He Became King Sejong’s Lifelong Prime Minister - Chapter 56

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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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Secret Royal Inspector Kim Dae-bung (7)

Secret royal inspectors and work-life balance can hardly coexist.

Because secret royal inspectors have far too much work to do.

In the current situation, I have to resolve all kinds of lawsuits pouring into Anseong County in place of the county magistrate I sent to Hanyang, handle administrative duties, and check whether the magistrate and clerks committed any illegal acts or document forgeries.

On top of that, I have to directly manage and supervise the land surveying using the Land Survey Method…

“The work is endless.”

But all of this is work for the Royal Ancestral Shrine and State and the common people living in Joseon.

If I suffer just a little, I can give hope to thousands, tens of thousands of common people. Just because I’m having a hard time doesn’t mean I can do my work carelessly.

Just like when a doctor performs surgery, if their hand moves even 0.1cm wrong, the patient could die instantly or be left with permanent aftereffects.

Because a small mistake by Secret Royal Inspector Kim Dae-bung could plunge one family, no, countless common people into misery.

The most representative administrative failure that caused common people to die meaninglessly was the currency policy that Iron Mace King Lee Bang-won and King Sejong tried to implement.

“Royal Inspector.”

“Oh, is that you, Ibang? Yes, the land surveying is going well, right?”

“Yes, of course. I’ve instructed the clerks to divide the area into 18 myeon and 282 villages as you said, Royal Inspector, then divide each village into 64 districts for surveying.”

“Very well done.”

The Land Survey Method starts by dividing all inhabited land into districts and assigning addresses.

Next, it measures how much area all kinds of land at the assigned addresses occupy and records it in account books.

Among these, the most important farmland areas are recorded as 1 gyeol if it’s 1 gyeol, 30 durak if it’s 30 durak, and the areas occupied by roads or mountains are subtracted.

After going through these procedures and surveying all the fields, it’s recorded in the account books like this.

Anseong County Samjuk-myeon Jukbang Village District 12, Kim Dae-bung’s farmland 3 gyeol 20 durak.

In this type of Land Survey Method, dividing districts is the most important foundation, so it must never be neglected.

“So how much progress has been made now?”

“Surveying of 8 villages including Heomcheon Village, Gari Village, and Sipjang Village has been completed.”

“… That seems a bit slow.”

The greatest advantage of the Land Survey Method is that it can find all hidden land, that is, land deliberately not reported in land registers to avoid taxes.

And another advantage is the speed of land surveying. According to records, it took two months to survey three counties in Hwanghae Province.

But the fact that I’ve only managed to survey eight villages in the week since I came here as a secret inspector…

“Ibang, you’re not doing your work carelessly, are you?”

“No, Royal Inspector. Absolutely not…”

“Then why is the work progressing so slowly? I can only see that it’s not proceeding properly. If you can’t give me a proper reason, I’ll have no choice but to severely punish Ibang and all the Six Bureau Officials.”

Anseong County Magistrate Lee Seok-do has long been confined in Hanyang prison, waiting only for the day he dies.

Fortunately, since he wasn’t charged with treason, his three generations won’t be exterminated, his property won’t be confiscated, and disasters like his children being banned from taking the civil service exams won’t occur.

The important thing is this.

Could the clerks involved in the terrible situation where a high-ranking yangban official who rose to the senior fourth rank faces ‘beheading’ possibly survive unscathed? Of course not.

First, the six departments including Ibang will be summoned to Hanyang and beheaded, and the lower-level clerks beneath them will either be exiled if unlucky (with the basic set of 100 beatings included) or at best be fired and forced to return all embezzled wealth.

In other words, the life and death of the clerks belonging to Anseong County’s government office rests entirely in my hands.

“Magistrate, the problem is that the county’s common people don’t view the Land Survey Method favorably. Because of this, we can’t get proper cooperation from the people, which greatly slows down the work.”

The important thing when implementing the Land Survey Method is getting voluntary cooperation from the people.

They need to voluntarily tell us whose field is where, what areas are farmland and what areas are forest land, to help with the surveying…

When that doesn’t work and we have to proceed with only clerks, government office guards, and government slaves, it inevitably gets delayed.

No matter how corrupt these guys are, if I harass them with unreasonable demands, administrative efficiency will deteriorate.

Given this situation, I need to discuss this directly with the local yangban.

“First, show me the organized records of Heomcheon Village’s farmland.”

“Yes, Royal Inspector.”

After receiving the newly organized land registry from Ibang and checking it, I immediately understood why the yangban are opposing this.

From what I roughly observed during my inspection, Heomcheon Village’s total farmland area was just over 10 gyeol, but after re-surveying with the Land Survey Method, it increased to about 25 gyeol.

This means the taxes collected from the same land increased by 2.5 times. And this burden will naturally fall unilaterally on the yangban who own large amounts of land.

While it’s common sense to collect more taxes from those with more land, it’s also instinctive for the wealthy to want to pay less tax, so they’re probably doing this because they hate paying taxes.

I too can understand their feelings. Though understanding doesn’t mean I forgive them.

“Is this properly organized?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Let me ask one last time. Ibang, if you want to survive after this land surveying is finished, you should flee with all your assets as quickly as possible. Because the enraged yangban will never let you live.”

“…”

“But if you do your work carelessly and side with the yangban, you too will follow Lee Seok-do’s fate. All your household’s assets will be confiscated. This is a choice you must inevitably make for yourself and your family.”

Even if I torment the yangban of this county to death, those people cannot cause me great harm. At most, they’ll submit petitions complaining that I’m implementing too harsh politics.

Such petitions will only receive replies from King Sejong or Lee Bang-won saying, ‘Yes, I read it well. Don’t write such useless petitions again. It’s a waste of ink and paper.’

However, the vulnerable clerks are different.

If the yangban decide to, feeding these people to tigers would be as easy as eating cold porridge, so can they really survive?

“Royal Inspector, truly.”

Actually, if I had my way, I’d want to personally step forward and direct the surveying. However, realistic conditions don’t support this.

There’s a mountain of work to do, and above all, there’s too little time for me to go around each village directing the surveying.

Actually, I’m not the Anseong County Magistrate. I’m a secret inspector who must travel around inspecting various counties in the future.

“I’ll trust you. And most of the current lawsuits in the county were filed by yangban living in those 8 villages.”

Having said this much, I looked around.

Since I worked the same way I did during my time at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, even though I worked overtime, it’s only been about an hour so I’m perfectly fine.

But Kim Man-deok and all the others who came to help me are already completely exhausted.

If I push them just a little more, they’ll all become corpses.

At this rate, it looks like I’ll end up working our Gyeoul-i’s father to death from overwork.

“Gyeoul-ah, this father is now serving his country loyally for Joseon. So please watch over me.”

Seeing him looking for Gyeoul-i who isn’t even visible, I really need to let him sleep from now on and give him a full day of complete rest.

Some evil company chairman advocates the theory that employees should work until regular hours even on weekends, and until 10-11 PM on weekdays for proper efficiency…

Even before ethical considerations, making people overwork like this also reduces work efficiency.

“Mandeok and you all may retire for today and return to duty the day after tomorrow.”

Upon hearing my words, Kim Man-deok immediately bowed to me and then led his group out as if flying away. He must have been quite exhausted.

“Ibang, you should also handle only urgent matters and retire early today. And tell the village chiefs of the 30 rural villages near the town center to come to the government office in seven days.”

“The village chiefs, you mean?”

“That’s right.”

There’s only one reason why they refuse the Land Survey Method.

It’s because they think taxes will increase like crazy. And this isn’t entirely wrong.

When the Land Survey Method is applied and taxes are imposed on tenant farmers and landlords who have been cultivating hidden land until now, yangban and common people will have to pay that much more in taxes.

Naturally, they can’t help but feel resistant.

However, for the eternal glory, freedom, and prosperity of Joseon and the people living in Joseon, tax evasion must never be tolerated.

“Royal Inspector, surely you’re not thinking of explaining what the Land Survey Method is to the common people?”

“I have no such intention.”

Making the uneducated people of Joseon understand the complex principles of the Land Survey Method is realistically impossible.

So I plan to directly explain to them not how to understand the Land Survey Method, but why the Land Survey Method is necessary.

Just as it would be nice to know which germs die by what principle when you wash your hands, but knowing that washing hands kills germs and significantly reduces the chance of getting sick is enough to live without problems.

I plan to very simply inform them of the reason why, if the Land Survey Method is not implemented, taxes will become insufficient and the previous tax laws will inevitably be revived.

“I will simply inform them that if the Land Survey Method is not properly introduced, the Bangwon Method will be abolished and they will have to pay enormous taxes as before.”

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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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