There Is No Sejong In My Joseon [EN]: Chapter 402

403. The End of War (4)

The Mongol army’s relentless hooves crushed any feeble resistance from the counties and towns along the Yangtze River.

Almost simultaneously with the Joseon army’s entry into Nanjing, forces tasked with pursuing Emperor Xuande fanned out in all directions.

There was no need to waste time and effort subduing each and every county.

Instead of besieging enemies who had holed up in fortified towns, they chose to bypass them and chase after the emperor’s carriage.

Among the towns they passed, those without the strength to even cling to their walls chose to surrender one after another.

That, too, was a wise choice.

The Mongol army had no time to offer them slaughter and plunder.

However, there were a few who refused to surrender, even knowing they couldn’t defend themselves.

In less than an hour, the Mongol army stormed the makeshift earthen walls and hastily erected barricades, swiftly eliminating the resistance.

Barely two or three out of ten people possessed proper weapons.

Most were fortunate to wield a large butcher knife, while the majority were armed with makeshift wooden spears or farming tools.

There was no reason to keep weapons in such insignificant and peaceful villages.

Seeing them resist so feebly, Jochi clicked his tongue.

“Foolish bastards.”

Even a mere beast knows how to yield to strength, so what riches and glory did they expect to gain by brandishing their pathetic weapons?

The tide had already turned completely, yet they still resisted.

Among them, a scholar dressed in proper attire, holding a fine bow, pointed and shouted.

“You villains! Do you think there are no righteous men in this Central Plains [historical term for the fertile lands of China]? Though barbarians may invade our land, they shall never make you serve their emperor!”

Jochi silenced him with an arrow.

He didn’t understand the words, but he could guess from the tone.

Surely, he wasn’t shouting for surrender with such bloodshot eyes.

“Guh!”

His courage was admirable, but there was no time to listen to his ranting.

The gentleman, who seemed to be the most respected figure in the village, was struck by the arrow and collapsed.

“Oh, sir!”

“Scholar Jin!”

The people who witnessed his fall cried out in dismay.

However, when they saw the glint in the Mongol soldiers’ eyes, they quickly dropped their weapons and prostrated themselves.

It seemed that this Scholar Jin had incited the people to resist the Mongol army.

The people had risen at the behest of their village’s landlord and only intellectual, who was virtually the ruler of this town, and with his death, even that meager organization crumbled.

“Let the living take care of the dead, and we’ll replenish our bellies before setting off again!”

Whether it was due to loyalty and integrity, as Scholar Jin had claimed, or to protect their village, or simply following someone else’s lead, those who had burned with righteous fervor were now reduced to ashes and disappeared.

Jochi felt nothing as he watched.

‘There are always those who don’t know their place and rush in like this.’

Instead of welcoming them willingly, they only caused trouble, which was annoying.

As the water began to boil in the seized pot, Jochi looked around.

It wasn’t as bustling as the cities along the Yangtze River, but it was a secluded village with beautiful mountains and clear water.

He had once proposed wiping out all the Han people [the dominant ethnic group in China] and turning the land into pasture, but seeing this scenery, he was tempted.

It was good to have land, and even better to have people who would farm that land, produce offspring, and faithfully pay taxes.

However, if they were the type to constantly complain and plot to stab their master in the back, it would be better to have none at all.

How could one easily govern those who were full of arrogance?

The Han people revered scholars like Jin, who were frail and bookish, more than strong warriors, so Jochi’s values simply didn’t align with theirs.

‘Still, some spoils will fall to us, right?’

Joseon had effectively led the war against the Great Ming, so it was natural that the largest share would go to Joseon.

However, this Central Plains was vast beyond measure.

Even if Joseon took a large chunk, there would still be plenty of land left for them.

‘Above all, if Joseon intends to relocate us, they will have to give us other land.’

The Bokyeo Guard bordered Joseon.

The Taeneung Guard, having lost its base and joined the Bokyeo Guard, had been there for a long time.

Joseon’s northern territories were gradually expanding, thanks to its growing power, and might even reach the Songhua River.

If Joseon intended to directly control the lands of the Uriangkhai [a Mongolic people], they would have to provide new fiefdoms as a matter of course.

‘If I can establish myself in the Central Plains, my work will be done in my generation.’

The revival of the Yuan Dynasty [a Mongol-led Chinese dynasty], which he had once secretly dreamed of, was an impossible wish under the reign of the King of Joseon.

Now, let’s leave the cold, barren lands and take root in the Central Plains.

It wouldn’t be easy to govern with just the strength of the Taeneung Guard, but with the current balance of power completely shifted to Joseon,

if he could gain Joseon’s support by pledging allegiance, he could easily crush any resistance.

Jochi’s ambition stretched towards the warm Central Plains.

* * *

Meanwhile, Great Khan Adai was also racking his brains as much as Jochi.

However, despite achieving successive victories by siding with Joseon, his expression was not good.

‘If I hadn’t joined the alliance, I would have been crushed by either Joseon or Ming. At least I avoided that fate, but…’

Even though he led his troops and joined the Joseon army, his power was weak, so he was never given the task of fully commanding a front.

However, as the Great Khan, he couldn’t bring himself to follow the orders of a mere Joseon general, so he was never given the opportunity to go into battle, under the pretext of guarding the main camp together.

If that was all, it wouldn’t have mattered, but when the King of Joseon crossed the Yangtze River and occupied Nanjing, the story changed.

At this point, Great Khan Adai couldn’t help but sweat and contemplate.

Jochi, whom he had initially been wary of, had ultimately failed to cross the Gyeongseong Pass, proving his limitations, and the King of Joseon was a foreigner from the start.

However, as soon as the King of Joseon conquered China, the anxiety he had felt during the alliance in Jinju resurfaced.

‘Is the King of Joseon really going to try to become the Great Khan [title for the ruler of the Mongol Empire]?’

Of course, there was a law that only members of the Golden Clan [the lineage of Genghis Khan] could become the Great Khan, but in the face of the great achievement of conquering China, even that law paled in comparison.

Moreover, as in the old Yuan Dynasty, if this vast Chinese land was divided and given out as fiefdoms, the Mongol people’s hearts would immediately turn to the King of Joseon.

He could already see his fellow Mongols pressuring him to vacate his position, saying, ‘The King of Joseon is the grandson of the Great Yuan Khan.’

‘Could it be that the King of Joseon is also interested in the position of Great Khan?’

At this point, Adai strongly suspected that he should prepare for the King of Joseon’s usurpation, rather than expecting any rewards.

‘Please, don’t take this away from me.’

All that was left to him was this position of Great Khan.

If the Joseon people heard this, they would have been outraged, saying, ‘Does our King have any interest in such a position as the Xiongnu Chanyu [an ancient nomadic title], let alone the Son of Heaven [the Chinese emperor]?’ but for Adai himself, it was a serious threat.

‘Maybe it would be better to withdraw the troops now and return to the grasslands…’

Adai had no interest in any handouts.

He had already defeated Tokhtobuka, who had been aiming for the position of Great Khan, and as long as the alliance existed as his backing, his position as Great Khan would be secure, unless the King of Joseon was aiming for usurpation.

He wanted to return to Mount Mona as it was.

But he couldn’t, because he didn’t know what the King of Joseon would do.

Adai clutched his head.

* * *

The fact that Prince Yeong brought the emperor was when I was left in Nanjing to clean up.

Nanjing is a huge city.

Because the court had fled in such haste that there was no proper introduction, there was a considerable amount of supplies left in the warehouses of the palace and government offices, but it was not enough to feed this Nanjing, which was said to have a million inhabitants.

In order to keep this huge consumer city from starving to death, logistics had to be normalized first.

Even if they starve to death, it doesn’t matter, but I can’t stand to see a massive riot break out in the capital of the Great Ming Empire, which I’ve finally acquired, and our soldiers being tied down by re-suppression.

Occupying government offices, taking over administration, appointing officials who wouldn’t engage in unnecessary sabotage….

The war wasn’t even over yet, but somehow I was spending more time on administration and economic normalization than on military affairs.

Most of it was patching things up with temporary measures.

But fortunately, this seemed to be coming to an end as well.

“Prince Yeong has come with the troops of Gwangju. He says that he has the emperor with him, so let’s put down our spears and have an open-hearted conversation.”

“The emperor is in Prince Yeong’s hands?”

Prince Yeong, Zhu Kwon, was one of the imperial family members we had been diligently greasing the wheels for.

However, unlike the others, he was not found in Nanjing, so he had been doing such things behind the scenes.

“He tells me to put down my spears, but he comes with troops. Is Prince Yeong trying to deceive me?”

I directly demanded that Prince Yeong come to Nanjing and talk.

“Many members of the imperial family are under my protection and discussing matters of great importance, so if Prince Yeong does not harbor vain intentions, he will surely be given a place. Doesn’t this fit well with Prince Yeong’s intention to discuss the cleanup together?”

Of course, that means bringing Emperor Xuande along as well.

The moment he enters Nanjing, his life and death are in my hands, so it would not be easy to accept if the armies were normally confronting each other.

Well, if it’s a normal confrontation.

However, Prince Yeong didn’t seem to be in the mood to fight.

‘I would be the same.’

Even Jang Bo couldn’t beat me, so Prince Yeong, who had hastily scraped together the troops of Gangnam [a region in southern China], couldn’t possibly wage a great war and oppose me.

Prince Yeong himself would know better than anyone else.

Gathering troops from places like Gwangju and Nanchang was a kind of demonstration that Ming was not surrendering because it had no power left.

‘If I give him a proper excuse, he will bow his head and come in.’

My prediction was correct.

Prince Min, Zhu Pyeon, Prince Yeong’s younger brother, who had been sent as an envoy, returned and conveyed his intentions.

“My brother said that if his brother-in-law accepts three conditions, he will enter Nanjing himself.”

“What are the conditions?”

“First, to guarantee the safety of His Majesty. Second, to make it clear that entering Nanjing is not for the purpose of surrendering, but for the imperial family to gather and resolve the situation. Finally, he asked that you understand that this war was all caused by the will of traitors, not the intention of the entire Ming Dynasty.”

Well, I roughly understand Prince Yeong’s thoughts.

He raised his troops to support the emperor, but he can’t save face by surrendering without a fight.

But he can’t shed blood just to save his face.

So, he means that he will enter not as a ‘surrender’ but in the form of ‘discussing the resolution of the situation with the emperor.’

Guaranteeing the emperor’s safety is also a condition for saving face.

So Prince Yeong wouldn’t care whether ‘His Majesty’ is grilled or boiled once ‘His Majesty’ is no longer ‘His Majesty.’

Probably.

* * *

Prince Yeong kept his promise.

He entered Nanjing with only a few tens of thousands of soldiers escorting the emperor’s carriage, and bowed his head to me.

“It’s been a while, Your Highness, King of Joseon.”

He’s being polite, considering he attached so many conditions.

Since such promises are just empty words if I make up my mind, he’s trying to lower himself as much as possible for now.

“Please be comfortable, Your Highness Prince Yeong. Aren’t you my brother-in-law?”

“Haha…”

Prince Yeong had a subtle expression.

My gaze turned to the back of Prince Yeong.

In fact, there was someone else who caught my attention more than Prince Yeong.

The emperor’s carriage was splendid, and the sight of the attendants lined up was magnificent, but the reality was that the light had faded.

No matter who adorned it with what flowery rhetoric, the fact that he was a prisoner did not change.

The man who got out of the emperor’s carriage, unlike Prince Yeong, had not yet erased the fierce look in his eyes.

Emperor Xuande, Zhu Zhanji.

He looked at me.