episode_0008

The joyful news I had longed for and anticipated arrived at the end of the year.

“Me, me? Am I hearing this right?”

The outcome that felt like biting into gold came back in my favor.

I was chosen to participate as one of the military officials in the Divine Ministry heading to Beijing next August.

“Hmm, I should start preparing to go to Beijing.”

This time, the purpose of joining the Divine Ministry was to offer Hanhak’s sister, who had been selected as a concubine of Yeongnakje, and Hwangha-sin’s daughter, Hwang, as a tribute.

By the way, Hanhak, who is two years younger than me, had a renowned older sister and a younger sister.

He also had two younger brothers.

His older sister was included in this expedition to the Divine Ministry.

She was to be offered as a concubine to Yeongnakje.

Furthermore, despite the passage of time, his younger sister had not been married off yet and would eventually be sent as a concubine to Seondeokje.

When Hanhak’s father passed away early, he had to make decisions regarding the household affairs.

If his father were alive, he probably wouldn’t have offered his daughters as concubines.

Moreover, even though his younger sister had reached marriageable age, she was kept unmarried until being sent to Seondeokje as a concubine.

At that time, his younger sister expressed resentment, saying, “Already selling one sister for wealth and status, now wanting to sell me too for more glory?”

“There is clearly no sibling love.”

Selling off sisters for personal gain.

In reality, due to his sisters, Hanhak rose to become a prominent figure in the Joseon political scene, wielding an influence so great that even King Sejong couldn’t touch him when he faced impeachment on adultery charges.

Many people criticized Hanhak for using his sisters to gain power.

“Anyway, Hanhak gained power that not even the royal family could touch. Was there any reason not to establish friendly relations with him early on?”

Human nature is human nature; was there any reason not to utilize it?

There are quite a few scoundrels in Joseon.

From my perspective, Hanhak was the lifeline to ascend.

Adding a final note about Hanhak, he was such a handsome man that Yeongnakje intended to take him as her son-in-law.

In future terms, a flower boy.

However, desiring the head of a snake over the tail of a dragon, Hanhak cleverly declined the proposal under the pretext of his stepmother.

“Quite clever.”

Being a son-in-law might seem impressive, but with dozens of concubines, the offspring of such a union wouldn’t be extraordinary.

Coming from Joseon, if he made a name in Ming, he would just end up with mediocre wealth and nothing more.

If he committed a crime, he would surely pay the price.

“But the real issue with this Divine Ministry is Hwang.”

To put it bluntly, that woman!

Pretending to be innocent while stabbing others in the back, a woman who not only brings harm upon herself but also entangles those around her.

In fact, calling her a woman falls short.

She provided Ming with a legitimate reason to invade Joseon.

What was that reason, you ask?

A tremendous event unfolds in the original history: Hwang, the daughter of Hwangha-sin, has a lover, conceals her pregnancy, and travels to Beijing.

Hold on!

Does she really have a lover?

Isn’t she just unable to resist her desires and embraced a man?

Regardless, once this is discovered, Yeongnakje flies into a rage, and chaos ensues.

One learns of becoming a concubine just a few months before joining the Divine Ministry.

But how could she boldly engage in a relationship with a man like this?

It’s madness.

It could have led to war, yet unbelievably, Hanhak’s sister resolves the situation in a ridiculous manner.

Precisely, it was her cunning and beauty.

Han pleads before Yeongnakje, persuading her with kind words, and it all ends with Han slapping Hwang across the face.

Just one slap?

Hard to believe, but it’s what happened in the original history.

Hwang saves her life and remains in the palace as a concubine.

In the records, it is said that Yeongnakja loved and esteemed Han Shi deeply.

However, in my view, it doesn’t seem like being a concubine woman dedicated to Han Shi is the only reason, no matter how clever she may be.

It seems more likely that Yeongnakja fell head over heels for Han Shi’s beauty and decided to cover up the issue with Hwang Shi as well.

This was my guess, and what I later found out was that Hwang Shi’s beauty surpassed that of Han Shi.

Perhaps Yeongnakja forgave Hwang Shi’s lack of purity due to being captivated by his beauty.

From Yeongnakja’s perspective, Hwang Shi was not just any concubine; he was a man to fulfill her desires. So whether she had previous relations with men or not didn’t matter as long as she was a beauty?

Hwang Shi’s beauty must have been exceptional enough to even arouse such thoughts in the old Yeongnakja.

“I haven’t seen her in person yet, but I’m quite curious.”

However, I couldn’t decide whether to reveal the fact of Hwang Shi’s pregnancy or not.

Keeping quiet might resolve things, but wouldn’t the Royal Court face significant repercussions if Hwang Shi were absent?

I could also face some consequences.

“But the moment when Hwang Shi falls in love with another man isn’t documented in history.”

That was the issue.

Perhaps she was still a pure maiden at present.

She might have gotten into an accident the day before leaving for Hanyang as part of the Royal Court.

Therefore, I couldn’t intervene.

Rumors of me becoming part of the Royal Court and heading to Beijing reached my parents, and talk of marriage was put on hold.

A few months of long-distance travel where anything could happen.

Not within the country but going abroad.

No one was consulted in case something unexpected occurred during the journey.

“Haha. Going to Beijing at this time… There’s much to gain. A lot.”

Above all, what I wanted was clear and transparent clean glass.

In fact, I had tried to make glass on my own.

The method of making glass from sand was readily available online.

However, watching videos of people making it, all I saw was cloudy glass due to impurities.

I knew the process, but I wasn’t confident I could make that clean glass without impurities.

The reason I wanted clean glass so badly was…

A telescope!

Furthermore, the ultimate goal was to make a microscope.

Lastly, a glass bottle to store pathogens.

I had kept them in makeshift bottles, but a transparent glass bottle with a visible interior was better.

After glass, what I wanted was a large ship.

Not a coastal vessel but an ocean-faring warship capable of reaching the Pacific Ocean if possible.

With the shipbuilding technology of the Ming Dynasty, it was entirely feasible.

The proof was the Zheng He’s voyages.

Under Yeongnakja’s command, Zheng He traveled the world several times. Some say that the Zheng He expedition discovered the American continent in 1421 and that Columbus navigated based on maps made here seventy years later.

Getting a warship would be great, but it wouldn’t be sold by the Ming Empire, and even if it were, it would surely be unaffordable.

So, even if I could get a shipbuilder, would that be possible?

Building a large ship for ocean voyages is a strategic asset, and technicians with such skills would likely be managed by the state.

“Or could I become part of the Zheng He expedition?”

Would that be possible?

Honestly, in terms of probability, there was a 99.9% chance it wasn’t.

But if it did happen, I could sail around Southeast Asia, pass through India, reach Arabia and Africa, or even Europe.

It would be a long voyage spanning several years, but I felt confident enough to endure it in my youth.

“As long as they let me join.”

Upon returning from the voyage, by then King Taejong… or rather, Sejong, would be in power.

Taizong died in 1422 from a stroke-induced cerebral hemorrhage.

Sejong will probably use me as a naval commander.

Then…

“Am I becoming the descendant of Yi Sun-sin… No, should I say senior?”

Changing the life of Yi Jing-ok, who was a source of fear for the Jurchens, is already quite a change, isn’t it?

Since I became a messenger, I had things to prepare as well.

First, money!

Are you going to steal again?

Of course.

I raided Jo Malsang’s house twice, but honestly, it was like taking candy from a baby.

If the stolen money were converted to the 21st century, it might amount to around 20 to 30 billion won at most?

Jo Malsang may be worth billions or even trillions, so what are 20 or 30 billion to him!

Like before, I sneaked out to Jo Malsang’s house for some mischief.

When I returned, I brought back handfuls of gold ingots as usual.

“One preparation is done, the next one is needed.”

That would be clothing, leather shoes, and equipment.

During the civil service examination, individuals had to prepare their own bows and arrows in Joseon.

The military officials escorting us to the Divine Army could provide a new set of clothes, but that’s probably all.

You need spare clothes, everyday wear, shoes, and also visited the blacksmith to get a new sword and spear.

I also requested a special dagger to use with camouflage.

After gathering everything necessary, I packed them into a bundle.