The Jegoryeo Assassination Incident
"What do you think about liberating the slaves?"
"Liberate the slaves? Does that even make sense?"
Normally, no, it wouldn't. Slaves were a source of labor in this era. The powerful ho clans had built their strength autonomously in their regions, defending them as well. Taking advantage of the chaos under the military regime, ambitious figures had undoubtedly hoarded slaves to bolster their power. Given how crucial slaves were as labor in ho clan society, they must have owned vast numbers of them.
What if we freed them all, turning them into commoners? It would be the military regime achieving what even the Joseon dynasty couldn't—abolishing slavery.
"Our clan can just free them on the condition they continue working for us. For now, it might be tough, but we should grant full emancipation to all slaves. No— we need to abolish the slave system entirely."
"Abolishing the slave system outright feels too radical. Why go that far when there are other options?"
"Because it would increase our tax revenues. Up until now, the labor of slaves went straight to their masters, with only a portion bubbling up as taxes. How much must have slipped through the cracks in that process?"
Goryeo needs to grow richer and stronger. That means reducing slaves as much as possible, and ultimately overturning the entire system.
"But couldn't reducing slaves actually shrink our tax base? The ho clans have fattened their revenues off slave labor up to now."
"It might look that way short-term, but land reform changes everything."
"And you have a method for that?"
I'm not saying we should liberate all private slaves right away. We need to proceed gradually, step by step. Starting with public slaves is the way.
In the Goryeo era, slaves were divided into public slaves, directly owned by the state or government offices, and private slaves, registered under their master's household. Only my father, who held absolute power in Goryeo, could pull this off.
"We liberate the public slaves, turn them into commoners, and distribute 50,000 gyeol of state land to make them independent farmers. Exempt them from taxes for three years, then impose a land tax of one tu per gyeol thereafter. Set up a separate tax collection agency and dispatch it to the twelve circuits to oversee household registrations and tax gathering. It's gradual emancipation."
My father's eyes lit up at my words.
"Go on."
"Confiscate land from the aristocratic clans and distribute it to the freed slaves and commoners. Of course, there'll be backlash, so we need to take the lead aggressively."
"And after that?"
"Then we liberate the private slaves."
"If we free private slaves, the nobles under our watch will have to comply whether they like it or not, but rolling it out nationwide will cause an uproar among the ho clans. Is this your way of checking them?"
"It's a test of their loyalty again. If they refuse, it becomes outright rebellion against our Choi clan. Then we can crush them justly."
It's the difference between having the moral high ground and not.
"You seem to underestimate the ho clans. If they unite against us, even if we win, it'll drain the nation's strength. We'd be done for before we could settle things with the Mongols."
True enough. But I have no intention of rushing this. We'll methodically free public slaves first, then liberate the slaves in this very household to plant the seeds for private slave emancipation later. When the nation's supreme clan, the Chois, have freed their slaves—what will the ho clans do then?
"This is a long-term play anyway, and we'll settle with the Mongols before it comes to that. Besides, even if the ho clans unite, will their slaves stay quiet? In Gaegyeong, slaves are being freed, given land, living as free commoners—do you think those slaves will tolerate being treated like dogs and pigs under the ho clans?"
Gaegyeong's slaves are now commoners with their own land. Meanwhile, they're slaving away under local ho clans? How long could they endure that? Sure, some might prefer slavery to avoid taxes, but the gap between "slave" and "commoner" is vast. Would they choose to live like beasts just to dodge taxes, or at least die as humans?
"So, you're using the slaves' resentment against them."
"Yes. For the national interest, the slave system must be abolished."
Goryeo's slave system had shifted with the balance of royal and aristocratic power. King Gwangjong's slave inspection law freed many, only for King Seongjong's reversion law to re-enslave them. Later, King Chungnyeol's one-parent-slave law made it customary if even one parent was a slave. As powerful clans rose in the late Goryeo, policies swelled private slaves. Even the Mongol-appointed flat chapter commissioner Hwarigilisa was shocked by it and tried reforms, but King Chungnyeol and his ministers resisted fiercer than ever, dooming the effort. Freed slaves became slaves again. King Gongmin's All-People Rectification Bureau freed illegal lands and slaves, but even that failed. And Joseon? It inherited slave-by-mother, slave-by-father, and one-parent laws. Even King Sejong maintained maternal slave inheritance. Abolishing slavery required power beyond the throne—something only a brute-force military regime like ours could attempt. Legally, slaves were recognized as people with property rights and relative freedom, but why keep the system if it wasn't profitable to exploit them? Globally, Joseon was abnormal, enslaving over half its people—an extreme even for its early modern context. Think about it: exploiting slaves that much, how could tax revenues grow? No wonder it stayed poor.
Centuries later, the Gabo Reforms abolished status systems, but few slaves truly benefited; vestiges lingered into the colonial era, truly upended only after the June 25 War. Stragglers hung on until the Saemaul Movement. Slavery was Korea's stubborn shadow. We must erase it while we can.
Originally, I figured even Father wouldn't touch something as revolutionary as this. But now, it feels right to push for real slave liberation.
"Let's consider private slave liberation. Once the military reforms wrap up, we'll declare public slave emancipation."
"You're really going to do it?"
Choi U, the military regent, pulling this off? Totally unexpected. He might back out later, so no high hopes, but if he succeeds, it'll be monumental. We should also ban private slave-making by law. Freeing just public slaves would be revolutionary by this era's standards—securing the hearts of countless new commoners.
"What about our clan's slaves, then?"
"Free the private slaves too."
Choi U's house is one of the mightiest military ho clans imaginable. Declaring private slave liberation means freeing our own too. His decision here could rewrite history. Sure, I could do it myself later. Nobles would remain; we'd just eliminate slaves, leaving kings, nobles, and commoners.
"Our clan is wealthier than ever. Even freed, we can offer stipends to keep them with us."
"Mm, I get your point. Pushing public slaves first, then freeing those who've served our U-bong Choi clan loyally—shouldn't be hard."
"One personal request, then."
"Speak."
"Kim Injun. He's proven capable in the fire-lance bureau. How about freeing him first? When public emancipation hits and private follows, won't many shatter their bones for the Chois if we lead by example?"
"Don't tell me you've gotten tangled with that slave."
"Th-that's ridiculous."
Of course, being human, I have my fantasies sometimes. As a top-tier noble, imagining being overpowered and toyed with by a slave—a forbidden thrill. But fantasy and reality are worlds apart.
"True, talented slaves are rare."
"Yes. They're grumbling about the endless toil lately, so freeing him now lets us put him on iron cannon production."
"Not your average slave. Fine. I'll release his slave papers soon—burn them and give him a suitable post."
As expected from a man who wields power over laws.
"My lord! Jegoryeo, who crossed the Amnok River, has been assassinated."
"Jegoryeo! Damn Mongols will demand answers."
The Jegoryeo assassination. Korea's greatest unsolved mystery, baffling even into the 21st century. Was it enraged Goryeo people? Dongjin? Jin remnants? A Mongol false flag? Plenty of theories.
The Goryeo culprit theory fits the Choi regime's actions somewhat, but killing an envoy? Unlikely. Jin remnants? Possible, but with Jin crumbling, provoking Mongols into attacking Goryeo seems far-fetched. That leaves Dongjin as most probable. They constantly sowed discord between Goryeo and Mongols, using us as their wedge—while framing us too.
The issue: Mongols waited six years after the incident to invade Goryeo under that pretext. Maybe they just needed time to crush Goryeo and dusted off the excuse. Genghis Khan's death created a power vacuum anyway, and the Khwarezm campaign kept them busy.
Who knows the barbarians' minds? One path forward: explain ourselves.
We have years left; Mongols, preparing to strike, might accept soap tribute to buy time.
"Send an envoy to explain—and load them with soap."
"Think they'll accept it?"
Choi U shook his head. Of course not. No explanation sways the powerful: "Nah, that's bullshit." They'll claim their pretext and march. International relations boil down to power, especially now. Even 20th-century imperialists at least saved face. But Mongols? Brutal. They invaded using this very incident—after six years.
At minimum, explain to buy those six years.
"The Mongols must have seen Jegoryeo dead with his soap gone. We have to prove we're not the culprits."
In history, the killers targeted Jegoryeo's soap—other tributes too bulky to carry were ditched, but soap was looted heavily. That torpedoes the Goryeo culprit theory. Our domestically produced soap sells cheaper than exports anyway. Why risk killing an envoy for it?