Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 781
Episode 781: A disaster brought about by oneself… (16) As soon as
Lee Jing-ok finished speaking, Kim Jong-seo came out.
“It is true that the natives you mentioned are the ones who used the sword, but I think it is excessive to even have the Minister of National Defense submit to his resignation.”
As soon as Kim Jong-seo finished speaking, Wan also nodded.
“Jim feels the same way. Among the sayings the author has is, ‘To kill a chicken, you use a knife to kill a cow.’ “It’s not that I don’t know the Minister of National Defense’s feelings, but I think it’s excessive.”
Lee Jing-ok bowed his head and responded to Wan’s words.
“It’s not excessive. Since our empire was restored to its title, there has been only one fight for the fate of our nation. “Not only the Navy but also the Army is severely lacking in commanders who command soldiers on a large scale.”
The reason Lee Jing-ok said he would resign was as follows.
-The soldiers of the unit that will now go to Shinji and punish those who used the sword are volunteer soldiers. Of course, since they are reservists who undergo regular training, training is not a big problem.
-The problem is the commander.
-As I already said, there are not many commanders who have experienced major battles that put the fate of the nation at stake since the restoration of the title.
-Of course, those who experienced war as entry-level or mid-level commanders at the time are gradually rising to high-ranking executives, but those with experience in moving large armies while looking at the big picture are continuing to retire.
-According to the letter sent by Sang Sang and the battle report sent by the navy stationed in Shinji, those natives had a national system and the ability to mobilize tens of thousands of soldiers at once.
-In addition, our empire will deploy more than 30,000 troops. A high-level commander is needed who has experience coordinating the movements of large numbers of people while looking at the big picture.
-Therefore, I have to go.
“It’s not wrong…”
After Lee Jing-ok’s explanation, Wan looked embarrassed and blurted out his words. This was the same for other ministers as well.
‘I don’t think it’s wrong, but it feels like it’s too much.’
Kim Jong-seo came forward again to represent the feelings of these ministers.
“I understand why the minister submitted his resignation. But it still feels like it’s too much. And the high-ranking commanders of the Imperial Army lack the experience of operating large armies. That is correct. But don’t you think this punishment is a good opportunity to gain that experience?”
“It’s a good opportunity. However, if you make a mistake while gaining experience, you may end up making unnecessary sacrifices. “We need someone to stop this and teach us.”
“That someone is a minister?”
Lee Jing-ok responded to Kim Jong-seo’s words by nodding.
“Hmm…”
Even after the conversation between Kim Jong-seo and Lee Jing-ok ended, no one opened their mouths easily.
The same was true for Wan, who was sitting at the party house. Wan also struggled while stroking his chin.
‘Tae Sang-tae said it was not right, but Sang-tae said that an appropriate level of conflict was necessary for the safety of the empire.’
* * *
Regarding national defense and war, the opinions of King Sejong and Hyang seemed to be the same but different.
-The correct answer is a national defense power that is not at the level of invading other countries, but is at a level where other countries cannot even dare to invade other countries.
This was something both Sejong and Hyang agreed on.
However, in this next part, Sejong and Hyang had different opinions.
-It is not good to move the military carelessly. No matter how small the dispute is, there is bound to be sacrifice of generals and the use of war funds.
All of this is done with the people’s taxes, so we must not act carelessly.
This was Sejong’s idea. But the scent was different.
-There is a saying, ‘The best defense is offense.’ Of course, it would be foolish to hastily use force. However, if they continue to respond with patience to the provocations around them, they will look down on the empire and this could lead to greater chaos. When necessary, we must boldly use force. In addition, it is necessary to always retain a certain number of commanders with practical combat experience. And compensation for sacrifices that will occur in the process and war expenses must be considered fixed expenses.
As the Emperor was reinstated, King Sejong went to Shinji, and since Hyang, who became emperor, ran the empire, the imperial army moved according to Hyang’s policies.
The Imperial Navy gained practical combat experience by constantly attacking pirates, and the Imperial Army continued to gain practical combat experience by suppressing magic bandits operating on the Mongolian border.
However, during this process, the problem that Lee Jing-ok pointed out occurred.
After the Battle of the Yellow Sea, large-scale army and navy movements ceased, and the movement of large armies was limited to road training.
The current situation of the Imperial Army was that it experienced only small-scale battles in actual combat and had abundant ‘combat experience’ but lacked ‘war experience’.
* * *
Finally, after two days, Wan accepted Lee Jing-ok’s resignation and at the same time assumed the position of ‘Commander-in-Chief of the Shinji Punishment Army’.
“Volunteers are soldiers who will carry out punishment, and at the same time, they are people who will do a lot of work in the new land afterwards. “I will believe in you.”
“God Lee Jing-ok. “I will sacrifice my life to carry out Your Majesty’s orders!”
Lee Jing-ok bowed his head and answered firmly.
The day’s assembly ended with Wan accepting Lee Jing-ok’s resignation.
Kim Jong-seo from Daejeon called Lee Jing-ok.
“Hey, Captain Wonbong (圓峰). Although it is a follow-up visit, let’s ask. “Do you really have to go?”
In response to Kim Jong-seo’s question, Lee Jing-ok firmly nodded.
“I must go in order to properly deal with those who used the sword. “Kids these days are so soft…”
Most of the people around Lee Jing-ok’s words, ‘soft,’ looked astonished.
The imperial army was the people who made pirates and magicians run away at the sight of them. Lee Jing-ok evaluated the imperial army as weak.
Lee Jing-ok must have seen the expressions on those people’s faces as he added.
“Think about the times we used to fight with Jurchen tribesmen or Japanese pirates. “Aren’t they similar to Shinji’s trash, except they are cannibals?”
“It was like that. Especially those damn Yeojin bastards. “Pud!”
Kim Jong-seo, who was nodding at Lee Jing-ok’s words, gritted his teeth.
* * *
When pioneering the northeastern region in the early days of Gyeongjang, Kim Jong-seo and Lee Jing-ok dealt with the Jurchen tribe together.
At that time, the Jurchen people who refused to return to Joseon were vicious. Whenever possible, they attacked and massacred the villages of the wealthy Jurchen people and the villages of Koreans who had immigrated through socialist policies.
The Jurchen people who attacked at that time did not simply massacre. Looting and rape were the norm, and it was not uncommon to cut off the heads of residents and hang them on wooden fences.
The response of Lee Jing-ok, who commanded the Joseon Army cavalry on the front line at the time, was ‘an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.’
When it found out which tribe the Jurchen people who had committed attacks and massacres belonged to, it was the cavalry of the Joseon Army under Lee Jing-ok that chased them to the end and retaliated against them.
‘The only good Jurchen people are dead Jurchen people.’
This was the motto of the Joseon Army cavalry that was roaming the northeastern region at the time.
In the end, the Jurchen people had no choice but to surrender to the Joseon army cavalry.
As a side note, in the battle with the Ming that followed the battle with the Liaodong army, the Joseon army’s cavalry showed its ferocity without filtering.
* * *
Looking at Kim Jong-seo’s expression of strong sympathy, Lee Jing-ok continued.
“Aren’t the pirates and magic bandits that kids hang out with these days much quieter than the Jurchen tribe or Japanese pirates of the past? Maybe that’s why there’s no venom in their eyes! Miasma! If that’s true for active duty, what about reserve duty? If you go and see the devastation of the neckless dog, you will either lose your senses and curl your tail, or you will threaten to kill everyone, regardless of whether you want to kill or save. To avoid such a situation, shouldn’t I, who has experience, go and suffer?”
Only then did the people around me nod their heads in understanding. However, Kim Jong-seo instead looked suspicious.
“Huh? Why does Grand Master Wonbong of the world speak like this? Hmm…. Was it ‘layered siha’ that Captain Wonbong hated the most? “If you stay here, aren’t you trying to run away because you’re being tormented?”
“Oh no. I am acting solely out of loyalty to the empire….”
“Where are you talking from?”
“I’ll go first! “There is a lot of work to do, starting with creating a headquarters!”
Kim Jong-seo clicked his tongue as he watched Lee Jing-ok disappear.
“Tsk! That person also got older and became more cunning…”
At Kim Jong-seo’s words, everyone around him had strange expressions.
‘Is it a eugenic species? It’s truly amazing that you recognize it right away!’
‘Ah-oh! Shit! ‘Give me back my emotion!’
Meanwhile, Wan, who had heard the story through various channels, placed his hand on his forehead and muttered.
“Should I reject the resignation? However, it is not wrong to say that if you want to deal with crazy people, you have to be tough… whew~.”
Wan let out a long sigh, licked his lips and complained.
“Tsk! “How did Sang-tae and Tae-sang-tae control and sway people like that?”
* * *
Those who volunteered for the conquest army that would go to Shinji continued to do so, although their numbers had decreased significantly.
“It’s good that the support continues, but I think it’s better to get it sorted out now.”
“you’re right. “If we continue to accept this, it will become difficult to establish an accurate budget and organize troops.”
The task force created with Han Myeong-hoe in charge seriously discussed ending the application process.
The working-level staff, who decided to ‘end the application process’, began to write a report on this.
At that time, an appeal was received from monks and international students working at the institute to volunteer for the conquest army.
The working-level staff who received the appeal screamed loudly, both above and below.
“Since the mullet is jumping, the goby is also jumping! Why are these guys doing this again?”
* * *
The reason monks and European students applied was because of the doctrine.
The summary of the appeal they submitted was as follows.
-In the Old Testament, Yahweh commanded the Jews settling in Canaan to completely destroy those living in Canaan.
-The reason Yahweh gave this command was because they made human sacrifices.
-Many saints were martyred while doing missionary work in Europe, and this was also to prevent human sacrifice by those who did not yet believe in Yahweh.
-As a believer, how can you remain silent when something strictly forbidden by Yahweh is happening in God’s land? We will also support you.
Wan, who received the appeal, asked the ministers.
“Are you sure that the control of information about the new world for Europeans is working properly?”
“yes. Europeans think that Shinji is similar in size to Daeseoldo.”
“Hmm… that’s a good thing.”
When Wan looked relieved, Hwang Bo-in pointed out the problem.
“The problem is whether their opinions are reasonable. “It is difficult to refuse without permission since we are providing support based on doctrine.”
“We have a good hand in that area.”
“yes?”
Wan muttered to himself as he looked at the expressions on the ministers’ faces.
‘Did you think this far when you made such a condition in the past?’