Black Corporation: Joseon

Episode 986: The Clear-Eyed Madman (10)

Michelangelo’s expression was a mixture of determination and confidence at the same time.

-It’s not often you get the chance to touch a masterpiece like this! I will definitely take it!

-yes! You have to be as good as me to tinker with a masterpiece like this! no! It’s impossible without me!

Seeing Michelangelo’s expression like this, the official cleared his throat and continued speaking.

“Cut hum! Taesangtae, who was in charge of supervising this mill, said that the following conditions must be observed.”

The conditions stated by the official were as follows.

-Materials used for repairs must be the same as those originally used.

To put it simply, places where granite is used should be replaced with granite, and places where marble is used should be replaced with marble.

-The use of materials such as cementum or rebar is not permitted.

-Do not change the structure from when it was first built.

“Hmm…”

Michelangelo’s expression became very serious after hearing the conditions stipulated by the scent.

‘From what I looked at earlier, it was full of granite…’

Michelangelo thought for a while and asked the official.

“Can you hire the imperial masons?”

“We will spare no effort in providing all support if necessary.”

“……..”

Michelangelo, who had been silent and thinking about those words again, opened his mouth.

“I will take care of it. I will go back to Seoul, pack my bags, and come back.”

“That’s how I’ll report it.”

* * *

As the person in charge of the work, Hyang confirmed the report from Gyeongju and reported it to Hyeon. After carefully checking the report, Hyeon asked Hyang before putting the seal in the payment column.

“It’s not that I don’t believe in what the Great Emperor is doing, but will this Michelangelo really be able to do it well? Even though he is young, isn’t he too young?”

“He’s definitely young.”

Hyang nodded at Hyun’s point. Michelangelo, who took on the job now, was in his early 20s. But he didn’t seem to care much about the scent.

“It is true that it is a historic place that has been around since the Silla era, but isn’t it a place only Buddhists visit? There won’t be any major problems.”

After the center of power left Gyeongju, it began to decline, and Seokguram Grotto was greatly damaged by the policy of pro-Confucianism and suppression of Buddhism that had continued since the founding of Joseon. Although local officials and local officials made some repairs, they were limited to a level where no further damage was done.

Therefore, Hyang was looking for a suitable excuse to present to the Board of Audit and Inspection and the private Confucian scholars.

-Although it is a Buddhist building, it has been in existence for over 700 years. It is our responsibility to manage it well and leave it to our descendants.

-However, since it is a Buddhist building, we cannot put too much effort into it, and since European craftsmen are useful, we will hire them to do the work.

To put it simply, it was like this.

-What would you say if you hired A-level craftsmen to repair Buddhist facilities? So it was done with B-level craftsmen. Any problems?

And Michelangelo, who was so young that he could even be considered young, was the optimal alternative.

‘The problem is that the content is S-level, not B-level.’

Is it because of the butterfly effect created by the scent? Michelangelo blossomed sooner than expected. Thanks to this, the rivalry between da Vinci and Michelangelo arose almost 10 years earlier than in history before the intervention of fragrance.

Despite Hyang’s answer, Hyeon still couldn’t erase his worries.

“If you think about it that way, there is no particular problem, but I am very worried when I think about the events that are going on. ‘Renovation of Bulguksa Temple,’ ‘Renovation of Mireuksa Temple Site,’ ‘Renovation of Cheongam-ri Temple Site and Jeongneung Temple Site,’ etc. If you think about the national policy that has been handed down since the Joseon Dynasty, there is a lot to talk about. Cost. That’s also a problem.”

“Think of it not as a Buddhist facility, but as a legacy left behind by our ancestors. If you look at old documents, you will find that even people from China and Japan purposely came to see it and admire its beauty. We need to refine that legacy and leave it to our descendants. “Wouldn’t you?”

“But since they are so stubborn, they will definitely start talking.”

Looking at Hyeon, who still couldn’t shake off his worries, Hyang gave a short answer.

“At that time, answer like this. ‘Everything goes well with family’…”

“Yes? Hmm…”

Hyun’s face immediately brightened as he pondered Hyang’s answer.

“Oh, I see!”

“To add to that, we are also thoroughly conducting tests such as the concubine system and monks. It is not that we have abandoned the national policy. And… I feel more secure at a ‘temple in the plains’ with a lot of people than a ‘temple in a deep, deep mountain’. Don’t you agree? Ah! Don’t think too much about this. It’s a white sound that came to mind after hearing a white sound around the author.”

Hyeon responded to Hyang’s words with an embarrassed smile.

“I think so.”

* * *

Even though Sung-yu-eok-buddhism was the national policy, many people still believed in Buddhism. In particular, many women, regardless of their status, believed in Buddhism. Monks even came to Gyeongbokgung Palace and Suganggung Palace to give sermons. Therefore, a very deep-rooted question asked by someone cynical about religion circulated around the author.

-Why is it that a child who was not born like that can be born if the wife goes to a temple and prays for 100 days? Why is it only effective if you pray at a temple instead of at home?

And as Hyang said, it was difficult to become a Buddhist monk even after becoming an empire. First of all, I had to go through the royal examination held by the empire. Only by passing the monk’s examination could one receive a docheop and be recognized as a legitimate monk. In addition, many of the benefits that had been given to monks and temples since ancient times have disappeared. Officials from the National Tax Service under the Ministry of General Affairs were stationed at the temples of the sects that survived King Sejong’s large-scale sect reorganization. The job of dispatched officials was to check the amount of various donations coming into the temple and collect taxes.

-Income from shareholders is income!

It wasn’t just the donor. Taxes were also collected from the agricultural land leased by the government to temples. If the farmland was entrusted to a tenant farmer, he had to go to the battlefield and write a legal contract, just like in the secular world.

In addition, income tax was collected immediately upon income earned through economic activities such as medicinal herb cultivation and papermaking. This strict administration was not only carried out at the temple level. The same was true for individual monks. Even if you passed the civil service examination and received a military service, you had to pass the examination once every three years. Also, like other secular people, they had to undertake military service.

Of course, God was not the only one who was under such pressure.

-We are citizens of the empire and pay taxes faithfully, so what needs to be protected must be protected. Also, if you have made a contribution, you must definitely acknowledge and reward it.

According to King Sejong’s decision, temples and the monks practicing there were protected by law. The practice of aristocrats living near temples breaking into temples and causing all kinds of chaos, which had continued since the beginning of the country’s founding, was banned. Not only that. When a temple mobilized monks to engage in economic activities, the temple had to pay wages to the monks – although this was at the minimum wage level set by law.

Of course, the government collected income tax from monks. In addition, temples and monks who carried out charity work to help victims of various disasters or the poor were rewarded by the government after considering the circumstances. As a result, unlike the Goryeo and early Joseon Dynasty, the number of people converting to Buddhism decreased significantly.

-There is no difference in the magnanimity and harshness of the secular world or the mountain temple, so why do you become a monk?

* * *

Thanks to the active advocacy of incense and Michelangelo’s own proactive intention, Michelangelo was able to become the person responsible for the repair of Seokguram Grotto without much noise.

“But why did those friends come?”

Michelangelo, who was about to gather his students and workers and begin work, looked at his fellow painters gathered around him and expressed doubt. In response to Michelangelo’s doubts, the eunuch who came down on behalf of the incense explained the situation.

“Those painters will leave pictures of everything you do while they work. And the officials next to me will leave sentences about all the steps you take. And when all the work is done, the records and pictures will be published in a book. “I will tie it up. Then, future descendants will also know how you worked here.”

“Haha! This is a heavy weight on my shoulders!”

Michelangelo laughed heartily at the eunuch’s explanation.

‘My name will remain in the book! Then you can never do it sloppily!’

“Okay! Then, what we’re going to do today is start with a more detailed survey.”

“I need to polish this before that.”

“yes?”

Michelangelo, who was stopped by the eunuch, turned his head in the direction indicated by the eunuch with a slightly annoyed face.

“Huh? A rock I haven’t seen before?”

There was a large granite boulder standing in the area pointed to by the inner coffin. Seeing Michelangelo tilting his head, the eunuch said something.

“This is a task given by the Great Emperor. Carve that rock and make a plaque.”

“You mean the plaque?”

“That’s right. And the names of everyone who participated in this work will be engraved on the plaque. From the Tae Sanghang at the top to the apprentice masons below, everyone’s names will be engraved in Latin and Jeongeum. Except! At first, the name of the plaque “I will make it and after everything is done, your name will be engraved on it!”

Michelangelo’s face became serious as he heard the scent conveyed by the eunuch.

‘This is a test and a warning! The test is to see how well I can handle granite, not marble, and how cool I can make it! And it’s a warning that if you don’t do your job properly, you can be kicked out at any time!’

“When should I finish by?”

“Wouldn’t the sooner be better? Because the really important thing is Seokguram Grotto.”

At the eunuch’s words, Michelangelo took out charcoal from his bag and walked in front of the granite rock.

“Let’s get started right away.”

‘Pass with flying colors!’

Meanwhile, the eunuchs and officials who were watching from behind looked at each other and talked in low voices.

“As expected, he is a talented person chosen by Tae Sang-taeng. As soon as he heard a few words, he immediately recognized the hidden meaning.”

“That’s right. I have a lot of work to do in the future, so I’m looking forward to it.”

When they heard the message from Hyang, the eunuchs and officials had thoughts similar to those of Michelangelo. That’s why I was satisfied with Michelangelo’s reaction. However, the reason why Hyang gave this message was for a different reason.

“I remember briefly seeing Michelangelo engrave his name on the famous Pietà, right? Hmm… If the character I know is the type of person he is, he would do that to the original Buddha in Seokguram Grotto. In that case…”

Perhaps ? The Hyang was worried that Rado might commit a misdeed at Seokguram Grotto, so he took precautions in advance.

“If you had your name engraved on the front door, you wouldn’t do anything crazy!”

Although it was an order given for a simple reason, those who heard it interpreted it differently based on examples of what Hyang usually did.