Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 164

164. The Purge (4)

While the rebel army was being crushed in Cheonan, clashes between rebel and government forces were escalating in Gyeongsang and Jeolla provinces.

Jeolla Provincial Army Headquarters.

A map lay spread on the table in the conference room, marked with wooden pieces of varying sizes.

“What are the rebels’ current movements?” Nam Gang-il, the Jeolla Provincial Military Commander, asked. A military officer responded by moving three large wooden pieces.

“The rebels are advancing in three main groups. One is heading towards our Jeolla Provincial Army Headquarters, while the other two are targeting the Jeolla Left and Right Naval Stations, respectively.”

“What are their sizes?”

“The groups heading towards the naval stations number approximately 6,000 each. The force heading towards our headquarters is estimated at around 25,000.”

“Their numbers have increased significantly.”

“The ranks of the rebels have swelled recently.”

“Those bastards deserve to be torn limb from limb!” Second-in-command Lee Han-jong cursed immediately after the officer’s report.

Most of the officers present nodded in agreement. Nam Gang-il, who had been silently studying the map, then posed a question to the reporting officer.

“What’s driving this increase in recruits?”

“It seems rumors of the palace invasion have spread.”

“Hmm? They’re joining even after learning the invasion failed?”

“They seem to believe the court will be shocked and seek a conciliatory approach.”

Nam Gang-il gritted his teeth at this report.

“Fools! Can’t they see the situation clearly? I’d love to meet the idiot who conceived that idea!”

Nam Gang-il genuinely wondered who had made the optimistic prediction that the king, shaken by the rebellion and the palace invasion, would offer appeasement.

“Well, it benefits us if they’re foolish, but… attacking the navy? How clueless can they be? I almost pity them.”

“Haha!”

“Hahaha!”

The conference room filled with laughter at Nam Gang-il’s remark.

If you asked anyone in Joseon who was most skilled with gunpowder weapons, the military would point to two groups:

-The Training Center linked to Area 51, and the Navy.

Since the end of the Goryeo Dynasty, when Choe Mu-seon developed gunpowder weapons, the Joseon Navy and gunpowder had been intrinsically linked.

Therefore, when the court suggested reducing gunpowder production—especially Deokgap-style gunpowder—the navy strongly opposed it.

It was hard not to feel sorry for the rebels, who were rushing headlong into a confrontation with the Joseon military’s gunpowder experts.

Regardless, with the royal order to suppress the rebels issued, the Jeolla Provincial Army Headquarters steadily continued their preparations.

“The rebels are coming!”

“Where are they approaching from?”

“From the Bultijae direction, as expected!”

At the messenger’s report, Nam Gang-il rose from his seat.

“Good! Annihilate them!”

“Yes!”

* * *

The ensuing battle, later known as the ‘Mount Wolchul Battle,’ saw the Jeolla Provincial Army utterly destroy the rebel forces.

They blocked Bultijae [a mountain pass] and used the natural defenses of Mount Wolchul and the foothills of Mount Saenggeum to strike the deeply entrenched rebels from three sides. When the critically damaged rebel army tried to retreat, cavalry that had bypassed Mount Wolchul struck their rear, completing their annihilation.

It was a textbook ‘three-sided encirclement attack.’

* * *

The same held true for the battle at Mungyeong Saejae [another mountain pass].

Spearmen in full-body plate armor, similar to the cavalry’s, blocked the Saejae pass. Artillery and riflemen behind them pinned down the rebels, while cavalry hidden in Jigok-ri and Gakseo-ri struck the rebel rear in a classic ‘hammer and anvil’ tactic.

The rebels, suddenly attacked from front and rear, resisted fiercely. However, the majority of their forces, composed of slaves, surrendered early, making it impossible to turn the tide.

But the most pitiable were the rebel forces that attacked the Jeolla Left and Right Naval Stations.

Upon receiving the report that ‘the rebels are coming,’ the Jeolla Left and Right Naval Commanders unloaded all the cannons from the anchored warships and lined them up, facing the approaching rebels.

As a result, the rebel armies were decimated by artillery fire, from flying thunder crash bombs [early type of Korean explosive artillery shell] to joran hwan [a type of scatter shot].

In particular, the Jeolla Left Naval Station employed a unique tactic, swapping the gunpowder used in the cannons and rifles.

According to the new regulations, Deokgap-style gunpowder [high-powered gunpowder] was to be used as propellant for cannons, and Eul-style gunpowder [lower-powered gunpowder] was to be used for Gap-style long rifles and mounted rifles used by the riflemen.

However, the Jeolla Left Naval Station went to the trouble of disassembling and reassembling the ammunition bundles supplied for Gap-style long rifles and mounted rifles to replace the gunpowder.

“The wind blows well at sea, so smoke isn’t a big problem, but that’s not the case on land, is it? Switch it!”

It was an order from the Jeolla Left Naval Commander, and a brilliant move.

Although the amount of smoke was reduced, Eul-style gunpowder was still black powder, which produced a lot of smoke. However, the amount of smoke generated when using Deokgap-style gunpowder was greatly reduced, allowing the navy’s riflemen to snipe the rebel army more effectively.

* * *

Thus, the ‘Giyu Rebellion’ [referring to the year it occurred in the sexagenary cycle] in the three southern provinces ended with the annihilation of the rebel army. While organizing the battlefields, the Provincial Military Commanders and Naval Commanders wrote reports and sent them to Hanseong [old name for Seoul], while dividing their troops to suppress the areas where the rebellion had occurred.

In successfully suppressing this ‘Giyu Rebellion,’ the court unintentionally achieved another result.

That was the ‘extinction of private armies (私兵) [Sa-byeong].’

From the early days of the nation’s founding, the ‘abolition of private armies’ had been continuously pursued, but private armies stubbornly survived. Especially in the southern regions of Joseon, the size of private armies was gradually increasing under the pretext of defending against Japanese pirates.

However, through the failure of the ‘Giyu Rebellion,’ private armies were thoroughly destroyed. Private armies belonging to the rebel camp, as well as those in the anti-rebel camp, were consumed on a large scale during the battles.

After that, private armies were never organized on a large scale again.

This was because, after the Giyu Rebellion, the formula ‘private army = rebellion’ was established in the court’s mind.

Later, romanticist historians attached the subtitle ‘Twilight of Private Armies’ to the ‘Giyu Rebellion.’

* * *

The rebellion was over, but the bloodletting had not ceased.

“Arrest the families of the rebels!”

In accordance with the royal order received in advance, the Provincial Military Commanders dispatched troops to the areas where the rebellion had occurred.

In the process of catching the rebels, the military had to deal with unexpected people: the families of those who had died opposing the rebellion.

“Oh dear…. This is…” Cho Ganchunbae, a junior officer, sighed as he considered the situation in a village near Naju.

The large tiled gate of Oh Saeng-won, who had started the rebellion, was wide open, and a group of men with blood-stained clubs greeted them.

“Welcome!”

“Who are you!” Chunbae asked, tense.

A nobleman stepped forward from among the men.

“I am Jo Il-gu, the second son (次子) [Cha-ja] of Jo Saeng-won from the neighboring village.”

As the man revealed his identity politely, Chunbae asked again, his voice slightly relaxed.

“Yes. What brings Scholar Jo here?”

“My father and brother died at the hands of the rebels. How can I leave my enemy’s family alone?”

Chunbae quickly entered the house, sensing the strong scent of blood emanating from Jo Il-gu’s answer.

“This is…”

Oh Saeng-won’s house was a bloodbath. The walls and fences were covered in bloodstains, and corpses were scattered throughout the house.

Seeing this, Chunbae glared at Jo Il-gu.

“Don’t you know that you shouldn’t kill recklessly, even if it’s the family of a rebel!”

“Are you saying I should just let go of the enemies of my father and brother!”

“Oh…”

Jo Il-gu answered calmly, seemingly aware of Chunbae’s frustration.

“I haven’t touched a single hair except for taking the lives of my enemies’ families, so you will be able to find evidence, sir.”

“Oh~. You know this isn’t something you can just get away with, right?”

At Chunbae’s frustrated tone, Jo Il-gu replied with a mournful expression.

“How could I not know? But I have no regrets because I have avenged my enemies.”

“Oh~.”

Chunbae sighed deeply and replied briefly.

“Go to jail for now. Hey! Imprison these people!”

“Yes!”

The soldiers, understanding the situation, snatched the clubs from the hands of Jo Il-gu and his men and dragged them away, not treating them harshly.

Watching the scene, Chunbae sighed deeply.

“Oh~! Seriously! Do I have to write a petition in addition to the report?”

* * *

Such incidents occurred frequently in the areas where the rebellion had taken place. Soldiers were sweating as they tried to stop those who rushed to avenge their enemies, or they had to clean up houses that had already become bloodbaths and investigate who had done it.

In the worst cases, they turned a blind eye to revenge on the condition that the property was not touched.

As the situation became so dire, some families who had participated in the rebellion chose to commit collective suicide.

Revenge was washing away blood with blood, and various tragedies occurred, but the chaos in the South gradually began to subside. This was because the court, having received urgent reports, dispatched additional troops and officials.

* * *

Only after the reports arrived from Jeolla and Gyeongsang provinces that ‘the rebellion has been suppressed’ did Sejong take off his armor.

Only after Sejong took off his armor could the ministers of the court breathe a sigh of relief.

As Sejong took off his armor, the atmosphere of the court, which had been tense, regained some composure.

“So… how much progress has been made in the cleanup of the rebels’ families?”

At Sejong’s question, the Minister of Justice replied.

“The families of those who started the rebellion have already been detained, and all their assets have been sealed.”

“You have worked hard.”

As Sejong’s words ended, Heo Jo stepped forward to point out the problem.

“The problem is their relatives. According to the law, the three clans must be exterminated, but the scope is too large.”

“Hmm…”

“If we arrest them all according to the law and make them all slaves, the number will be in the thousands. Also, we need to disperse them so that they cannot communicate with each other, but due to the newly changed laws, there are few who want to receive slaves.”

“There was such a problem.”

“Also, there are those who are from the same family as the rebels but were detained or lost their lives for opposing the treason.”

Sejong, seeking solutions at Heo Jo’s words, asked the Minister of Justice.

“What does the law say to do in this case?”

“According to the Great Ming Code [legal code of the Ming Dynasty China, which Joseon followed], those guilty of treason should be executed by dismemberment, their fathers and sons over the age of 16 should be hanged, their sons under the age of 16, mothers, wives, concubines, grandparents, siblings, and sons’ wives and concubines should all be made slaves of meritorious subjects, all property should be confiscated, and uncles and nephews should be exiled 3,000 li [approximately 1500 km] regardless of whether they live together or not.”

“Hmm… Let’s think about it a little more. The punishment for rebels must be certain, but this time the scope is the problem.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After crossing one mountain, another appeared.