NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 79



Only Krnovel

(8)

The news that the Chosun Ilbo was holding a contest came like a ray of light to the writers who were once again clutching their bellies that were screaming for food and flipping through manuscripts in damp, moldy rooms with little ventilation, let alone wind.

[The Strongest in the Universe Chosun Ilbo Serial Novel Contest]

The name itself sounded unnecessarily grandiose and ineffective, but the prize money for this insignificant contest was so great that it didn’t even draw attention to such a title.

[Total prize money – 100,000 won]

As I explained several times before, in Gyeongseong, where land prices were the most expensive in Joseon, the price of a Western-style cultural house located in the center of Gyeongseong was only a few thousand won at most.

And the money spent on acquiring the Chosun Ilbo, which is ranked first or second among newspaper companies on the Korean peninsula (there are only two or three companies that can be called newspaper companies), was 80,000 won.

But the prize money for a contest to select a novel to be serialized in a newspaper is only 100,000 won.

“Has Kuroda finally gone mad?”

“Well, only a crazy person would have bought such a crappy newspaper with that much money.”

“Governor Saito must be upset too.”

“Oh, our company is a clean newspaper company with no ties to the Government-General?”

“Oh, that’s right.”

Naturally, there was no good talk internally.

From the beginning, most of the reporters affiliated with the Chosun Ilbo had nationalist leanings, so they did not particularly like Kuroda Kyuichi, who was influenced by the Governor-General.

And in the case of the editor-in-chief and the president, who could be considered executives, the pro-Japanese editor-in-chief appointed by Song Byeong-jun was eliminated when the company owner changed, so he was out of the question, and Nam Goong-hoon, who was brought back from outside, seemed to be cooperating with Kuroda while being suspiciously cautious.

“Hmm… … . The first prize is fifty thousand won? Wow… … . If I just win first place, I’ll change my fate? Should I try writing something too?”

However, because the prize money was so high, there were people within the company who hesitated to participate in the contest.

“Arthur, Arthur, can anyone write?”

“No, I’ve been writing as a journalist for years! Isn’t it enough to just write a novel by mixing in things I’ve seen and heard?”

“If it were that easy, any dog ​​or cow would be a writer… … But what does “jamppong” mean?”

“Huh? Really? It just came out of my mouth, what the heck?”

“You’re talking nonsense again… How about going out for lunch today and having some seolnongtang?”

“What a cool person… … Who calls it seolnongtang these days?”

“Then what do you say?”

“Follow me and make seolneungtang.”

“Then, should I buy the Seolleongtang?”

“Someone who knows my financial situation~”

This good news was soon spread nationwide through the Chosun Ilbo and local newspapers, and as originally planned, the news was also delivered to some extent across the sea to Japan.

Since news of the contest spread, the Chosun Ilbo has received thousands of letters about the contest every day.

“Mr. Namgung, what did I tell you? I said that if you give people a lot of money, they will eat you up.”

“… … But still, I think the prize money is too much for a contest.”

“Haha, it’s okay. I have enough money.”

The cost of this contest was covered by the 80,000 won that was used to purchase the Chosun Ilbo last time, and the remaining amount was supplemented with support from the personal safe of Song Jong-heon, the only son of Lord Noda.

Even if there is a shortage, I am freely taking money from Mr. Song Jong-heon’s safe and using it, so if nothing major happens, I will not run out of money in my wallet.

“Even if the money is like that… … how do you plan on persuading Governor Saito?”

“Well, do I really need to persuade him?”

“What… … .”

Anyway, no matter what I do, if the Chosun Ilbo just writes a few articles that suck up to the Governor-General instead of criticizing it, they will smile with satisfaction.

And this is also a problem that can be easily controlled by wielding a carrot and stick while holding the reporters’ salaries hostage.

“So Governor Saito will have no influence on this matter.”

“Hmm… … But since the prize money is so big, wouldn’t the governor be tempted to get involved if so many people gathered together?”

“Then, it’s good for us.”

“… … ?”

If Governor-General Saito were to belatedly intervene in this mess, I would welcome him with open arms.

By the time that person intervened, the Chosun Ilbo alone would likely not be able to control the situation.

So, we could use the Governor-General of Korea as a shield to get away with it, and just pass the responsibility onto Governor-General Saito.

“What a really tame way of doing things… … .”

“It’s okay. There’s no need to be polite to your oppressor. You’ll be kicked out sooner or later anyway.”

Namgung Hoon was startled by Kuroda’s words and quickly looked around.

Only after he confirmed that no one was there did he start to get angry in a slightly agitated voice.

“What are you going to do if you suddenly say something like that?! What if someone hears you?!”

“Isn’t this just something they all talk about among themselves when the Japanese aren’t looking?”

“Ugh… … . That’s true, but… … .”

Namgoong Hoon shook his head.

It wasn’t anything grandiose, like a movement for independence, but I still trembled all over when I thought about being arrested by the Japanese police and being interrogated.

“Oh… … . I’m so excited I don’t think I can talk about this.”

“It’s okay. If you get caught by the police, I’ll destroy the police station and save you.”

“… … .”

Although it was truly kind words, Namgoong Hoon couldn’t bring himself to say thank you because he felt like it would be true if it was Kuroda.

“… … Please, take it easy.”

“Let’s try.”

Time passed and passed, and before we knew it, the contest period was approaching.

The Chosun Ilbo worked its printing presses hard every day to print special editions and advertisements and distribute them all over Joseon. As if that wasn’t enough, it also placed advertisements in major cities such as Tokyo and Osaka in Japan.

Although a lot of money was spent in this process, it wasn’t a big burden because Song Jong-heon paid the cost (some people call it burglary).

However, it was truly regrettable that as the scale of Chosun Ilbo’s advertising grew, Song Jong-heon’s fortunes declined significantly.

I was worried that I might have split the golden duck’s nest too soon.

“… … I never thought I’d say this, but there are pro-Japanese elements all over Gyeongseong. If you look at the provinces, there must be quite a few wealthy people who collaborated with the Japanese. Why are you so worried?”

“Now that I think about it, that’s true!”

Teacher Namgung Hoon gave me great enlightenment.

In this world, even if you split open the boat of the duck that laid the golden eggs, there are many more ducks that can replace it.

“I’ll go get some golden eggs and come back.”

“Are you going to the bathroom?”

“Oh, why is it bad to take eggs from the ducks I raise at home? If you’re going to do it, I hope you call it harvest.”

Namgoong Hoon thought.

‘If you don’t feed the livestock, let them run wild all over the place, and only take the eggs, how can you call it harvesting?’

But he said something different with his mouth.

“What a truly literary expression.”

“Isn’t that so?”

* * *

The contest, which started with good intentions, had such a high prize pool that people flocked in like flocks as soon as the advertisements were posted.

Especially in today’s world where the poor are living in extreme poverty and the rich are living in luxury, a hundred thousand won is a huge amount of money that can change the life of a family completely.

This is especially true for people who think they have some talent for writing.

[The Strongest in the Universe Chosun Ilbo Serial Novel Contest]

“Is it a contest… … .”

This news also reached the ears of an agricultural school teacher who had to worry about food every day while writing.

“I heard that a newspaper called Chosun Ilbo is holding a contest this time.”

“so?”

“I’m suggesting that you write a piece and submit it here.”

“It’s a trivial matter.”

“No, how can you say something like that when you like it so much? If you just lie down like this, won’t your body and mind become worn out and sick?”

“… … .”

“No, how about you challenge yourself with me? I heard that the prize money is huge and people are flocking like clouds. You will be the one standing at the top of them!”

“… … .”

It also reached the ears of a man of letters who was suffering from a nervous breakdown and various illnesses.

and.

“Is it a contest?”

“Yeah! Seicho, you like reading, don’t you?”

“Hehe, I just like reading.”

“But where is that? I heard you always wanted to be a newspaper reporter?”

“Hey… … . A journalist and a writer are different.”

“No, if you pass a contest in Joseon, they might keep an eye on you and make you a newspaper reporter later on, right?”

“How can things in this world go on like that~?”

“Ugh… … This is frustrating! If there’s something you really want to do, you should just bang your head against it and try to break it while you’re at it! Just stop talking nonsense and give it a try. You never know, right?”

“Um… … How much is the prize money for the contest?”

It also reached the ears of a young man who dreamed of becoming a newspaper reporter while working as a waiter at a branch office.

In addition, it reached the ears of a young man who was preparing to enter the literary world through literary club activities at Tokyo Imperial University and a little child who was going to school in Gyeongseong with his father.

“Contest… … .”

“They give a lot of money.”

News of the contest swept across Japan, tickling the ears of countless writers who had to stay in their rooms and worry about what would happen in the next few hours rather than tomorrow.

And this was not much different in Joseon, where making a living through writing was harder than passing through the eye of a needle.

The parties involved and Chosun Ilbo officials laughed it off as a contest that would only bring together a few people blinded by money, but there were more people in the world who were sincere about their writing than one might think.

But the parties unaware of these facts enjoyed the last calm before the storm struck.

“Wow… … There are a lot of inquiries about contests, but almost no one actually sends in their works.”

“So far, only three works have arrived. One short story by a reporter working for the Chosun Ilbo and two essays written by other reporters and called novels.”

“Isn’t it going to go downhill like this? If it does, it’ll be really embarrassing… … .”

“How could that be? With the prize money being so generous, everyone will soon come back with great works.”

“No. What I’m worried about is whether the publicity effect was greater than expected.”

“… … .”

Namgoong Hoon secretly clicked his tongue at Kuroda’s attitude of only thinking about the publicity effect even in a situation where flies were flying around the contest.

‘You’re only interested in money… … . Hey, tsk tsk… … .’

But he didn’t show it on the outside.

“With such a large prize pool, people would have been coming and going and chatting.”

“I see. Then, will sales increase starting next month?”

“Maybe so.”

Namgoong Hoon did not necessarily mention that sales have increased noticeably.

It wasn’t something to be excited about because it only sold a few hundred more copies.

However, even Namgung Hoon failed to notice that the circulation of the Chosun Ilbo was steadily increasing over time.

“Now that I think about it, it’s almost time to pay the paper fee. Do you have any money saved up?”

“Oh, I forgot.”

“… … Blink?”

“It’s okay. Today, I plan to go to Yoon’s house instead of Song’s and get it.”

“Mr. Yoon? Who is Mr. Yoon… … ?”

“This is Yoon Deok-yeong.”

“… … .”

NIS Agent Tears the Japanese Empire Episode 80