Chapter 34
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 034
Chapter Title: Open the Country of Joseon (1)
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Someone might say, "Has Kim Ja-geun lost his mind? What's he doing?"
But that's the kind of thinking from someone who's never stared death in the face.
You have to choose between the red pill or the blue one.
The red pill gives you a 50% chance of getting your head chopped off and a 50% chance of ending up as some forgotten old man in the back room, dying miserably alone in a corner someday.
Opt for the blue pill, though, and there's a 100% chance the whole country burns right then and there. You yourself have a 96% chance of getting torn limb from limb, but a 3% shot at being hailed as the nation's savior and a 1% chance of becoming king.
How many people would really swallow the red pill?
And how many could down the blue one without deluding themselves, "I'm the hero! I'll be king soon!"?
Kim Ja-geun was the type who'd gulped down the blue pill and was now knee-deep in self-justification.
Having already stolen his mother's seal, mortgaged all his assets, and taken out shady loans, he had no choice but to bask in fantasies of his future kingship.
But the world didn't care about Lord Haok's anguish.
The reality hitting him was simply that he was screwed.
"Th-they... ran away?"
Kim Ja-geun blinked in disbelief.
"The English warships sailed up the Han River and unleashed a fierce bombardment. Haengju Fortress wasn't prepared for such an assault and crumbled quickly. The soldiers under your command—"
"Why didn't they fight to the death! Why!! If they'd received the king's grace, they should've stood firm against a hail of arrows and stones and died in battle!! These gutless cowards—how could they abandon generations of loyalty and flee?!"
Kim Ja-geun's rage was half right and half wrong.
People often don't feel societal or national systems changing much, but just think about real estate or education policies—national policies shift wildly all the time.
The military's no exception. If anything, it has to evolve faster than most, or it gets crushed in defeat.
The British East India Company started as a private trading firm but somehow ballooned into the governing body of colonial India with hundreds of thousands of troops—only to face dissolution now.
So why couldn't Joseon's forces evolve in the opposite direction?
Joseon's garrisons had long since morphed from "army" into something more like public corporations—think KEPCO or KORAIL. National defense? When was the last war in Joseon?
Telling utility or rail workers, "You're soldiers at heart! Grab this M1 carbine and canteen, and go fight the demon army!"—of course they'd run.
But if Kim Ja-geun had thought that far ahead, he wouldn't be raging now, let alone betting everything on war in the first place.
Instead, he went hunting for scapegoats.
"Strip every defeated commander of their rank! No—scratch that! They must be traitors in league with the enemy! Throw them all in prison!"
"My lord!"
"Hurry with the evacuation! We must escort His Majesty to Bukhansan Fortress! And grab anyone who might be colluding with the English—lock them up too!"
His only option left was to turn Hanyang into a sea of flames.
If he sacrificed the capital but burned the entire English force, victory wasn't just a pipe dream!
The barbarians would cower in terror at his desperate stand, torching their own capital without hesitation. And the Joseon people would admire him, raising the banner of loyalty over their weak king.
He spurred his retainers to prepare Seoul's inferno while rounding up anyone who might challenge his power, throwing them into cells without trial. All the while, he rushed the evacuation.
He couldn't leave Hanyang himself.
The king might flee, but he had to stay. Defending the capital was the source of his emergency powers.
"What is the meaning of this outrage!"
"The criminal, receive the king's command!"
"Kyaaak!!"
Wails and screams echoed everywhere.
Hanyang was already hell, even without the flames.
At Haengju Fortress, the Joseon army as an organization ceased to exist.
But the cannonballs of this era weren't 21st-century high-explosive shells—just heavy iron lumps. Aside from the unlucky few crushed by incoming shots or flying stone shards, casualties were minimal.
Most of the human resources making up the Joseon army—the people—survived and fled.
So where did the fugitives go?
"Mother! Mother!!"
"Wife! Where's my wife!!"
Many scattered to the hills, fearing punishment for desertion. But those with family in Hanyang trickled back in small groups.
Attempts to round up the deserters sparked fresh chaos.
"What the hell is that?"
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
"This is state business—mind your own, you lowly scum!"
Obviously nobles' slaves or servants were sneaking around at night, hiding barrels and straw bundles in the most suspicious way possible.
As the saying goes, birds hear daytime talk and rats hear nighttime whispers. Rumors of Kim Ja-geun's Seoul Hellfire plan began bubbling up from the streets.
And then...
"That bastard's trying to burn Hanyang?!"
"Yes, my lord! At this rate, he'll go down as a traitor for the ages!!"
Even those closest to Kim Ja-geun ran to other Kim clan members, ratting out his insane scheme.
Kim Heung-geun, another pillar of the Andong Kim Clan and a powerhouse as Left Prime Minister and Inspector General, was left half-dazed.
"What in the world are we supposed to do?"
As he pondered deeply, a servant suddenly announced that brothers Kim Byeong-hak and Kim Byeong-guk had come to see him.
He ordered a simple table set and took his seat. The Byeong-hak and Byeong-guk duo entered, dragging along a shabby-looking man with a dented gat hat pulled low.
"Who's this guest with you?"
"A guest scholar from my house. He's been a huge help as a strategist, so I brought him along."
Kim Heung-geun's eyes narrowed at Kim Byeong-hak's words.
Strategist? Pretty words for a freeloader spouting nonsense to leech meals off young masters from fine houses.
But he didn't show it.
"A strategist! Then tell us, how should we navigate this crisis?"
"With the enemy at our doorstep, about to reach the capital any day, the markets are choked with widows' wails and refugee columns trailing the royal procession.
In this mess, Kim Ja-geun isn't fulfilling his duties—he's scheming to torch Hanyang like Dong Zhuo. Heaven and earth won't forgive him, and the masses will want to chew his flesh. We must punish his crimes severely and carry out His Majesty's will without delay."
"Who told you that?!"
"We had no idea!"
The brothers denied it immediately.
Come to think of it, that voice sounded familiar.
"Forgive my late introduction, my lord."
As if waiting, the man lifted his gat hat to reveal his face.
"Heungseon-gun...?"
"Yes, my lord. As a natural lowlife, I've picked up the rumors from the streets."
Heungseon-gun Yi Ha-eung should've been on the hit list long ago for alleged collusion with the Westerners...
"You! You protected Heungseon-gun?!"
"That's right."
"We just taught him a bit of stick fighting—calling it 'collusion'? If we arrest him, we'd have to lock up Nosa and Hwaseo scholars too. That's madness!"
Hiding in an Andong Kim house, he'd be untouchable no matter what Kim Ja-geun did.
Kim Heung-geun stared at the three men before him.
Tension.
Impatience.
And...
'Killing intent.'
All three were young. Thirties at most.
And the young ones always preferred a big swing over patient steps.
Kim Heung-geun went for the throat.
"So you've come with an iron mace hidden in your robes?"
"Indeed."
Thud.
As the brothers gaped in shock, Yi Ha-eung slammed his iron mace onto the table.
"Die by traitor Kim Ja-geun's hand, burn in a cell, get shot by blind English cannons, or have your clan wiped out as traitors! This crisis stems solely from him. If you want to live, my lord, there's only one thing to do!"
"Wouldn't it be better to gather the clan now and force him to step down, petitioning for peace with His Highness?"
"If you truly thought that possible, you'd have done it already."
Yi Ha-eung smirked incredulously, and Heung-geun couldn't deny it.
Arrest them here, and he'd be tied to Kim Ja-geun irrevocably—destined to be torn apart and pickled by the English or the young king someday.
They'd come to him. Time for a decision.
"Why me?"
"As Inspector General, you command the capital forces—perfect for executing the deed smoothly without a hitch."
True enough. Kim Ja-geun was surrounded by servants and guards.
"Someone outside!"
"Yes, master."
"Bring writing materials!"
The clan must be preserved.
Yes. Kim Ja-geun was rotten from the start. When Loyalty Duke Kim Jo-sun was alive, hadn't he said the boy wasn't fit for office—just let him idle and eat?
With the eldest and second sons dying off, third son Kim Ja-geun got shoved into an oversized role. He couldn't govern properly, brutalized enemies needlessly, hoarded wealth through filthy means.
They should've acted sooner.
Too late—and now things had come to this.
To protect the illustrious Andong Kim Clan.
The rotten branch had to be pruned.
Kim Ja-geun's fury showed no signs of cooling.
"Why's that old fool causing a ruckus like a midnight hatchet?!"
He needed to rush the evacuation tonight, but suddenly Kim Heung-geun threw a wrench in.
"Well, the Grand Royal Dowager strongly opposes—"
"Why can't that damned hag see straight in a crisis like this? She's flailing around like a lunatic! Damn it all!"
Grand Royal Dowager Sunwon Wanghu was the king's grandmother, daughter of Kim Jo-sun—and Kim Ja-geun's sister.
But sister or not meant nothing now.
"We've requested her presence to discuss persuading her."
"Fine! Damn it."
Kim Ja-geun headed straight for Kim Heung-geun's house, soldiers escorting him.
"Out of the way!"
"Get lost, you scum!"
"My lord! Evacuation is impossible! Please reconsider— Aak!"
"Drag out anyone acting up! Let's go!"
Those approaching to wail, to remonstrate, or just passing by—all caught beatings from clubs and boots.
His procession scattered screams in its wake until it reached Kim Heung-geun's residence. He kicked open the gate and stormed inside.
"Welcome, my lord."
"Where's the Inspector General? Hurry!"
"Follow m—"
"Just tell me where!"
His steps were frantic.
Finally entering the room where Kim Heung-geun sat, Kim Ja-geun couldn't hide his impatience and exploded the moment he sat.
"Time's critical, and you're sitting here drinking?!"
"Have a cup yourself. You look like you ran here—"
"No thanks. What's the Grand Royal Dowager's problem?"
"Evacuating means abandoning Hanyang. For the ancestral shrines, is it truly wise—"
"Of course! Or should we surrender to the British?"
"Rumors are rampant in the streets that you're planning to burn Hanyang. Her Majesty heard and is deeply troubled. Is it true?"
Ja-geun froze.
Then he ground his teeth.
"Yes. It's true. If torching the British lets me uphold loyalty, what's the problem?"
"Listen to yourself!!"
"Am I the only one in this country with the will to fight? You're the Inspector General—why dodge battle and keep scheming alternatives? Drag the Dowager out kicking and screaming if you have to—why halt the evacuation?!"
"Are you sane? Burn Hanyang?! Something Dong Zhuo would do—how do you plan to deal with the aftermath?!"
"You're all the same! Clan brothers, all plotting to save your necks and power while tossing mine away! Hypocrites pretending to be gentlemen when you'd sacrifice anyone!"
"......"
"If you don't want to die, mobilize your whole family and retainers right now to help with the evacuation. Drop the idea of selling me out for eternal glory."
Kim Heung-geun peered through the candlelight into Kim Ja-geun's eyes, blazing hotter than any hellfire.
In those pupils, all of Hanyang was already engulfed in flames.
Kim Heung-geun hurled his sake cup aside.
Crash! The doors burst open, and several grim-faced men stormed in, shoes still on, thudding across the floor.
"Seeing you at night makes your noble features shine even brighter, Lord Haok."
"Heungseon-gun! You traitor—how dare you!!"
"Who gave you the right to cry treason—you, who mocked the shrines and would burn the capital whole?"
Ja-geun couldn't even stand.
The moment he saw the weapons in their hands, his legs turned to iron, rooted in place.
When Kim Byeong-hak and Byeong-guk entered behind, he brightened.
"Good timing! Traitors! Kill these traitors quick! Now!!"
"......"
"...Boys? Boys?"
Kim Byeong-hak squeezed his eyes shut and turned away.
Kim Byeong-guk glared and muttered.
"We hereby judge traitor Kim Ja-geun."
"Sp-spare me. Boys? Boys? I-I was just trying to stop the British—"
Yi Ha-eung didn't hesitate.
The secret art passed down the royal bloodline from Yi Bang-won and Grand Prince Suyang—the iron mace technique—shone again after centuries.
The end of a regent who clutched power forever was pathetically inglorious.