Joseon Military Officer, Establishing Balhae - Chapter 353



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Episode 353

The Age of Electricity – Epilogue

23rd year of Geonheung, 1618 AD, summer. Seolhae Port.

The Balhae Navy’s Haerang-class flagship, Haerangham, glided into Seolhae Bay and gently docked at the Seolhae Port pier.

Governor Henry Middleton of British South Formosa, who had been on deck for several hours, shortly after the east coast land came into view, opened his mouth in amazement at the sight of the port of Ssalhaes ahead.

“Hahaha! Choryang Port was nothing. I’ve heard so many stories about how huge Seolhae Port is, and it really is.”

Seolhae Port has grown more than ten times since it first opened. As a result, almost half of the Seolhae Bay coast has been developed into a port, and is now connected to the coast of Haepyeong-dong, Jeollyeong-si. In addition, the adjacent Yeonchu Port and Bonghwang Port are growing larger by the day, and as time goes by, the entire Seolhae Bay coast will be connected to a port.

In addition, the appearance of the downtown area of ​​Ssulhae with its six-story or higher buildings located behind the port area made Ssulhae Port feel even more bustling and magnificent.

“But before that, I really want this ship.”

John Sarris, who accompanied Middleton this time, showed greater interest in the harbour.

“I agree with that. I wish we could have a high-speed ship modeled after this ship soon.”

Middleton turned his head and scanned the deck.

The first thing that caught my eye was the appearance of the Jesuit priests stationed at the Choryang Parish, the Portuguese representative Monteros Domingo, the Spanish Philippines Governor Juan de Silva, and Adjutant Garcia. They too were admiring the scenery of Seolhae Port with a look of amazement on their faces.

Middleton’s eyes fell on another group. His expression crumpled. They were the envoys from the Great Viet Nation, the Kingdom of Brunei, the Federation of Darida, and the Federation of Tarag. Middleton was very wary of Formosa and the Southeast Asian indigenous nations interacting with Balhae.

Song Hee-rip, who received Taegeon’s order, led a fleet with the help of the Kuma merchants and visited the Daiyue Kingdom and the Brunei Kingdom, and after that, people and goods began to travel back and forth little by little. And finally, the people of that country were invited to this event and boarded the Haerangham. In addition to them, delegations from Ryukyu, Kuma, Taizan, and Japan also boarded the ship.

“Wow! That’s really amazing.”

Middleton, who was looking at the members of the delegation, was amazed at Balhae’s diplomatic power. Since the Qing delegation had already arrived, Balhae was interacting extensively with all the Northeast Asian countries except the Ming, and even with several Southeast Asian countries, and at that, it had a superior status.

“That’s true. Looking at the people on this ship, I can feel the power of Balhae. Look at that Philippine governor. I didn’t know that the Spanish governor would come in person. Oh, and come to think of it, we too…….”

Sarris trailed off with an embarrassed expression. Middleton was also a British nobleman and held the title of Governor, so he was nominally on par with Governor Silva.

“Would it be a shame to miss this opportunity? I think Admiral Silva probably accepted the invitation with the same thought as I did. There must have been many countries where the king himself made a fuss, saying he wanted to go. He probably couldn’t come because his subjects strongly discouraged him.”

“Hahaha! I guess so.”

“It seems that Balhae’s policy has changed significantly. Now they say they will open the gates of Seoul.”

The Balhae government actually invited the delegations from each country under the pretext of the opening ceremony of the National Museum of Korea. However, the governments of each country that received the invitation paid more attention to the fact that Balhae was the first to open Seoul. This was because they had the opportunity to see the mainland of the great Balhae Empire, which had been shrouded in mystery, and its capital city at that. For them, who had often visited Choryang, the most prosperous city in the southern seas, and had satisfied their curiosity about Seoul, this invitation was no different from the opportunity of a lifetime.

“I was also surprised when I saw the invitation.”

“I guess they decided it was okay to make it public now.”

“That makes sense. What would Balhae be afraid of today? In that sense, I can’t tell you how happy I am that the Netherlands is out.”

“Hahaha! Now that I think about it, that’s true. How foolish of you to lose to Balhae and Cheok and miss out on such a great opportunity!”

“You were really stupid. How many times did Balhae warn you not to commit piracy in the waters of Northeast Asia? And yet you dared to do that to Balhae merchant ships? What’s more, you even went so far as to join the war on the side of the Ming Dynasty.”

Sarris, who had arrived in South Formosa late, was greatly delighted to hear about what had happened in Northeast Asia. He had heard so much about what the Dutch had done, especially the Battle of Hany Islands, that he felt as if he had been there himself.

“The painters were excited too.”

Like them, the Spanish, Portuguese, and British painters on deck were also busy sketching the surrounding scenery. They planned to use this opportunity to capture as many Balhae artifacts as possible on canvas and send them back to their home country.

As the wooden stairs connecting the Haerangham and the dock descended, the guests began to disembark one by one. The first one standing in front was Heo Gyun. Heo Gyun was also on board the Haerangham to guide the outside guests.

Following Heo Gyun, Admiral Silva of the Spanish Philippines and Middleton disembarked one after another.

The one who greeted Heo Gyun was Lee Ha-ryun. The two people who met again after a long time smiled brightly and shook hands, then grabbed each other’s arms. It was a lively greeting that was hard to find in this day and age.

Yi Ha-ryun greeted the guests one by one. The foreign guests were very satisfied with the greeting from the second-ranking official in Balhae, the prime minister. This was because it was an expression of his respect for them.

The outside officials guided the foreign delegation to the best guest house (hotel) in Seolhaesi. They were tired from the boat ride from Choryang Port, so they could rest there for a night.

* * *

After the welcome dinner held at the Ssulhae Guesthouse, Lee Ha-ryun, Heo Gyun, Chief of Naval Staff Tae-mi, and Marine Corps Commandant Jeon Ji-ro gathered separately to have drinks.

“Come to think of it, it seems like only people I met for the first time in Hanyang have gathered here?”

Heo Gyun spoke with a smile, holding his glass high.

“Huh? Is that really so? If we add Giha and the Empress and a few other people here, then everyone will be gathered?”

Lee Ha-ryun said, clinking Heo Gyun’s glass.

“Come to think of it, it would be nice if the Minister of the Armed Forces and the Army Chief of Staff were here too. It’s been a while since I’ve seen them.”

Heo Gyun thought of Song Chan-hwang and Jeong Gang-bin.

“Back then, we were all in our fresh-faced twenties. Including Commander Jeon Ji-ro. Hahaha!”

When Lee Ha-ryun looked at him with a mischievous smile, Jeon Ji-ro also smiled shyly and raised his glass.

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They no longer had the looks they had before they left for Gyeongheung to accomplish their great undertaking. Taegeon was already in his fifties, and the others were of a similar age.

Tammy asked, looking at the battery.

“I heard you’re stepping down from your post as Marine Corps Commandant this time?”

“Yes, I plan to take office as the Hongjebu Governor.”

“You’ll do well.”

“Haha! That’s not true. Now, Hongjebu has become a place with many more Koryo people. So anyone who goes there can do well.”

Hongjebu, which consists of the northern part of Japan and Sado Island, was a more popular place for immigrants than Hokkaido. As a result, many immigrants came to the area right after Joseon was absorbed into Balhae, and the population increased rapidly. Thanks to the mines on Sado Island that produced gold and silver, local taxes were also abundant, and development was progressing very quickly.

“Anyway, congratulations. You must have had a hard time in the military.”

“Thank you, princess.”

“Oh! What about the princess? I told you to just be comfortable.”

Tammy let out a soft sigh. Since they first met in Japan, Jeon Ji-ro had treated Tae-geon as his master, and had been showing respect to his younger sister, Tammy. Tammy was dissatisfied with that.

“But what about Hong Kong?”

“Are we talking about work again while drinking? Wow, you’re going too far.”

Heo Gyun sighed at Lee Ha-ryun’s question.

“It’s a drinking snack, right?”

“Yeah, it is a good snack to have with alcohol. Hehe!”

The talk about drinking was purely a joke. Heo Gyun began to talk excitedly with an excited expression.

“The Hong Kong system is developing at a frightening rate. Buildings are being built on Bongsan Island as well. This is all thanks to the Ming merchants flocking in. That’s why the merchants from Jeju who entered Hong Kong early are making a lot of money. As soon as they load their goods onto ships from Choryang, the Ming merchants buy them up. And at very high prices. That’s why the growth of the Hamdeok merchants from Jeju is frightening.”

For quite some time, Ming merchants had been desperately hoping for a channel to open up where they could legally purchase Balhae goods in large quantities. However, when the Balhae government strengthened its ties with the Ming and opened Hong Kong to Ming merchants, Hong Kong began to boil over, and the development of Hong Kong Island and Bongsan Island was rapidly progressing.

“Then wouldn’t the neighboring Macau business district have died a lot?”

“Well, since Western ships mainly come and go, the commercial area is maintained to some extent. And… wow! It’s nice.”

Heo Gyun tilted his glass, poured the drink into his mouth, and continued speaking.

“The Sultanate of Brunei has requested the export of weapons. Please give us as many matchlock guns, gunpowder, and bullets as possible.”

“As expected.”

“Yes. From their perspective, England, Spain, and even the Netherlands are all scary enemies. That’s why we decided to send the weapons and instructors as per Giha’s request.”

“Britain must be feeling a little queasy. They must be after the Sultanate of Brunei. You can tell just by looking at the island of Gaya that they are using. In Formosa, they are content with Southern Formosa because they are concerned about our feelings, but they can be greedy for the Sultanate of Brunei. It is a place that is free from our interference.”

“That’s right. The British must be having a hard time. They have to compete with the Dutch, and the native nations are starting to arm themselves with gunpowder weapons.”

Heo Gyun said with a pleased expression.

“Oh! And I have some special news. Have you heard of Dongsado? We named it Hwan-hwan-do.”

Heo Gyun asked Lee Ha-ryun. Of course Lee Ha-ryun knew, but he was in no position to pretend to know.

“Is this your first time hearing about this?”

Dongsha Island is an isolated island about 330 miles southeast of Hong Kong, and was a coral island. In addition to Dongsha Island, several submerged reefs are grouped together and called Dongsha Islands, and the country that actually occupied these islands in the future was Taiwan.

Heo Gyun explained that the Navy heard rumors about the island through various channels and sent a fleet to find it.

“Uninhabited island?”

“Of course. How could people live there? They say there is groundwater, but it contains a lot of salt, so it’s not suitable for drinking.”

“And yet the Navy wants to make that island its territory?”

“Yes. He said that it must be brought because the location is so good. Since it rains a lot there, the troops stationed there can collect the rainwater. Or they can distill it to make fresh water.”

“Haha! That’s what I said?”

Tammy joined in with a smile.

“Haha! I was so engrossed in the conversation that I forgot about it for a moment.”

“Navy people have also become incredibly greedy for territory.”

Lee Ha-ryun smiled at Tammy and said.

“What can compare to the army? Look at that empty northern territory.”

“Haha! That’s our geometry work. But what about Kabe and tea farming?”

Kabe was soon coffee. The British side, responding to Taegeon’s request, stole coffee seedlings and seeds from the Mughal Empire of Arabia and India and provided them to Balhae at a high price. That happened last year.

“In the case of Kabe, they are diligently conducting test cultivation in North Formosa. I heard that England has also started farming in South Formosa. As for tea, they are continuously expanding their farms, so there is no need to say more.”

As we talked about coffee, Lee Ha-ryun’s eyes were filled with longing.

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