That night, alone in his private chambers, Hyang sat with his hand pressed to his forehead, lost in troubled thoughts.
“No matter how I think about it, I’m worried… Ah! That damn railway-obsessed fool!”
Jinpyeong had become a headache for entirely different reasons now.
Given Jinpyeong’s excessive passion for railways, this couldn’t be ignored.
“Knowing him, he’ll say he needs private troops because railway construction can’t be delayed again…”
Infrastructure projects like railways consumed enormous portions of the budget, proportional to their importance. If Jinpyeong went overboard, he would undoubtedly push railways as the top priority without any thought for budget balance. If he went even further, the “Gyeyu Railway Rebellion” would become reality rather than just a dream.
“But I can’t just purge him without cause… It’s a matter of justification.”
Arbitrarily purging Jinpyeong would be seen as a power struggle like the “Prince’s Rebellion” that occurred twice before.
-The Emperor killed his second brother, his strongest competitor, to ensure safe transfer of power to the Crown Prince!
Even worse, such purges could become an unofficial tradition. If every emperor who ascended the throne automatically executed all their siblings, the imperial family would gradually shrink. Furthermore, each emperor would wield increasingly autocratic power. If this history of tyranny continued, they would lose the flexibility to adapt to external pressures, and ultimately face extinction.
“The people will increasingly demand to share more power, and in that situation, only the executioner’s block would remain in the end.”
Beyond these matters of justification, Hyang had another reason for hesitating to purge Jinpyeong.
There’s also the matter of feeling kinship as a fellow enthusiast…
Like the saying “only a widower understands a widow’s circumstances,” Hyang, who had caused various incidents large and small as an enthusiast both in the 21st century and after reincarnation, couldn’t bring himself to hate Jinpyeong.
“A clash between reason and emotion…”
Chuckling as he muttered this, Hyang reached his conclusion.
“To hell with reason and emotion both. Leaving Jinpyeong unchecked will end in disaster. Even if I don’t act, the ministers will.”
Just today’s tantrum in front of Hyang would be enough to flood the court with formal protests.
Until now, the ministers might have laughed off today’s incident since Jinpyeong had shown no interest in power, being obsessed only with railways. However, if similar incidents became frequent, the probability of them growing wary couldn’t be ignored.
-If he acts like that even before the Emperor, he might try to manipulate state affairs just for the sake of one railway!
If this sentiment gained traction among the central bureaucrats, they could pressure Hyang.
Even though Hyang wielded nearly absolute power, if all officials united against him, the outcome would be uncertain.
“The conclusion is that we need to attach a control panel. Who would be suitable?”
Hyang considered the candidates one by one.
“Exclude the Prime Minister and Left and Right Deputy Prime Ministers. Too old. Hwangbo In… exclude him since no one else understands the judicial system as well. Kim Jongseo… his city addiction is a problem, but with that personality, we’d be lucky if he doesn’t get into a physical fight with Jinpyeong. Hmm… Lee Sachul… too rigid. Might end up in reverse with physical confrontations.”
Reaching this point in his thoughts, Hyang sighed.
“The biggest problem is they’re all too old! Their achievements, power, and reputation would be enough to control Jinpyeong, but the age and generational gaps could create new problems. Looking at Jinpyeong now, he’s a terrifying hybrid of his well-known personality plus an enthusiast’s single-minded obsession. He might make things worse. Then, someone of similar age…”
Reaching this point, Hyang sighed again.
“The only manageable ones are the Four.”
More precisely, the Four were optimal as both scapegoats and lubricants/brakes, to be caught between Hyang and Jinpyeong.
Following this line of thought, Hyang quickly settled on one person.
“It has to be Seong Sam-mun.”
Objectively speaking, Han Myeong-hoe would be most suitable for such work. His quick wit and sharp instincts would be sufficient to prevent problems before they arose. However, knowing the connection between Jinpyeong, Han Myeong-hoe, and Gwon Ram, Hyang excluded those two first. Among those remaining, Ha Wiiji was too inflexibly righteous to consider.
Though it was a choice born of necessity, Seong Sam-mun wasn’t a bad option either.
He was intelligent enough to have become a Jiphyeonjeon scholar in the history before Hyang’s intervention, and sociable enough to gather people for Crown Prince Danjong’s restoration. His only flaw was lacking decisiveness, as shown when he hesitated due to unexpected variables just before the uprising, leading to failure.
However, this aspect had improved somewhat under Hyang’s guidance, which was why Hyang chose him.
***
The next morning, Hyang summoned Han Myeong-hoe and issued his orders.
“Appoint Seong Sam-mun as ‘Northern Railway Development Inspector’ and send him to Jinpyeong. Place him directly under the State Council.”
As soon as Hyang finished speaking, Han Myeong-hoe carefully opened his mouth.
“Though I tremble to suggest it, wouldn’t it be better for this humble one to go?”
“Why?”
“While Maejukheon’s abilities are not lacking, he can sometimes be too rigid. Considering Duke Jinpyeong’s personality, conflicts might arise.”
“That’s precisely why I chose Seong Sam-mun.”
“Pardon?”
“He’s not from another office, but from the State Council, which is practically our extension. This means he represents our will, so Jinpyeong will have to stop if Seong Sam-mun opposes him. And…”
Hyang paused briefly and smiled at Han Myeong-hoe.
“As you say, sending you might be the best solution, but it’s not good for me.”
“Pardon?”
“I don’t want to make things uncomfortable for myself just to make things comfortable for Jinpyeong.”
This was Hyang’s honest feeling. Having Han Myeong-hoe’s quick wit and sharp instincts at his side made things easier for him.
Han Myeong-hoe’s expression turned peculiar at these words.
Should I be pleased about this, or not?
Viewed positively, it meant he enjoyed the Emperor’s favor; negatively, it meant he would have to work himself to the bone.
“What are you doing? You need to draft the order quickly so I can approve it.”
“Ah, yes! Yes!”
Startled by Hyang’s prompting, Han Myeong-hoe hurriedly bowed and withdrew.
***
As time passed, word of the conversation between Hyang and Han Myeong-hoe spread.
Officials who heard the rumor all nodded in agreement.
“The Chief State Councillor deserves to hear such words…”
The assessment of Han Myeong-hoe’s quick efficiency was universal.
Meanwhile, Han Myeong-hoe was spending busy days as Chief State Councillor.
“Oh! The Chief Councillor is busy as ever today!”
When Kim Jongseo, whom he met on the way to Geunjeong Palace, greeted him, Han Myeong-hoe bowed in return.
“Good day, Minister of General Affairs.”
“Oh, I’m always doing well! Hahaha!”
Kim Jongseo laughed heartily and patted Han Myeong-hoe’s shoulder.
“Seeing you reminds me of the time we served with Lord Bangjeon in the north. It feels like yesterday we were working ourselves to death, but so much time has passed! Work hard a bit longer! Good days will come.”
“Yes. Haha… Thank you.”
Though staggering with each pat from Kim Jongseo, Han Myeong-hoe forced a smile and responded.
“Hahaha! Keep up the good work!”
Watching Kim Jongseo disappear with his booming laugh, Han Myeong-hoe looked up at the sky and muttered.
“Will good days really come?”
He strongly felt that no matter how he thought about it, they wouldn’t.
No matter how I think about it, I’ll probably end up going to New Frontier with His Majesty.
***
Meanwhile, Seong Sam-mun, who headed to the Yalu River with the order, immediately sought out Jinpyeong.
“I look forward to working with you!”
Seong Sam-mun bowed his head in response to Jinpyeong’s greeting after reading the order.
“I will do my best.”
“Please put in a good word with His Majesty!”
“I will simply execute my assigned duties to the best of my ability.”
“Still, I’m counting on you!”
After this initial meeting, Jinpyeong showed him the site.
“The iron bridge we’re building across the Yalu River here is the start of the northern railways. All materials will come through this bridge!”
“It’s truly a massive bridge.”
Jinpyeong nodded at Seong Sam-mun’s words.
“Except for the bridges His Majesty built across the Han River, it won’t lose to any bridge anywhere.”
With such a proud expression, Jinpyeong led Seong Sam-mun to show all other parts of the Yalu River bridge construction site.
After the site inspection, they returned to the office where Jinpyeong got to the main point.
“As you can see from the map…”
Pointing at a map showing the empire’s territory in the Liaohe region with a pointer, Jinpyeong continued his explanation.
“Right now we only have one iron bridge across the Yalu River, but once northern development begins in earnest, we’ll build another. And not just Liaodong Castle, but railways will connect crosswise to bases created here in the Lüshun Peninsula and in the north and east. When that happens, you’ll be able to travel between the northernmost point of the northern territory and Seoul in five days at most, three days at fastest.”
“That’s impressive.”
Jinpyeong nodded vigorously at Seong Sam-mun’s words.
“It’s a grand enterprise. Moreover, once the railway network is complete, no one will dare treat our empire lightly. My dream is to make that day come as soon as possible.”
“Future imperial citizens will all praise you, Duke.”
“That would be wonderful indeed.”
Responding to Seong Sam-mun’s words, Jinpyeong sighed.
“Huu! But there’s a problem we need to solve first. It’s the security issue in the north. The place is crawling with rough characters, you see.”
“I heard the military will be deployed for that issue.”
“The military has many limitations.”
Jinpyeong explained what the problems were.
-Even now, chase battles between troublemakers and imperial forces occur daily across the northern territory. Because of this, troop assignments are proceeding slowly.
-More and more construction sites will appear, and each one must have security forces. Otherwise, expensive materials will be stolen.
-The survey teams’ safety is also an issue. Surveys are essential before laying tracks, and escorts are absolutely necessary to protect these teams.
-Connected to the above situation, more and more troops will be needed, which could cause political problems.
After hearing this explanation, Seong Sam-mun raised an objection.
“Why do you say it would cause political problems?”
“It’s a matter of command authority. If something happens at a site and we urgently need troops, going through separate command chains would take too long. Therefore, it would be useful to place the command of troops assigned to railway matters under me.”
As soon as Jinpyeong finished speaking, Seong Sam-mun shook his head.
“That absolutely cannot happen. It’s not that problems might arise – problems will definitely arise.”
“But I think it’s necessary for rapid response. You know well how procedures work, don’t you?”
“That can be handled by giving self-defense and immediate response authority to the commanders of the security units.”
“I agree with that part. But what if there’s a large-scale attack like Manchu carried out before? Considering the danger from the Wild Jurchens, we need to coordinate multiple units, but movement becomes slow at that point.”
“Since His Majesty said he would organize dedicated units, we can point out this issue and adjust those units’ size and operational range.”
Afterward, Jinpyeong brought up various other problems to argue for the need for troops under his direct command, but Seong Sam-mun countered each argument with solutions on the spot.
“Your solutions are good, but they’ll slow down construction. To see quick results, we need both improvisation and bold decisions.”
“If we anticipate problems and establish countermeasures in advance, there’s no need for improvisation or bold decisions. And while construction speed is important, avoiding causing His Majesty concern must be our top priority. Aren’t you also a servant of the empire, Duke?”
“You’re right. I am.”
In the end, Jinpyeong had no choice but to surrender to Seong Sam-mun.