There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 139

My orders were carried out faithfully.

The Jurchen people, having lost their leader, quickly collapsed. As soon as we charged in, most were either killed or taken as prisoners.

However, my orders were only effective up to that point.

I was being held firmly by guards on either side, riding on a cart.

It was because Yi Cheon, greatly alarmed when I was hit by an arrow, grabbed me and handed me over to the guards.

‘Such impiety…’

I wanted to scold them, but the gazes of the envoys, including Kwon Geun, were too sharp.

I overheard the servants walking near the cart whispering among themselves.

“We almost all died, didn’t we?”

“Of course. If even the Crown Prince had died, would that fearsome King have stayed still?”

Even the lowest servants were so terrified that they were whispering like that, so how could I step forward?

Soon, Yi Cheon came and reported on the progress of the battle.

“The one who attacked us was Yangmoktapol of the Hyeomjin Oljeokhap [a Jurchen tribe], who originally had 500 households outside the Tumen River.

However, he betrayed our dynasty and moved to Palcham, but only half of them remained in their original territory, and only half of those followed Yangmoktapol.

Counting those who died and were captured this time, it’s exactly that number.”

“What about our casualties?”

“A few livestock were injured and ran away, but there are almost none.”

That was a relief.

I let out a sigh of relief.

“Bring the bandits who attacked us!”

Then, those who were next to Yangmoktapol were dragged out.

They trembled and prostrated themselves before me.

They didn’t seem to have the same spirit as the leader who had faced me.

“You barbaric villains! How dare you betray our dynasty and even attack me, the Crown Prince? Does your clan have nine necks to lose!” [referencing the penalty of executing all nine degrees of kinship]

As I rebuked them, the Jurchens bowed their heads.

“H-How could we have known you were the Crown Prince of Joseon? As soon as we saw Your Highness’s banner, we tried to abandon our weapons and surrender, but only Yangmutau came forward to fight.

Now that he has died, receiving the punishment of heaven, please bestow upon us the virtue of cherishing life.”

“Nonsense!”

It was Wang Deuk-myeong, an official from Liaodong [a region in China], who shouted that.

“You are trying to pass the blame onto your dead leader, but it won’t work! You will all be sent to Liaoyang [a city in Liaodong] to be punished for daring to plot against the Crown Prince of Joseon!”

Wang Deuk-myeong was trembling and indignant on my behalf, but I quietly pointed out to him.

“Send them to Liaoyang?”

“O-Of course, since this happened within our territory, shouldn’t the Liaodong commander decide?”

Wang Deuk-myeong tried to gloss over it but was caught, and I didn’t let him go.

“These are prisoners captured by our soldiers, and their malice was directed at me, so they should naturally be punished by Joseon.”

“Your Highness, but…”

“If this place is under the jurisdiction of the Liaodong commander, then I should hold him responsible for failing to maintain proper security, which nearly led to my demise. Would that be acceptable?”

“T-That is…”

Wang Deuk-myeong was flustered by my questioning and stammered.

He was in a situation where he could neither do this nor that.

Then Kwon Geun came and shouted.

“Your Highness!”

“What is it?”

“From Uiju [a city near the Joseon-Ming border], a group of soldiers is heading north!”

===

‘Our soldiers crossed the Yalu River?’

Even though I had been attacked, I was quite surprised.

Even more so because the person at the forefront was none other than King Taejong, Yi Seong-gye.

“Grandfather, what brings you here?”

“After Your Highness left, the King Taejong did not return to Hanyang [the capital of Joseon] and has been staying in Uiju,” said Kim Jong-seo, who was attending him.

Yi Seong-gye waved his hand.

“Bah, enough! Hanyang was stifling, so I just took a few months to recuperate!”

I chuckled as I watched Yi Seong-gye make excuses.

Yi Seong-gye asked cautiously.

“I heard you were hit by an arrow. Are you alright?”

“The lightning-struck wood protected me.”

Then Yi Seong-gye smiled and said.

“Yes. I knew it. It’s common for a man to get hurt while living. Do you think there are only one or two places where I or your great-uncle have been cut or pierced?”

‘Isn’t that because it’s you two?’

Because they lived in an era when the Red Turbans and Jurchens invaded from the north, and the Wokou [Japanese pirates] invaded from the south.

In any case, Yi Seong-gye’s arrangement was of great help.

He had been eagerly waiting for his grandson to come and, as soon as he heard the news, he rushed to Palcham with hundreds of soldiers.

“The Ming Dynasty must think you’ve gone senile, Grandfather. Is it alright for you to come here in person like this?”

“It’s fine since this fellow is leading it outwardly.”

Yi Seong-gye slapped Kim Jong-seo, who was standing awkwardly next to him, on the side.

“I am from a literary background…”

“Kang Gam-chan [a famous Goryeo general] was also a literary official in the old days, haha!”

Kim Jong-seo didn’t look alright at all, but Yi Seong-gye patted him on the shoulder.

Glancing over there, I saw Wang Deuk-myeong in great shock, arguing with Hwang Hee.

“Isn’t this our Ming Dynasty territory! How can Joseon soldiers come here?”

“Strictly speaking, the northeastern border is firmly established as the Mudan River, but the northwestern border is ambiguous. It is a place where not even a single fortress has been built, so it is ambiguous to consider it under the jurisdiction of the Liaodong commander,” Hwang Hee said, appeasing Wang Deuk-myeong.

“Furthermore, Emperor Go (Zhu Yuanzhang) [the Hongwu Emperor, founder of the Ming Dynasty] of the Ming Dynasty also set the boundary at the Yeonsan Pajeol, 180 li [a traditional Chinese unit of distance] east of Liaodong, and left Palcham as it was.

The Crown Prince of this country has been attacked, so it is natural for our soldiers to head north in response.”

“Ugh…!”

Wang Deuk-myeong couldn’t refute Hwang Hee’s words.

If he insisted that this was Ming territory, the Liaodong commander would have to take all the responsibility for the Crown Prince’s attack.

It was an impossible argument to win from the start.

“In that case, Liaodong will also send troops to suppress them together.”

In the end, Wang Deuk-myeong had no choice but to come up with this compromise.

It was clear that it was to prevent the Joseon army from acting rashly and to have an excuse when the report was sent to Nanjing [the southern capital of Ming Dynasty], asking what the Liaodong army had been doing, but it was none of our business.

“That’s a good idea.”

The only ones who were struck by lightning out of the blue were the Jurchen people of Dongpalcham, who were diligently engaging in banditry in the buffer zone between the two countries.

===

The soldiers and civilians of Liaodong (軍民), the Mansan troops, who had fled to the Palcham area taking advantage of the Jeongnan Revolt [a historical rebellion], as well as the Jurchen people who had settled in this area, were being subjected to unexpected suppression because of the mess that Yangmutau had created.

As the two countries sent troops and began suppressing them competitively, they had no choice but to stand at the crossroads of life and death.

“S-Surrender!”

“If you don’t want to die, you have to surrender!”

The Joseon army searched Palcham like they were catching lice and began suppressing them.

Liaodong was also sending troops and slowly moving south.

Before they knew it, the two armies had divided Palcham and were maintaining a delicate standoff.

“Then who should we surrender to?”

“Joseon or Ming?”

“The Joseon army is acting like a tiger that has lost its cub, but… Some foolish outsiders attacked the Crown Prince, so they won’t just retreat, will they?”

“But we can’t help but be mindful of the Ming Dynasty, can we?”

The Joseon army, which had invaded on the pretext of ‘attacking the Crown Prince,’ was actively engaged in suppression and appeasement, while the Liaodong commander warned that if they rashly sided with Joseon, they would incur the wrath of the Emperor.

The Jurchen people of Dongpalcham were being devastated by something they hadn’t even done, but there was a place that was even more dumbfounded than them.

It was Changdeok Palace in Hanyang.

“…So, the Crown Prince was hit by an arrow?”

“Yes. However, the object in his pocket protected him, so there is no danger to his life.”

“But that means he was hit by an arrow!”

Yi Bang-won deeply lamented his son’s lack of safety awareness.

His grandfather was also a man who personally charged into the Wokou camp as the commander-in-chief, but he couldn’t understand why he had only learned the bad things.

‘Is it because he’s been spending too much time with the King Taejong?’

Thinking that, Yi Bang-won glared at Yi Seong-gye, but Yi Seong-gye only picked his nose and pretended not to notice.

“Ahem, it’s not my fault. He stepped forward on his own…”

“Do you know that the Queen is in an important period right now?”

She is pregnant, what if she faints after hearing this?

He was sweating on his feet trying to prevent this news from reaching the Queen until the Crown Prince returned to the palace.

‘That rascal!’

Yi Bang-won gritted his teeth at his troublesome eldest son.

As soon as he returned to the palace, he was locked up in the Crown Prince’s residence and was not allowed to come out.

“Ahem, I’m telling you it’s not my fault…”

Yi Seong-gye mumbled in defense.

“And as a result, it’s not necessarily a bad thing, is it?”

“You’re saying this isn’t a bad thing?”

The Crown Prince had solved many problems while visiting the Ming Dynasty, but he also brought back many homework assignments or troubles.

The incident in Dongpalcham was one of them.

‘I don’t know what fault the Emperor will find with him coming out to Palcham.’

Yi Bang-won’s forehead was deeply furrowed.

If this matter had been discussed in the court, the conclusion would have been to first confirm the Crown Prince’s safety, then report it to the suzerain state and obtain permission before moving the troops.

Perhaps the opinion would have been to protest to Liaodong since the Crown Prince had returned alive and well.

However, because the King Taejong happened to be staying in Uiju while waiting for his grandson, it led to a confrontation with the Liaodong army.

“The Ming Dynasty guys would have tried to build castles and exert influence in Palcham someday anyway.”

It was not exactly what Joseon wanted to border the Ming Dynasty.

It is not easy to manage the border people, and they are also subject to military pressure.

For this reason, in the original history, Joseon also tried to prevent the Ming Dynasty from gradually occupying this area, but it failed.

Yi Seong-gye pointed out this point.

“Did you move the troops with that in mind?”

Even if he doesn’t know politics, the King Taejong’s insight into the military is superior.

For Joseon’s security, Dongpalcham had to remain a vacant lot.

If that’s not possible….

“The Crown Prince was attacked, and those guys got into trouble. We gained justification.”

Yi Seong-gye opened his mouth.

“Dongpalcham. Can’t we take it over?”

Yi Bang-won shook his head.

“If we already have the Mudan River area in our hands and demand Palcham, the Emperor’s vigilance will increase.”

The Mudan River is nearly 2,000 li away from Liaoyang, so it is relatively less threatening.

However, the Palcham area is like the lifeline of Liaodong.

Ming, which plans to move the capital to Beijing in the future, cannot leave it alone.

“Or, using this as an excuse, Joseon and Ming could jointly manage it.”

Ming is currently unable to extend its reach to Palcham, and neither is Joseon.

As Yi Seong-gye spoke, Yi Bang-won’s eyes flashed.

What Joseon wants is not the ownership of Palcham, but to prevent the expansion of the Ming Dynasty.

Joint management might be better than maintaining the status quo as a vacant lot.

Securing the peace in Dongpalcham was essential to manage trade routes with Liaodong.

‘But will the Emperor accept this?’

Yeongnak Emperor [the Yongle Emperor] is busy showing off his power in all directions.

It was impossible without a firm signal that Joseon was following his will.

Yi Bang-won muttered absentmindedly while pondering.

“It might be possible if we put it on the table with a royal marriage.”

“What, a royal marriage?”

However, Yi Seong-gye, who heard the words, frowned.

“Did the Emperor say such a thing?”

End

ⓒ Pitkong