There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 401

402. The End of the War (3)

Yang Sa-gi knelt before me, bound.

And I, atop Ddeng-gu, looked down at him.

A moment of silence passed before Yang Sa-gi spoke first.

“My congratulations. You now hold even the imperial city of Great Ming in your grasp.”

“Thanks to you.”

It was true.

Had Ming not initiated the war, I would have had no reason to bring my army here.

And that responsibility would have to be borne by those who constituted the Ming court.

Yang Sa-gi would not be exempt from that responsibility.

He was one of those who contributed to my taking of Nanjing.

“The Emperor has fled, but it won’t last long.”

Yang Sa-gi did not retort.

Perhaps the current trend was too clear, and he simply couldn’t bring himself to argue.

Instead of debating the Emperor’s chances of recovery, he raised his head and looked at my face.

“Do you intend to become the new Son of Heaven?” [The Son of Heaven is a historical title for the Chinese emperor, viewed as divinely appointed to rule.]

“If I must.”

“Then I ask that you preserve this Nanjing.”

Yang Sa-gi spoke calmly.

“There is a reason why so many dynasties since the Kingdom of Wu have established their capitals here. Numerous waterways cross Nanjing, making water transport and tribute transport very convenient, and the riverside plains are fertile, yielding abundant harvests every year. It is truly a blessed region.

The strategic point of Ganghwa is nearby, and the majority of the nation’s talents come from Gangnam [a region in China south of the Yangtze River].

If Your Majesty intends to rule the world, there is no better capital than Nanjing. You must not recklessly slaughter its people.”

“You’re being surprisingly compliant.”

Listening only to the surface of his words, it seemed like he was neatly acknowledging that the Mandate of Heaven [the belief that the emperor’s right to rule comes from divine authority] had passed to me and offering pure advice.

On Yang Sa-gi’s face, there was a mixture of resignation and a strange conviction.

I felt like I vaguely knew the nature of that conviction.

“I will preserve Nanjing, but I have no intention of moving the capital here.”

I stated firmly.

“Then do you intend to go to Beijing? That wouldn’t be bad either. But that place is desolate and lacks water…”

“No. I intend to return to Hanyang when this is over.”

I devoted my life to building Hanyang, why would I move to Nanjing now?

‘Absolutely not.’

From power grids to streetlights, water and sewage systems, and various living facilities, everything has been installed or is in the process of being planned. Why would I move to Nanjing in this situation?

The scale itself may be larger in Nanjing, that’s true.

It was the center of Gangnam and had long reigned as the heart of this vast empire.

But Hanyang will also become a central city no less than that in the near future.

Yang Sa-gi looked at me with a subtle expression.

“Are you going to repeat Xiang Yu’s folly?” [Xiang Yu was a prominent military leader who, after overthrowing the Qin dynasty, chose to return to his hometown instead of establishing a capital in the more strategically advantageous Guanzhong region.]

“How dare you!”

Chungshan, who heard those words, was enraged and shouted.

Yi Man-ju, who had been standing idly by, quickly sized up the situation and drew his sword.

“Leave him be.”

I said, stroking my chin.

초인목후이관 (Choinmokhuiikwan).

It is said that when Xiang Yu refused the suggestion to move the capital to Guanzhong and declared that he would return to his hometown, a scholar named Han Sheng criticized the people of Chu as being monkeys wearing hats [implying they were unsophisticated and lacked foresight].

But if you look at the region, aren’t you guys from Chu?

Well… I understand the context, though.

The ‘Planet of the Apes’ man in a hat continued.

“It will not be easy to rule the Central Plains without establishing a capital in the Central Plains [the historical heartland of China].

Does Your Majesty intend to divide the land among the lords like Xiang Yu and have their descendants rule it for generations?”

Yang Sa-gi’s voice grew louder.

“The trend of the world is that what is divided must eventually unite, and what is united must eventually divide. If Your Majesty’s only goal is to needlessly bring about a chaotic era, then do so.”

Oh, you know your stuff.

Did you also read Ahn Gyeon’s cartoon Romance of the Three Kingdoms?

“A Son of Heaven who is not in the Central Plains cannot rule the Central Plains.”

Yang Sa-gi asserted.

“If Your Majesty intends to become the Son of Heaven, then establish a capital in this land and rule the world. If not, then collect tribute and quietly step down.

If you bring chaos to the world with a choice that is neither one nor the other, there is no greater sin for a ruler.”

Yang Sa-gi’s attitude was quite arrogant, but he himself was full of conviction.

“Are you not a subject of Ming? Why are you giving me this advice?”

I directed a fundamental question towards Yang Sa-gi.

Anyone else might think that he was advising me for my sake or for his own benefit, now that the tide had turned…

But Yang Sa-gi wasn’t that kind of person.

However, judging from the situation, it seemed like he was giving me genuine advice for his own sake.

It’s a funny story in a situation where the country is ruined, but to me, it seemed like…

a kind of confidence.

“The Mandate of Heaven is cyclical. Many countries have tried to enjoy ten thousand generations, but no country has ever lived out its natural lifespan. When a chaotic era arrives, a new dynasty always rises.”

“Is that so?”

“Someday, Joseon’s Mandate of Heaven will also come to an end.”

“Just as Ming has now collapsed.”

When my fact-bomb hit, a faint anger appeared on Yang Sa-gi’s face.

However, instead of venting his anger, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Yang Sa-gi reopened his eyes and said coldly.

“There have been countless emperors from ethnic minorities, but none have ever ruled this land permanently.”

“Countless Han emperors have also failed to protect their throne.”

The so-called cycle of the Mandate of Heaven does not distinguish between Han and ethnic minorities.

Everyone collapses equally before that curse of the heavens.

“Then the story is even simpler. The king and his descendants will also end their two hundred years of rule and return to Joseon’s narrow hole. It may be longer or shorter, but it will surely come someday.”

“Maybe that’s how it’s been until now.”

“Are you going to deviate from that Mandate of Heaven alone?”

“Do you think I can’t do it?”

The cycle of the Mandate of Heaven.

A disaster that repeats every few hundred years.

Famine, disease, war, and rebellion.

This chaos, which seems to come only to kill people, cannot be resolved by the ‘corrupt old dynasty’s’ ‘foolish rulers and treacherous subjects.’

The system is shaken, and the chaos intensifies.

Until a ‘hero’ finally rises from the cracks where countless people have died.

That’s how the Mandate of Heaven goes around and around.

Forever.

No, as if it will last forever.

“I intend to go beyond that.”

Break the cycle of the Mandate of Heaven and move on to the next stage.

Yang Sa-gi narrowed his eyes and raised his voice again.

“Enfeoffment [granting land to lords in exchange for loyalty] is not progress but regression. It will only lead to the end of plunging the world back into the chaos of the Warring States period [a period in ancient China marked by intense warfare between various states].”

“Who said anything about dividing the land and enfeoffing it?”

I don’t particularly intend to cut up China and feed it to strange guys.

Why would I give my land to the Joo clan royals who were just freeloading or twiddling their fingers?

Maybe my younger siblings… no, I need to think about that too.

I looked around and declared.

“I will rule the world with ‘virtue’.”

Yang Sa-gi let out a hollow laugh.

As if there had ever been a king who didn’t say he would rule with virtue.

But this ‘Confucian monarch’ Yi Jae’s rule is fundamentally different from those ordinary people.

From now on, I will clearly show you that.

When I waved my hand, Yang Sa-gi looked at me with an absurd expression and was dragged out.

I don’t know if that guy will be alive to see that sight, but I’ve given him a hint for now.

Think hard with your good head until the ‘disposal’.

If you’re lucky, you might survive and see my bold promises confirmed.

* * *

After Emperor Yongle took power, he mostly confiscated the armies of the vassal kings.

The same was true for the Prince of Ning. All that remained for him was a small number of guards.

Even those he couldn’t bring to Nanjing, and had to leave them intact in his fief.

But 새옹지마 (saeongjima) [a Korean idiom referring to a situation where a seemingly bad event turns out to be good, or vice versa], now this has become an opportunity for a reversal.

Instead of losing his strength in the Emperor’s futile war, he was able to preserve his forces in his fief.

However, these alone are not enough.

So, after reuniting with his guards, the Prince of Ning quickly stormed into the government office, imprisoned the Inspector and other officials, and seized the seals of office.

The central government’s connection with the government office, which had been disrupted by the Joseon army’s invasion and the Emperor’s hasty flight, could not respond to the Prince of Ning’s coup.

The Prince of Ning’s claim that the Emperor had appointed him as the Grand General Who Smashes the Barbarians (破虜大元帥) and had him lead the soldiers of Gangnam was not very trustworthy, but in the face of a blade, it was useless to argue.

The Emperor was the same.

He didn’t argue about when he had given the Prince of Ning such a ridiculous title.

Since he was being held hostage, the Prince of Ning had the power to make that statement true.

“Looking back, Emperor Taejong taught me so much, Your Majesty,” the Prince of Ning said, looking at Emperor Xuande.

“During the Rebellion, he took my soldiers and forced me to participate in the great cause, which was truly a commendable trick.”

So I am also taking your soldiers and forcibly dragging you into my great cause─.

I felt like I knew the rest of the story without hearing it.

“Is the future of the nation in imminent danger, and you are trying to ruin the country with your private greed?”

“On the contrary. I am working so hard to save even the weak nation.”

The Prince of Ning did not bother to ask who had made the future of the nation a lamp before the wind.

It wasn’t out of a shred of affection or loyalty, but because he didn’t want to waste time arguing.

“Now that you have bound me and my subjects, will you return to Nanchang? Or Wuchang? If you are thinking of fighting a battle with Joseon, that would be better.”

Now that he has Emperor Xuande in his hands, there is no need to cling to his fief, Nanchang.

Wuchang is the center of Huguang, and the Xiang River meets the Yangtze River, where water and land transport intersect, merchants gather, and products are abundant.

There are many accumulated goods and people, and it is easy to gather the soldiers of Gangnam.

If necessary, he can take the Yangtze River, cross the Three Gorges, and flee to Shu.

Wasn’t this the reason why the Emperor initially intended to go to Wuchang?

It is truly a suitable place for the Emperor to take refuge from the rebellion for a while.

Only by seizing this place can the remaining forces of Ming be drawn to the Prince of Ning.

It is fortunate that he fell into the hands of the Prince of Ning, but if he intends to fight with the Emperor, it is better.

The Prince of Ning is still a man with military capabilities, and considering the advantage of 협천자 (hyeopcheonja) [holding the emperor as a hostage to legitimize one’s actions], he will not make the mistake of abandoning the Emperor in the face of the enemy.

The title of Grand General Who Smashes the Barbarians held by the Prince of Ning is a position that was seized as fundamentally as its name.

Moreover, he has never been involved in national affairs, so if the Prince of Ning enters Wuchang, all the officials and generals who gather under him are his own people.

It is not impossible to seize the opportunity to remove the Prince of Ning’s handful of soldiers and reverse the situation.

Wuchang may seem like a place of prosperity to the Prince of Ning, but in reality, it will become a huge trap to devour him….

But the Prince of Ning shook his head.

“Your Majesty, it’s already over.”

“What?”

“The 와자 (waja) [likely referring to Japanese pirates or other foreign invaders] are sweeping through Guanzhong. Some of the enemy forces that split off from North China will soon come down to Xiangyang. Above all, there is no way to stop the Joseon army advancing west.”

The Prince of Ning continued.

There is nowhere to escape. Even if he flees to Shu, it won’t last long.

“Then does that mean you are going to hand over the entire country of Great Ming? Even your lord?”

“The King of Joseon is my brother-in-law. He is also a great-uncle to the Emperor. I will try to save the Emperor’s life… by appeasing the family ties.”

There was no certainty in the Prince of Ning’s words either.

In fact, he had no obligation to risk his life to protect the Emperor.

Since he was the one who started this war, it was uncertain whether the Joseon army would leave him alone.

However, if it is the country, the story is a little different.

“I cannot hand over the entire country of Great Ming.”

The Prince of Ning said, looking at the hastily made Grand General Who Smashes the Barbarians (破虜大元帥) flag.