special case.

That's because they believe my words are the kind that make rice cakes appear even while you're asleep.

Besides, Hwang Hui and Jo Mal-saeng have reaped plenty of benefits from it so far, so there's no reason to doubt it.

And yet he grabs me and starts talking about principles first.

There was no one else like Heo Jo, no matter how much I looked.

'Truth be told, asking to meet like this does ignore the chain of command.'

Unless Heo Jo were this much of an old fogey and stickler for rules, could he really have submitted a memorial when Yi Bang-won said he would bestow a royal gift after hearing Kim Daebung's touching story, only to urge him to change his mind because it violated protocol?

"So then, what exactly have you come to see me about?"

"Could you put me into this envoy delegation?"

"Kim Jeongrang, you went to Tsushima and won the great favor of its lord, and after you returned from Tsushima, even the Wokou raids stopped. You're that sort of man, so if you go to the Ming, you'll no doubt win the favor of His Majesty the Emperor and the ministers too... and perhaps even come back with results far beyond anything I expected."

People are judged in any organization by the results they produce.

Someone who posts big results is naturally judged well by everyone, while someone who fails to post results won't be viewed favorably, no matter how good his character is.

So far, I've already achieved several things beyond what some lowly senior official could ever manage.

That's why I can make such an abrupt proposal to Heo Jo.

If Kim Jong-seo, who is stuck under Hwang Hui's thumb in the State Council, had said something like this to Heo Jo, what would have happened?

Heo Jo would likely laugh heartily and, in a roundabout way, tell Hwang Hui, "Kill that bastard," while asking how on earth he trained his subordinates.

"Realistically, there'd be no one to oppose putting Kim Jeongrang in the post of seojanggwan. But you've already achieved far too much all by yourself... Haven't you already accumulated all the merit needed to become a dangsanggwan? If you also take on the role of seojanggwan this time, your reputation at court could sour. They'll say you're trying to monopolize all the credit. So how about passing this opportunity to Jeoljae (Kim Jong-seo) or Jibong (Hwangbo In)?"

Joining a Ming envoy delegation would be a major help to your promotion.

So if I suddenly wedge myself into the delegation, I'd be taking someone else's chance for promotion away.

"As I handle the duties of the Ministry of War, I often also receive reports from the Japanese defectors serving in the navy. According to them, Joseon's ships are sufficient for sailing the seas around the Eight Provinces, but they can't carry much cargo and are rather slow. By contrast, the Ming's fuchuan are extremely fast and can carry a great deal of cargo."

The Wokou are professionals at piracy.

To be good at piracy, you need to know the characteristics of the ships the other country mainly uses.

That way, you can rob them efficiently.

Because they love piracy, those Wokou bastards know a great deal about Ming ships, Joseon ships, and Japanese ships.

They're detestable, but their knowledge is useful, so I should use everything I can.

"If this had been before the Bang-won Law was enacted, there would have been no reason to import better ships, but according to the memorial submitted by the Ministry of Revenue... once the Bang-won Law was put into effect, the production of various local specialties nationwide increased sharply. As one example, in Icheon the number of pear trees tripled in just one year, and in Jinhae the number of persimmon trees increased fourfold."

Pear and persimmon trees aren't the kind that bear fruit a year after you plant them.

So it probably won't show up in actual production figures for another three or four years.

But do you really think only the numbers of pear and persimmon trees increased?

Production of local specialties such as herring gwamegi, dried anchovies, and all kinds of crafts also exploded.

They have to be sold evenly all over the country for Joseon's commerce to develop by leaps and bounds; otherwise, it'll just end up with the specialties rotting away.

"If the transport of goods becomes easier, commerce will grow larger and larger, and the markets in every county across the country will flourish greatly. Then tax revenue will also increase, and the court's finances will become very plentiful."

"So you're thinking of joining the delegation and secretly bringing back a shipwright who knows how to build fuchuan. But do you really think that's possible?"

"Right after the Yongle Emperor halted the great expedition, the Ming strengthened its maritime ban. Even the late Emperor, when Wokou attacked the Ming coastline, sent everyone living in the coastal villages off to Liaodong to be turned into military households."

The Ming bastards really are something else.

Honestly, the Mongol and Jurchen barbarians aren't the kind to listen just because you treat them fairly in trade, but...

But the Wokou are the kind who won't do piracy if you just let them trade.

The reason is extremely simple.

They already have the ships and capital needed for piracy, so if they use that to trade and sell goods back in their hometowns, they can make a living just fine in Japan.

So when the Longqing Emperor lifted the maritime ban in the late 16th century, Wokou raids literally vanished.

"After the maritime ban was lifted, even the craftsmen who made fishing boats and the craftsmen who built large ships lost their jobs, so they're probably starving now, aren't they? If we give them a decent amount of money and guarantee food, clothing, and shelter, who wouldn't come along?"

Rather than starve to death in the Ming, it'd be a hundred times better to settle in Joseon and make an honest living.

And if someone wants to go with his wife and children, just tell him to bring them along and join secretly with them.

"But the important thing is how to get across the Ming border..."

"The soldiers stationed in Liaodong will let us through if we bribe them. Once we're inside Ming territory, of course, we'll have to act separately."

"You, as the seojanggwan, won't be able to do that yourself..."

"Surely there will be volunteers among young officials or interpreters who want to make a name for themselves at court?"

If I look around even a little, I'm sure to find one.

Because if they pull this off once, their life will really take off.

And if they're lucky, they might even end up sentenced to lifelong service like me.

"I'll grant your request. I'll submit the memorial to His Majesty myself."