Reforms Enabled by Power
Being a power minister made reforms possible. *** Being appointed as Byeolgam essentially meant handing an entire organization over to me, didn't it?
"Is it really alright for a woman like me?"
"Of course it is. You're my daughter, aren't you? I'll grant you three hundred household troops. Do your best."
Choi Hang had received five hundred. Three hundred, huh. She wasn't the heir, but at least Father Choi U had acknowledged she wasn't just some ordinary girl.
"Understood, Father."
"It would've been great if you were a son. Tsk."
Tell me about it. If she'd been born as Choi Hang, she'd be much closer to true heir status. With this body, she'd have to work twice as hard to claim it.
"What's to stop a woman from achieving great things?"
She had no interest in women's liberation or feminism, but she was the protagonist of this world. Her nation had to break free from its basic mold through effort. Goryeo had to escape its fate as a Mongol tributary.
"Do you truly believe war with the Mongols is inevitable?"
Should they just offer more tribute or something?
"Those people can only survive by conquering. That's the nature of steppe nomads. Even the Jin in the north are groveling before the Mongols—what do you think they make of us, who couldn't even handle Khitan refugees invading our land?"
They probably looked ridiculous, for starters. Not even their regular army—just Khitan rabble from under Jin rule. Goryeo, whimpering against them. How pathetic must they have seemed to the Mongols? Even she would've seen them as weaklings. It was only after clashing with Goryeo in war that the Mongols realized they were dealing with duplicitous madmen who surrendered and lied repeatedly.
Not that she loved saying it as a Goryeo citizen, but the military regime back then was straight-up insane. At least in this era, they wouldn't look favorably on Goryeo.
"Ahem. Still, we've sworn brotherhood as allies. Surely a brother wouldn't—"
He knew full well it wasn't genuine. Sure, even real brothers bullied their siblings plenty. But sucking an ally dry like that?
"Diplomacy only works between equals. They're treating us like a tributary or a base. Even mighty Jin is in that state—how laughable must we seem? Once they finish sorting out the Jin, they'll find some excuse to stir trouble soon enough."
In the future, the Mongols would get squeezed between Russia and China, becoming a pitiful minor power by the 21st century. But right now, they were overwhelmingly strong.
"Hmm. Yeon-ah, are you saying we need to settle this decisively?"
"Even if we submit, there's nothing left for us. Father, you could be branded a traitor for turning the country into their base, and it would shake our U-bong Choi clan. Standing against the Mongols isn't a choice—it's a necessity. And can't we turn crisis into opportunity?"
If the Mongols had acted like the Jin, would Goryeo have even considered fighting? One reason Goryeo resisted was the sheer volume of tribute they demanded—far more than they could bear, fueling anti-Mongol sentiment among the people. It screamed premeditated invasion from the start.
"Crisis into opportunity?"
"Liaodong is a mess right now—Khitan remnants, Jurchens, and Mongols all tangled up. If we properly reorganize our forces and smash the Mongols, couldn't we seize that chaotic Liaodong too? Conquering it would fulfill Goryeo's national policy of northern advance, Father. The whole world would praise you."
The royal family wasn't handing out offices and letting the Choi regime run things out of fondness. They bowed because swords were at their throats, never knowing when the royals might flip. To the palace, the Choi were no different from rebels. When the regime fell in real history, Gojong was thrilled. The royals were just biding their time until they could brand them traitors and sweep them away.
To prevent that, the Choi needed long-term rule with far greater authority, reducing the throne to a mere symbol beyond recovery. And for that, northern expansion was key. Conquer Liaodong, and starting from Taejo, the Chois would achieve the impossible dream of reclaiming Goguryeo's lands. No one—not the royals, not rivals—could touch them. True merit beyond question.
Of course, Liaodong was a pipe dream. The lost continental claim. A dream to boil any Korean's blood. Her "recovery" of Liaodong was the grand vision. Defeating the Mongols alone would achieve the modest goal.
"We should do whatever's necessary."
"Trade is essential too. We have enough sulfur production, but stockpiling more can't hurt."
"That yellow powder?"
"Yes. We're producing it now, but we must prepare for the worst."
"True enough. Sulfur's already traded with Japan via Byeokrando, so ramping up volume is feasible."
Ah, so they were importing properly. That meant her efforts were basically localization. Perfect. Trade would boom before the Mongol war, but once it started—not just Goryeo, but any nation trading with them would be at risk amid the Mongols' world conquest. Producing domestically and importing? Ideal. Still, they needed to increase volumes. Current imports weren't for gunpowder, so quantities were low.
"And in the south, the Ho clans are raising private armies. You must extract proper oaths of loyalty from them."
The Ho clans' privileges were a huge issue. They were suppressed under King Hyeonjong, but the military coup plunged the country into chaos, letting them reclaim rights and troops. During the prolonged Mongol wars, some defected—like Hong Bokwon. A typical northwest Ho clan lord, he surrendered with 1,500 households (7,500 men) in the first invasion. He later tricked a Mongol princess into marrying him as Prince Yeongnyeong, insulting the imperial clan and getting executed—but his son survived, joining the Sambyeolcho Rebellion and Yuan's Japan invasions. And by then, his father Hong Daesun had already surrendered to the Mongols.
Iansa, ancestor of Yi Seonggye from the Jeonju Yi clan, fought a fortress overseer over a courtesan, fled with 170 households to Samcheok, then to Uiju when another overseer became inspector, and finally surrendered 1,000 households to Mongol commander Sanji after royal orders to resist. Appointed Darughachi. A man who fled twice over a woman, ancestor of Yi Seonggye? If not a Ho clan, why drag peasants around? No different from the ultimate traitor Hong Bokwon surrendering to Salitai. Sure, it showed the regime's failures in war, control, and public support. But surrender wasn't justifiable. Plenty of local Ho clans collaborated. The Mongol wars exposed the flaws of local decentralization.
They couldn't act now, but until central forces strengthened, loyalty oaths were minimum. Later, round them all up. Execute Hong Bokwon and Iansa. Especially Iansa—fleeing twice to Uiju over a courtesan, then surrendering? Insolence on top of treason. No mercy for Yi Seonggye's ancestor. She'd solidify the foundation so thoroughly Joseon couldn't even form. Yi Seonggye and his father Yi Ja-chun played Yuan and Goryeo against each other before backstabbing with the revolutions. No reason to keep them. It wasn't patriotism—it was practical. Absorbing Ho troops made war easier.
"Extracting loyalty oaths shouldn't be hard."
"First, dispatch Choi retainers loyal to you as magistrates."
Japan's shogunate was subtly different and obscure, but local Ho clans running things was basically Japan's Kamakura era. Even Japan viewed Goryeo's military regime positively. With Chois entrenched, Hos couldn't act. Refusal would give cause for subjugation.
"And if they refuse?"
"Subjugate them, of course. What's so hard about crushing petty Ho clans on this cramped Three Hans land?"
"Rebelling against the court means subjugation. But..."
Choi U gazed at her steadily.
"Why do you look at me like that?"
"No matter how I see it, no one around you would say such things, and I never taught you. Yet you know so much."
"Because I'm the one who's going to be your successor."
"Hah. My own daughter openly coveting my seat."
Stabbing from the shadows or feigning powerlessness was worse, right? She thought so. Surely he'd bequeath it to a supremely capable daughter like her?
"Can't you hand the successor's seat to such an adorable daughter?"
Leaning into Father coquettishly, batting her eyes in cute-daughter mode, Choi U sighed deeply. He knew her fox tricks.
"We'll cancel the marriage to Kim Yakseon as you wish, but the world's watching. We must show something."
Yes! No marriage! Finally. Finally! Even if forced into one someday, never Kim Yakseon. How could she marry that promiscuous fool? Rumors said even Choi U's real daughter cheated with a male servant, but that wasn't her.
"Understood, Father."
"Now that you hold office, call me 'My Lord' in official settings."
That 'My Lord' nonsense—he loved it too much. She'd distinguish public and private now that she had rank. Though it wasn't a proper office anyway.
"Yes, Father. But..."
"What else?"
"To strengthen the military, don't we need to stockpile massive provisions?"
"We do."
Stockpiling meant promoting agriculture, right?
"Shouldn't we expand paddies and fields through encourage-farming policies? Inspectors have dabbled, but let's make it national policy."
In short, promote farming and feed the people well.
"!!!"
Why the shock? Agriculture reform was obvious. Fill bellies, win hearts. As she smiled with crinkled eyes, Choi U clutched his neck.
With inner palace surveillance ongoing, Emperor Gojong caught wind too. They'd dodged Mongol eyes, but the forge making cannons was under royal oversight. He couldn't be ignorant.
"The regent's daughter is crafting new weapons?"
New weapons. Grotesque things roaring loud enough to shake heaven and earth.
"Yes. With sounds alarming heaven and earth, aren't they preparing for war?"
"Heh. What to do about this? How will the Mongols see us?"
Even appeasing them was tough—preparing for war? Would Mongols sit idle?
"Surely the regency isn't plotting war?"
"Military men always threaten imperial authority, twisting power to their whims. Accepting Mongol demands risks public backlash, so they're scheming war behind the scenes."
Gojong fretted over events at the Directorate of Armaments. Mongols who crushed even Jin—why not live peacefully, even if hard? The Chois dragged the nation to war for their power. If the royals exposed it and secured Mongol peace?
"Let's watch for an opportunity first."
Gojong swallowed hard. He would end this military chaos in his reign.