Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 152



Only Noblemtl

#152. Conscription or the Melting Pot of the People (3)

“Do you know who I am and dare to act like this?!”

“It’s all over, Chief Customs Officer! You have been accused of embezzling customs duties that should have gone to the national treasury for personal gain, and on top of that, investing in the British stock market and causing huge losses. So, I will send you to Seoul!”

Instead of the Ministry of Finance who went down to Jemulpo, Eo Yun-jung, together with the National Military Police, the Ministry of Finance investigation office personnel, and the Incheon Police Department police officers who had surrounded the customs office upon their request for support, arrested Chief Tax Accountant McLeavey Brown without warning.

Given his status as a foreign adviser, this was a rather unusual move.

“Let go of me! You damn fools! My only crime was controlling your customs!”

“Please go to Hanseongbu and talk about the details.”

As he was being dragged away, he screamed that he was innocent, but he had no choice but to face the brutal force of the military police officers who tied him up with ropes and took him to Hanseongbu.

The secretaries of the Ministry of Finance’s investigation office had already begun to inspect the operational status of Incheon Customs, and a large-scale audit of budget use was underway under the direction of Eo Yun-joong.

“Then that’s right.”

Eo Yoon-joong clicked his tongue as he looked at one of the documents the secretary had brought. The 500,000 Mexican silver coins that should have been clearly stored at the customs office were empty. It seemed that there was a reason why the customs office ignored the recommendation to pay it to the Central Bank of Joseon.

“It seems like it will be difficult to recover. It seems like it is in the Hong Kong bank account of the tax accountant…”

“You are pathetic. While the head office is in Jemulpo, you should not overlook even a single hair or a speck of dust. What these people are playing with is the blood and sweat of our Korean people, and it is tax money that should have been properly offered to His Majesty the Emperor. If you see even a single penny being wasted, report it immediately!”

Eo Yoon-joong took action as if he had seized the right opportunity. He planned to expand the investigation to the inspection office and Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency, which have close ties to the customs office.

McLeavy Brown has made the customs office his playground for nearly a decade, so he must have quite a few toys stashed away.

“Sir, the ledger is empty more than you think. The assets that should be held by customs are currently estimated to be over 20 million won.”

“Are you combining the actual items?”

“Yes. There should be about that much in silver and gold bars combined, but in reality, only 8 million won, less than half of that, is stored in safes and such. And even that is mostly in Japan’s First Bank notes, not in valuable silver and gold bars. We need to find out where the rest of the funds are.”

“Find out all the guys involved in this matter, even if it means kicking them all out.”

He spoke while gritting his teeth. His temper from when he was acting military minister was still showing. The officers of the National Military Police who accompanied him and the elites in the investigation room could not help but feel tense at the sight of their superior.

“I think we also need to investigate the Japanese consulate in Jemulpo and the Jeil Bank branch, sir. It seems like the money has been flowing in there.”

I had expected it, but there were far more people involved than I had thought. And with the Incheon Consulate and Jeil Bank branch in Jemulpo also involved, something more serious than I had thought was going to happen.

“But that is an area where extraterritoriality applies. If we enter without permission, there will definitely be problems.”

“Clever bastards.”

Eo Yoon-joong spoke while gritting his teeth. However, it was not like he could not collect the additional tax.

As if a good idea had just occurred to him, he called over the investigator who was sitting nearby.

“Send an official document to the Japanese consulate in Jemulpo and the Jeil Bank branch to request their cooperation in the investigation.”

“They won’t accept it.”

“I’m sending this because I know that. Also tell them that if they don’t cooperate with the proper investigation, I will take all measures I can as the head of the Ministry of Finance. This will also allow me to uproot the First Bank.”

“But if we’re not careful, it could easily escalate into a diplomatic issue.”

“According to the last agreement, we were recognized as an independent nation, and we are simply exercising our rights accordingly. They have no reason to stop us.”

Then he clenched his fist and said, Perhaps he could put an end to the economic war, the silent war that had been waged against Japan since 1896. If that happened, the three characters of Eo Yun-jung’s name would remain in history for quite a long time.

“Just in case, put a chimney outside too. We need to prepare them too.”

“Understood, sir.”

The employee answered with his head down. He himself wondered how the gamble he had thrown would play out in the future. And deep down, he expected the Japanese consulate and embassy to go crazy. The more they went crazy, the more clearly they would show the world their antics.

***

bang!

The sound of a grenade exploding could be heard in the distance. It also meant that the prototype grenade that had been ordered from Captain Peyre and Mr. Choi Jae-hyung was working properly.

The terrified soldiers hesitated to throw, so I showed them how to use it myself and fired five rounds in quick succession into the prepared firing range.

With safety thus ensured, the demonstration could proceed properly.

“Gentlemen, what you are seeing in front of you is a grenade that our army infantry will be using in the future. Previously, only properly trained assault infantry units carried dynamite and used it to throw grenades at the enemy, but this was difficult to produce and distribute, and the probability of accidents occurring without proper training was high, so there were restrictions.”

I said, assuming the most comfortable position possible.

The sword on the left side of my waist was a bit heavy and unbalanced, but I tried to ignore it.

At the demonstration site, generals and civilian personnel of the military, carrying binoculars, were asking to see the scene of the grenade explosion once more, and military attachés from each country’s embassy also looked on with interest.

Of course, in their eyes, it will not seem like anything more than an ‘interesting toy’.

Since they were operating grenadiers, they probably knew the concept of a grenade, so when reporting to their home country, they would have described it as something like, ‘We are simply making a bomb that can be thrown by hand.’

However, the Japanese embassy attaché, Major Nozu, was looking at the grenade with a rather serious expression. Right now, that guy is the biggest problem, the problem.

“But this prototype grenade does not have such concerns.”

Then he showed us model grenades that he had made in advance for display and explained them one by one.

The grenade body could be made simply by casting, or, if in a hurry, it could be made temporarily from things like tin cans. Gunpowder could be produced locally in Jemulpo, the outskirts of Hanseongbu, and Pyongyang, but the biggest problem was the fuse.

Due to domestic circumstances, it was not possible to immediately produce friction fuses that could be used in hand grenades. So, I think they purchased friction fuses from France and produced prototypes.

“If you remove the protective cover and safety ring shown here, the friction fuse inside the grenade will activate, stimulating the detonator and causing it to explode. This entire process takes about 5 to 7 seconds, and the soldier throwing the grenade must perform all actions within that time.”

Right next to him, Lieutenant Colonel Posch showed the priest and spoke.

“You can trust the internal fuse, which is our French-made, trustworthy and reliable ‘Modèle 1882’ grenade fuse.”

Well, that might not be something you can trust that much. The detonators of the types of grenades used during this period were all made of paper, so it was inevitable that there would be problems in the humid climate of the Korean peninsula, where summer was approaching.

I hated that, so I thought about using a shock fuse, but seeing the result, I thought it would be better not to use it.

Due to the nature of the shock fuse, there were instances where it would automatically detonate when struck by a distant object while being carried, killing or injuring the user.

Moreover, the price of a single grenade with a shock fuse was $25, which was three times that of the prototype grenade currently in production.

Of course, I also really wanted to use something much better than a friction fuse. However, if I did that, stability would be a problem, and the price would be high, making mass production difficult.

It would be much more helpful for production efficiency to use what is realistic.

Besides, it wouldn’t end with just one grenade. Once the grenade was properly positioned, I also prepared a grenade canister that used the grenade as ammunition.

The concept of a grenade that flies much farther than a human-thrown grenade is, in a way, a system similar to a mortar, but it was also an attempt to make up for the lack of firepower to support infantry in this way.

“To the shooter’s position.”

“Get to the shooter’s position!”

The soldiers entered the bunker and waited for orders, each carrying his assigned grenade.

For this demonstration, they brought in regular infantrymen drawn from the protesters and SS, rather than assault infantrymen who were accustomed to explosives.

It was necessary to show that it could be used not only by those who were specially trained, but also by ordinary people with just a little bit of learning.

They repeated the commander’s orders and then threw the chunks of metal they were holding in their hands towards the target with grenades.

There was a moment of silence, then the grenade exploded, sending shrapnel and a loud bang.

Witnesses began discussing how a fist-sized chunk of metal could kill so many people.

“Director of Military Affairs, this is a very impressive weapon. I think it is similar to the Jincheon-roe used in the old Imjin Year. Although it is smaller.”

Baek Seong-gi, a military adviser who was fiddling with a model grenade, approached and shared his thoughts.

He looked quite interested and asked the question that was most curious and important to him.

“When will production be possible?”

It was a central question that ran through everything. Everything was good, so when would production be possible?

Unlike rifles that require various precision machines, they are easy to produce, and if you just secure the right fuse, you can produce a significant amount, so I answered confidently.

“If we can properly produce them at the two factories in Samcheong-dong and Hamheung, we could produce 100,000 rounds a year, or even more. That is, if we can properly expand our facilities.”

Even in Korea during the period of liberation, when industrial capacity and manufacturing base were inferior to those of the Korean Empire, more than 160,000 grenades were produced annually from the arsenal, so there was nothing that could not be done here.

Even during the 10 months when production was impossible due to a factory fire in 1951, 570,000 rounds were produced.

“Hmm, there are more of them than I thought.”

“As long as the supply of priests is adequate, it will be fine.”

“Good. Since the Minister of the Armed Forces has entrusted me with the entire business of the said weapon, I will give permission for production in my capacity as Acting Minister of the Armed Forces.”

“We will begin issuing them to all units, from assault units to regular infantry units.”

“Good.”

With his permission, production of hand grenades officially began in late 1901.

Anyway, today’s demonstration was successfully completed.

The goal was to produce a total of 30,000 rounds by the end of 1901 at the arsenals in Samcheong-dong and Hamheung, 50,000 rounds in 1902, and over 100,000 rounds in 1903.

In this way, preparations for the coming war were taking shape one by one.