Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 85

Episode 85 Jurchen (2)

After the battle, Lim Gyeong-seok and his men prepared to move to the rear by loading the corpses and loot of the Jurchen tribe, the few survivors of the village and livestock, onto a cart. One of his subordinates, who looked at the survivors on the cart with a sad expression, spoke to Lim Gyeong-seok.

“They are all just children.”

“Because the only thing that makes money is children.”

The faces of Lim Gyeong-seok and the cavalrymen who were talking were dark.

The Jurchen tribe’s plunder was basically hit-and-run.

It was difficult for adults to attack settlements or small villages near the border, plunder them, and quickly escape.

In addition, merchants from famous countries who bought the Koreans who were taken away also preferred children.

This was because children were easy to handle because they did not easily rebel, and some people preferred young girls or boys over adult women.

“The burial work is complete.”

“is it?”

Lim Gyeong-seok looked at the two burial mounds rising between the burned houses, leaving only ashes. It was a burial mound where Koreans killed by the Jurchen tribe were buried separately into men and women.

Lim Gyeong-seok bowed his head toward the burial mound and said a brief moment of silence before getting on his horse.

“I’m coming back!”

“I’m coming back!”

Lim Gyeong-seok’s larger unit, including the horses brought by the Jurchen tribes, began to move slowly toward the garrison.

* * *

“Your Majesty, this is Jang-gye from Pyeongan Island.”

“Janggye?”

“They say there was looting by the Jurchen tribe.”

Upon hearing Do Seung-ji’s brief report, King Sejong hurriedly stretched out his hand, picked up the janggye, and untied the knot.

“Huh~. this.”

King Sejong read the contents of the decree with trembling hands and presented it to Yeonguijeong.

“Please read it.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Following Yeonguijeong, all the other ministers took turns reading the general precepts.

After confirming that all the ministers had read the decree, King Sejong opened his mouth.

“Although those who suffered this disaster are refugees who pioneered slash-and-burn fields without permission, it is certain that they are the people of our Joseon Dynasty. The Pacheong dispatched to the area requested a punitive crackdown on this, and the Pyeongan Province Byeongmajeoldosa is also requesting permission to do so. What do you think?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, Hwang Hui asked the military inspector Kim Yeo-ji a question.

“Which tribe are the Jurchen bastards who attacked the village that was devastated this time?”

“Looking at the decorations on the dead people’s harnesses and the decorations on their heads, it is confirmed that they are descendants of the Donggwa tribe.”

“Isn’t the Donggwa tribe a pretty big tribe? “Is this possible with the troops deployed now?”

Kim Yeo-ji gave a short answer to Hwang Hee’s question.

“It’s not like we’re dealing with the entire East Widow Department, but looking at the difference in power shown in this battle, it’s quite possible.”

“Hmm…”

“If we delay here any longer, the rainy season will begin and subjugation will become difficult.”

The Byeongjo Prosecutor’s Office supported immediate subjugation. However, Sejong was not able to make a decision easily.

“It has been said since ancient times that if you get a good sword, you will want to wield it. “Aren’t we committing the mistake of moving too hastily?”

Kim Yeo-ji immediately responded to King Sejong’s point.

“The Jurchen people are like old foxes. If we do not respond properly, they look down on us and continue to attack us. If we go out strong, they bow their heads and ask for trade. “It is a good policy to show proper example for the future.”

King Sejong, who was stroking his beard and pondering over the military inspector’s answer, made a decision.

“Okay. Please tell Pyeongan Province that you are giving permission to the Byeongma thief. However, since the current forces are weak, please order the General Staff Headquarters to properly select and join the units equipped with the new commander and artillery from the training center and each territory in Pyeongan Province. And I told them that staying for more than a month after crossing the Yalu River is not permitted.”

In response to King Sejong’s order, the military inspector bowed deeply and responded.

“I follow your orders!”

Sejong, who gave the order to the military, turned his attention to the ministers.

“Princes, listen.”

“I will listen carefully!”

“It is true that they are blaming the Jurchen people, but they are crossing the border. “The Ming can say something about this, so prepare an appropriate answer and send an envoy to the Ming.”

“I follow your orders!”

In this way, the operation name ‘Revenge’ was launched.

When they heard that they were forming a force to conquer the Jurchen, many military officers at the training center rushed to volunteer.

“Please send a report!”

“No, please send Su Guan! “I will risk my life to make the operation a success!”

The expressions on the faces of the military officers requesting assignment were full of confidence.

There was a reason why military officers were confident. This was because they believed in the performance of the new weapons they were familiar with.

And the report from the Yalu River further boosted their confidence.

Just one battalion annihilated twice as many Jurchens without any damage, without artillery support or using long rifles.

According to his major, Lim Gyeong-seok, the first officer who commanded the unit, was scheduled to be promoted.

‘I can’t miss the opportunity either!’

In order not to miss the opportunity given by heaven, the military officers at the training center rushed to shout for him to be sent away.

* * *

“Bully. “It happened again.”

“somewhere?”

“This is Aguda.”

“Holy shit! “How many people have suffered already!”

“Twelve booigons.”

“Damn it!”

Wow!

In response to his subordinate’s report, Burer of the Saruta tribe overturned the table in front of him.

For the large and small tribes of Donggwabu, this conquest of Joseon was ‘not the night of Hongdukkae’. Six Joseon army groups, each group consisting of about 400 cavalrymen and 100 artillerymen, attacked the Donggwa tribe and the residential areas of nearby tribes.

In response to the sudden attack by the Joseon army, the tribal leaders of Donggwa tribe were busy preparing defense and trying to figure out what was the cause.

And the reason I found out that way was really simple.

“A group of guys called Booyeon, or even Boogon, plundered about 10 houses in Joseon and this is retaliation for that?”

“… That’s right.”

The Saruta tribe’s Burer looked helpless.

Almost a month has passed since the conquest of Joseon began, and more than 12 Boogons have been destroyed. There were 12 Booygons whose size was incomparable to that of the Booygons that started the division.

Boogons disappeared almost once every two days.

What became urgent was the widow who was attacked. For them, who had lived a half-farming, half-herding life, this was a time when they had to put everything into farming. If we missed this time, we would have to face a terrible situation in the coming winter.

To resolve the situation, the villagers of the East Widow, including the villagers of the Saruta tribe, requested mediation from the Ming.

However, the reply sent from Ming was ‘impossible’.

-Joseon has already sent a state letter. There is no justification for this because it is a justifiable act in response to the damage suffered by Joseon.

The East Widow’s parents, who received the reply, had to grind their teeth.

“Why don’t we compose Niru now?”

“If all the men leave, farming will be over.”

“If we just select some of them…”

“Didn’t you see the strength of the Joseon army? “If you don’t do your best, you will inevitably lose!”

The buggers who gathered to find a solution offered various opinions, but were struggling to find a good one.

There were three main reasons they were struggling.

First, as already mentioned, it was busy farming season. No matter how many women and slaves were mobilized, farming could not be done properly without the men. In such a situation, it was impossible to remove warriors for the already ruined Booygons.

Second was the power of the Joseon army. The Joseon army proceeded with its operation to kill as many Jurchen people as possible. As a result, there were almost no survivors in the areas swept by the Joseon army. Most of the survivors we managed to find were in a state of extreme delirium or serious injury that made them unable to speak properly.

Still, based on the information we managed to obtain, the Joseon army was actively using artillery.

There were almost no rebels willing to produce golden warriors to deal with the Joseon army, which was much stronger than before.

The last reason was also closely related to the second. It was because of Olanghap, which was in a standoff nearby. East Widow and Olanghap were constantly clashing.

In this situation, if he lost his military power to deal with the Joseon army, he was not the type to ignore it.

* * *

“Han of Beirutungur has regained consciousness.”

Saruta’s lover, who couldn’t hold back his anger and was fuming, hurriedly walked outside.

The place where Saruta’s buzzer was headed was the house of a member of the Myeongguk Council located in the village.

He was a lawmaker who almost kidnapped him by force, but now, as time has passed, he is called ‘Mr. King’ and is respected.

“What do you think, Teacher Wang?”

Teacher Wang, who was wiping his bloody hands with a cotton cloth, shook his head in response to Beirer’s question.

“It’s hard. “I took the pain away with opium, but it won’t last long. If you have something to say, it would be better to do it now.”

Hearing Teacher Wang’s words, Beirer hurriedly walked to the bed. Burer held the hand of Tunggeukhan, who was breathing heavily, and called to him in a soft voice.

“Brother, are you out of your mind?”

“Oh brother… I’m glad I got to see you before I die.”

“I will definitely get revenge.”

Hearing Beiror’s words, Tonggeul’s Han shook his head with difficulty.

“Don’t do it. Those Joseon bastards…”

Han, who was struggling to continue speaking, couldn’t forget what he was saying and lost his breath.

Beiler let go of Han’s hand that he was holding and looked back at Teacher Wang.

“What the hell….”

“From what I heard, the Joseon army used artillery.”

“exactly.”

“It looks like they used not just artillery but also a fuhrer.”

Hearing Professor Wang’s words, Beirer looked at Han’s bloody body. Burer, seeing the body full of holes, shook his head.

“generalissimo? I’ve had a look. “It was something I couldn’t even put together properly… I was unlucky.”

“The Fuhrer is not a common thing, so you might not have even thought of it, right?”

“Haa~.”

Hearing Teacher Wang’s answer, Beire sighed.

“Bully.”

Mr. Wang stopped Burer, who was about to turn his back and leave, and warned him in a quiet voice.

“I heard that the Joseon army is returning. Never act rashly. “Because I don’t want to live as a slave to another tribe at this age.”

“… I understand.”

After leaving Teacher Wang’s house, Beirer kicked a stone on the ground as hard as he could.

“Damn it! “It’s like this!”

Meanwhile, Mr. Wang, who had sent the cook out, picked up the bowl he had left aside and inspected its contents.

Inside the bowl were many blood-stained iron beads and cast iron fragments.

“It’s too small for the bullets used in the barrel… And what the heck are these pieces of iron…”

What made Mr. Wang worry were the fragments of the Bigyeokjincheonroe.

Teacher Wang was frowning as he faced a difficult problem that could not be easily solved. The words that Han, who was in a state of confusion, had repeatedly shouted remained in his mind.

“What does it mean that Joseon gained the power of the dragon?…”

* * *

After completing the operation and returning across the Yalu River, the Joseon army immediately wrote a long report and sent it to Hanseong.

King Sejong, who received the command and read the contents, burst into laughter.

“ha ha ha! Our Joseon soldiers won a great victory! Great victory! “Is there such a slope?”

When King Sejong was happy, the ministers all bowed their heads and shouted.

“We’re giving you a reduction!”

“Thank you, thank you so much!”

Sejong lightly raised his hand in return and settled the situation.

“Through this conquest, we have subjugated 12 large and small tribes, including the reckless bastards who crossed the previous border and plundered. At this rate, the area around the Yalu River will be quiet for a while, right?”

In response to King Sejong’s question, the Minister of Defense responded with an eup.

“We won’t even dare to cross the Yalu River for a while.”

“I guess so. “However, if you let your guard down, you could be in trouble at any time, so tell them to strengthen surveillance on the border.”

“I follow your orders.”

“And have you prepared compensation for those who contributed to this operation and those who were killed or injured?”

“Yes, Your Highness. Those who have made meritorious contributions will be promoted in rank in consideration of their merits, and those who have died or been injured will be paid monthly grains and property according to the newly established law. Additionally, support will be provided to those among the bereaved families who wish to take the liberal arts or military sciences.”

While nodding his head at the military inspector’s answer, King Sejong added.

“Pay attention to the treatment of the casualties as well as their daily lives. This happened while fighting to protect Joseon, so we should treat them well. So, won’t others risk their lives too?”

“I will keep this in mind.”

Sejong, who did not forget his request until the end, moved on.

“The Jurchen tribes around the Yalu River may be quiet for the time being, but will the Jurchen tribes of Haeo and Yain be the same?”

Hwang Hee responded to King Sejong’s question.

“As time goes by, rumors will spread there too, so they won’t act carelessly.”

“I wish I could scare you as much as possible… Then, when I call you in the fall, you’ll listen well, right?”

“That’s right.”

King Sejong gave a firm warning to his ministers.

“Our work with the Jurchen tribe is just beginning. Please do not forget that Joseon’s ‘advance east’ must be carried out without a hitch by proceeding step by step and reliably. “This is a great plan that our Joseon Dynasty must achieve.”

“I will keep this in mind!”