Chapter 67
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 067
Chapter Title: Invisible Threat (3)
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Changes in Joseon were now unstoppable.
"Your Majesty! What do you think of introducing this new system?"
"Your Majesty! I've come up with a way to collect more taxes!"
"Your Majeestyyy!!"
The ministers had finally figured out how to earn the king's favor.
And these weren't fools; they were smart enough to land government posts in the first place. Spend every day after meals pondering how to make the country richer and stronger, and inevitably, a decent idea or two would pop up.
"The newly established Sejong National Academy is enjoying tremendous support from the people."
"Everyone is clamoring to enroll."
Sejong National Academy had become the dream destination for anyone aspiring to rise in the world.
But they couldn't just build more academies willy-nilly.
Right on cue, the British military advisory group made a new proposal.
"What Joseon needs most are officers and non-commissioned officers."
"The officer recruitment exams currently in place focus more on personal martial prowess than the qualities of a true commander. For the Joseon army to become a strong force, we must cultivate proper leaders."
"Alongside the academy for training civil officials, one for military officials would do the trick."
And so, the second National Academy was born: an officer academy, resplendent in name. Since it was for rearing military talents, how could they not honor King Hyojong, the symbol of Joseon's generational shift from wielding the Azure Dragon Crescent Blade and iron mace to unparalleled might?
It didn't stop there.
"Strict yet fair trials are the nation's business that touches the people's lives more than anything; they cannot be neglected for even a moment. Yet even though judicial officials are no longer mere sinecures, the yangban still shun them. Therefore, abolish the Judicial Exam and establish the Judicial Academy instead. Rename judicial officials as judges to elevate their status."
"Your boundless mercy humbles us, Your Majesty."
Three National Academies!
The local gentry, long crushed under the heavy backsides of the capital elites, went half-mad with excitement.
"Paths to officialdom have multiplied several times over!"
"Official posts are official posts, after all! And with military officers and judges clearly having bright futures ahead...!"
Watching their reaction, the absolute monarch King Heonjong gained yet another insight.
Did he really need to hand out official positions?
Ascending to Hanyang was the path to power, wasn't it?
Heonjong dug through historical precedents, and it wasn't long before he reached a conclusion.
"There are far too many talented youths eager to attend the National Academies, yet the academies cannot embrace them all. As the father of the people, I am truly saddened. Out of compassion, I wish to extend my hand widely so more may learn. Opening schools to broadly educate and morally uplift the populace is the greatest duty of a sovereign..."
Thus came the establishment of village schools and county academies.
Of course, Joseon—one of the poorest nations on earth—lacked the budget or capacity for universal compulsory education. What's more, the vast majority of its people were still farmers, and farming thrived on more hands, not fewer. Even if Arthur preached 21st-century-style education, the court would just smirk and say, "Nice in theory, but good luck making it happen."
Yet the Joseon court pushed forward with elementary and advanced middle schools for a simple reason.
To draw promising talents to Hanyang early on.
And to make local elites compete fiercely for those school slots with displays of loyalty!
It was akin to reviving the Goryeo-era genius scholar system, but even better: now the yangban were desperate to get their kids enrolled, eyes bulging. The local gentry were even pushing for more schools and royal village schools for kids under ten.
Then, the first batch of Japanese students, led by Saigo, arrived in Hanyang.
"Your Majesty's virtuous rule illuminates the East Sea, prompting Japan to send envoys to learn from us!"
"In ancient times, the prestige of Tang China's culture drew eager scholars from the East. Now, with talents flocking from abroad to learn from Joseon, how can we say it's not a match for Tang?"
"How could the realm have straightened out so swiftly on my account alone? Without the tireless efforts of my ministers great and small, I could have accomplished nothing."
In high spirits, the beaming king ordered every convenience for these first-wave students, granting them permission to observe classes at all the National Academies.
It was a happy turn for everyone.
Hanyang changed day by day.
This money-mad court had even started taxing water.
- That's because you dragged in that absurdly huge loan way beyond Joseon's means...
Ouch, damn it. I hooked them up with cash they couldn't borrow on their own, and instead of building me a royal tomb, they blame me?
As Hanyang urbanized at breakneck speed, fetching water became a real issue. Seizing the opportunity, a new profession boomed: water carriers delivering a household's daily supply door-to-door.
But one entity was hypersensitive to water quality: the Police Bureau.
"Sir! That factory's dumping rotten sludge, turning the river to muck!"
"You flog street pissers half to death, so why let those bastards off?"
"They're loyal patriots—"
"At this rate, even the highborn will be drinking that filth!"
"Ahem..."
There was no Environment Ministry yet—just Commerce and Industry. But the Police Bureau (under Justice), Commerce and Industry (overseeing factories), and Hanyang Prefecture clashed spectacularly over industrial wastewater and Han River drinking water.
The outcome was mind-blowing.
"Henceforth, drawing water from rivers or wells requires Hanyang household registration."
"Water carriers must verify identity tags before selling, and since they're profiting off the nation's water, pay a special tax."
"What?! No way!"
"Taxing water?!"
"In exchange, non-members of the Water Carriers Guild are barred from the trade. You'll also have authority to apprehend river and well polluters—"
"Long live His Majesty! Long, long live!!"
With Justice, Commerce and Industry, Hanyang Prefecture, and even Finance (watching the spectacle) all thrilled, how could this not be a win-win-win?
...All in the brief time I was away. I'm scared to check what else happened.
Chaos. Where did the refined scent of Neo-Confucianism go? All hail the age of money rules all.
- Coming from you, that's rich.
But as the saying goes, fortune's wheel turns.
As foreigners multiplied across Joseon... the gawkers thinned out.
Back in the day, folks lived for the thrill of scaling fences to glimpse a hooked-nose foreigner. Now that outsiders were commonplace, at least the stickybeaks plastering my walls had dwindled.
You had to watch for falling leaves like a terminal private or a pregnant woman—do you know the anxiety?
"And yet you dumped your pregnant wife to jaunt off to Japan?"
"No, that's not—"
"Work's work, and I'm me, right?"
Ugh. Morning sickness hits, and I can't hold out.
"Just kidding. Actually, keeping up your routine is better for the baby's health."
Lizzie, a 19th-century lady, ignored my pleas to rest. Instead of prenatal care, she pored over Leigh & Gladstone Company and Far East Reclamation ledgers, mercilessly grilling why the numbers didn't add up.
- But isn't Elizabeth totally unofficial? Is this okay?
She's a shareholder, shareholder.
- A few hundred dollars' worth of petty shares...
Hmm.
Been a while since I teased this dumb beast. Time to step up.
I gathered our staff, squeezed dry like rags in Lizzie's dehydrator, down to the last drop.
"Everyone, this must be tough, right?"
"N-no, sir! We're fine!"
"Doesn't it irk you when some woman with no title bosses you around on melons and pumpkins? I'll lay down the law this time—"
"No, sir!!"
"We've benefited immensely from Lady Leigh's virtue!"
"Please!! We beg for even fiercer guidance going forward!!"
- What? Why are they like this?
Idiot.
Think Lizzie would sit idle if I blocked her from wringing them out? Pillow-talk lawsuits? Their nightmares are probably looping: under the covers at night, her whispering, "Darling, these numbers smell like embezzlement..."
But that's that, and this is this.
Lizzie meddling is undeniably against protocol. Hand her an executive post, though, and it'd look like I'm devouring the company whole.
And why's she micromanaging? Boredom. Women in Joseon have nothing to do!
The Lizzie I know won't spend her life minding kids at home. Recall how I reeled her in.
- No matter how you slice it, you got hooked...
Besides, which British lady of this era sticks to childcare? They all dump kids on nannies and tutors.
Her due date's approaching, so time to line up her next gig.
That way, everyone's happy.
Appointing a British consul-general to Joseon came with massive hurdles.
With Joseon in my iron grip, I naturally wanted a yes-man. My biggest weapon? The British Empire backing me. Crossing that would hurt us both bad.
But factions opposing my patron Gladstone would want to dilute my monopoly on Joseon rights, if only a bit, just to screw him.
Until now, I'd remotely handled diplomacy from Hong Kong. But with a real diplomat incoming from Britain, good times were over.
I prayed they'd send someone who wouldn't touch my turf.
"Long time no see. Good to see you."
"Hahaha. Never dreamed you'd be the consul-general! What a meteoric rise!"
"Says the man who seized a nation at twenty. I'm a tad hurt."
"Welcome. I even pre-built your legation."
"Ah yes. I took particular note of that. The construction costs were... staggering?"
Rutherford Alcock, former Shanghai consul. Now, consul-general to Joseon.
"Joseon's still backward, so unit prices had to rise. I hand-picked every brick to suit Britain's dignity. The residence is as meticulously built as a London manor—no discomforts, I assure you. Please make yourself at home."
"...Thank you for your thoughtfulness."
With Shanghai fallen to the Taiping, Alcock was at loose ends. HQ must've rated him high to slot him here.
Alcock didn't seem a bad pick for me.
Ten years as a diplomat in China meant he knew the Far East cold—its trade flows, Joseon's changes firsthand.
One worry: his willingness to wield military force in diplomacy. But would British troops ever need to smash Joseon pottery again?
My rosy outlook short-circuited soon enough.
"Listen, Mr. Leigh."
"Yes, Consul-General."
"Whom do you work for?"
"Naturally, Far East Reclamation Company, my employers; the shareholders of Leigh & Gladstone; and the Joseon government."
"No mention of Her Majesty or the Empire?"
"The close ties between Joseon and Britain drive prosperity for both—that's my patriotism talking. But since I'm not on the government payroll, claiming I work for Britain feels off."
"Fine. Whatever."
Alcock grasped Joseon's state of play in no time.
I was the shadow power and brain behind the court, far deeper than outsiders knew.
"It suddenly strikes me: when British and Joseon interests clash, whose side will you take?"
"They shouldn't clash. Ha."
"Straight talk: even massive Joseon profits won't outstrip China's potential."
"Unlike chaotic, hostile China, Joseon is stable and pro-British—"
"Give credit where due, old chap."
Alcock sliced through my sophistry; I gave a slight nod.
"China promises greater concessions."
"All talk?"
"In exchange for punishing Joseon. And no matter how I look at it, this serves our national interest."
Smash my fragile little piggy bank? Right out the gate?
Unacceptable.
Even a mutt gets half a bone at home. I won't meekly yield my rice bowl for "national interest."
I straightened slowly, face shifting to dead seriousness.
"Mind filling me in on what's happening in China?"
Here we go.
Domain expansion.