Chapter 198
Chapter 198
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 198
Chapter Title: Joseon-Style Standing Army (8)
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Any citizen of Joseon—no, more precisely, any adult Joseon man—was now obligated to serve in the military.
This was because the conscription system had been introduced.
The yangban were exempt from being dragged into service; instead, they paid ten seom of white rice annually as a substitute. Even so, every man living in Joseon now bore the duty of military service.
"Ha, what a shame."
I let out a sigh and lamented, prompting Byeon Gye-ryang beside me to ask,
"What's so regrettable?"
Honestly, I believe the duty of military service should be shared equally by all.
Of course, with Joseon's class barriers, it couldn't be exactly the same for everyone...
Regardless of class, conscript men aged fifteen to eighteen.
For yangban sons, assign them roles like basic training for soldiers or scribe duties for letters.
For commoners and slaves, mixing them without standards would spark class conflicts within units, so—like the Union dividing black and white regiments during the American Civil War—form slave-led units and commoner-led units. That way, they'd have to endure service...
As long as everyone born and living in Joseon fulfills their duty to defend the nation through military service—regardless of the form it takes—Joseon is sure to advance one step further from where it stands now.
'Still, imposing even this burden of military duty on the yangban is a huge accomplishment in itself.'
In truth, even by Joseon standards, my view that yangban should serve is far too radical and ahead of its time.
It's as unacceptable as the twenty-first-century notion of restoring the Joseon royal house under a constitutional monarchy—opposite direction, but equally implausible.
Of course, with how rapidly the era is changing, by the time our Jang Saeng finishes his coming-of-age rite and becomes an adult, even yangban heirs might be serving.
"I just feel like I should have done a better job."
"If even you say that, what are the rest of us officials supposed to do? Whatever the task, you've done more than enough—overflowing, even. Being too harsh on yourself isn't always a virtue."
"If we don't strive to be better today than yesterday, we'll inevitably fall behind and become relics, won't we? Even Confucius never stopped studying in life; he said he'd humbly learn from a three-year-old if there was wisdom to gain. For someone as lacking in virtue as I, if I don't reflect daily on past deeds and my mindset, what will become of me?"
Nothing in this world lasts forever.
Efforts that seem pointless will bear fruit if aimed right, and nations or conglomerates that appear eternally secure can turn into 'relics' when times change.
So we have just two choices:
Stagnate in the present and regress, or keep striving forward.
Those who stand still will lag endlessly behind; those who push ahead will at least improve bit by bit.
'I can't become a complacent relic satisfied with the status quo.'
"Frankly, I'd have conscripted every adult male under twenty-five for service, but that would cripple the nation's foundation—farming itself—nationwide. The labor shortage from those pulled away would be dire."
"Feeding them would be a massive issue too."
Compiling reports from local offices, the number of conscripts this time totaled 135,687.
Compared to the previous 80,000-plus soldiers, that's nearly a 70% increase.
Local offices welcome the extra labor for repairs and roads, but they're petitioning that they can't meet central rice quotas due to feeding the influx.
Conscript all adult males under twenty-five and swell the ranks further?
Local offices would go bankrupt just keeping them fed.
"Plus, since conscription is a new system, there were hiccups in implementation. Before notices went out—meaning before the policy took effect—some had already married, or even had kids. Others supported elderly parents... Several magistrates tried conscripting exemptions, sparking big and small clashes."
"Filial piety for aged parents is a universal duty. Even convicts get exile or corporal punishment delayed if they must care for parents over seventy. No magistrate would conscript a man needed for his elders, but some insisted married men with dependents still qualified, causing headaches."
The Hall of Worthies and Ministry of Military had warned magistrates from the start: no merit points for over-conscripting relative to population.
And unconditionally exempt those with hardships.
Even so, compliance faltered, prompting new guidelines recently.
Men marrying after the village notice of universal commoner service are fully exempt.
Military duty matters, but so does supporting a family.
"For men under twenty-five already married or supporting parents, we've substituted service with training one day every seven over three years under dispatched military instructors (non-commissioned officers). No more conscripting those with families to support."
"Naturally, we can't exempt pre-service marriages either—people would exploit it."
Israel's prosperous yet high birthrate partly stems from female conscription.
Everyone serves, but early childbirth grants exemptions.
So they wed young, birth before draft...
Would Joseon differ?
"Service starts at fifteen, so kids at thirteen or fourteen will rush to marry. By fifteen, with wife and child, they'd qualify for exemption."
Goryeo saw rampant child marriages.
Parents wedded eleven-year-olds as 'married women' to dodge Yuan's princess tributes.
Better three years' service than tribute, but marriage is inevitable—advance it to thirteen or fourteen for exemption?
Joseon folk would eagerly revive child marriage.
Thus, legally block child marriages to evade service.
"Now the conscription system you've championed is settling in."
"Yes, Joseon will grow even stronger."
Arm conscripts with matchlocks and train properly—Joseon couldn't take Ming yet, but could crush the Japanese.
This era's Japan isn't a unified Muromachi state; daimyo loosely feign allegiance to the shogun.
The samurai 'one-man-army' myth fits Warring States, not now—few soldiers per capita, and most are worse than disorganized Tang rabble.
"By the way, His Highness said this in the last audience."
"What?"
Byeon Gye-ryang chuckled.
"Teaching Sogyak to soldiers bound three years would instill human duties, turning Joseon into a land of gentlemen."
King Sejong echoed Jo Gwang-jo, forefather of the Sarim faction.
Most of that fool's words were nonsense his successors mocked...
But one truth stuck:
Master Sogyak's basic virtues over debating classics, and even the king becomes a gentleman.
That's why he hauled out the seldom-used Sogyak for every scholarly debate.
Universal knowledge of its duties would make Joseon a gentlemen's land.
"When do poor commoners have time for Sogyak amid their grueling lives? Or Cheonjamun?"
Not wrong.
Even twenty-first-century Koreans falter at math beyond arithmetic.
In Joseon, 90% illiterate—how could they learn Sogyak or Cheonjamun?
But it irked me.
His words reeked of elitism: commoners can't learn because they're common.
"Learning hanja is tough, sure. But imprinting basic virtues during service—wouldn't they live a bit more uprightly than before?"
Conscription birthed mandatory education.
Recruits entered illiterate, blind to documents or briefings.
Frustrated officers begged the state: teach kids to read pre-service.
"Further, if all learn reading, writing, and gentlemanly duties, they'd revere the king above, model for children below. Soon, cabinet ministers' fathers would be sailors and postmen."
With that, I ended our talk.
As conscription took root, shocking news arrived from Ming.