Not all Europeans were fixated solely on ‘discovering the new continent.’
Many scholars and technicians worked through the nights on research and development to catch up with or surpass the Empire, which had already advanced in many fields.
However, what consumed most of their time was finding sponsors who would fund them.
They had families to support and assistants and staff to pay wages to.
Moreover, acquiring materials and obtaining the Empire-made calculating frames and cylinders—among the most useful tools—all required money.
Therefore, they met with nobles and merchants to secure sponsors.
Fortunately, Catholic clergy in Europe during this period had begun showing considerable flexibility.
Not only that, European monarchs began actively supporting them.
This was one of the butterfly effects Hyang had caused.
***
Back when Seoul was called Hanseong, the questions Hyang had posed to monks who had crossed the sea to work at the research institute were still ongoing.
-Is holding ancestral rites in gratitude for one’s ancestors’ grace an act of filial piety, or is it idolatry? Does it truly violate the Ten Commandments?
-Is the Bible you’ve translated into Latin completely without error compared to the original text?
The Catholic Church, already complicated by various issues, fiercely debated the answers to Hyang’s questions.
The answer to the first question was still under debate, but was gradually taking shape.
The answer to the second question was even more dramatic.
The number of monks and theologians who began studying Hebrew and Aramaic scriptures obtained with difficulty greatly increased, and new translations appeared in the world.
That wasn’t all.
Until then, only Latin versions of the Bible existed, but Bibles translated into English, French, and German began appearing in various versions.
The clergy’s reaction to these translations was divided.
One side recognized only the traditional Latin version, while the other welcomed Bibles in their native languages.
Moreover, common people also welcomed Bibles in their native languages. As long as they could read text written in their own language, they could read the Bible.
As this happened, the number of religious figures approaching the common people more closely increased.
***
As the religious world underwent these changes, society’s perceptions also began to change.
The most striking examples were alchemists and witches.
Previously, they would have been burned at the stake as heretics or those who had sold their souls to the devil.
However, to catch up with the Empire’s advanced steel and alloy technology, these alchemists became most important, and cases of persecuting them as heretics greatly decreased.
Rather, alchemists’ social status rose significantly, and those aspiring to become alchemists began to increase.
Finally, alchemy began to be registered as an official department in universities.
The same was true for witches.
The case of witches was even more dramatic, with the Empire playing the biggest role in this change.
Thanks to active support from Sejong and Hyang, the Empire’s medicine was developing rapidly.
Medical techniques were developing quickly, but pharmacy was also advancing at a rapid pace.
The result was the ‘Hyangyak Jipseongbang’ (Collection of Native Korean Prescriptions).
Following Sejong’s orders, the Hyangyak Jipseongbang, which organized the types and efficacy of medicinal herbs native to the Korean Peninsula, continued to be revised.
As Joseon transformed into an Empire and its territory gradually expanded, information about new medicinal materials continued to come in.
It didn’t simply record the names, appearances, and effects of herbs.
-Similar medicinal effects to this herb from the mainland can be found in the north with this, and in the New Territories with that.
-There’s an herb found only in the New Territories, and its efficacy is… (omitted)
As information about substitute medicinal materials by region, or medicines showing unique efficacy for specific diseases, was constantly revised, the Hyangyak Jipseongbang grew thicker and thicker.
As an aside, as time passed, what those studying medicine and pharmacy in the Empire feared most were subjects using the Hyangyak Jipseongbang as a textbook.
***
Following Hyang’s decision, the Hyangyak Jipseongbang was leaked to Europe.
Of course, parts related to the New Territories were omitted.
European medical practitioners who received the Hyangyak Jipseongbang carefully examined the book’s contents.
“So, for these symptoms, you mix this herb with that herb?”
Doctors who read the contents wanted to apply it immediately, but there was a problem.
“Which are medicinal herbs and which are poisonous? They’re all just plants!”
While Europe had professional herbalists, their numbers were too few.
Doctors seeking solutions found the answer in the Hyangyak Jipseongbang’s preface.
-The nature of Joseon’s mountains and rivers differs from China’s, so Chinese medicine is unlikely to be effective for Joseon’s people.
-Therefore, I asked elderly people, shamans, and sorcerers to find medicinal herbs and confirm their efficacy, recording them so that diseases may be easily overcome using this knowledge.
“So that’s it?”
Reading the preface containing Sejong’s intentions, doctors immediately took action.
They began visiting elderly people and herbalists in nearby villages, asking about medicinal herbs and recording information.
During this process, the existence of witches came to prominence again.
“Actually, there’s an old witch living hidden in the deep forest to the west…”
Farmers and herbalists cautiously revealed secrets to doctors they had become close with.
Doctors who learned these secrets sought out the witches. Many witches’ first reaction to uninvited visitors was to hide deeper in the forest.
However, through persistent contact and persuasion from doctors, witches shared their knowledge of herbs.
Furthermore, witches who took jobs as doctors’ assistants began to appear.
During this process, many misunderstandings about witches were resolved, and witches who had only hidden in the shadows began emerging into the light again.
Of course, there were conditions.
-If you openly practice fortune-telling, perform sorcery, or cast curses, you’ll be burned immediately!
-Swear faith in God and faithfully perform confession!
Witches who promised to keep these conditions and held guarantees that they were faithfully keeping their promises could live in villages and towns.
***
As Europe broke free from religious rigorism, more and more things began changing rapidly.
Compared to history before Hyang’s intervention, these changes occurred at least 100 years faster.
The first visible change was mercantilism becoming the mainstream ideology.
Until then, Europe had also looked down on merchants.
While they were very interested in merchants’ wealth, they despised the merchants themselves.
Unless they were giant merchants or massive capitalists like Cosimo de’ Medici who controlled European finance, it was impossible to have audiences with kings, nobles, or high clergy. They could only deal with their agents.
However, after observing how the Empire’s officials treated merchants and various policies created to encourage commerce and industry, values changed.
-When the people prosper, naturally the monarch prospers too! Without even needing to squeeze them!
As values changed this way, mercantilism became the trend among European leaders.
While leaders’ values were changing, society was also changing.
The Renaissance era had begun in earnest. Of course, it looked somewhat different from the Renaissance in history before Hyang’s intervention.
-Behold! The brilliant appearance of the ‘Flower Country’!
-Learn from the monarch who created that brilliance!
Within these social movements, European intellectuals studied Sejong and Hyang.
As this research deepened, movements began advocating for adopting the Empire’s systems alongside returning to classics.
-Let us also be like the Empire!
-Let’s change to be like the ‘Flower Country’!
At some point, the Empire had become an ‘ideal state.’
As these movements deepened, the Empire’s language became another common language after Latin.
Of course, in intellectual society, the Empire’s language already held almost the same status as Latin. However, somehow not just nobles but even somewhat well-off commoners needed to know a word or two of the Empire’s language to be respected.
***
Politically and culturally, the Empire was a country to emulate and aspire to become.
However, economically, the Empire was a target to catch up with and surpass.
The Empire was reaping far too many benefits.
The Empire boasted quality far ahead in most products. Therefore, European merchants imported the Empire’s goods to sell to people.
Importing and selling the Empire’s products was more profitable than selling items made by their own craftsmen.
At best, English cast iron cannons and French lace were internationally renowned exports.
English cast iron cannons became popular in Europe because they were cheaper than bronze cannons despite performance limitations.
French lace was a popular product sold not just in Europe but also in Ming and the Empire.
It was especially popular in the Empire, where it was fashionable among noble ladies to attach lace decorations to their sleeves.
-I have no work that would dirty my sleeves!
They showed off their wealth with lace decorations.
When French lace first became fashionable among the wealthy, Hyang, who was emperor at the time, smiled bitterly.
“I heard that in late Joseon, there was a trend among yangban sons to grow their pinky fingernails long? To show off that they could eat without working. Hmm…”
After brief consideration, Hyang made a decision.
“Let’s wait and see for now. There’s already talk that we’re taking too much from Europe.”
***
Thus, except for a few products, the Empire was reaping enormous benefits in most fields.
For European monarchs newly intoxicated with mercantilism, this trade imbalance was a serious problem.
“Too much gold and silver is flowing into the Empire…”
Realizing the severity, European monarchs began actively supporting the development of their own industries.
***
The field they most actively supported was steam engines.
Until the iron horse operated in Suez, it had been just a story from a distant land. However, when the iron horse began operating in Suez, the story changed.
European monarchs and nobles who directly witnessed the enormous economic benefits provided by the iron horse began actively supporting steam engine development.
This triggered a chain reaction.
Creating high-performance steam engines required quality iron, which demanded advances in steel-making technology.
Not just iron, but alloy components for important parts also needed performance improvements.
To solve this, alchemists’ knowledge was absolutely necessary. Thanks to this, alchemists’ social status rose increasingly quickly.
While Europe, Ming, and Japan busily moved to reach the Empire’s position, the Empire was also moving.
As always, it devoted itself to research and development, while also moving to observe other countries’ movements.
Not just the Imperial military’s intelligence agencies, but the Secret Guard was also quietly infiltrating Europe.