The Chaebol Returns To The Presidency 1967 [EN]: Chapter 160

160. The Silmido Unit Goes to Pyongyang

The Director of the National Intelligence Service reported:

“We have intelligence indicating that North Korea is planning a large-scale military parade for the upcoming Day of the Sun [Kim Il-sung’s birthday, April 15th]. It seems their aim is to flaunt their possession of nuclear missiles to the world.”

North Korea designated April 15, the birthday of Kim Il-sung, as a temporary holiday in 1962, and then changed it to a legal holiday in 1968.

Then, in 1972, on his 60th birthday, they designated this day as the ‘greatest national holiday,’ the Day of the Sun, marking the pinnacle of his idolization.

The President said:

“We can’t just sit back and take this. Let’s retaliate.”

“The United States is displaying its strategic assets, but we don’t have a suitable counterattack card, Your Excellency.”

“Director of the National Intelligence Service, how about this?”

“How do you mean?”

“An eye for an eye, a nuke for a nuke.”

“Pardon? Your Excellency, did you just say a nuke?”

“That’s right.”

“So, are we publicly declaring our nuclear possession, Your Excellency?”

“No.”

“…….”

“Let’s do this.”

After listening to the President’s explanation, the Director of the National Intelligence Service stood frozen like a stone statue for a while, his mouth agape as if he had been struck by a nuclear bomb.

The words that came out of the Director of the National Intelligence Service’s mouth after regaining his senses were:

“Practically a nuclear strike….”

“You could say it’s a hyper-precise, ultra-small nuclear strike.”

“Your Excellency, isn’t this too big of a gamble?”

“It is a gamble.”

“Is it even possible?”

“We’re doing it because it seems impossible. That way, the other side won’t suspect a thing.”

“That’s true, but….”

“Even if a boil hurts, you have to lance it. If we don’t act now, we’ll be threatened every time and worry for the next 100 years.”

“…….”

The President decided to undertake a historic gamble to fundamentally resolve the North Korean nuclear issue, a situation that hadn’t existed in his previous life.

*

US CIA Headquarters.

The CIA Director was equally shocked to hear the proposal from the Director of the Korean National Intelligence Service.

“Are you serious?”

“Yes, sir. The President has given his authorization.”

“Hmm, I’ve been involved directly and indirectly in numerous covert operations, but this is the first time I’ve encountered a plot like this.”

“We can’t get close to the Chairman because of the tight security, and sending a commando or launching an aerial bombing would be tantamount to declaring war. To prevent war, the key is that no one can know who did what.”

“That’s true. But why do you need the US’s spent nuclear fuel rods? Doesn’t Korea have reactors?”

“Just in case, if the half-life of the Korean spent fuel rods is the same, it could be used as evidence against us. Therefore, we need spent fuel rods with a different half-life. Only a small amount with a limited kill radius and easy to transport.”

“That’s not a difficult task. But how do you plan to infiltrate the Chairman’s residence? Are you planning to deploy paratroopers?”

“No. We have a unit that has been specifically trained for this.”

*

Incheon, Silmido Island.

A special operations officer addressed the 24 members of the Silmido unit.

“You’ve all worked hard. We’ve finally received our mission!”

“Wow!”

“Finally, we’re going to take the leader’s head!”

The members cheered.

The Silmido unit was an assassination squad.

In 1968, after the January 21st Blue House raid [an attempt by North Korean commandos to assassinate the South Korean president], special units were created in each of the three branches of the military with the same goal of assassinating North Korea’s Kim Il-sung. Among them, Unit 684 was created under the Air Force and underwent secret training on Silmido Island.

The training was harsh, and the mortality rate was high.

However, as the United States and China suddenly began normalizing relations and the international atmosphere rapidly changed to détente [easing of Cold War tensions], the assassination plan was gradually shelved and forgotten.

During Chairman Wang’s time, middle-ranking officers embezzled the unit’s budget, resulting in unpaid salaries and poor food rations, causing starvation. Except for the volunteer platoon leader, most of the special warfare instructors and assistant instructors left, and personnel unrelated to this field were brought in, further worsening the situation.

As the Silmido special unit became useless, there was even talk among superiors of massacring the unit members to maintain security.

Learning of this, the members killed the internal affairs soldiers and deserted, intending to meet with the President and negotiate.

They hijacked a bus and tried to enter Seoul, but after a shootout, they detonated themselves, and the four survivors were executed.

This was the so-called ‘Silmido Incident.’

At the time, Chairman Wang knew the Silmido Incident well due to the shootout that occurred near the factory.

So, even during the détente era, he had uncovered and punished the officers who committed irregularities on Silmido and had been specially managing the unit until now.

And finally, the deployment order was issued.

The special officer said:

“I’m sorry, but not all of you will be going to the North. Only three will be selected.”

The members sighed.

“Ah…”

“Officer, even if we’re each worth a hundred men, isn’t it impossible for three people to take over the Chairman’s palace?”

They couldn’t imagine how just three people could take the Chairman’s head in enemy territory surrounded by guards.

The special officer said:

“Understand that I can’t explain further because it’s a top-secret operation. If you fail or don’t return, we’ll continue with follow-up operations, so the rest of you stay on standby!”

Thus, the three with the best training scores were selected.

*

Pyongyang, Mangyongdae [Kim Il-sung’s birthplace, also the location of his residence], the Chairman’s residence.

It was a pitch-black night with no crescent moon and a drizzling rain.

Armed security guards in raincoats were spaced apart at distances where they could identify each other, surrounding the residence.

Three black shadows appeared on the back mountain.

The sound of rain-soaked leaves was faint, but they were carefully moving down along the swollen stream to avoid making noise.

They had all removed their fingerprints to prevent identification.

In their chest pockets, they also carried potassium cyanide for suicide.

They had memorized the map of the residence’s surroundings, which Director Jung had created after meeting the Chairman.

“There, the Millennium Spring!”

It was a spring where Kim Il-sung would visit during his walks, said to grant a thousand years of life.

The Chairman was known to drink water drawn from this spring.

Perhaps because of the harsh weather, there were no guards watching.

“Change!”

They suddenly took off their clothes and pulled items from their backpacks.

The new clothes they took out of their backpacks were black protective suits to prevent radiation exposure.

They put on thick rubber gloves.

Then, they took out a heavy lead box from their backpacks.

“Hoo~ This lump of metal is so heavy. Because of this, I couldn’t even pack ammunition properly.”

“I was hoping to slit his throat with a dagger and take it with me, but it’s frustrating to come all the way here and not even see the Chairman’s face.”

“I’m disappointed too, but what can we do? Let’s just complete the mission.”

They opened the lead box.

They threw a bean-sized object into the spring.

“Plop!”

“First stage complete!”

One person, wearing a protective suit and carrying a backpack, approached the residence.

“Woof! Woof!”

The sound of guard dogs barking was heard.

“Damn it!”

They couldn’t approach any further.

He took out a black fragment from the lead box, wrapped it in paper with a stone, and threw it towards the residence with all his might.

He was the best thrower among the members.

“Thud!”

It fell near the flower bed at the entrance.

“Woof! Woof!”

The dog barked like crazy.

A security guard shone a flashlight.

“What is it? Why are you barking so much! Another wild boar?”

“Woof! Woof!”

“Comrade, shut your mouth! The Supreme Leader is sleeping!”

The security guard kicked the dog in the stomach.

“Yelp!”

After taking evidence photos, the three men left the dangerous area and headed south in light clothing.

They were capable of covering 12 km in an hour with a 40 kg military pack, so a 10 kg backpack was like being naked.

They ran like the wind and escaped Pyongyang.

The object they left behind was a fragment of spent fuel rod from a nuclear reactor.

If the spent fuel rods in the reactor’s water tank were exposed, 100 people within a radius of 800 km would die immediately, and ultimately 138,000 people could die from radiation exposure.

This fragment was one-thousandth the size of a single spent fuel rod, capable of irradiating living things within 1 km.

In particular, it was fatal if the contaminated water was consumed.

*

The President’s office.

The Director of the National Intelligence Service reported:

“Your Excellency, please rejoice! The commandos have completed their nuclear deployment mission and returned safely.”

“Well done! Reward all the members handsomely!”

“Understood, Your Excellency!”

“We have a lot to do from now on. The operation starts now.”

*

Silmido Island.

The members were holding a welcome ceremony for the returning members.

Five tables were set with liquor, meat, and food bestowed by the President.

“To celebrate the completion of the mission, cheers!”

“Cheers!”

The members poured soju [Korean distilled spirit] into bowls.

The platoon leader asked:

“Keuheu~ Hey, Sergeant Kim, I told you to bring back the leader’s head, but why are you empty-handed? Did you just go boating at Wolmido [an island near Incheon] in Incheon?”

“If I hadn’t taken pictures of the Taedong River [a major river in North Korea] in Pyongyang, everyone would have said that.”

“After training so hard, you only took pictures of the Taedong River.”

“It’s a shame I couldn’t use my honed dagger and sniping skills.”

“Hahaha, if the enemy didn’t notice any traces, then the operation was a complete success.”

“I’m not saying it because I don’t know, but I feel empty after it’s over. It feels like I just delivered a package.”

“Puhahahaha, package delivery! Here, take my glass!”

“Yes, Platoon Leader!”

*

Paju Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation Complex VIP room.

The head of the National Security Planning Agency was meeting with Jang Song-thaek from the North.

Jang Song-thaek, who had solidified his position as an expert on South Korea, inherited the position from the retiring Vice-Chairman, who had a chronic illness, making him the second-highest-ranking official.

Jang Song-thaek greeted him as if he were meeting an old friend.

Every time they met, the South would hand Jang Song-thaek a bag of dollars, and he was deeply immersed in the pleasure of taking bribes.

He delivered important information from South Korea to the North Korean leadership, making it a win-win situation of eating money and gaining power.

He had been eagerly waiting for an opportunity to meet with South Korean officials, and when the Director of the National Intelligence Service asked to meet, he rushed over.

After the customary greetings, the Director of the National Intelligence Service got straight to the point.

“I’ve noticed that weak earthquakes have been occurring frequently in the North lately.”

“That’s what I’m saying. I guess it’s because we’re close to Japan, which is in an earthquake zone.”

“The earthquake patterns are different from Japan, so it doesn’t affect the Korean Peninsula. And if it were due to the effects of Japanese earthquakes, there should be earthquakes in the South as well. The fact that earthquakes are frequent in the mountainous North, which is connected to the continent, is not a natural occurrence.”

“…….”

Jang Song-thaek’s face hardened.

“Ahem, ahem, what are you trying to say, Director?”

“When we captured and analyzed the wind blowing from North Korea, we detected xenon.”

He couldn’t honestly say that they had collected it directly.

“…….”

“As you know, xenon is a substance produced by nuclear explosions. Are you conducting nuclear tests in the North?”

“Humph, humph, listen here, Director! Refrain from such speculation!”

“We plan to report this fact to the UN this time. I hope you will honestly explain what happened in Punggye-ri [North Korea’s primary nuclear test site].”

“…….”

The atmosphere was chilly.

*

Pyongyang.

An emergency Standing Committee meeting was being held with the Chairman in attendance.

Jang Song-thaek conveyed the words of the Director of the National Intelligence Service.

“The fact that they specifically mentioned the name Punggye-ri means that it’s not just suspicion, but a confirmed situation.”

The Vice-Chairman of National Defense said:

“How did they notice when the magnitude didn’t exceed 2?”

“From what I hear, they collected it from the air. A submarine must have infiltrated Najin [a port city in North Korea], the closest sea area to Punggye-ri.”

The Vice-Chairman of National Defense said:

“Now that things have come to this, I think the time has come, Comrade Chairman.”

The Chairman said:

“Good. Let’s move it up a bit from the schedule. Cough, cough!”

“You don’t look well, Comrade Chairman.”

“I’m fine. It’s just a cold.”

“As the sun of the people, you must take utmost care of your health.”

“Enough, let’s conduct a public nuclear test before the Day of the Sun, and announce our nuclear power to the world on the Day of the Sun. Cough, cough!”

The Chairman was sweating profusely.

There was a slight trace of blood on the handkerchief he used to wipe his mouth.