The meeting between Sejong and the ministers continued, focusing on the budget increase and personnel expansion requested by the military.
"Budget and people... It's impossible to increase both immediately with the current capabilities of this Joseon."
In response to the Minister of Personnel's statement, Choe Yun-deok immediately replied.
"I am well aware. When planning the strategy, the military first considered that this strategy would proceed in tandem with the ongoing reforms. Therefore, the required budget was determined accordingly."
After answering, Choe Yun-deok gestured to the military officials standing behind him.
At Choe Yun-deok's gesture, the military officials distributed a thick booklet to the upper officials and ministers. Sejong, receiving the book through the upper official, began to examine its title.
- Budget Proposal for the Gap-ho Plan.
"Gap-ho Plan?"
"The Gap-ho Plan is a codename used in place of 'Eastward Advance.'"
"Hmm..."
While listening to Choe Yun-deok's explanation, Sejong opened the book.
"Hmm..."
Sejong let out a small sigh as he reviewed the contents of the book.
The book detailed how the military would grow over a 30-year period and the corresponding budget increases, all clearly organized.
'This seems reasonable.'
As Sejong was about to approve it, a sigh suddenly escaped from somewhere.
"Phew~"
Startled by the unexpected sigh, Sejong looked up.
"Who is it? Who sighed?"
Clatter!
In response to Sejong's question, a chair was loudly knocked over. The Minister of Personnel, who owned the chair, immediately prostrated himself and pleaded.
"Please forgive this sinner!"
"I understand why you did that. It's fine, so please return to your seat."
"Your grace is boundless!"
The Minister of Personnel, expressing his gratitude, sat back down on the chair that the eunuch had reset.
'It's understandable that he would sigh.'
The budget required by the military for the grand strategy was calculated based on solid grounds.
The budget, which was based on the population growth rate determined through annual smallpox vaccinations, the tax increase rate received by the Ministry of Personnel, and the amount of gold and silver secretly stockpiled, was well-adjusted to not cause significant strain on the national administration if the plan was executed as intended.
However, the absolute amount of the budget was enormous.
Naturally, the Minister of Personnel, who was responsible for the budget, could not help but sigh.
"To me, it seems reasonable. The efforts of the staff officers are evident."
"Your grace is boundless!"
"Your grace is boundless!"
In response to Sejong's praise, Choe Yun-deok and the military officials bowed deeply in gratitude. Straightening up, Choe Yun-deok added.
"The Crown Prince played the biggest role in drafting this budget proposal."
"Is that so?"
Sejong and the ministers looked at Hyang with an expression of 'Not you again?'
Feeling the focused gaze, Hyang bowed slightly and replied.
"I merely added a spoonful to the table set by the staff officers of the General Staff."
Unconsciously, Yi Jeong-ok, who was standing behind, muttered softly.
"It was more like a shovel..."
"Shh!"
"Ah!"
Warned by a colleague standing beside him, Yi Jeong-ok immediately shut his mouth and looked around cautiously.
* * *
As soon as the General Staff established the plan for 'Eastward Advance,' Hyang quickly intervened.
"I will not interfere with the military's operations. However, let's discuss the budget for military supplies."
'No to military-first politics!'
Drawing on his experience from the 21st century, where he handled financial matters, Hyang advised on the budget proposal drafted by the General Staff's military officials.
For the military officials, it was a nightmare of numbers.
If they showed even a hint of greed in the budget allocation, Hyang would mercilessly criticize them, from Choe Yun-deok at the top to the newly appointed staff officers at the bottom.
"Are you dreaming of the revival of the military regime?"
"Do you know what 'putting the cart before the horse' means?"
"Repeat after me! 'The budget is blood!'"
This was not all.
"Is this what you call calculation? Military officials should be strong in numbers! I will give you a problem to solve! We have just discovered an enemy formation! The enemy formation is in a column of four rows, stretching for one ri! How many enemies are approaching us in total?"
Thanks to Hyang's relentless questioning, the military officials of the General Staff developed exceptional calculation skills, comparable to those of the researchers at the 51st Zone and the managers of the Ministry of Personnel, and became adept at using abacuses.
Later, when the purpose of the Seonggyungwan, which was originally established to train high-ranking civil officials, shifted to training high-ranking military officials, the most important subject taught was mathematics.
This experience led to the saying, 'Even Xiang Yu cannot advance without mathematics.'
* * *
"Unless a major variable occurs, it seems best to follow this plan for the budget. What do you think, ministers?"
Although the question was directed at the ministers, Sejong's eyes were fixed on the Minister of Personnel.
"If our Joseon's state management capabilities continue to grow as they have, I believe we can handle it."
With the Minister of Personnel's positive response, Sejong moved on to the next topic.
"The budget issue is resolved, but the problem of personnel... is it a lack of talent?"
"Indeed, Your Majesty."
In response to Choe Yun-deok's answer, Sejong stroked his beard and asked.
"Hmm... The establishment of the National Defense Academy and the Military Academy is underway, but is there another issue?"
"There is a problem with the immediate supply of talent. Even if the Military Academy is established, it will be difficult to gather many talents in a society that values literature over martial arts."
"That is indeed a problem..."
Since the Goryeo era, civil officials had looked down on military officials. Although the military regime was born from the uprising of military officials who could not endure such discrimination, they were again treated worse than civil officials after the Mongol invasions and the rise of Confucian scholars at the end of the Goryeo dynasty.
According to the law, civil and military officials were supposed to be treated equally, and the lowest-ranking local official, the hyeon-yeong, was a military official. However, in practice, most of those who received the appointment were civil officials.
Given this situation, those who applied for the military examination were often those who lacked the qualifications for the civil examination.
This was the point that Choe Yun-deok was worried about and pointed out.
* * *
Choe Yun-deok explained in more detail.
"Your Majesty, when implementing the military reform, you broke the tradition of civil officials occupying positions that should have been held by military officials."
"Indeed."
Sejong nodded in agreement with Choe Yun-deok's statement.
As in the case of the hyeon-yeong, many positions that should have been held by military officials were often filled by civil officials.
Especially, those who entered the military through the military examination suffered greatly on the front lines, while high-ranking positions were often occupied by civil officials.
Initially, Sejong had taken this issue lightly when preparing the military reform. However, Hyang insisted on a clear separation between civil and military officials.
A long debate ensued, and ultimately, Hyang, who cited examples from China's Song dynasty, won the argument for separation.
As the separation between civil and military officials progressed, many military officers were held back in promotions due to their lack of literacy and mathematical skills.
Those who were held back started to study writing, hoping for the next opportunity, but Classical Chinese was not easy.
"Damn! Who created these Chinese characters!"
Perhaps due to this experience, the military was the most enthusiastic about Sejong's creation of Hunminjeongeum (the Korean alphabet) in the future.
* * *
"...Therefore, to address the shortage of talent, I humbly request Your Majesty to lift the restrictions on those from the northwest and the illegitimate sons."
At Choe Yun-deok's request, the ministers began to murmur.
"Lift the restrictions on those from the northwest and the illegitimate sons? Hmm... I thought this was already included in the reforms?"
In response to Sejong's question, Choe Yun-deok immediately answered.
"Indeed, Your Majesty. However, according to the timetable in the reform plan, the ban on northwest officials will be lifted in the eighth year of the reforms, and the ban on illegitimate sons will be lifted in the tenth year. I request that these dates be moved up."
"The ban on northwest officials is a legacy of King Taejo, and the ban on illegitimate sons is a law established by King Taejong. That's why the lifting of these bans was delayed."
"However, it is true that many talents are being lost because of these bans."
"Hmm..."
Sejong stroked his beard and began to ponder deeply at Choe Yun-deok's words.
The ministers were cautious in this situation. As the reforms progressed, the ministers of the six boards were acutely aware of the shortage of talent. Therefore, they initially agreed with the idea of lifting the discrimination against the northwest and the ban on illegitimate sons.
However, they remained silent for two reasons.
First, one of these policies was a legacy of the founding king, Taejo, and the other was a law established by the late king, Taejong.
From the Confucian perspective, which views adherence to the policies and laws of previous kings as filial piety, suggesting otherwise could be seen as disloyal and lead to impeachment.
Of course, the reforms included provisions to lift the discrimination against the northwest and the ban on illegitimate sons, but proposing to move up the timeline could also lead to impeachment for suggesting disloyalty.
Second, there was the issue of competition. The number of high-ranking positions was always limited. Even as the administrative organization became more specialized with the reforms, this remained true. For those already in positions like prime minister or minister, it was not a problem, but for those below them, the increased competition was not welcome.
Ultimately, Sejong made the decision.
Sejong's decision was a compromise.
"I understand the shortage of talent in the military. However, we cannot arbitrarily change the priority of the reforms, as it could disrupt the entire framework. Therefore, I propose a middle ground. In the sixth year of the reforms, we will reassess the situation and lift the discrimination against the northwest and the ban on illegitimate sons. If the reforms proceed smoothly, we will be able to withstand the impact at that time. The military should bear this in mind and strive even harder."
"I will follow your command!"
Choe Yun-deok immediately responded to Sejong's order. When he first spoke, Choe Yun-deok was prepared for the worst, thinking he might lose his head. However, Sejong's decision to move the timeline up by two years was the best answer he could have hoped for.
Thus, the Eastward Advance began to proceed step by step.
* * *
As the Shangjiang region approached, a large number of people were moving from Hamgil Province toward Hanyang.
These people, dressed differently from the Joseon people, were the chieftains of the Jurchen tribes invited by Sejong to Hanyan.
However, the atmosphere among the chieftains heading to Hanyang was not one of enjoyment. In fact, the closer they got to Hanyang, the more tense they became.
"The king of Joseon has summoned us?"
The chieftains of the Ollanghap tribe were in a dilemma upon receiving the order from the Joseon envoy.
Unable to find a solution on their own, the chieftains sought the opinions of other tribal leaders they were close to.
"What should we do, brothers?"
"Shouldn't we go, brothers?"
"I'm a bit uneasy about the sudden summons."
"But can we not go? Haven't you heard what happened to the Jurchen in Jianzhou?"
"That's why I'm worried."
Since the Ming declared the Jurchen region as their territory and after the death of Yi Seong-gye, the relationship between the Jurchen and the Joseon royal family had gradually deteriorated.
Of course, Joseon still maintained relations with the Jurchen by granting them official positions and engaging in trade, but the close relationship of Yi Seong-gye's era had largely disappeared.
On the other hand, refusing Joseon's invitation was concerning due to the bloodbath that had befallen the Jurchen in Jianzhou.
In this difficult situation, the elderly chieftains were the first to make up their minds.
"We must go to see the one who carries the blood of the great elder!"
The senior chieftains, who still cherished memories of Yi Seong-gye, took the lead, and in the tribes where a generational change had occurred, the elders stepped forward to persuade the new chieftains.
"Han. If he is the descendant of the great elder, we must be cautious. He is likely to have inherited the great elder's temperament. Think about the misfortune that befell the sick in Jianzhou."
Ultimately, the chieftains from the Tumen River region and the Ollanghap region had to move toward Joseon.