“Truly remarkable!”
Emperor Xuande, who received the chandelier as tribute, exclaid in admiration and said to Lee Maeng-gyun, who had gone as an envoy.
“The skills of Joseon’s craftsn are indeed extraordinary!”
“Moved by the grace Your Majesty has bestowed upon Joseon, the craftsn have done their utmost. I heard that it is difficult to make even 3 of such works in a year.”
“3 in a year…”
Emperor Xuande, who fell into thought while trailing off, pondered for a while and then spoke.
“Listen, envoy. Joseon shall offer those 3 products as tribute for the next 5 years. Of course! I will generously reciprocate.”
At Emperor Xuande’s words, a small commotion arose among the Ming officials present. Emperor Xuande, who had raised his hand to stop the Privy Council from speaking, continued.
“This is a precious item that can be proudly passed down through generations. Therefore, when we receive the tribute, we will hang 1 in the palaces and halls of the Forbidden City, and the rest will be bestowed upon loyal subjects. It will be my reward for those who strive for and the empire.”
At Emperor Xuande’s order, Lee Maeng-gyun bowed and replied.
“I shall follow your command!”
Lee Maeng-gyun, who received an enormous amount of sulfur and copper—half of what Joseon imported in a year—as a reciprocal gift, reported the Emperor’s words to King Sejong. Hyang, who was listening to Lee Maeng-gyun’s words beside him, muttered softly.
“That fellow is not easy either. There will be a fierce competition for loyalty, won’t there?”
***
The crystal chandelier, which sparked a loyalty competition in the Ming court, also beca a topic of utmost interest in Alexandria.
Many rchants and people were paying attention to the products that would be released at the auction house and market, but there were also quite a few who were interested in other aspects.
And representing such individuals was Prince Enrique.
When the rchants from Aden were about to co to Alexandria, Enrique, disguised as a rchant, entered Alexandria with his subordinates.
Enrique’s goal was not trade.
– First, negotiate with the rchants from Aden and have one or two of them join the voyage. Through them, confirm the existence of Joseon, the ‘Land of Flowers’.
However, even after more than a month in Aden, the rchants did not co, and Enrique began to prepare to abandon the plan.
Right at that mont, a subordinate who had gone out to the city returned and reported to Enrique.
“rchants from Aden are coming! But it’s not just the rchants from Aden! People from the ‘Land of Flowers’ are also coming along!”
At the subordinate’s report, Enrique imdiately ordered him.
“Tell the innkeeper that we will continue to stay!”
“Yes, sir!”
“And dispatch people! We need to gather as much information as possible!”
“Understood!”
***
After half a month had passed, all of Alexandria was abuzz.
“rchants from Aden have arrived!”
“People from the ‘Land of Flowers’ have also co!”
“Wow!”
Amidst the Alexandrians’ clamorous chatter, Enrique, who had climbed to the rooftop of the inn, could see Oh Ha-seok’s group passing through the city gate.
“Amazing, truly amazing!”
Enrique exclaid in admiration as he watched Oh Ha-seok’s group’s procession.
There were nearly 100 cals carrying large and small wooden boxes. Considering that the number of cals carrying luggage was only around 30 to 40 during the last visit, it was an astonishing number.
Enrique, who had been estimating the number of cals, made a calculation.
“How many ships have co? At least 3, perhaps?”
Among the dhows favored by Arab rchants, the cargo capacity of the largest ships was equivalent to what 10 cals could carry on average.
If it were a short distance, they would move with a cargo load requiring about 15 cals, but for long-distance travel, the maximum was about 10 cals’ worth. It was due to the space occupied by the food and water to be loaded on the ship.
In fact, the rchant nad Mansur was said to always lead 3 ships when traveling to and from Joseon. And the average number of cals carrying cargo when he ca to Alexandria was 30.
So Enrique calculated that there were at least 3 ships from Joseon.
***
When Oh Ha-seok presented the chandeliers to the mayor of Alexandria and the Sultan, this news imdiately spread throughout the city of Alexandria.
The influential figures who had visited the city hall upon hearing the rumors and the servants who had accompanied them chatted with their acquaintances about the incredible item they had seen, and that story quickly flowed into the city of Alexandria.
While Italian, European, and Arab rchants were focusing their attention on the products brought by Joseon, Enrique issued orders to his subordinates.
“After visiting the Alexandria City Hall, did the Joseon people go out?”
“No, they did not.”
“Hmm…”
Enrique, who pondered for a mont at the subordinate’s report, spoke.
“Try to make contact with the people from the Aden rchant group who ca with the Joseon people.”
“Are you thinking of eting the Joseon people?”
“First, obtaining information about the Joseon people is the priority. We need to secure information such as the customs of the Joseon people and the ships they ca on.”
“Understood.”
Following Prince Enrique’s orders, the subordinates cautiously approached the people of the Mansur rchant group. However, they were able to obtain information from an unexpected place.
The place where they obtained the information was a tavern.
Not all of those employed on Mansur’s rchant ships were Muslims.
A considerable number of Copts (Coptic Christians of Egypt) were working as sailors, and they were relieving the fatigue of the long voyage by drinking at the tavern.
Interestingly, even the sailors of Muslim origin were enjoying alcohol beside them.
The occupation of a sailor was that arduous.
For the sailors of the Mansur rchant group, there was nothing more delightful than coming to Alexandria.
Because after sharing a few stories about distant Joseon, free drinks would pour in.
For the people of Alexandria, stories from the far East were not a waste of the price of a drink.
Thanks to this, the sailors could go from one tavern to another, drinking for free.
“Who will buy a drink for and my companions? I shall tell you the tales of Joseon!”
At the shout of a sailor with a bushy beard, Enrique’s subordinate, José, imdiately stepped forward.
“I will buy you a drink!”
“Oh! You are soone who has crossed the diterranean! May the Virgin protect your voyage!”
Expressing gratitude with exaggerated gestures, the sailor chugged the mug of beer as soon as it was handed to him.
As he and his companions emptied their mugs, José ordered more beer.
“Ooh! Thank you, good sir! What shall I tell you about?”
“I’m curious about the ship made in the ‘Land of Flowers’. How many have co here?”
To José’s question, the sailor raised his right index finger and answered.
“One.”
The sailor’s answer caused a commotion among the onlookers nearby.
“Only one, you say?”
“No way, that’s impossible!”
Almost everyone living in the port city of Alexandria knew about ships.
Therefore, all the onlookers showed negative reactions.
However, the sailors of the Mansur rchant group chuckled and mocked the onlookers.
“You don’t know much about the East! Don’t you know how big the ships that ca from Qitai were?”
When ‘Qitai’ was ntioned, the onlookers recalled the rumors they had heard about the Zheng He fleet and muttered.
“It seems the countries in the East have the technology to build such large ships.”
“The East is amazing…”
As the onlookers quieted down, José asked again.
“How big is the ship?”
To José’s question, the bushy-bearded sailor looked at his companions.
“It looked to be at least 120 cubits (approx. 58m), didn’t it?”
“It should be around 120 to 140 cubits (approx. 62m). Probably.”
At the sailors’ words, not only José but also all the onlookers nearby gaped in astonishnt.
None of them had ever seen ships that large.
“Is it really that big?”
To José’s question, the bushy-bearded sailor nodded and replied.
“It has to be that big to carry so many cannons, don’t you think?”
“Cannons? How many did they load?”
As José hastily asked, the sailor waved his empty mug. José shouted to a passing employee.
“Bring a whole barrel here!”
“Oh, how grateful!”
As a barrel full of beer was placed on the table, the sailors readily answered.
“There seed to be at least several dozen.”
“Several dozen? Even for a 120-cubit ship, isn’t that too many?”
“Nah! They’re not as big as the cannons used in sieges. But they were more than enough to sweep away the pirates we encountered on the way from Joseon to Suez. Hey! How many pirate ships did we sink on the way here?”
“At least over 40.”
“To add, about 30 ships attacked us in the southern seas of Qitai, but they were all sunk by 3 Joseon ships.”
“Wow…”
José, who had been uttering only exclamations at the sailors’ stories, asked again.
“If it’s that big and powerful, it must be slow, right?”
“Damn fast.”
“Really?”
“If you don’t believe , go to Suez and see for yourself. I don’t lie while getting free drinks.”
At the sailor’s words, José shook his head.
“According to your description, it’s an incredible ship.”
“It’s incredible. Even our rchant leader was tempted to buy one but gave up because of the cost.”
“Wow…”
***
Returning to the inn, José reported to Enrique what he had heard from the sailors.
“Can we trust their words?”
“There may be so exaggeration, but I think it’s true to so extent.”
“Hmm…”
At José’s report, Enrique leaned back in his chair, letting out a sigh that was either admiration or lantation.
“A ship over 120 cubits?”
The most advanced ship currently built in his holand, Portugal, was the caravel, which had a length of 48 cubits (approx. 21m). Of course, there were larger ships among the galleys, but there were no ships of 120 cubits.
However, the ship that had co from the East was at least 120 cubits.
‘But it’s too large a quantity to be a lie.’
If the quantity brought by over 100 cals really ca from a single ship, then those words were likely to be true.
After pondering for a long ti, Enrique put down his pen and muttered.
“Is the technology of the East ahead of ours? If so, by how much?”
While he was pondering over this unresolved question, another subordinate entered the room and reported.
“Tomorrow, goods from Joseon will be exhibited at the auction house.”
“Understood. Good work. Go and rest. You too, José.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
After sending the subordinates away, Enrique took a deep breath and sorted out the situation.
“We’ll be able to tell to so extent by looking at the items that co out tomorrow.”
***
The next day, people gathered at the largest auction house in Alexandria.
Those who exuded wealth at a glance entered first and took the front seats, while those who had co to view the Joseon goods to be auctioned off took seats on the second floor.
“Then let’s start the auction!”
The auction began with the auctioneer announcing the start.
The auction proceeded, starting with the auction of slaves brought from Africa and Europe, but people’s attention was focused on the Joseon goods that would co out last.
“Uh… Finally, here is an item from Joseon, the ‘Land of Flowers’, located in the far East. It is a ‘hanging candelabrum’ made of ‘crystal glass’.”
As the auctioneer’s introduction ended, 8 sturdy n ca up carrying the chandelier covered with cloth.
As the n carefully put down the chandelier, the auctioneer explained.
“This item is of the highest grade even by Joseon’s certification standards. Only 3 of them are available at this auction. We will start the auction for the first one.”
Having finished the explanation, the auctioneer removed the cloth covering the chandelier.
In an instant, the auction house was filled with exclamations.
“Ooh!”
“Amazing!”
Amidst the exclamations erupting from all directions, the auctioneer called out the starting price.
“Then we will start at 20,000 gold ducats!”
As soon as the auctioneer finished speaking, hands rose from all directions.
The competition to obtain the chandelier was fierce.
The auction, which started at 20,000 gold ducats, had surpassed 60,000 ducats at one point and was approaching 70,000 ducats.
Oh Ha-seok, who was watching the proceedings from the back of the auction house while listening to Mansur’s interpreter, muttered with a dumbfounded expression.
“They quoted 20,000 nyang of gold to the Emperor of Ming… Here, they might make enough money to build a Challenger-class warship if they do well.”
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