Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 564

564. Severance (3)

“Joseon is a vassal state of Ming! Is it proper etiquette for a vassal to reject the orders of Us, the ruler of the suzerain state, deeming them unjust?”

“Even for a suzerain state, what is unjust is unjust! My King has a responsibility to protect the territory and the people of Joseon! Yet, simply because we are a vassal state, you demand that we relinquish Joseon’s territory and retreat! This disregards my King! No matter how powerful the ruler of a suzerain state may be, such actions are morally reprehensible! Furthermore! I wish to reiterate that while Joseon observes the rites of serving the great [a diplomatic term referring to acknowledging Ming’s superior status], we are not a colony of Ming!”

“You villain! And you dare call yourself a subject! If you were a true subject, you would advise your lord against taking the wrong path! But now, you are leading your lord into danger!”

“It is precisely because I am a subject that I stand here and speak of injustice! The order Your Majesty has issued is detrimental to my King! Therefore, as a subject of Joseon, I am fulfilling my duty!”

Though Emperor Xuande continued to pressure him, emphasizing that it was an order from the suzerain state, Heo Hu remained steadfast and unyielding.

“It is profoundly unjust for Your Majesty to oppress Us and our Joseon!

According to the decrees established by the late Emperor Yongle, royal family members who have received the title of King are forbidden from possessing troops and are prohibited from interacting with officials and influential figures within the royal palace!

However, the Prince of Liaodong has violated all of these prohibitions! Of course! All of this must have been done with Your Majesty’s approval!

However, if they were proper subjects, as Your Majesty claims, they would have pointed out the wrongfulness of this and corrected it before such a decision was made!”

This was Heo Hu’s counterattack. While his words appeared to criticize the Ming Dynasty’s court officials, his true intention was different.

‘You incompetent fools who can’t even uphold the laws set by the late Emperor!’

Of course, Emperor Xuande was astute enough to grasp this, and his face flushed crimson with anger. However, it was difficult to directly fault Heo Hu.

Heo Hu was not directly insulting Emperor Xuande but rather highlighting the failings of the Ming court officials.

This put the Ming court officials in an awkward position. From their perspective, it was as if they were walking down the street and were suddenly struck by a stray stone.

Starting with the Senior Grand Secretary of the Grand Secretariat [the highest-ranking official in the Ming Dynasty’s government], the faces of all the Ming officials present turned pale.

‘Why! Why is he bringing this up!’

‘He knows, yet he still says it, doesn’t he? That must be it, right?’

‘Don’t think we have nothing to say in response!’

Beginning with the Senior Grand Secretary, the Ming officials also had their own grievances.

Everything related to Zhu Qizhen [the Prince of Liaodong] was orchestrated by Emperor Xuande in a secretive manner.

Despite various rumors, Emperor Xuande bestowed special official positions upon Zhu Qizhen, who was still the Crown Prince at the time, and then dispatched him to Liaodong. Shortly thereafter, he abolished Zhu Qizhen’s position as Crown Prince and demoted him to the Prince of Dong.

While the officials expressed concern about this series of events, none dared to openly voice their objections. Knowing Emperor Xuande’s temperament, they believed there was a 99.9% chance of losing their heads the moment they spoke out.

Emperor Xuande disregarded Heo Hu’s criticism and continued his assault.

“Yi Seong-gye [also known as King Taejo], the founder of your Joseon, turned back his troops because he deemed Choi Young of Goryeo’s order to attack our Ming unjust. Furthermore, Yi Bang-won [also known as King Taejong], the late King of your Joseon, executed Jeong Do-jeon, who was plotting to conquer Liaodong. These actions were taken to uphold the principle of serving the great and to safeguard the security of the nation. But now, you are acting in direct opposition to these principles! I ask again, are you not aware that your actions are endangering the security of Joseon and the King of Joseon?”

Heo Hu immediately countered Emperor Xuande’s words.

“Your Majesty is committing the error of forced interpretation! Taejo the Great’s decision to turn back the troops at Wihwado, and Taejong the Great’s punishment of Jeong Do-jeon were both aimed at preventing the disruption of peace! However, in this instance, the Prince of Liaodong initiated the breach of peace by invading Joseon’s border! It is a fundamentally different situation!”

Following this, the war of words between Emperor Xuande and Heo Hu raged on. Emperor Xuande relentlessly attempted to attack from various angles, but Heo Hu maintained his unwavering stance.

Finally, Emperor Xuande conceded, throwing the first stone, so to speak.

“Alright! Fine! Do as you please! Joseon, do as you please! However, you will also bear the responsibility for the consequences!”

“Very well! Please record it in a document!”

“Okay! Bring paper and ink!”

Emperor Xuande, shouting in anger, scribbled on the paper brought by the eunuchs, stamped it with the imperial seal, and threw it at Heo Hu.

“Here! Do as you please! But remember that Joseon is responsible for everything that follows!”

“Thank you immensely!”

Heo Hu, expressing his gratitude in an exaggeratedly loud voice, picked up the paper and bid farewell to Emperor Xuande.

“May you live long and prosper!”

“Be grateful that I’m letting you live!”

Heo Hu, having left the Forbidden City, smiled and glanced back at his entourage.

“We have secured a clear justification. Let’s return as quickly as possible.”

“Yes!”

* * *

Meanwhile, deep within the Forbidden City, Emperor Xuande wore a satisfied smile.

“Finally, I have an excuse to dispatch troops.”

If it were the usual Joseon, they would not have reacted so vehemently. The fact that they are resisting so irrationally proves the extent of the damage Joseon has suffered.

“The more frightened a dog is, the louder it barks, right?”

Emperor Xuande, convinced that things were unfolding according to his plan, picked up his brush.

“I should begin gathering soldiers. It seems that the soldiers stationed along the Great Wall will be insufficient. Cough! Cough!”

Emperor Xuande, while writing the imperial edict, coughed violently. Looking at the blood on the handkerchief he had hastily pressed to his mouth, he sighed.

“If I can only hold on a little longer, I will be able to hand over a strong and secure empire. If I can only hold on a little longer….”

* * *

Heo Hu and his party, having retraced their steps from Beijing, immediately boarded a ship.

“We must reach Hanseong [the capital of Joseon] as quickly as possible!”

“We will do our best!”

As befitting its name, Sea Hawk, the warship swiftly arrived at Jemulpo [modern-day Incheon]. Heo Hu, disembarking at the pier, immediately obtained a horse from the naval base and rushed towards Hanseong.

* * *

“The Minister of Foreign Affairs who went to Beijing has returned!”

“Oh!”

Everyone gathered in Seungwhadang [a government building] rose from their seats and came outside upon hearing the eunuch’s report.

Heo Hu, panting as he dismounted his horse, immediately knelt down and addressed Hyang [likely referring to the King or Crown Prince] in a loud voice.

“Minister of Foreign Affairs, Heo Hu! I have returned after completing the order Your Highness gave me!”

Heo Hu, declaring that he had fulfilled his assigned task, retrieved Emperor Xuande’s personal letter from his bosom and presented it to Hyang.

“Here! It is the Emperor’s personal letter.”

Hyang received the personal letter handed by Heo Hu and examined its contents.

Even amidst the hastily scribbled cursive script, it was filled with lengthy sentences adhering to formality and etiquette, but the core message was simple.

-Do as you please. However, the responsibility lies with you, Joseon!

Hyang, after confirming the contents, clenched his fist and looked back at the ministers.

“We have gained justification! There is nothing to hold us back now!”

“Oh!”

The ministers exclaimed at Hyang’s words. Before the shouts could subside, Hwang Hui [a high-ranking official] called out to the ministers.

“Everyone! Now is the time to shout hurray! Hurray!”

“Hurray! Hurray!”

At Hwang Hui’s lead, all the ministers raised both arms and began to shout hurray.

As the shouts of hurray died down, Hyang began to move.

“Now! Let’s begin working in earnest!”

“Yes!”

The ministers, responding energetically, headed to Seungwhadang following Hyang.

Heo Hu, walking towards Seungwhadang with the ministers, asked Kim Jong-seo [a military general] next to him in a low voice.

“How is the situation at the Yalu River?”

“Yalu River? We won very splendidly.”

“Hoo~.”

At Kim Jong-seo’s answer, Heo Hu finally sighed with relief.

* * *

Two days before Heo Hu arrived in Beijing, the second battle of the Battle of Insan Fortress took place.

Bang! Bang! Kwakwang! Bang! Bang!

The Liaodong army’s artillery, desperately restored, simultaneously concentrated its fire on the iron net zone on the left side of the Insan Fortress.

Holes began to appear in the iron net zone due to the Liaodong army’s concentrated shelling.

The Liaodong soldiers watching the scene from the bridgehead and nearby trenches began to brighten up little by little.

“This time….”

As soon as the Liaodong army’s shelling commenced, the Joseon army’s counter-shelling followed.

“I was wondering where the artillery that hadn’t been seen before was… We’ve been hit.”

Lee Jing-ok [a Joseon military commander], who received the report, licked his lips.

* * *

After experiencing defeat in the first battle, the Liaodong army desperately concealed its artillery. They only collected or moved the artillery at night when the Bigu [a type of flying weapon or reconnaissance device] could not fly, and during the day, they hid the artillery using various methods. Furthermore, they refrained from mobilizing artillery in the small-scale skirmishes that had been occurring.

Consequently, the Joseon army had to select and shell points where they believed the artillery would be located, based on the range of the Ming-made artillery they had observed in the first battle.

However, this shelling proved unexpectedly ineffective because the Liaodong army had completely withdrawn the artillery and concealed it further back.

Then, when the second battle erupted, they brought out the artillery they had hidden and unleashed its fire.

* * *

“We’ve been hit, but it’s over once they’ve revealed themselves! Tell them to destroy all the enemy’s artillery!”

“Yes!”

The adjutant who received the order wrote it down and handed it to the signalmen and messengers.

As the Joseon army’s counter-shelling commenced, the Liaodong army’s main force began to advance.

“Enemy main force, crossing the river!”

“Where!”

“It’s the left flank!”

Lee Jing-ok rose from his seat and rushed to the embrasure. Liaodong soldiers were swarming across the river.

The Liaodong army was heading towards the left flank, where holes had been created by the concentrated shelling.

Lee Jing-ok, confirming the situation, turned to the adjutant.

“Prepare the reserves!”

“Yes!”

“Tell the cannons on the left flank to crush the enemies attempting to break through!”

“Yes!”

Lee Jing-ok, having issued the order to deal with the enemies attempting to break through, gritted his teeth while looking at the sky.

“When are these bastards arriving!”

* * *

The battle between the Liaodong army attempting to breach the left flank of the Insan Fortress and the Joseon army striving to repel them raged fiercely. Even while under attack from the Joseon soldiers positioned in the trench line and those stationed on the walls of the Insan Fortress, the Liaodong army stubbornly pressed forward.

“Deploy the reserves!”

“Yes!”

The Liaodong army began to falter as the waiting reserves were deployed.

Jo Byeong-deok [a Liaodong military commander], who was observing this scene from the hill, ordered the adjutant.

“Send the 3rd division!”

“Yes!”

Jo Byeong-deok, having issued the order, clenched his fist.

“We can break through if we push a little harder! Just a little more!”

Half an hour later, Jo Byeong-deok’s hope turned into despair.

“It’s the Joseon navy!”

“What? Where!”

At Jo Byeong-deok’s urgent voice, the adjutant next to him shouted, pointing towards the lower reaches of the Yalu River.

“It’s over there!”

In the direction indicated by the adjutant, dozens of Joseon warships were advancing up the Yalu River in two rows.

“Damn it! What a mistake to make!”

Jo Byeong-deok blamed himself for his oversight. He had completely dismissed the possibility of the Joseon navy’s involvement, trapped by the assumption that the Joseon navy only possessed large ships.

At that moment, another messenger ran up and delivered more bad news.

“It’s a surprise attack! The Joseon cavalry is attacking the left flank of our army!”

Upon hearing the messenger’s report, Jo Byeong-deok looked up at the sky in disbelief.

“We’ve been had….”