Chapter 51

Chapter 51

Modernity Is Cold (1)

1853.

The traditional Middle Kingdom order began to be driven into the cold sea while emitting the roar of the Titanic hitting an iceberg.

“Negotiate! Let’s negotiate!”

“We have no intention of collapsing Qing’s national polity. If our free trade is guaranteed we will not be hostile to your country either.”

“Supporting rebels while saying such nonsense...?”

“How do we crack down one by one on some civilians arbitrarily selling weapons? Really unrelated to our intention? But, if related what will you do? Quit negotiating and continue the war?”

Qing lost every battle.

Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Nian Army.

And even Western barbarians.

Rebellions and secret struggles happening from all sides were not a level the already weakened Qing could handle.

Whether the Xianfeng Emperor and friends who abandoned Beijing and fled to Rehe, or guys who just abandoned official posts and everything and returned to the countryside the thoughts that came to mind were all similar.

‘Has the time really come for the country to perish?’

‘Already? Already perishing?’

If a friend one sees often got corona one would say manage the body a bit and live.

If the guy who got corona suddenly got a urinary stone the next week and is lying in the emergency room one would say that guy is really unlucky.

But if the guy who broke the stone and was discharged immediately gets tonsillitis and is groaning?

If putting a talk to the lying guy saying will shoot one gifticon and the reply comes back ‘hey but I seem to have gotten hemorrhoids too’?

At first thinking this guy was lying from the beginning but later what? Is that bastard really wrong somewhere? Isn’t this going to get yukgaejang? And anxiety would creep up?

Qing was exactly like this.

No matter who sees Qing now was the upper idiot among idiots with corona and stones and tonsillitis and lower abdominal diseases that can name in a row.

Of course people who prepare a will or join whole life insurance as the insured because catching diseases in consecutive at-bats are rare.

“When this war ends must necessarily reform.”

“Accept Western objects, drive out corrupt officials, and above all burn that opium clean!”

Thinking health seems greatly ruined so must rest a bit and build stamina.

Meanwhile the three countries of Britain France America also gradually complicated their thoughts.

‘How to end the war?’

Their goal is not burning Beijing and entering the Forbidden City with military boots and declaring the founding of an empire.

These just came to earn money.

To be precise, just want to thoroughly beat the arrogant Chink who keeps not grasping the situation and trying to lock the house latch and then straighten the shoulders and confidently exchange the gold silver treasures piled in the Chinks’ house with bullets.

No matter how excitingly killing Chinese what.

The moment hearing the sound couldn’t even extract the gunpowder cost their future becomes gloomy.

These Westerners were gradually becoming more scared of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom than Qing.

“These bastards are pure pseudo?”

“Their leader is Jesus’s younger brother? Aren’t they crazy guys?”

“Moreover shouting anti-opium, anti-foreign power. Now because needing our weapons only chattering with mouths, but if these seize all of China our trade profit will definitely plummet.”

Still Qing is better than the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

People who saw the reality of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom with two eyes directly poured passionate speech saying ‘those bastards are not even humans let alone conversation partners’ so Western powers gradually began to feel anxiety at the growth of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Thus finally both sides prepared delegations for peace negotiations and entered negotiations but.

“Qing guys, seem still not coming to their senses.”

“Those guys don’t even know the simple truth that just signing the treaty we hold out is enough and still trying to secure something more.”

“Fine. Then advance to Beijing!”

21st century people while training cooperative spirit and politics in the canyon naturally know that pirates’ negotiation is not ‘negotiation’ but ‘heeeeego tiation’. Because the act of putting a bullet in the opponent’s head and harvesting gold is the pirates’ common sense.

But 19th century Qing people did not know that.

They like common sense people give what to give but try to secure what to secure, and because of that ended up offending the mood of these barbaric pirate bastards.

Beijing burned up.

The Forbidden City was trampled.

It was the moment the authority of the Great Qing Empire plummeted.

***

The peaceful country across the shallow West Sea from Qing, the Joseon Kingdom.

“My goodness. Beijing burned?”

“They say so.”

“The Qing army not only retreated without leaving one but couldn’t even protect the capital and ancestral temples?”

“Yes! Now Western armies are plundering all of Beijing!”

“Huh.”

The ministers large and small of this country trembled hearing this news.

And.

“Heu. Heuheu.”

“Heuhihihihi!!”

“Hahahaha!! Heuhahaha!!”

Convulsed twisting the whole body like a patient having a seizure.

“Keuhehehehe!!”

“Keuhihihihi!!”

“Right, right! Even that Great Qing collapsed unable to defeat a handful of Western army, how could a country like Joseon have defeated them?”

“Early we did not fight them with spears and swords but rather bestowed virtue and mercy, and our greatest pride the Way on them and treated the guests who came generously. Since embraced without fighting this is also His Majesty’s holy virtue.”

“Facing reality Joseon is becoming healthy.”

“The main culprit of the conflict between East and West is Qing. Only if Qing disappears can we correct the order that forms the foundation of the world one by one!”

We were not wrong!

Preserved the ancestral temples and altars before getting fucked like Qing!

My goodness. Qing coin. Even just putting such smelly and dirty Jurchen barbarian coin in the pocket the stench would pierce the nose why must hold such a thing.

Joseon people quickly empathized with ‘Joseon’s friend the British Empire’. That side is much more beneficial for mental and physical stability, right.

Next leisurely appreciated the appearance of the eternal enemy of the people Jurchen queue men being slaughtered while popping popcorn.

“Recently disturbances in the country were frequent and corrupt officials ran rampant and reached treason, so must fill new wine in a new bottle. Want to invite virtuous wise men who could not see the light suffering from the powerful.”

Absolutely not a special civil service exam commemorating the Beijing sea of fire. Just the king saying there are many truly happy things these days and taking the exam.

The young king was different from those who only talk ahead.

He really needed new talent matching his taste, and personally went to the civil service exam site and set <​Beijing became a sea of fire what should Joseon do?> as the exam question.

“<​Now is the time to more faithfully serve the great against Western barbarians>... this bastard fails.”

“<​Serving the Middle Kingdom is the etiquette of a vassal>... this bastard also fails.”

“<​The king must cultivate more and polish body and mind> this bastard also fails. Have the Office of the Inspector General investigate once how clean this one’s body and mind are.”

The king was disappointed like a company commander doing roll call on Sunday morning.

But not all scholars of Joseon land were such people.

“<​Qing perished because virtue was lacking, so the king with high virtue must advance to the nine-five position> this one must see a bit.”

“<​The matter of Britain punishing the traitor Kim Jwageun is a matter comparable to the re-creation grace bestowed by Shenzong Wanli, must model Britain’s systems and objects>. This one passes.”

“<​The country becoming this shape is all the fault of petty people who monopolized power, must cast them all out and gather talent buried in the countryside>. This one also passes.”

Still fluffy downy scholars greatly enjoyed the glory of passing the civil service exam, but that did not mean they immediately obtained official posts.

By this era Joseon’s civil service exam passers were already overflowing.

No matter how tremendous numbers of scholar-officials met miserable fates with the great purge, because existing passers were already full Joseon’s mini mini court could not give official posts to all of them.

The king again summoned his trick pouch, the think tank Lee Aseul who always provides the West’s miraculous ideas.

“Want to cast out scholars stained with old ways and embrace new and vigorous scholars in the court. Is there no way to smoothly perform this?”

“There are three policies.”

“Hoho, as many as three? Speak.”

Now Lee Aseul was gradually grasping what 19th century Joseon likes and dislikes.

“Make the judiciary independent.”

“Heard once told that story to Heungseon-gun before too.”

“Why do magistrates as soon as going to their posts all become anxious unable to exploit? This means the root is wrong so must correct.”

“In what way?”

“They say the things magistrates have to do are too excessive so sincere officials have to leave after only doing trials upon appointment. If splitting the magistrate position and separately placing officials who only judge can finish all the things Your Majesty worries about at once.”

If separately placing judges equal to magistrates and having them exclusively in charge of trials the magistrate only has jurisdiction over administration.

Moreover if subtly adding ‘impeaching if the magistrate committed corruption’ to this judge’s role can fundamentally block the magistrate from doing corrupt official acts.

“Then if that judge commits injustice?”

“Have the magistrate report the judge.”

“Making them stab each other, that is a decent policy.”

Originally corruption is mostly like that as the number of heads increases by one the probability of one guy betraying and getting fucked also rises exponentially. Similar principle to collusion not lasting long.

Moreover judges are also official posts once, so hundreds of official positions are created at once. This much even guys whose mouths stuck out five feet unable to do official posts after passing the exam will be satisfied in considerable numbers.

“But the country’s finances are not affluent if expanding official positions so much problems will necessarily arise.”

“That precisely connects to the second policy.”

“Hoho. What is it?”

“Split unpaid official posts and paid official posts.”

Salaries are paid to Joseon’s officials.

Always chewed as paid only rat tail amount salaries, but from the court’s position if combining all those rat tails quite big money goes out and always a headache.

But Lee Aseul boldly broke this common sense.

“There is no glorious thing as much as a scholar going out to the official path and doing state affairs. If enjoying such glory must offer wealth to the country, why wasting the national treasury?”

“...Is, is that so?”

“Yes! The West from long ago, from the time of the Great Qin (Rome) those who want to become officials had to demolish the family’s property and widely inform their spirit and insight and persuade the people.”

Don’t give money.

No, if wanting to do official posts make them pay money.

“This, that, selling official posts-”

“Only after cultivating oneself and regulating the family can govern the country. Isn’t it the law that those who can sufficiently eat and live and maintain livelihood by governing the household come out to the official path and can engage in state affairs without committing injustice. Those who have to rely on a handful of salary ultimately are likely to be bought with more gold silver treasures.”

Confucian scholar Lee Hwan raised the inner voice saying don’t listen to this crazy sound.

But the monarch of blood and steel Heonjong instantly created the miracle process of ‘if a guy I like just give some fields and make him do official posts?’ and smiled contentedly.

“What is the last policy again?”

“Joseon is implementing the civil service exam system as a method of selecting excellent scholars, but this civil service exam only sees the scholar’s learning and wisdom and cannot select talent competent in practical affairs. Must gather the scholars who passed the exam and teach the work once more.”

“Meaning make one more Seonggyungwan targeting only those who passed the exam?”

“Precisely so.”

In 21st century terms this is precisely <​training institute>.

Joseon also had a system similar to probation but it was not systematic. From the beginning regardless of East or West in pre-modern society processes other than rule of thumb running were rare. Joseon level ran regular processes through documents in its own way quite a bit.

But to 21st century people even this was not satisfying.

“Speaking of Britain there are excellent schools like <​Eton> that unite young people as one and cultivate excellent human images. Joseon already has various learning places like hyanggyo, seowon, Seonggyungwan so now there must be a place to teach practical affairs.”

Nice words scholars buried in the countryside but aren’t they exam students who know nothing except Confucian classics.

To make them bureaucrats of a modern state of course <​Eton spirit> is needed.

The king also liked the third idea the most.

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