At Jang Hang-seon’s command, the military officer gave a light salute and began speaking.
“First, what I’ll be discussing is based on intelligence our Empire has gathered. This information was secured through Empire merchants engaged in trade, Italians met at trading posts, and various books purchased through multiple channels. Therefore, it’s not perfectly accurate. I want to make clear that this is research based on Florence’s situation as we understand it from rumors we’ve heard.”
“So you’re saying we might hear ‘What kind of bullshit is this?'”
“I’m confident it won’t go that far. We’ve cross-verified information from multiple sources.”
At Jang Hang-seon’s question, the officer answered with a slight bitter smile.
***
If the tongue-clicking that started with Sejong was the number one thing to avoid in the Empire’s general bureaucracy, then in the Ministry of Defense and General Command, Jang Hang-seon’s profanity was number one to avoid.
Since being specially recruited by Sejong, Jang Hang-seon had become the Empire’s top expert in defense matters.
Being who he was, meticulous work was basic for Jang Hang-seon. If even the slightest flaw or shoddy work was discovered, Jang Hang-seon would immediately point it out and confront the responsible party.
If the cause lay with someone senior to him, he would go to their office and confront them; if with a subordinate, he would summon them immediately and dress them down until they were senseless.
It was behavior perfect for making enemies, but surprisingly, it rarely caused problems.
The biggest reason was that this special recruitment had come after Sejong personally met and spoke with him. Being chosen by the supreme ruler was quite a powerful shield.
Second, aside from being fastidious about work, he caused almost no other problems.
Thus, Jang Hang-seon had steadily climbed the ranks to become Defense Minister. And as his position rose higher, Jang Hang-seon’s profanity became famous in various ways.
“What kind of bullshit is this?” was mild. The worse the work, the stronger the profanity became.
“You son of a northern whore bastard!”
The profanity mixed with rough northern dialect made listeners’ knees weak.
In any case, perhaps because of Jang Hang-seon’s presence, the work of the Ministry of Defense and Imperial Army was impeccable.
They showed a completely different image from the public’s long-held assessment of them as “a gathering place for thugs who only know how to fight.”
***
At Jang Hang-seon and the officer’s conversation, Giovanni’s party’s eyes began to sparkle.
While maintaining relations with the Empire, Florence had also gathered much information about Empire officials, especially high-ranking ones.
In particular, information about the Prime Minister, Finance Minister, and Defense Minister—whom they considered most relevant to them—was essential to secure.
Naturally, they had already obtained information about Jang Hang-seon.
If he can answer like that to the Defense Minister who’s famous for being difficult, it’s worth listening properly!
Given the Defense Minister’s personality, this must be a meeting prepared after thorough review. If they’re having such a conversation despite that, they’re telling us to listen properly! Then we must listen well!
Making this judgment, Giovanni’s subordinates straightened their posture and listened carefully.
In fact, Jang Hang-seon had arranged this meeting only after completing review and refinement. And that was the proper procedure.
Nevertheless, having the conversation they just had was a subtle emphasis.
-This is important, so listen properly!
Looking at their reactions, they seem to have caught on immediately. Worth placing a bet.
Somewhat satisfied, Jang Hang-seon leaned back in his chair. Receiving the unspoken signal, the officer cleared his throat again.
“Ahem! Well then, I’ll begin.”
***
The officer’s explanation could be summarized roughly as follows:
- -Currently, Italy has dozens of city-states in chaos.
- -However, looking at the current situation, they’re roughly divided into five powers.
- -Milan, Venice, Florence, the Papal States, and the Kingdom of Naples.
- -There’s also Genoa, but Genoa should be considered as belonging to Spain and the Kingdom of Naples.
- -These five major powers achieved a balance of power through the Treaty of Lodi led by Cosimo de’ Medici in 1454.
- -Examining the contents of the Treaty of Lodi:
- -The participating nations don’t allow one country to dominate the others.
- -The participating nations are forbidden from borrowing outside power.
- -If problems arise between participating nations, they’re resolved through talks and ambassadors.
- -This Italian League composed of participating nations unites to resist outside forces.
- -Despite this treaty, the “Italian unification movement” has surfaced, and outside forces have begun to move.
- -If this unification movement turns into armed action, there will be problems with troop supply.
Most parties will mobilize mercenaries, which will hinder smooth troop supply and operational management.
In the worst case, mercenaries might switch to the opposing side during war.
- -Therefore, the best method is creating a standing army.
- -According to our intelligence, Florence’s population is about 80,000; including surrounding subsidiary cities and villages like Pisa and Volterra, we estimate about 250,000 to 300,000.
However, these numbers don’t include slaves.
- -Based on this population, the maximum standing army Florence can stably operate is 15,000.
After that, the officer explained many items starting from operating a reserve system.
As the officer’s explanation continued, Giovanni’s subordinates became increasingly serious. Before they knew it, they had taken out paper and styluses and were frantically taking notes of what the interpreter conveyed.
“…Therefore, for Florence to increase its success rate, I believe it must change not just armaments but its entire organization and support system to the Imperial style. That concludes my presentation.”
“Good work.”
At Jang Hang-seon’s praise, the officer gave a military salute and left the conference room. After the officer left, Jang Hang-seon looked at Giovanni.
“What do you think?”
“It was truly impressive.”
“His Majesty told us to be sincere, so we put in much effort.”
“I can only be grateful to His Majesty.”
After expressing gratitude to Wan, Giovanni looked around at his subordinates. Confirming his subordinates’ faces showed they had missed much despite taking notes diligently, Giovanni turned to Jang Hang-seon.
“Could we obtain copies or translations?”
“We’ll provide them within two days.”
“Thank you!”
Giovanni was sincerely grateful, while his subordinates wore expressions of having been outmaneuvered.
Ah! That method!
***
Five days later, Giovanni boarded a ship heading for Suez.
The ship Giovanni boarded and the three ships following carried various equipment for producing Florentine rifles, 100 prototype Florentine rifles, and 10,000 rounds of ammunition.
“But that’s not the most important thing.”
Giovanni looked at the large wooden crate in one corner of his cabin.
It was an ordinary wooden crate containing his clothes and personal belongings, but in its deepest recesses lay the translations provided by the Empire’s Ministry of Defense.
“Those documents are worth their weight in gold… Those documents… The problem is…”
While Giovanni recognized the value of the translations, he was also full of worry.
“According to those documents, it doesn’t end with just overhauling the military. We need to overhaul everything in Florence. Is it really possible? Will Florence’s people follow well? And the cost?”
Nothing was easy. However, it was a cost that must be paid for his proud family and Florence to become the protagonists of Italian unification and rule a unified Italy.
“Phew…”
Giovanni let out a long sigh and ran his hand through his hair. Turning his gaze to distract himself, Giovanni stopped at a map hanging on the cabin wall.
“Phew… Pisa…”
Having read the Empire’s report several times, Giovanni keenly felt that difficulties were piling up.
And among those difficulties, the most representative was Pisa.
***
The Empire’s report didn’t mention Pisa directly.
- -To more effectively suppress the Kingdom of Naples and Venice and block foreign approach, naval power must be strengthened.
Florence already possessed the optimal city for successfully implementing the Empire’s words.
It was Pisa.
However, considering past history, Pisa wasn’t an easy city for Florence.
Pisa had been one of medieval Italy’s four great maritime powers.
However, after losing to Genoa, it became Genoese territory and subsequently declined into a small city-state.
Later, Pisa had submitted to Florence’s military force and become a subsidiary city.
Naturally, Pisa still showed a rebellious attitude toward Florence. Of course, being militarily inferior, they didn’t show this openly, but Pisa and its people subtly resisted.
However, the problem was that Pisa was optimal for developing naval power.
“Truly troublesome. Didn’t the Empire call this a ‘chicken rib’?”
Unable to easily find an answer despite much deliberation, Giovanni raised the white flag.
“I don’t know. In cases like this, Father will provide the answer. As he always has.”
***
After Giovanni left Seoul, Wan discussed matters with his ministers.
The topic of conversation was the documents the Ministry of Defense had given Giovanni.
Already well aware of the documents’ contents, Wan asked Hwangbo In.
“Even at a glance, it’s full of difficult problems. Will they really follow through?”
At Wan’s question, Hwangbo In immediately answered.
“If they’re sincere, I believe they’ll accept as much as possible.”
Following Hwangbo In, Kim Jong-seo spoke.
“Everything depends on Cosimo de’ Medici.”
At Kim Jong-seo’s words, Wan stroked his chin.
“Cosimo de’ Medici… He’s certainly shown what ‘cunning with age’ means. However, this matter won’t be easy even for him.”
At Wan’s words, Kim Jong-seo responded.
“However, he’s now quite old. And that’s the problem. His grandson Lorenzo de’ Medici and second son Giovanni de’ Medici are substituting for him, but important decisions must go through him. If the old man falls, the two with still shallow experience, especially Lorenzo de’ Medici, will have a very hard time.”
At Kim Jong-seo’s words, Wan nodded and continued.
“That’s when our Empire will step forward as advisor. And the beginning is what the Ministry of Defense handed over this time.”
“Indeed.”
As soon as Kim Jong-seo’s brief answer ended, Hwangbo In stated the Empire’s true intentions.
“By making Florence the empire of Italy, we can gain much with little bloodshed. While gaining justification as justification.”