I Became Park Jeong-ui’s Nephew - Chapter 81



Only Krnovel

He became Park Jeong-ui’s nephew. – (81)

“Should we use Yi Sun-sin as an election strategy?”

“What are you talking about? Yi Sun-sin?”

“Yes, if you think about it, isn’t His Majesty someone like Yi Sun-sin?”

This is the headquarters of the Korean People’s Party.

Ahead of the presidential election, party officials discussed election strategies.

Explaining how the president has worked for the country so far is a simple strategy, how can we create an impressive image for the people?

There, a person named Yi Sun-sin emerged.

[Our suffering people need a second Yi Sun-sin – Shin Chae-ho]

[Yi Sun-sin was truly a man sent from heaven. If it weren’t for him, Joseon would have disappeared into history – Annals of the Joseon Dynasty]

Yi Sun-sin was a hero who overcame national crisis and protected Joseon. In fact, the people voluntarily raised money and even built a shrine to commemorate General Yi Sun-sin.

The deification of Yi Sun-sin was beyond imagination, and his descendants were also forced to take the military service examination as punishment for having such a great ancestor.

“You are a descendant of General Yi Sun-sin, so you should become a warrior and protect the country, right?”

“Yeah… what…”

Among the descendants of Yi Sun-sin, there were 267 people who became military officers.

But just because your ancestors are excellent, is there any guarantee that your descendants will be as excellent?

Some of his descendants received government medals for their contributions to the independence movement, but they have little presence. So who should turn that image around?

The Korean People’s Party decided to nominate Yi Sun-sin for the presidency.

[At the time of the country’s liberation, the northern part of the Korean peninsula was occupied by the Soviet Union, and the southern part was being trampled by the Korean Communist Party led by Pak Hon-yong. If President Park Sang-geun had not joined hands with the United States and fought, the Korean peninsula would have become communist.

Just as Admiral Yi Sun-sin joined hands with the Ming Dynasty to repel the Japanese army, President Park Sang-geun joined hands with the United States to drive out the Communists and bring freedom and peace to this land. It is a blessing and a miracle for Korea that Admiral Yi Sun-sin and President Park Sang-geun were born in this land.

It is true that General Yi Sun-sin also joined forces with the Ming Dynasty.

Some people are criticizing President Park Sang-geun as a puppet of the United States, but if you look at it that way, Yi Sun-sin did not fight the Japanese army alone.

Just as Yi Sun-sin successfully persuaded the Ming general Chen Lin and led the war to victory, didn’t President Park Sang-geun make today’s Korea what it is by pleasing the prickly American president?

Then, wouldn’t it be okay to equate the president with Yi Sun-sin?

The Korean People’s Party planned its election strategy that way, but some people came up with different plans.

“Yi Sun-sin is a hero, but isn’t he still a subject of Joseon? Your Excellency the President is the leader of this country, so how can you compare a subject to the king?”

“Well… that makes sense, but… isn’t there no one in our country as great as Yi Sun-sin?”

“We don’t need a great man. Our majesty is the Goryeong Park clan. He is a member of the royal family of Silla.”

The Goryeong Park clan is a family that considers Park Hyeokgeose of Silla as its ancestor.

Is it any coincidence that a president came from this family?

It is not a coincidence that my nephew became president, but fate. People from Gyeongsang Province also happen to think that way.

“Our President is of the Goryeong Park clan, a descendant of Park Hyeokgeose.”

“Really? Is that why you pay special attention to Gyeongsang-do?”

“That’s right. Who would ignore their roots?”

Gyeongsang Province is currently enjoying its economic heyday.

Highways have been built, heavy chemical industries have developed, and the country is now serving as an economic gateway to the United States and Japan.

It’s not that the president was given special treatment because he was from here, but because of the geographic location.

However, the people of Gyeongsang Province held the president in high esteem like a king, believing that the interpretation of the dream was more important than the interpretation.

And this is a topic that can be used in election strategy. The president is a descendant of the Silla royal family and has invested heavily in Gyeongsang Province, so shouldn’t the people of Gyeongsang Province remain absolutely loyal to the president in the future?

Even if you look at the population, the population of Gyeongsang-do is a whopping 9.87 million.

If you just grab this, you’ll get half of the total votes.

The problem is that if this happens, the president will not be the president of Korea, but the president of Gyeongsang Province.

Even so, candidate Kim Dae-jung recently brought up the issue of Honam alienation.

“In Korea, only Gyeongsang-do has developed, while Jeolla-do is still the same. The president is only protecting Gyeongsang-do, so if things continue like this, the people of Jeolla-do will be very pitiful.”

A reactionary who secretly stirs up regional sentiments,

So, the Korean People’s Party is also trying to consolidate its power centered in Gyeongsang Province.

The population of Jeolla-do is only 6 million, only two-thirds that of Gyeongsang-do.

And people from Jeolla Province are flocking to Gyeongseong in search of jobs, so the population of Jeolla Province will ultimately continue to decline.

The election strategy of the Korean People’s Party was to abandon Jeolla-do and build a ‘Silla Kingdom’ centered on Gyeongsang-do and Gyeongseong.

Quite a few people nodded.

“Well, if you just combine the Gyeongseong area and Gyeongsang Province, there are 18 million votes. With this, you will be elected with over 80% of the votes.”

“That’s not enough. Considering the achievements our Lord has made so far, it would be normal to get 90%. Let’s set the goal at 90%.”

“All right.”

This is how the election strategy was established.

Most of the Korean People’s Party members gathered in Gyeongsang Province and promoted an election campaign to align the Korean presidential family with the Silla royal family.

“Everyone!! The time when Gyeongsang-do shined the most was during the Silla Dynasty!! And what about now?!! Gyeongsang-do has developed like this because candidate Park Sang-geun, a descendant of Park Hyeokgeose, took power!! Isn’t that right?!!”

“you’re right!!”

“Are you going to vote for candidate Park Sang-geun?!! Are you not going to vote for him?!!”

“We have to vote!! Vote for President Park Sang-geun!!”

“Anyone who does not support candidate Park Sang-geun is not from Gyeongsang Province!!”

The Gyeongsang-do region was dyed in blue waves symbolizing the Korean People’s Party.

The approval rating for candidate Park Sang-geun was 99.7%, and votes literally poured in.

The question is, would the president of Jeolla Province and Silla be interested in the stronghold of Baekje?

But recently, an ominous atmosphere has begun to spread in Jeolla Province as well.

***

“Mr. President, thank you for your hard work on your long journey.”

“No. I feel a little embarrassed to show my face during the election period.”

The same routine that repeats itself today,

I visited Jeolla Province and shook hands with local leaders.

Why didn’t Jeolla-do become the center of heavy chemical industry?

The reason goes back to the 1920s, when Japan had to solve the problem of securing food while promoting industrialization on the Korean Peninsula in preparation for its invasion of China.

So, Jeolla-do, the granary, was excluded from the industrial zone, and the Korean government had no choice but to invest in Gyeongsang-do, which already had an industrial base.

So, as a member of the royal family of Silla, do I just have to take care of Gyeongsang-do?

Not the king of Silla, but the president of Korea, first selected Jeolla Province as a regional development target and decided to invest 15 million dollars by 1970.

“If Gyeongsang-do is the window in charge of Japan and the United States, Jeolla-do should play the role of the window in charge of China and Southeast Asia in the future. With the United States recently reducing its military spending, we don’t know when an incident could occur in China.”

“Then how do you plan to develop Jeolla Province?”

“I have already drawn up a detailed plan. I will explain the details to the citizens.”

I explained my future business plans to the citizens.

First, we plan to establish industrial complexes in Yeocheon and Gwangju and build access roads between each complex. Then, we plan to build housing complexes in the Mokpo-Yeosu area to secure residential areas for workers.

This is the first economic development plan.

It sounds simple, but it’s a plan that will take 10 years to accomplish.

Gyeongsang Province, which still had industrial complexes built during the Japanese colonial period, achieved results in a short period of time, but this is literally like heading towards bare ground.

Do you think Gyeongsang-do could have reached that position overnight?

It is a project that takes 10 years just to set up all the facilities, and because it takes so long, it is difficult to attract investment from companies.

But I wonder if the people of Jeolla Province can endure that long period of time.

Koreans get impatient even if it’s just one day late, and Jeolla-do will continue to be compared to Gyeongsang-do in the future. Can you tolerate that?

I was concerned about that.

“Everyone, Gyeongsang-do did not become an industrial complex overnight. Japan invested in Gyeongsang-do starting in the 1920s, and Korea took over the business and finally saw the light of day. It took 40 years. But can Jeolla-do develop overnight? That’s impossible.

Since it started late, Jeolla-do is likely to be compared to Gyeongsang-do in the future and fall victim to politicians’ vote-playing. It can’t be helped. Jeolla-do has a population of only 6 million. However, Gyeongsang-do has a population of 9.87 million. What do you think politicians will think in this situation?

I think Jeolla-do may think it’s okay to be left out.

This is the flaw in democracy.

Politicians do not care about minority opinions because their goal is to get votes. If you, the people of Jeolla Province, do not want to fall victim to such tricks, the president of Korea, not the president of Silla, should take power.

I am a Goryeong Park, but I have never thought of myself as the president of Silla. I am the president of Korea, and both Gyeongsang-do and Jeolla-do are places I should embrace. If you support me, I will do my best as the president of Korea for the next seven years.

“Please support me.”

This speech had a huge ripple effect throughout the Jeolla Province.

The country is now split in half because of candidate Kim Dae-jung, who pushed the theory of Jeolla-do alienation, and the Korean People’s Party, which advocated the theory of Silla for all things.

But should I wear the Silla crown and sit on the throne of Korea?

You want to divide the country that was already divided in half again? That’s why you threw the election strategy of the Korean People’s Party into the trash can.

‘It’s really useless. That’s why I have no choice but to practice democracy.’

This is exactly why I gave up dictatorship and chose democracy.

When did I say I wanted to be a member of the Silla royal family? But the Korean People’s Party officials have divided the country with their strange election strategy.

Should I believe in such useless things as the attitude that we will reign as kings regardless of whether public opinion is divided or not?

The Korean People’s Party is a party I created, but now it’s in a state where I can’t stand it.

The problem is not corruption, but just incompetence. I plan to disband them with my own hands soon or reform and renew them.

From now on, I will lead all election strategies, and thanks to that, the approval rating in Jeolla Province has risen to 85%.

“We support candidate Park Sang-geun!!”

“Candidate Park Sang-geun is the future of this country!!”

Public opinion in Gyeongseong has also become clear.

The population of Gyeongseong was a whopping 7 million. Why did so many people gather here when the city had only about 2 million people when it was liberated?

As Korea industrialized, rural manpower flocked to the capital, and among those 7 million people, there are quite a few from Jeolla Province.

A structure that can embrace the public sentiment of Gyeongseong only when it embraces Jeolla-do.

However, the Korean People’s Party did not think about that and chose a simple election strategy of winning by just capturing Gyeongsang Province.

You idiots and fools of the world, do you want to be favored by me by working like that?

My workload just keeps increasing because of useless things.

‘Okay, throw it all away. I’ve done a lot of campaigning too. I’ll just do it.’

I am the person who founded the Korean People’s Party by incorporating leftists and moderate rightists.

How can someone like me not devise a strategy for the presidential election?

I feel like I don’t have enough body parts to handle the affairs of the country and the election campaign.