Black Corporation: Joseon [EN]: Chapter 711

711. The Second Battle of the Yellow Sea (9)

The situation for the Ming Dynasty navy turned dire after the Twin Flame Dragons were sunk.

“Even the ‘Jinjo’ [flagship] has been sunk! What should we do now, Captain!”

“Ah…”

“Captain!”

At his subordinate’s almost desperate call, the captain shouted hysterically.

“Bring the Vice-Admiral here right now!”

“But, the orders…”

“What do orders matter when the one who gave them has gone to the Dragon Palace [died at sea]! Bring him here now!”

“Yes, sir!”

At the captain’s roar, the subordinate immediately went below deck. Watching his subordinates still bewildered and floundering, the captain gritted his teeth.

“Looking like defeated soldiers without even putting up a proper fight! Damn it! Damn those bastards!”

The captain cursed, looking at the spot where the Twin Flame Dragons had sunk—a place marked by a few floating debris and struggling allies.

* * *

“Come out! The situation is urgent!”

Jinwi, who had been sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, opened his eyes sharply at the urgent voice of the soldier and asked.

“How many Twin Flame Dragons have sunk?”

“All of them!”

“Damn!”

With a desperate shout, Jinwi jumped up from his seat and rushed to the bridge.

* * *

“Captain! What’s the situation!”

At Jinwi’s urgent question, the captain raised his hand and pointed to one side.

Jinwi looked in the direction the captain was pointing and sighed with a look of dismay.

“Damn…”

In the direction the captain pointed, the Empire’s Challenger-class battleships were advancing proudly, with Assault Turtle Ships leading the way.

“Our forces…”

Jinwi surveyed the situation of the surrounding allies and was at a loss for words.

The Ming Dynasty sailors, having seen all the Twin Flame Dragons that had charged out so confidently sunk, were in a state of panic and didn’t know what to do.

Seeing this, Jinwi chuckled bitterly and muttered.

“I’d have something to say if they had at least tried to escape…”

The main commanders had been aboard the Jeongjo with Deng Surin. Now that the Jeongjo ship had sunk, there were no commanders to lead the detached squadrons.

With the commanders gone, the Ming Dynasty fleet was in chaos, not knowing what to do. Of course, there were captains commanding the battleships on the front lines. However, if a captain moved his ship as he pleased, he would be immediately executed under military law.

This was Deng Surin’s doing.

* * *

Deng Surin had seen countless allied battleships flee at the slightest disadvantage in past wars, and with the quality of the newly rebuilt navy being uncertain, he strictly enforced military law.

-Without the fleet commander’s orders, you will defend your position to the death!

Later, when some captains violated the above order during pirate suppression exercises, Deng Surin mercilessly executed the captains in question.

After that, the captains of the fleet trained by Deng Surin became conditioned to defend their positions even in the absence of a commander.

That was why they were still bewildered and floundering now.

* * *

After assessing the situation, Jinwi gave the captain an order in a calm voice.

“Captain, hoist the command flag and signal flags. The signal’s content is ‘Disperse’ and ‘Retreat’.”

“Understood.”

Before long, the command flag was hoisted on the mast of the battleship Jinwi was on, and signal flags fluttered, conveying the order to disperse and retreat.

As soon as they saw the signal flags, the Ming battleships turned their bows as if they had been waiting for it.

Watching this, Jinwi turned to the captain.

“I’m sorry to ask this of you, but you’ll have to suffer a bit with me.”

“If you mean suffering…”

“Even though I ordered them to scatter and run, they’ll be quickly caught by the Challenger-class battleships and Assault Turtle Ships. So, shouldn’t we make it as difficult as possible for them?”

“Ah…”

The captain, understanding what Jinwi meant, sighed softly. However, he knew that he had no choice.

The Daefuk ships [Ming Dynasty battleships] retreating now were inferior to the Challenger-class battleships in terms of speed, defense, and firepower. Therefore, Jinwi had issued the order to scatter and retreat.

Many ships would be caught and sunk by the Challenger-class battleships and Assault Turtle Ships along the way, but more would survive than if they retreated in a dense formation.

To allow more to survive, someone had to stay behind and hold them back, and he, carrying the squadron commander, had been chosen.

“Isn’t your helmsmanship the best in our navy? I trust you won’t be easily defeated.”

“Hoo~. Understood. I’ll do my best to tie up those bastards’ feet.”

At Jinwi’s words, the captain sighed and rolled up his sleeves.

* * *

In the ensuing delaying action, Jinwi and the captain showed fantastic teamwork.

They skillfully dodged the bullets fired by the Joseon’s Challenger-class battleships while firing their cannons, and cleverly cut in front of the Imperial Navy battleships, disrupting the fleet’s formation.

This was entirely thanks to the efforts of Jinwi and the captain. As a result, many of the Imperial Navy’s Challenger-class battleships chasing the Ming Dynasty navy became entangled and bogged down.

Seeing this, Jo Jinwoong couldn’t help but admire.

“There were skilled guys among the Ming Dynasty bastards! Amazing, amazing!”

However, admiration was just admiration. Jo Jinwoong immediately relayed the order.

“Order to the Challenger-class battleships and Assault Turtle Ships! Ignore that obstructive Daefuk ship and pursue the enemies! And order the Haeung-class [Joseon battleship class] 1st Detached Squadron to stop rescuing prisoners and capture that bastard! If possible, capture him alive!”

“Yes, sir!”

* * *

“Damn, this is the end…”

As the Imperial Army fleet, having received Jo Jinwoong’s order, changed its movements, Jinwi shook his head with a bitter smile.

The Challenger-class battleships and Assault Turtle Ships that he had been blocking quickly moved out of position, reorganized their ranks, and began pursuing the Ming Dynasty navy.

Jinwi and the captain did their best to stop those Challenger-class battleships and Assault Turtle Ships, but the Empire’s battleships escaped from them with helmsmanship as skillful as theirs.

“What shall we do?”

At the captain’s question, Jinwi shrugged and immediately replied.

“From now on, we have to run away diligently too.”

“The ship is badly damaged, and the rowers are exhausted.”

“Send half of the gunners down to row. We’ll have to hold out as much as possible with the remaining half.”

“Understood.”

At Jinwi’s order, the gunners began to row in place of the exhausted rowers.

However, Jinwi’s escape failed. The Haeung-class battleships pursuing Jinwi clearly proved why they were named Haeung [meaning ‘swift’ or ‘agile’].

The Haeung-class battleships that had set out in pursuit constantly pressured and bombarded Jinwi’s Daefuk ship, overtaking and falling behind.

In the end, Jinwi’s Daefuk ship was surrounded by the Haeung-class battleships in a heavily damaged state.

“Surrender!”

“We’ll sink you if you don’t surrender!”

At the calls for surrender coming from all directions, the captain turned to Jinwi.

Jinwi calmly ordered the captain with a calm expression.

“Hoist the white flag.”

“Yes.”

Since the time of the old Han Dynasty, the white flag meant surrender. Therefore, when the white flag was hoisted on Jinwi’s Daefuk ship, the shouts demanding surrender stopped.

After a while, small boats lowered from the nearby Haeung-class battleships approached Jinwi’s ship.

The Imperial soldiers and officers who came up the ropes lowered from Jinwi’s ship began to disarm the Ming Dynasty sailors.

“You may keep your armor on, but you may not carry swords.”

At the order of the Imperial Navy officer leading the soldiers, Jinwi untied the sword he was wearing at his waist and handed it to the officer.

With the disarmament process completed, Jinwi’s Daefuk ship headed to Seosan [Korean city] under the watch of two Haeung-class battleships.

* * *

As the sun slowly set in the west, the Inland Sea Fleet returned to its home port.

In addition to Jinwi’s Daefuk ship, several other Daefuk ships were moving along with the Inland Sea Fleet returning to its home port.

These were the ones who had immediately raised the white flag when they were caught by the Inland Sea Fleet’s Assault Turtle Ships and Challenger-class battleships.

Arriving at the home port near sunset, the Inland Sea Fleet began to classify the captured Ming Dynasty prisoners according to their rank.

The high-ranking officers identified during the classification process were led to separate accommodations.

“Huh? You?”

Jinwi, who was entering the accommodation under the guidance of an Imperial soldier, turned his head to find the owner of the voice that recognized him.

Confirming the owner of the voice, Jinwi approached him with a bright face.

“Admiral! Are you safe!”

The owner of the voice was Deng Surin, the fleet commander.

When the Jeongjo sank, Deng Surin jumped into the sea and took off his armor to survive. Thanks to this, he saved his life, but he was pale with a blanket wrapped around him due to severe hypothermia.

Although he was pale and wrapped in a blanket, Deng Surin’s eyes were burning with anger.

“Why are you wearing armor?”

“Yes?”

“Did you surrender?”

“…”

When Jinwi couldn’t answer immediately, Deng Surin shouted.

“You bastard! Are you saying that a general of the Great Ming Dynasty navy surrendered! Seeing that you don’t have a single wound, it’s clear that you didn’t even fight properly! We lost this time because of guys like you!”

“Admiral, you’re mistaken!”

“What mistake!”

Deng Surin poured out almost curse-like accusations at Jinwi. At some point, Jinwi gave up trying to explain and closed his mouth. He had realized why Deng Surin was blaming him.

‘He’s trying to make me a scapegoat!’

If he returned to Ming after the war, Emperor Kyungtae would surely hold him responsible. Deng Surin had chosen Jinwi as a scapegoat to save himself.

In fact, Deng Surin did not hide such intentions.

“If I ever meet His Majesty the Emperor, I will report your crimes and ask for punishment! You are a disgrace to the navy!”

“…”

Seeing not only Deng Surin but also the other surviving commanders glaring at him with similar expressions, Jinwi quietly came outside.

Jinwi, who came out to the yard attached to the building housing the captured Ming soldiers, sighed as he looked at the moon in the sky.

“Haa~. What should I do…”

Jinwi, whose future had become bleak, kept sighing with a frustrated heart.

No, Jinwi also knew the answer.

“I just need to completely surrender to the Empire…”

If he completely surrendered to the Empire, he would be able to secure his safety. However, his family remaining in Ming was the problem.

The moment he was branded as a traitor, his family would surely fall into hell.

“Hoo~.”

In a situation where he couldn’t easily find a direction, Jinwi could only keep sighing.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ahn Hwi, the adjutant of the Inland Sea Fleet, who had been informed of the conflict between Jinwi and Deng Surin through the guards, smiled with satisfaction.

“Is that so?”

The abilities shown by Jinwi and the captain of the ship he was on in this battle were quite outstanding.

Even the Imperial Navy, which had evaluated the skills of the Ming Dynasty navy as being below their own since the last war, considered them to be quite excellent.

“Try to persuade him if possible.”

“A Vice-Admiral would have a fairly strong sense of loyalty.”

“Still, try.”

While agonizing over Jo Jinwoong’s order, the report that Deng Surin was oppressing Jinwi and that Jinwi was agonizing was like welcome rain in a drought.

“Hmm…”

Ahn Hwi, diligently calculating in his mind, ordered his subordinate officer.

“If we move right now, things that could work out won’t. Leave him alone for now. If we wait a little longer, things will take their own course.”

“Understood.”

Ahn Hwi, having given orders to his subordinate officer, began to write a report to be submitted to Jo Jinwoong.

And, the situation went as Ahn Hwi expected.