Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 584

584. Shattered Dreams (7)

Bang! Bang, bang!

The Joseon army, having breached the collapsed outer castle walls, seized the inner city with fierce momentum.

“Move strictly in units of five! Squad leaders, keep a close eye on your men!”

“Don’t fire all at once, five at a time!”

Commanders leading the platoons and companies, the units directly above the squads, shouted at the top of their lungs, directing their subordinates. Heeding their commanders’ orders, the Joseon soldiers moved in units of five, sweeping through the city and securing buildings.

“Throw! Throw!”

Boom!

In the heat of the intense urban warfare, the Joseon army found the throwing bomb to be the most useful weapon.

The throwing bomb, which had distinguished itself during the suppression of the coup in Gyeyu year [1453], continued to prove its worth in the defensive battles against the Jurchens.

Moreover, the throwing bomb was perfectly suited to the Joseon people, who enjoyed stone throwing as a pastime.

– Regardless of social class, if they have money, they enjoy archery; if they don’t, they enjoy stone throwing.

For the Joseon people, who were described in this way, the rifle and throwing bomb were the optimal combat weapons.

The best combat weapon was artillery, of course.

For these Joseon soldiers, the defending soldiers of the Liaodong Army were in a truly dire situation.

“Damn these Jinchen thunderbombs!”

The Ming also had a weapon similar to the throwing bomb, called the ‘Jinchen thunderbomb.’

That’s what the ‘Jinchen’ in ‘Bigyeok Jinchen thunderbomb’ referred to – a tribute to its Jin origin.

It was a weapon made by filling a round container made of ceramic or metal with gunpowder and caltrops [small, spiked metal objects], lighting the fuse, and throwing it.

However, the Jinchen thunderbomb used by the Liaodong army was much more inconvenient to use compared to the throwing bomb used by the Joseon army.

It was much larger and heavier than the throwing bomb. As a result, the throwing distance was much shorter.

But the most disadvantageous point was that the fuse had to be lit just before throwing it. Even in the midst of battle, they had to carry a container of embers or a lit match cord in their hands.

Hanging gunpowder pouches and containers for the rifles all over their bodies, carrying a flame in their hand was a life-threatening gamble.

On the other hand, the Joseon throwing bomb, which adopted the concept of a stick-type hand grenade, only required the user to remove the cap at the end of the handle, strike the exposed detonator against a hard surface, and throw it.

* * *

Although the Liaodong army was overwhelmingly outmatched in terms of individual firepower, they resisted tenaciously.

“Do not retreat!”

“This is where His Royal Highness, the Dongwang [Prince of Dong], is! Protect His Highness!”

Although most of them were soldiers who had been defeated on the Amnok River front, they were still elites whom Emperor Xuanzong had painstakingly raised. Moreover, as soldiers guarding Zhu Qizhen and his family, their elite status was exceptional.

And the rumor that reinforcements would arrive soon made others, besides the guards, resist desperately.

“If you run away again, you will be executed!”

“It’s better to die fighting than to be executed for violating military law or become a slave!”

For them, the repercussions that would follow the arrival of reinforcements were more frightening than dying now.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

A Joseon soldier, shot in the chest during the fierce battle, fell backward.

“Makdung!”

A fellow soldier next to him rushed to the fallen soldier, checking his condition urgently.

“Ugh, ouch….”

As the fallen soldier groaned and raised himself, the fellow soldier, who had been anxiously checking on him, grinned and said,

“The heart guard saved our Makdung? How could you get hit so perfectly?”

At his comrade’s words, the fallen soldier lowered his head to examine his chest. The deeply dented part of the heart guard was exactly where the heart was located.

“Ughh….”

After confirming the point of impact, the soldier rolled his eyes back and lost consciousness.

“Hey! Makdung! Hey! You bastard! This bastard fainted!”

* * *

Another advantage the Joseon army had in fighting the Liaodong army was the existence of efficient protective gear and medics.

Due to the chain reaction brought about by Hyang’s intervention, not only Joseon but also Ming came to possess firearms with very excellent performance.

The power of firearms, which could easily turn any armor into a riddled mess, made the commanders of Ming and Joseon seriously consider the purpose of armor.

What made them fall into 고민 [go-min, Korean for ‘deep thought’ or ‘worry’] was that most of the surrounding countries still used cold weapons such as arrows, spears, and swords as the main weapons of their ordinary soldiers. The use of gunpowder was almost entirely limited to artillery in most countries.

“If they have any sense, they will surely introduce firearms… then it is only natural to eliminate armor.”

“The problem is that we can’t eliminate it right now.”

“But if we keep wearing it, it’s useless against guns, and if we try to block bullets, it’s too heavy to wear….”

The commanders of Ming and Joseon had to stop at the difficulty of creating armor that combined defense and mobility.

But here, Hyang, the cheat key, appeared.

Hyang introduced the concept of the plate carrier that was popular in the 21st century.

Two iron plates of appropriate size and thickness protected the chest and back—specifically, the heart and spine—and shoulder straps and waist belts made of thick, tough leather distributed the weight.

In particular, the thick, tough, and wide leather shoulder straps also served to defend the shoulder area from arrow attacks.

However, unlike the 21st-century plate carrier, the iron plate blocking the front had an added part to protect the neck.

Because there were still more cases of facing enemies wielding swords, it was necessary to protect the neck from the enemy’s swinging sword.

Therefore, after completing the design composition, Hyang muttered while looking at the 완성도 [wan-seong-do, Korean for ‘degree of completion’].

“What is it? This hideous hybrid?”

The Joseon soldiers wore a 첨주 [cheom-ju, a helmet with a brim] pressed out with a press, with a fringe with iron pieces 박힌 [bakhin, Korean for ’embedded’] attached to the left, right, and back, and wore a 엄심갑 [eom-sim-gap, a modified plate carrier], a modified 21st-century plate carrier, over a 19th-century-style military uniform.

Hyang regretted it, calling it a ‘hideous hybrid,’ but the Joseon military, upon seeing the finished product, greatly praised it and decided to supply it to the entire army.

And in this process, unexpected victims emerged.

As Joseon’s economy improved, the number of people with plump bodies increased, and the practice of ‘fitting the body to the clothes’ existed even in this period. This meant prioritizing a good fit, even if it required effort.

Thanks to this, soldiers appeared in the front yard of the military camp in the morning and evening, carrying military gear and running. They were working hard to ‘fit the body to the clothes’ – to get in shape for their armor.