Chapter 629

Episode 629: Their Choice (9)

Because of these intentions, Hyang immediately approved the negotiation plan submitted by Heo Hu.

The envoy of Yu Gu-guk, who judged that he had achieved the best result, raised his voice and bowed to Hyang.

“Hwang Eun is devastated! Our country will never forget Your Majesty’s grace and the Empire’s good will. “The trust between our two countries will last forever!”

“I hope so too, Jim.”

“It will definitely happen!”

The envoy bowed deeply to Hyang’s words and pledged once again, walking backwards and leaving Geunjeongjeon.

The envoy who left Geunjeongjeon tried to get a confirmation once again from Heo Hu, who had accompanied him to see him off.

“The weapons and garrison troops that the empire decided to support will definitely come, right?”

“exactly. Again, once the agreement is properly signed through our country’s envoy accompanying the stationed troops, work will proceed as soon as possible. However, if the signing fails, our country will return on the spot.”

The messenger immediately responded to Heo Hu’s words.

“That will never happen!”

“You must do that.”

* * *

Not long after the return of the envoys from the Kingdom of Yugu, the empire also began to move in earnest.

This movement naturally attracted the attention of foreign merchants and officials staying at the Mokpo trade port, and reports were sent to their respective home countries.

In this process, a strange consensus began to form among foreign officials staying at the trade port.

-There is a need for officials in charge of diplomacy to reside in Seoul, the capital of the empire.

Until now, a small number of officials were stationed in Mokpo, a major trading port. Of course, although they were called officials, most of them were interpreters, not high-ranking officials who had their own right to make decisions.

Although there were interpreters in the empire, it was because deploying interpreters from their own country who could speak the imperial language could reduce losses even a little.

* * *

It was toward the end of Gyeongjang that interpreters from other countries began to be stationed at trade ports.

This was when Joseon began to show its presence as an emerging powerhouse in international trade.

As a result of King Sejong’s active acceptance of Hyang’s proposal at the time, the Saeokwon trained interpreters who could speak the languages of countries trading with Joseon in addition to the Ming and Japanese countries.

The newly trained interpreters were very different in character from the existing interpreters. They were not only responsible for simple interpretation, but were also highly educated in the knowledge of the culture and laws of the country.

And the interpreters trained in this way played an active role in maximizing Joseon’s interests not only at Mokpo’s trade port but also at trade ports in other countries.

And other countries, seeing this, began training interpreters who learned the Korean language.

And the interpreters trained in this way stayed at the trade port in Mokpo and helped the merchants in their country with commercial transactions or intervened when disputes arose.

* * *

The governments of each country that received the interpreters’ documents containing these contents began to seriously consider this.

Regardless of East or West, it was extremely rare for countries bordering each other to have good relations.

And Joseon, which had bowed down to the Ming Dynasty, changed its name to the Korean Federal Empire and became the strongest power in the region, but it also became a supply line for the latest weapons.

Therefore, it was necessary to find out as quickly as possible what was going on between the empire and other countries, especially countries with which it was not on good terms.

To achieve this, it was necessary to have an official of a certain level stationed at the headquarters of the empire, even in the capital.

Countries that reached this point began sending envoys to Seoul to negotiate on this matter.

* * *

Meanwhile, Norihiro, who had just arrived at the Waegwan in Busanpo, gained appetite after hearing rumors about the various events that had taken place between the Yugu Kingdom and the Empire.

“Oh my... I’m a step late.”

Morimi, the previous head of the family, Mochiyo, and Norihiro, the current shoguns of the family shogunate, had a long-cherished wish to ‘leave Japan from Japan’.

– In order to make high-quality steel in large quantities, you need high-quality ore, high-quality firewood, and skilled craftsmen. But now all you have is skilled craftsmen!

– The issue of ore is firewood, even if you use private railways! Mass production is impossible with charcoal alone!

Mochiyo could not help but let out a long sigh at the common answer given by the craftsmen brought in from the Ming Dynasty.

“Then we have to find it.”

Eventually, according to Mochiyo’s orders, the prospectors directly under the shogunate and the troops to guard them were dispersed to Honshu and Kyushu.

During this process, feudal lords who rebelled against the Ouchi shogunate carried out sabotage operations, and as a result of a chain reaction, Ouchi promoted licensed production of Japanese rifles and freight cars.

“This is what happened already! “Let’s wipe it out!”

* * *

“But the license fee is too expensive! Considering the high quality and rarity of things like iron and sparkler, it can be said to be a reasonable price, but I think it is excessive to ask you to pay such a high price for a rifle and a few drawings of a freight car.”

At Norihiro’s words, Heohu’s expression turned fierce.

“How many blueprints? How many did you say?”

Heo Hu growled in an extremely angry voice.

“Since Gap-sik is followed by Eul-sik, does it seem like a simple continuation? Do you know how many craftsmen worked hard to create that one design? No, not only the craftsmen but also His Majesty, who was the Crown Prince at the time, put all their effort into it! But there are only a few!”

To tell the truth, the Hyang at that time enjoyed the time very happily.

It’s the truth. Anyway, Heo Hu was so angry that he jumped up from his seat and stretched out his arms toward the door.

“Get out now! “There will be no further discussion about licenses!”

Surprised by Heohu’s order to congratulate the guests, Norihiro fell flat on his seat.

“I’m sorry! I made a mistake! Please calm down your anger!”

‘No matter how pro-German I am, if this negotiation fails, it will be over! ‘If you do seppuku, you’ll be lucky, but at least it’s beheading!’

“Get out now!”

“Oh my goodness! “The little man made a mistake!”

Norihiro’s desperate begging, even using the word ‘small person’, seemed to have worked. After taking several deep breaths to cool off his anger, Heohu strongly warned Norihiro.

“I will never again forgive any remarks that insult His Majesty. Please keep that in mind.”

“I will keep this in mind!”

In a flurry of commotion, Heohu was completely overpowered, but Norihiro also persisted.

“Our country is a poor country. Please lower the license fee even a little.”

“Then why not just buy it instead of making it yourself?”

“There are still many ruthless people who rebel against the shogunate, so there is a lot of unrest.”

“Uh huh~. How can you try to solve everything only through defeat? “We must inspire them with good words and good deeds.”

“It’s impossible for them to communicate with each other...”

Heohu muttered to himself at Norihiro’s words.

‘Are you talking about someone else?’

After a tedious tug-of-war, Heohu came to a conclusion that was not a conclusion.

“I will report this to His Majesty the Emperor and receive an answer.”

“Please give me good results!”

Heohu responded to Norihiro’s words with a slightly embarrassed expression.

“As I said before, the Japanese rifle and boxcar are items that His Majesty also shows affection for...”

“Still, I would like to ask you a favor!”

Heohu, who sent Norihiro out, smiled and organized the documents.