He Became King Sejong’s Lifelong Prime Minister - Chapter 149

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Joseon Steel Mill (1)

I had thrown the necessary measures for developing Haesamwi to the State Council.

I had also submitted to the Ministry of War a plan for securing and maintaining supply routes through Haesamwi, Pyeongan Province, and Hamgyeong Province.

Having roughly finished the immediate tasks at hand, I went to the Ministry of Rites to handle another matter.

Jo Mal-saeng, who serves as Right State Councilor while still acting as Minister of War, offered me tea and told me to rest now that I had finished my work, but…

‘Since we succeeded in driving out the Jurchen, now we need to handle diplomatic issues.’

So I received permission from Jo Mal-saeng to come to the Ministry of Rites.

When Heo Jo saw me, he spoke as if he found it absurd.

“Colonel Kim, have you finished all your work before coming here?”

“I came after finishing all the tasks assigned by the Right State Councilor and receiving his permission.”

“I see. Well, in that case, I won’t particularly nag you. The fact that Colonel Kim went out of his way to visit the Ministry of Rites must mean there’s some important business.”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“In the past, even if Colonel Kim came to see me because of urgent matters, I would have severely scolded you for not following proper procedures… But lately, I’ve changed my thinking quite a bit after observing Colonel Kim.”

If there were an anonymous site or community exclusively for officials in Joseon, Heo Jo would definitely be voted as the most old-fashioned superior in Joseon.

Because he meticulously scrutinizes every unnecessary rule and protocol, officials subtly avoid him when he appears.

Even when Lee Bang-won said he would bestow plenty of royal gifts for the marriage with Gyeoul-i, this gentleman was the one who said, ‘No, that won’t do. I’ll bring the Office of Inspector General and Office of Censors to remonstrate that it’s not right.’

This gentleman was the one who did that.

Such a person is changing his thinking?

Wouldn’t it be faster for King Sejong to become a vegetarian?

Or for Lee Bang-won to quit hunting.

“In the past, I used to severely scold young officials when they got the angle of their bows wrong, but these days I just advise them on how much to bow according to protocol. If someone is severely criticized for violating minor etiquette, they might feel wronged.”

No, even Hwang Hee, who finds all sorts of reasons to berate Kim Jong-seo whenever he sees him, doesn’t criticize the angle of Kim Jong-seo’s bow when he greets…

You’re still the ultimate old-fashioned superior, sir.

If I said that, this gentleman would probably say this again.

‘My elder brother values propriety so much that when I changed the ancestral ritual procedures just a tiny bit, he immediately threatened to strike me from the family register. Compared to my elder brother, I’m quite an open-minded person,’ he would say.

“I am ashamed, Your Excellency.”

“So then, Colonel Kim, how about working at the Ministry of Rites from now on?”

If I go under you, you old-fashioned fool, it’ll be hell from the very start.

When reviewing official documents, if you discover even one misplaced dot, you’re the type of person who would make me rewrite everything from the beginning.

“I’ll think about it, Your Excellency.”

“That’s unfortunate. Anyway, I should hear the reason you came to see me today. What do you want?”

“Could you please send me as Secretary for this New Year’s envoy mission?”

“If anyone else had said such a thing, I would have suspected they were blinded by ambition and seeking glory. But Colonel Kim has already accomplished feats that would make it unsurprising if you became a high-ranking official right now. No, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say you’ve accomplished even more than that. Someone like you wouldn’t be asking for the Secretary position just to gain more merit. What’s your reason?”

“The Ming Dynasty court must be viewing me very favorably right now. Also, I maintain a very close relationship with the Ming eunuch Wang Jin.”

Heo Jo, who’s in charge of the Ministry of Rites, would know well that this fellow Wang Jin, though currently just a eunuch without any official rank, is a real power player since he’s in charge of training eunuchs.

So there’s no need to specifically mention that part.

“His Imperial Majesty of Ming has said nothing so far about Joseon’s great conquest of the Jurchen tribes, but honestly, we can’t know what he’s thinking inside, can we?”

“That’s true.”

“Ming calls Joseon a nation of propriety and pretends to treat us with respect and honor on the surface, but deep down they think we’re utterly barbaric. So seeing Joseon conquer Eastern Manchuria this time, they might be making their own arbitrary judgment that Joseon is expanding territory and building power to eventually attack Ming.”

The relationship between Ming and Joseon that we commonly know was elevated to alliance level after King Jungjong’s coup.

Right now, Ming and Joseon’s relationship is one where they pretend to be friendly on the surface but don’t trust each other, thinking the other might stab them in the back at any moment.

If such a Joseon invaded and occupied Manchuria, which is Jurchen territory…

The Ming bastards would arbitrarily assume that since King Sejong took Manchuria this time, he’ll soon attack their country too.

What an absolutely ridiculous and suffocating delusion.

King Sejong may grind his teeth at Ming inwardly, but he’s someone who tries to maintain the tributary relationship somehow…

Why they’d have such delusions and fall into that trap, honestly.

Well, their ancestor was Zhu Yuanzhang, that thief who couldn’t trust his own founding contributors and killed over 10,000 people including the founding contributors and their families.

That paranoia was a family trait passed down from their ancestors.

Current Joseon is in a situation where we must bow our heads to avoid becoming the target of that damned paranoia.

“I’ll go as Secretary and ask Wang Jin what Joseon should do. Then Wang Jin will tell us what Joseon needs to do in more detail than Eunuch Yun (Yun Bong) would.”

Yun Bong is a eunuch under the Ming Dynasty’s ceremonial supervisor, but his roots are undeniably Korean, and he’s a peculiar person who takes care of his parents and family every time he comes to Joseon.

This gentleman stubbornly demanded that King Taejong Lee Bang-won and King Sejong grant official positions and land to his family, and even made demands to raise the status of his hometown county, which he ultimately succeeded in achieving.

In return, he did indeed resolve quite a number of diplomatic issues between the Ming Dynasty and Joseon.

However, he only made slight concessions for his family who would continue living in Joseon.

But the relationship between Wang Jin and me is far more special than that.

“I was the first person to extend a hand and acknowledge him when he cut off his own male genitalia to become a eunuch, seeking recognition from others due to the sorrow of not being acknowledged his entire life, sir.”

“So you think that because Colonel Kim acknowledged him, he’ll provide proper information about the Emperor out of gratitude for that kindness?”

“Yes, sir.”

“I understand. I’ll report this directly to His Majesty.”

“Thank you.”

By the time the New Year’s envoy is dispatched, he’ll most likely have become the crown prince’s tutor.

In such a position, frankly speaking, he’ll have greater influence than the ceremonial supervisor, lacking only the formal rank among the eunuchs.

If we convey Joseon’s true intentions to Wang Jin in such a position, that message will naturally be delivered directly to the Emperor.

And this time too, I plan to prepare the finest bribe so that he has no choice but to side with Joseon.

“Is there nothing else you’d like to request?”

“Not particularly.”

“Then you may withdraw. The New Year’s envoy will be dispatched around November this year, and will arrive in Beijing around February next year.”

With those words, Heo Jo issued an order to leave.

As soon as I left the Ministry of Rites, I went straight to the Ministry of Public Works.

Participating in the envoy mission is one thing, but there’s a gap of about 7 months in between, and I can’t just idle around during that time.

The only flaw in this expedition was that we couldn’t properly equip the soldiers with armor due to insufficient iron…

I need to increase iron production to solve this problem too.

**

After arriving at the Ministry of Public Works, I immediately went to find Lee Cheon, the Minister of Public Works.

“Greetings, Minister of Public Works.”

“What brings Colonel Kim here when he should be busy working at the Ministry of War?”

“I have come to the Ministry of Public Works because I need the ministry’s assistance in handling affairs of the Ministry of War.”

“You need the Ministry of Public Works’ assistance. Very well, what can we help you with?”

In the past, Lee Cheon had been somewhat distant toward me, but after learning that drill training had been of great help in the Eastern Manchuria expedition, he became extremely favorable toward me.

That’s why even though I suddenly came to ask for help with work, he immediately offered his assistance.

Indeed, one must live virtuously.

And maintaining harmonious social relationships is also important.

If my relationship with Lee Cheon had been hostile, would he have spoken so kindly when I came asking for help like this?

“The Department of Mountains and Marshes (the department that oversees mining of minerals like iron and copper, affairs related to mountains and forests, and some transportation matters like ferry crossings) is handling everything from iron works to timber harvesting and forest management… Frankly speaking, isn’t this too excessive a burden for the Ministry of Public Works?”

The direct departments under the Ministry of Public Works Main Office include the Construction Department that mainly handles architecture, the Crafts Department that makes various items, and the Department of Mountains and Marshes.

The Ministry of Public Works can somehow manage the Crafts Department and Construction Department…

But transportation-related work has already increased several times over compared to before, thanks to my introduction of Chinese treasure ships and activation of commerce.

And if I add to that by expanding iron and other mining-related work…

The Ministry of Public Works will obviously suffer work paralysis due to the explosively increased excessive workload.

“I’d like you to split the Department of Mountains and Marshes into several subordinate offices to handle the work. And send more officials too. Other ministries of the Six Ministries hardly work overtime, but our Ministry of Public Works has to work overtime once every four days without fail. Each time that happens, His Majesty grants us royal meal grants, saying the Ministry of Public Works seems to be working carelessly and we should work harder… and how burdensome that is…”

“I think I understand what you mean. So please help me out this time.”

Lee Cheon blinked his eyes after hearing my words.

“If you help me just a little, I will help split the Department of Mountains and Marshes into several subordinate offices and assist in increasing the Ministry of Public Works officials.”

Bulgok Lee Cheon, this man will escape from work hell in the future.

In exchange, I plan to borrow Jeong Bun, who is crazy about civil engineering, and Jang Yeong-sil, the human tool.

Lee Cheon will definitely agree.

Because he’s not the one being transferred out.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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