I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 150

Became a Hidden Power in the British Empire 150

The Moving Powder Keg (2)

Before the war with Great Britain, the Qing Dynasty didn’t often interact with Western powers.

If there was one exception, it would be Russia.

In the past, as the Tsardom of Russia, they signed the Treaty of Nerchinsk with the Qing Dynasty, defining the borders of Manchuria and the Primorsky Krai [a region in southeastern Russia].

This was considered significant because it wasn’t a treaty where the Qing Dynasty had complete superiority, but rather a European-style equal treaty.

Since then, they had been further specifying the border through the Treaty of Kyakhta and continuing trade with Russia.

The reason Russia gave up its claims to the Primorsky Krai and Manchuria was because Russia’s situation was chaotic at the time, and they judged that fighting the powerful Qing would be a losing proposition.

Who was the emperor of the Qing Dynasty at that time?

It was the Kangxi Emperor, considered the greatest ruler in Qing history and often called the “Eternal Sage.”

So, from Russia’s perspective, it was better to gain profits through trade than to fight with the Qing.

However, more than 100 years later, the situation was completely reversed.

Russia’s national power had expanded to the point where it called itself the gendarme of Europe [a self-appointed police force], while the Qing Dynasty had been exposed for the inconvenient truth that it was already senile.

Moreover, the damage from the war with Great Britain was so great that much internal turmoil was erupting within the country.

And that’s not all.

They were breaking their backs trying to raise the indemnity to be paid to Great Britain. Above all, the fact that they had ceded territory to a foreign country for the first time in the long history of China weighed heavily on their shoulders.

It’s always difficult the first time, but once a precedent is set, it becomes easier the second and third time.

There was no brazen country yet demanding territory, but the United States and France were constantly pressuring them to conclude trade treaties with them, following Britain’s lead.

And these arrogant actions of the West seemed very displeasing to the Daoguang Emperor, who still considered himself the Son of Heaven of the Central Plains [the Chinese emperor, seen as divinely appointed].

In this situation, the letter that arrived from the Russian side poked at the wounded pride of the Son of Heaven, completely turning it upside down.

“···The Primorsky Krai has been indirectly considered Russian territory since the time of the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Therefore, we request that the unequal treaties previously concluded be annulled and new treaties be concluded. Since Russians have settled and live north of the Amur River, we believe it is right for Russia to govern this area from now on··· These bastards are crazy!”

The Daoguang Emperor, reading the letter summarizing the Russian demands, tore the paper in anger, and the officials hurriedly bowed their heads.

“M-Magnanimity!”

“The arrogant demands of the Arasa (Russia) are not worth listening to! There is already a treaty concluded by the Eternal Sage, so why are they saying something different now!”

“You must resolutely respond to their demands!”

Of course, even the officials who said these things didn’t believe that the Qing Dynasty was in a position to fight with Arasa right now.

But wasn’t that the same for them?

Although the Qing Dynasty and Arasa were great powers boasting vast territories, if the front line was formed in the Primorsky Krai, the actual number of troops that could be mobilized would be at most in the thousands.

Moreover, Great Britain was like a foreign substance that suddenly fell from the west from the Qing Dynasty’s point of view, but Russia had a big difference in that it was a country that had been in contact with them for hundreds of years.

No matter what, it was hard to believe that Arasa, whom they had been watching all along, would be much stronger than the Qing Dynasty like that monster, Britain.

The Daoguang Emperor also felt that way in his heart.

“I have seen those who want to trade with us, but I have never seen those who brazenly demand territory like this. Arasa must have been just another barbarian with no roots after all. I will never respond to such unreasonable demands, so everyone should combine their wisdom to overcome this difficulty!”

“How about immediately summoning the Eight Banners [Qing military units] in the Northeast and stationing them in the Primorsky Krai?”

“But we are not in a situation where we can send the Eight Banners on a large scale. How about gathering volunteer soldiers from various places to supplement the insufficient forces?”

“They’ll only be at the level of a militia; can they deal with the firearms that the Arasa guys will bring?”

“If they have similar firearms to the British, it won’t be easy even for the Eight Banners. So we need to take as many sura [brave warriors] as possible······.”

The memory of the defeat they experienced last time was so great that even the officials who were calling for a strong response didn’t seem to like the reaction.

Of course, the Daoguang Emperor couldn’t help but feel uneasy in his heart.

Britain was said to be the strongest of the European powers, specializing in warfare, but Arasa was different, wasn’t it?

Recently, he had heard that they were quite proud, but the Qing Dynasty couldn’t psychologically accept that they were behind Arasa, no matter what.

But what if they really lost the war?

Then, of course, they would have no choice but to lose the Primorsky Krai as it was, and this was different from when they were defeated by Britain.

Britain was a newly emerging power in Europe that the Qing Dynasty had never encountered before, and above all, the naval power was so different.

In fact, the Qing Dynasty was constantly emphasizing the weakness of its navy to justify the reason for its defeat to Britain.

The logic was that the Eight Banners of the great Qing Dynasty could easily win on land, but the Qing Dynasty, centered on cavalry, was unable to defeat Britain, the world’s strongest naval power.

Since the territories ceded to Britain were mostly islands except for Shanghai, it was somehow possible to mentally justify that those islands were not very important to the Qing Dynasty, which was the center of the continent.

But if the army was defeated by Arasa and the land bordering Manchuria was given to Arasa, then these excuses could no longer be made.

In some ways, this situation could be seen as much more urgent than the threat from Britain last time.

He wanted to fight, but realistically it was too difficult to pour national power into that distant frontier.

While everyone was deep in thought, Yishan, the General of the Tongtong Yili, opened his mouth.

“Your Majesty.”

“Oh, are you volunteering to take command of the army?”

“If Your Majesty orders it, I will do so. But if we are short on hands here, wouldn’t it be possible to borrow hands from the other side?”

“Hands from the other side…?”

“When the Kangxi Emperor was here in the past, I have seen records that the Great Emperor received support troops from Joseon [ancient Korean kingdom] to drive out the barbarian hordes of the north. Although it is on a small scale, neither we nor Arasa can dispatch that many troops to the Primorsky Krai anyway. So even if we receive a small number of troops from Joseon, wouldn’t that be a great help?”

“Joseon······.”

Come to think of it, wouldn’t the distance from Joseon to the Primorsky Krai be shorter than the distance from the Qing Dynasty to organize troops and send them to that distant Primorsky Krai?

In fact, when the officials brought the map, they could see that the distance between the two sides was closer than expected.

In terms of the Central Plains, Joseon and the Primorsky Krai were in contact to the extent that they were only passing through one province.

From the Qing Dynasty’s point of view, this was practically just a light expedition to the front yard of the neighborhood.

“Not a bad suggestion. No, it’s not just not bad, it’s quite a clever idea. Even if Joseon is a weak country, it wouldn’t be too difficult to send a few hundred soldiers to such a close distance.”

“Yes. And they will also feel threatened if Arasa moves south. Unlike us, who are bound by the Sino-centric order [China-centered international relations], it is unknown how Arasa will treat Joseon.”

There was a slight conflict with Joseon over where Gillian Quai of Britain came from, but when you think about it, it was resolved well, wasn’t it?

The Daoguang Emperor immediately took action according to Yi San’s proposal, as the current situation was so urgent.

“Immediately send a decree to Joseon. Since the Joseon people don’t listen well, try to highlight the threat of Arasa as much as possible.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

“And convey my strong will to the Arasa side as well. Not even a handful of the Great Qing’s territory can be given away.”

“I will follow Your Majesty’s orders!”

If they knew the current situation in Joseon in detail, they would have known that Joseon would not obey so easily, but the Qing Dynasty had no way of knowing what Joseon was thinking now, and they had no intention of doing so.

In fact, it was too obvious.

The Qing Dynasty did not even know what the situation was in their own country, let alone other countries.

* * *

As soon as the Emperor’s order to deliver the decree to Joseon as quickly as possible fell, the Qing Dynasty moved frighteningly quickly.

Coincidentally, the day Joseon was turned upside down by the Emperor’s order was exactly the same day that Victoria gave birth to twins in Canada amidst the blessings of everyone.

On that day, when all of Canada was covered in joy, the Joseon’s Border Defense Council was turned upside down in shock, and shouts and accusations were pouring out.

“To send troops because we have to fight with Arasa, are we a local government of the Qing Dynasty?”

“The Qing Dynasty cites the example of the Northern expedition that King Hyojong carried out in the past and hopes that we will respond in the same way as then.”

“The situation is different from then, so how can we respond in the same way?”

It was already difficult to maintain the current military system, so what kind of Northern expedition to freeze to death are you talking about?

The Andong Kim clan and the Pungyang Jo clan, who usually argued, all became one and criticized the Qing Dynasty’s absurd proposal with veins in their necks.

Left State Councilor Kim Do-hee, who was running on a fast track to success, asked Kim Jwa-geun, who had newly risen to the position of Minister of War.

“Does the Minister of War think that Joseon is currently in a situation where it can send troops as requested by the Qing Dynasty?”

“It’s impossible. Even if it’s 100 people, if they cross the border to fight, a route must be secured to supply materials and food, and this alone is a waste. Moreover, the Qing Dynasty is asking us to dispatch a scale of 200 to 300 people or more, but this is an absurd request given our current circumstances.”

“Then, can we explain our current situation and answer that it is difficult to dispatch troops?”

Logically and emotionally, they had to shout yes, but none of the officials in the Border Defense Council readily opened their mouths.

Rejecting the request made directly by the Emperor of Qing, not anyone else, meant that they had to be prepared for the repercussions.

If things go wrong, the person who rashly speaks here will be the first to be put on the chopping block.

“Wouldn’t it be better to say that we will do our best to gather troops and delay the timing by making this excuse and that excuse?”

“That also makes sense. But the Qing Dynasty is almost certain that if the Primorsky Krai is handed over to Arasa, Arasa will immediately make us the next target, so shouldn’t we prepare for this as well?”

“Arasa is said to be particularly obsessed with territorial expansion among those European barbarians, so we definitely need to prepare measures as well. But wouldn’t that be separate from sending support troops?”

Opinions are coming out in various ways, but the conclusion that is ultimately drawn is that it is impossible for Joseon to do something alone in the current situation.

They can never let Arasa take the Primorsky Krai, but if they send support troops to Qing, their backs will be bent to the point of breaking.

A situation of being unable to move forward or backward.

Even though Joseon had received intelligence from the British side that Arasa was aiming for the Primorsky Krai, Joseon was not prepared at all.

If this continues, Joseon may end up being an instrument that is beaten here and there in a scene where the Western powers are playing the buk [a shallow barrel drum] and janggu [a double-headed hourglass-shaped drum].

But if they reach out to Britain right here, it will only give Britain an excuse to penetrate Joseon more deeply than necessary.

That’s why they were holding back as much as possible.

“Now that it has come to this, how about requesting mediation from Gillian Quai, as we talked about last time?”

“He seemed very grateful that we included him as a member of the Jongchin [royal family], even if it was only in name, so wouldn’t he be able to communicate well?”

“Realistically, there seems to be no other way right now.”

They are afraid of the wolf, so they ask the tiger, with whom they only have internal intimacy, for help?

That short-sighted thinking that only thinks about getting through the current predicament without thinking about the aftermath.

Kim Jwa-geun shook off the deep anxiety that Arasa might not be the problem and sighed softly.