"Haa~."
With a heavy sigh, the Minister of Finance, Kim Jeom, looked at the mountains of scrolls and books piled before him.
In the original history, he would have served as the Minister of Finance early in King Sejong's reign, then moved to the Ministry of Justice, and subsequently taken on the role of the Governor of Pyongan Province.
However, in this altered timeline, his fate had changed.
Despite several regular personnel changes in the court—where ministers typically swapped positions once a year—Kim Jeom remained in his post as Minister of Finance.
"I can't tell if this is a blessing or a curse."
Kim Jeom pondered whether his continued tenure as Minister of Finance was a good thing or a bad thing, but his wife was quite pleased.
"Isn't it good that you’re not going far away and staying in Hanyang?" Yet, there was a deeper reason for his wife's happiness.
If Kim Jeom were to be reassigned, the most likely position would be as the Governor of Pyongan Province, where the famous city of Pyongyang, known for its beauty, was located.
After being retained in the position of Minister of Finance, Kim Jeom's mundane routine of managing financial affairs was completely upended when Hyang was appointed as the Crown Prince.
The appointment of a Crown Prince was a significant event, as it granted him a certain degree of authority, even at a young age.
In that sense, Hyang's elevation to Crown Prince marked the beginning of a nightmare for the ministers.
Kim Jeom glared at the golden brush in his hand and muttered, "All of this started because of this brat."
The decision to entrust the production of golden brushes to the private sector had led to a rapid increase in both the quantity and intensity of work that the Ministry of Finance had to handle.
"Haa~. It was good at first."
When he first heard that the production would be handed over to the private sector, Kim Jeom felt optimistic.
To him, golden brushes were indeed useful items.
They were easier to manage than traditional brushes and had a decent lifespan.
Most importantly, even a second-grade silver brush was cheaper than a typical traditional brush.
Because of this, competition to become a producer of golden brushes would be fierce, and he was sure that he would receive a generous reward.
"I didn't realize the Crown Prince was so cunning."
The Crown Prince had created a ridiculous system by petitioning the king for the rights to produce golden brushes.
It was called "public bidding."
Under the Crown Prince's orders, the specifications for the golden brushes were communicated to the merchants who participated in the bidding.
According to this system, the merchants had to submit their production prices and undergo a public evaluation under the Crown Prince's supervision.
This was the moment when the gifts Kim Jeom had anticipated flew away.
The Crown Prince handed a note to the Minister of Finance, the Vice Minister, and the Assistant Minister in charge of the evaluation.
"Any merchant who bids below this price must be disqualified."
"What is this price?"
"This is the production cost incurred by the artisans of the Military Supplies Bureau when producing golden brushes. It includes material costs as well as the wages of the artisans, averaged out. Therefore, any merchant who bids lower than this amount must be disqualified."
Kim Jeom raised a question in response to the Crown Prince's statement.
"Isn't it good if they can produce it cheaper?"
The Crown Prince clicked his tongue.
"The materials used to make the golden brushes at the Military Supplies Bureau are all provided as tax contributions, so it would be hard to produce them at a lower cost. Yet, they claim they can produce them cheaper? Do you think that is possible, Minister?"
"... There will definitely be problems."
"Moreover, the golden brushes produced by the selected merchants will bear the symbol of the country’s quality assurance, the 'Flower Pattern.' If there are issues with the quality of such items, do you think the people will trust the country?"
"That is indeed concerning."
Under the Crown Prince's sharp words, Kim Jeom had to bow his head.
As he lowered his head, he could hear the Crown Prince grumbling.
"How can the Minister of Finance of a nation be so short-sighted? Tsk!"
Thus began Kim Jeom's trials, with the Crown Prince and King Sejong being the first to reprimand him among the ministers.
Kim Jeom's difficulties intensified with the nationwide implementation of smallpox vaccination.
During the vaccination process, the household registrations of the eight provinces of Joseon were reorganized.
The first batch of these reorganized registrations was submitted to King Sejong.
Upon seeing the figures, Sejong issued a furious decree to the ministers.
"The last time we organized the household registrations was only two years ago, and you expect me to believe that the population has increased this much in just two years?"
"Your Majesty!"
"Don't make excuses!" Sejong shouted, but the ministers had no words to respond.
Joseon reorganized its household registrations every three years.
The organized registrations were divided into three copies: one for the respective districts, one for the Ministry of Finance, and one for the local administrative offices.
However, looking at the household registration documents, the population of Joseon at the time of its founding (1392) was only about 300,000. After continuously settling refugees and conducting thorough household surveys, the population of Joseon had rapidly increased.
According to the household survey conducted two years ago, the population was around 1.9 million.
Yet, the recent smallpox vaccination revealed that the population had surged to 4.3 million.
"Speak up! Speak! Have the people of Joseon done nothing but give birth for the past two years? Is it possible for the population to increase by over 2 million in just two years?"
"Your Majesty!"
"Don't make excuses!" The ministers could only bow their heads in response to Sejong's rage.
However, both Sejong and the ministers understood the reason behind this situation.
Both the local administrative bodies and the people had found great benefits in evading the burdens of taxes, especially public contributions.
The people could reduce their tax burdens, and local officials could fill their own pockets.
Sejong, unable to contain his anger, turned red and pressed the ministers.
"When we founded Joseon, the population was small, and the nobility's exploitation left the people impoverished, so we reduced taxes! With less income, it was only natural to spend less, which is why we significantly cut the salaries of the royal family and ministers compared to the previous dynasty! Yet, look! The actual population is this high, but the registered population is less than half! The country is collecting fewer taxes, yet the people remain in poverty. Where has all that wealth gone?"
"...."
"Why is there no response? Isn't it obvious? If it weren't for the nobility, who else would be responsible? Those very nobles whom you protect!"
"Your Majesty!" Sejong gritted his teeth in frustration.
"In this chaotic state of the country, you say the nobility is innocent? Those wretched individuals!"
Sejong's anger turned toward the purged ministers.
The ministers, listening to Sejong's outburst, clicked their tongues inwardly. 'It seems those individuals will have a hard time being released from exile for a while.' 'Considering their age, they might not be released before they die in exile.'
"Hoo~."
Taking a deep breath to calm his anger, Sejong issued an order to the ministers.
"Immediately create accurate household and land registers!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"I have taken your hard work into account and included the reality of salaries in the reform measures! But do you think I should show such goodwill when you handle matters like this?"
"Your Majesty!"
"I will do my utmost to handle this!" The ministers responded, but Sejong's reaction was cold.
"We shall see!"
With Sejong's command, the Ministry of Finance became the most urgent.
Both the household and land registers fell under its jurisdiction.
Kim Jeom gathered his officials and conveyed the royal decree.
"We must revise both the household and land registers. Everyone, do your best!"
"Minister, but we are already overwhelmed with work!" One of the officials protested, and Kim Jeom shouted back.
"Then write your resignation! Who enjoys doing this? Do you think I like it?"
Under Kim Jeom's roar, the officials of the Ministry of Finance all became silent, only glancing at him.
"If you have complaints, deal with the local officials who are handling things poorly! First, find out where the population has increased the most compared to two years ago and report back!"
...
Fifteen days later, Kim Jeom submitted a scroll to Sejong.
"What is it?"
"It is a list of districts where the population has strangely increased while organizing the household register."
"Are there many such districts?"
"Indeed, but some are particularly severe."
Upon hearing Kim Jeom's response, Sejong unfurled the scroll and read its contents.
After carefully reading, Sejong frowned.
"This is quite serious..."
The scroll listed a total of 12 districts, with populations increasing from five to eight times.
Sejong, with a deeply furrowed brow, turned to the Chief Inspector.
"Summon the Chief Inspector."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Following Sejong's command, inspectors from the Office of Inspectorate headed to the 12 districts.
Upon arrival, they thoroughly investigated the local officials, clerks, and their superiors, resulting in the dismissal and exile of 26 former and current local officials, along with 40 clerks.
Kim Jeom and the officials of the Ministry of Finance felt a sense of relief, but it wasn't long before they faced the consequences.
"Another one has come!"
"Another one?"
At the report from his subordinate, Kim Jeom held his stiff neck.
"Where is it this time?"
"Gwangju in Jeolla Province."
"Damn it..."
Kim Jeom cursed.
As local officials faced consequences for the irregularities in the household register, other officials desperately devised measures to avoid the blade of scrutiny.
They rummaged through records left by their predecessors and compiled 'justifications' for the number of settled refugees and their children, as well as the rare cases of slaves who had become commoners due to exemptions.
They meticulously documented the scale of newly cultivated land and its current owners, and these records flooded into the Ministry of Finance daily.
From the Ministry of Finance's perspective, after venting their frustrations, they found themselves overwhelmed with even more work.
"Hehehe..."
"Haha! Haha!"
As the piles of documents grew, Kim Jeom and the officials of the Ministry of Finance could only laugh helplessly in disbelief.
Amidst the accumulating tasks, the Ministry of Finance was assigned yet another duty.
"The establishment of a nationwide organization to manage the monopoly of sugar and salt."
"I swear, I'm going to submit my resignation!"
"We're all going to die like this!"
"Whether we die this way or that way!"
As Kim Jeom and the officials of the Ministry of Finance made a solemn resolution, Hwang Hee proposed to Sejong the idea of 'recruiting personnel through the civil service examination.'
In response to Hwang Hee's suggestion, Hyang proposed hiring 'students from Sungkyunkwan' due to the issues of 'time and cost,' and Sejong accepted it.
Upon hearing the news that 'students from Sungkyunkwan would be recruited for the Ministry of Finance,' the officials of the Ministry of Finance erupted in cheers.
"Long live His Majesty!"
"Long live!"
"Now, let’s endure just a little longer."
"Yes, Minister."
After Kim Jeom encouraged them, the officials of the Ministry of Finance gathered their spirits once more to tackle their work.
However, some officials were overflowing with energy.
"What? A public examination?"
Startled while processing the mountain of reports, Kim Jeom jumped up.
He turned to the Vice Minister of Finance and asked, "Who on earth? Where? When?"
"Three days ago..."
"Bring those damned fools here immediately!"
A moment later, the officials who had conducted the public examination were lined up before Kim Jeom.
"How many of you are there?"
"There are 23 of us."
"That's disgustingly many..."
Kim Jeom shouted at the officials standing before him.
"Do you have any sense at all? A public examination! Why did you choose a public examination of all things?"
"I apologize. But the public examination is a tradition..."
"You wretched fools! This has been forbidden for generations! Especially since the current king punished the public examination just a year ago! What do you mean by tradition?!"
"I-I apologize!"
"What are we going to do about this? The inspectors from the Office of Inspectorate are probably already writing petitions! How are we going to resolve this?"
"I apologize!"
"If you wanted to apologize, you shouldn't have done something so foolish! Go home and reflect on your actions!"
"Yes..."
Under Kim Jeom's roar, the officials involved began to timidly leave his office.
Seeing this, Kim Jeom exploded in anger.
"Do you have shackles on your feet? Get out immediately!"
"Yes, sir!"
As Kim Jeom feared, upon receiving the report, Sejong was furious.
It seemed he was ready to impose the harshest punishment.
However, Hyang made a suggestion to Sejong.
Following Hyang's proposal, Sejong immediately executed the punishment.
It was a 'document organization punishment.' It was a punishment that required half of the Ministry of Finance's officials to finish organizing the household and land registers, which would normally take five years, within one year.
If they failed to complete it within a year, additional punishment of exile awaited them.
As a result, the officials involved could not even return home and had to stay in the newly established office next to the Ministry of Finance for their meals and lodging.
Although the personnel had increased, the workload for the Ministry of Finance had multiplied, leaving everyone, from Kim Jeom to the lowest-ranking officials, in a constant state of overwork.
Eventually, unable to bear it any longer, Sejong ordered a feast in the royal kitchen.
To be precise, it was a banquet disguised as a feast.
Sejong prepared a banquet for the officials of the Ministry of Finance and encouraged them.
"I know well that your work is hard. However, for the affairs of Joseon to run smoothly, the Ministry of Finance must be without issues, so I can only ask you to exert a little more effort. Once the affairs of Joseon improve, we will increase the personnel, so I hope you can endure a little longer."
"Your grace is boundless!"
At Sejong's encouraging words, the officials all bowed in gratitude.
During this process, a new proverb emerged: 'The day the Ministry of Finance receives a feast.' It was a saying that reflected the idea of treating people well before assigning them difficult tasks.
Meanwhile, Sejong handed a pouch of medicine to Kim Jeom through the Chief Inspector.
"I have instructed the physician to prepare some good medicine for you. Take good care of yourself."
"Your grace is boundless!"
"I have included plenty of precious medicinal ingredients, so it will be of great help to you."
"Your grace is boundless!"
While repeatedly expressing his gratitude, Kim Jeom heard Sejong's words as, 'I guess I have to pay for the medicine, right?'