Securing the Steppe Road
"They're just a bunch of defeated remnants anyway. If it weren't for the war with Goryeo, crushing the Jin wouldn't be such a big deal."
Yeah, probably. Even though they'd slammed headfirst into Goryeo, in the current situation, finishing off the Jin wouldn't be too hard for them.
"Come to think of it, there's something I need to tell you."
"Something to say?"
"The negotiations wrapped up faster than expected, so the news didn't reach you. We mobilized 20,000 cavalry and expanded our territory as much as possible."
At my words, Yalu Choeje's face hardened like a stone.
Well, look here—expanded our territory as much as possible. The country sharing a border with Goryeo right now is Mongolia. We'd seized as much land as we could from those Mongols. They would've seen it as a natural counterattack anyway, even if we took a bite out of them.
What's wrong? Our war isn't over yet. We'd just been catching our breath. No official envoys had been exchanged, no formal alliance or anything like that, right? The guy knew that much at least—he just sat there with a stiff face, unable to argue back.
"Ah, that explains why the negotiation demands referred to Yodong not as disputed territory, but as occupied land. So, uh, how far did you expand?"
Don't look so scared. We weren't planning to push into the steppes and make them full enemies. We just wanted to solidify our territory. Ensuring the complete survival rights of the Korean people—that sort of thing. We'd only incorporate other ethnic groups to a level we could absorb into Goryeo. Vast lands are a pain to govern, and if you don't mix with other ethnicities, you have to enforce strict control policies, which just breeds resentment among them. The Yuan Dynasty only managed to control the Han Chinese for a little over a century before being pushed out by Zhu Yuanzhang.
"We've fully secured the Yoseo region and the northern territories. We've reclaimed all the lands of old Goguryeo. If you recognize the old Goguryeo territories we've secured as our own land, couldn't Goryeo and Mongolia become good friends? Though it's probably already been decided in Gaegyeong."
If our Mongol friends acknowledge the restoration of Goguryeo's lost lands, we could truly ride the same boat, right?
"If it's that much, fine."
Ah, should I have pushed all the way to Yeonun? Yalu Choeje wouldn't complain about this much, and Ogedei wouldn't either. Unless he was an idiot, he'd know we'd counterattack. As we advanced into Yodong, changes must have rippled through the existing Mongol-occupied areas. We'd just naturally taken them over. This was something his side could gloss over, like Shim Yu-gyeong trying to pull an international scam with Konishi during the Imjin War.
"Good. The vast Mongol Empire can afford to recognize a friend's land to this extent, right?"
"Indeed. Yes, you're right. Compared to the Mongol Empire's territory, it's just a handful."
Yeah. Yeah. That's it. Just a handful compared to the Mongol Empire's lands.
But...
He still looked like he had more to say.
"You seem to have something else on your mind?"
"Might we possibly receive support for Goryeo's new weapons? Or perhaps trade them nation-to-nation?"
Hmm, new weapons. I didn't want to leak technology. Anything but that—right now, the Mongols had a system that could mobilize auxiliary troops. Meaning they could arm Han Chinese auxiliaries with iron cannons. The iron cannons would leak eventually, but not right now. So far, the weapons edge had been our killer blow, but if other countries got them, we'd be back to square one. At least secure as large an army as possible before any leaks.
"Shouldn't you discuss that with the Supreme Commander?"
"They told me to ask the Governor about new weapon management."
Yeah. Father had dumped everything on me. No surprise—Dobaek was probably swamped with the surging population and military issues. Hard to handle weapons on top of that.
"Sorry, but it's impossible. If the Mongols somehow acquired the technology and produced them themselves by chance, maybe. But producing these weapons takes a considerable amount of time."
If the Mongols conquered the Jin, they'd get the tech and have iron cannons. But no reason to sell them. We needed reserves ourselves. We'd produced over 20,000 through ups and downs in the last war, but if we'd lost, we'd have squandered them all. Couldn't give away such precious weapons.
"A shame. Or perhaps..."
"Even if the Mongols got those weapons, they'd be for infantry and not much help. Different tactics and strategies. So, anything else?"
I indirectly expressed opposition to selling iron cannons. He seemed to have more to say.
"Any thoughts on marrying into the Mongol imperial family?"
Slipping that in slyly. Marriage into the Mongol royals. If it happened, they'd probably send a consort out of basic decency. It would fully bind Mongolia and Goryeo. But why would I let some steppe topknot guy touch me?
"I just don't like men with topknots. There are plenty of ways for neighboring countries to get along without marriage."
"What a shame."
Yalu Choeje seemed genuinely disappointed. He'd probably started seeing Goryeo's core as me. Marrying me off would make Mongolia a superpower, in his eyes.
"Well then, safe travels."
After sending Yalu Choeje off, I nodded in satisfaction alone. Thanks to this, Goryeo had secured the Silk Road via Mongolia, and the Mongols had cleared their Goryeo front. They even issued special passes for Goryeo merchants. Having gained the Mongol steppe trade route, they needed to protect Goryeo people traversing their lands. Like it or not, Mongolia had to give Goryeo special treatment. Their elite troops—not auxiliaries—had been wiped out. What now? In later stages, Mongol numbers swelled thanks to auxiliaries; even in original history, the first invasion relied on them. But in this history, both first and second invasions used meticulously trained Mongol elites, all annihilated. What to do about it?
For now, Mongolia couldn't invade Goryeo again. More losses would mean rebuilding warriors over long years, and with elites gone, invading Goryeo using Jin auxiliaries from occupied lands was impossible. Above all, those auxiliaries were needed for finishing the Jin. Better to ally than suffer pure losses. From Mongolia's view, admitting reality and borrowing Goryeo support troops made sense.
Anyway, that's that. Goryeo would enjoy peace for a while. With Mongolia around, we couldn't slack on military buildup, but no war until Ogedei died, and post-Ogedei Mongol chaos made it iffy.
On top of that, I'd developed fireworks using gunpowder. Sent some to Gaegyeong, gave Father a few to tease Yalu Choeje at the right moment. I was thinking of mass-producing and selling them. Especially to Song—they'd eat it up big time. How to sell them...
As I pondered, a bat-like guy slunk in.
"Hehehe. Governor."
"What? With that creepy grin."
The Song merchant was rubbing his hands like a sycophant. Come to think of it, what was his name? I'd been calling him Song Merchant casually. Well, no need to know his name. He and Father were the official trade contacts anyway. I was just the middleman.
"I, uh, heard the Mongols opened the road to Goryeo."
Hmm, yeah. From his tone, I knew what he wanted.
"You want in on it?"
He'd sniffed it out. Now Goryeo could trade with the Middle East via Mongolia. Better grab what we could before Hulagu Khan sacks it. Hearing about the massive trade route, he'd come begging me.
"Not exactly, but Goryeo is like my second homeland. Honestly, I feel like I contributed to Goryeo's victory."
Not wrong. Without his water buffaloes, archer training and agricultural output would've suffered. We'd have blocked the Mongols but with heavy losses, and conquering Yodong would've been tough. Goryeo might've been whittled down in repeated battles.
But letting him use the steppe road was hard.
"Problem is, the Mongols only permitted 'Goryeo people'. The passes are issued only to Goryeo citizens. What does that mean?"
Mongolia made it clear: steppe road only for Goryeo foreigners. No other merchants trying to piggyback. A merchant like him had other routes anyway. Like a fat guy buying a treadmill or slapping a 5090 GPU on Minesweeper—wants it even if unused.
But practically, I'd accommodate the Song merchant.
"Urgh."
"How about something more fun instead?"
"What is it?"
I took the Song merchant and his caravan to the outskirts of Yoyang. At night. And showed them fireworks. Proper gunpowder mix with metal salts for colors—nearly modern ones.
"Ooooh. This is..."
"How about using these when Southern Song's people enjoy night festivals? A great nation where the capital's lights never fade, called the City That Never Sleeps—isn't that Song?"
Imagine these fireworks lighting up Song's skies. Would be fun.
"Indeed, this would sell big in our country."
Finding a new item, the Song merchant's eyes sparkled. Yeah, yeah. With this, you and I both make bank. I sell to him for profit, he sells in his homeland.
"The steppe road's impossible unless you become a Goryeo citizen. But I can give you this much. Plus, I hear gaesam is being grown decently in Gaegyeong."
"As expected, Lady must've been one of our Song people in a past life."
Even so, a Song person getting fleeced by Mongols... Wait, not in this world yet. Not doing it for Song's benefit. Goryeo had done indirect trade via Byeokrando so far. Now expanding massively with Arabia and others, thanks partly to his brokerage. And above all—could I give up an 80 million market? No way. With Yodong, Goryeo's population topped 5.5 million, but Song still over 80 million. Can't ignore China's market potential, future or not. Easier through him.
For now, that's the deal with Song.
Now, trade with the Abbasid Caliphate in the Middle East via the secured steppe road. What I'm after is the House of Wisdom. What's that? The repository of humanity's lost scientific knowledge. A research institute in Baghdad with hundreds of thousands of books. Countless containing ancient Greek knowledge, translated and studied there. In original history, burned by Mongols, but if preserved, humanity's science would've advanced centuries, Middle East leading the world, starting the Age of Exploration first. Mongols smashing it cost humanity dearly, symbolizing the end of Islam's Golden Age, stunting Middle Eastern intellectual growth. Scholars scattered to Europe, butterfly effect aiding Europe's colonial era. If unburned, knowledge transfer to Europe faster—though Europe might've developed more independently, delaying it relatively.
What if Goryeo claimed that knowledge? Far from them, unlike neighbors. With trade routes secured, send masses of scholars to study in Abbas or trade. Middle East in golden age now. Or preserve the knowledge before Mongol sack. Not bad either.
The issue now: where has Mongol foreign policy shifted? They'll have to hit the Jin harder. After finishing Jin, targeting Song—realistic?