Chapter 35
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 035
Chapter Title: Open the Country of Joseon (2)
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After confirming that Kim Ja-geun's breath had stopped, Yi Ha-eung, Kim Heung-geun, and the Kim Byeong-hak and Byeong-guk brothers immediately seized the soldiers outside the house and headed straight for the palace.
The men who had been pacing restlessly after abandoning their preparations for the noose in the dead of night stared at them wide-eyed, but there wasn't enough time to explain the situation.
The king, who had spent the night wide awake without a wink of sleep, felt his heart racing at the sudden report that Inspector General Kim Heung-geun and Prince Heungseon had requested an audience.
"What brings you two here in the middle of the night?"
"Commander-in-Chief Kim Ja-geun has taken his own life."
A fabrication.
But Kim Heung-geun had no choice. If he branded Kim Ja-geun a traitor right here, the entire Andong Kim Clan would be rounded up like salted mackerel and hauled off to the execution grounds, wouldn't they?
"The Commander-in-Chief discussed surrender with no one else, unilaterally begged for mercy from Yeonggil-ri, and planned to burn the entire capital to the ground the moment their forces entered Hanyang. We learned of this plot and were utterly shocked. When we sternly interrogated him on how he could commit such a horrific act on his own, he realized the secret had leaked and that even setting the fires wouldn't achieve his aims. In the end, he took his own life."
"The madman. What an outrageous act of treason!"
"Only at the very end did he finally acknowledge his faults and take responsibility with his death. It may be more than he deserves, but if Your Highness shows mercy and forgives him, all the people will praise Your benevolence."
Heonjong gazed down at the two men prostrated flat before him, lost in thought.
Why had Prince Heungseon—a royal relative with no real power—suddenly appeared at court alongside Kim Heung-geun, the next most powerful figure after Kim Ja-geun?
No matter how he looked at it, Kim Ja-geun hadn't simply died quietly of his own accord. His death was either murder or forced suicide.
But none of that mattered to Heonjong right now.
"Inspector General, what do you think we should do next?"
"This humble servant merely upholds Your Majesty's will."
"The Commander-in-Chief, who bears responsibility for this war, has escaped through death, yet you only speak of upholding my will? Are you truly resolved to do nothing but that?"
- I don't want to be the one etched into history forever as the guy who suggested surrender out of my own mouth~
- If Kim Ja-geun took responsibility with his death, shouldn't you, his superior, do the same? If you wanna stay alive, you've gotta do what's necessary, right?
Just one quick exchange was more than enough to make Kim Heung-geun bow his head even lower.
When a nation faces a dire crisis, the regime usually changes. Twenty-first-century democracy grants legitimacy to this process and makes it far more efficient, sparing the bloodshed.
But even without democracy, the rule holds true. The Andong Kim Clan, who had even tried to shove the king into the back room and cling to power by force, now had to shoulder far greater blame and fall from grace.
"They claim to have come to punish Kim Ja-geun and aid Joseon. If we hand over his head and sue for peace, they will surely accept. If our people suffer any longer, the harvest season will be ruined beyond repair—a truly lamentable prospect. We must petition Yeonggil-ri for a truce."
"Does the Inspector General's view align with that of the civil and military officials?"
"It does, Your Majesty."
"Ah! It grieves me deeply that my own lack of virtue has disrupted the livelihood of the people and failed to care for them properly. Hasten to send out envoys, summon the court officials, and ensure this turmoil ends as swiftly as possible."
At last, the king had heard what he wanted to hear.
Kim Ja-geun had erased the king's presence to protect his own power, so Heonjong bore almost no responsibility for this war. How could he be blamed if he hadn't called the shots?
"Prince Heungseon, listen well."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"I know you have long maintained close ties with the Yeonggil-ri envoy, Yi Asul. Can you go to their camp and communicate with them on our behalf?"
"How could a royal relative like myself stand idle in the face of national crisis? If Your Majesty commands it, I will gladly undertake even the task of leading horses and oxen."
Kim Heung-geun would take the lead, finalize the surrender terms, and shoulder the blame himself.
Yi Ha-eung, who had clearly pulled off something major, would be assigned diplomatic duties, with his name slyly added to key administrative roles to bring him into the court later.
All that remained was to wrap up negotiations with Yeonggil-ri.
The young king had endured and waited patiently, and now he had gained everything he sought.
It had truly been a long, arduous trial.
With thousands of British troops camped right outside the walls of Hanyang Castle, Prince Heungseon set off for Ganghwa Island as an envoy to negotiate surrender terms.
The British offered to ferry him there on one of their warships, and Yi Ha-eung accepted without a moment's hesitation. After all, he had gone all-in on Yeonggil-ri coin.
"How fascinating—the cannons gleaming like that. With so much artillery in use, how do you manage the gunpowder supply?"
"The ship moves so swiftly! What are those smoke stacks and fumes?"
"Coal! To spread a fleet this mighty across the world, you'd need to stockpile mountains of that coal."
The British had hoped to awe this barbarian envoy with the pride of the Royal Navy, crushing his spirit and making him feel the gap between them. But Prince Heungseon showed no such signs; instead, he wandered the ship like it was his own living room, grilling the Chinese interpreter with questions about everything he saw.
Only after arriving at Ganghwa and standing before Arthur did he finally release the tension and worry he had bottled up for so long.
"Kuh... kuahaha! Kuahahahaha!!! Uhahahaha!!!"
"That good, huh?"
"Good? More than good! At long last, at long last! What do scholars yearn for above all else? To rise to prominence and influence the nation's affairs—that's every scholar's dream!"
The curse of being a disfavored royal relative.
Show promise, and you'd get tangled in rebellion and die. Show none, and you'd live as a wastrel, sire children, grow old, and die.
Reared like livestock by the noble houses, he had finally broken out of the pen and into the open.
Now all that was left was to set Joseon straight.
Hang every traitorous servant who had usurped the master's authority upside down, and an era would dawn once more where the king ruled with absolute clarity, just as under Yeongjo and Jeongjo.
Arthur smiled along as he watched the man's boundless joy.
It took quite some time before Prince Heungseon finally calmed down.
"Now, we should get to negotiating. What will you have us yield?"
"You're certainly bold."
"If talks drag on, the country might survive, but Hanyang will be toast. Please, I beg you—lift the Han River blockade first, at least? Smashing Hanyang would be child's play for your forces anyway."
"If today's conversation proves valuable enough, I will."
Even as Arthur signaled to approve nearly everything, Prince Heungseon nodded vigorously.
"I have been seriously pondering Joseon's future."
"You have?"
"Of course. Isn't Joseon my benefactor? Oh. Why that look? I'm serious."
Arthur had brought out a fine bottle of wine, gleaming silverware and crystal glasses that screamed luxury, and even desserts tailored to Joseon tastes. The table setting was fit for any occasion.
As Yi Ha-eung savored the sweet, flavorful wine, Arthur laid a world map before him.
"This is the world. The Chinese 'Heavenly Dynasty' is but a tenth of it."
"...It's always astonishing, no matter how many times I see it."
"This time, pay attention to the coloring on the map."
Countries around the globe were shaded in the hues of Britain, France, and the other European powers.
Yi Ha-eung immediately grasped what Arthur meant.
"Joseon will soon be painted in Yeonggil-ri colors too?"
"That's not what I want."
"Why not?"
"Because... I need to devour Joseon all by myself."
"Honest as ever, my disciple!"
Yi Ha-eung burst into laughter, cheeks trembling, but Arthur didn't smile.
"If Joseon becomes a colony, every parasite and lowlife in Britain will swarm here to suck the people's blood and try to make their fortune. Plus, my glittering reputation as the Joseon expert would lose its shine."
"...Take care of me a bit?"
"Exactly. Pay me handsomely on a personal level, and I'll passionately argue in Britain how preserving Joseon's sovereignty as an independent nation serves our empire's interests."
He pondered deeply.
Then, wetting his throat with more wine, he spoke.
"You still lack the clout to meddle in Yeonggil-ri's major state affairs. Isn't that right?"
"Correct. Which is why you need to build me up even more."
"No nation that rose to glory and wielded power ever shied away from war and conquest. Just looking at this map and your mighty army makes it obvious you're mad for conquest. So how exactly do you plan to convince your court to spare Joseon?"
The insight was unbelievable from someone who had lived in a frog pond.
Arthur was delighted. Clear proof that his pick was spot-on.
He pointed to the top of the map.
"Do you see this massive country?"
"Yes. What a vast expanse of land."
"Russia, or Arasa as it's sometimes called. The northern bear with millions under arms. King Hyojong's Northern Expedition clashed with their scouts."
"I see."
Joseon had lived in such a bubble that they didn't even know who they were fighting.
If they'd had this map back then, would Hyojong's ministers have agreed to the Qing's request for troops?
"One of the British Empire's key policies is to check Russian expansion. In today's world, wealth and national prosperity come through sea trade, but Russia's frozen tundra means its ports ice over every winter, crippling commerce. So they desperately seek warm-water ports, and we block them."
Baltic Sea.
Black Sea.
And... the East Sea.
"Conquering and exploiting Joseon as a colony would yield peanuts while burning through fortunes in arms to suppress the people."
"And?"
"But what if we build up Joseon and use it as a mercenary to block Russia's eastward push? If Joseon, backed by the British Empire, trains hundreds of thousands and holds the line, that aligns perfectly with imperial interests."
Arthur's finger now pointed to Manchuria.
"No matter how mighty the British Empire, swallowing Manchuria would take hundreds of thousands of troops—impossible. The Qing are paper tigers now, plain as day, so Russia will bully them into ceding Manchuria and the Far East."
"......"
"Seizing these vast Manchurian plains and Liaodong—isn't that every Joseon man's dream?"
"While making enemies of Russia and the Qing."
"If that's too tough for Joseon, ally with Japan. From Britain's view, any barbarian who checks Russia works—we don't need Joseon specifically."
Arthur subtly hinted he could pivot his portfolio to Japan.
Yi Ha-eung agonized amid limited information.
He had no real alternatives anyway.
"Do you truly believe Joseon can train hundreds of thousands and defeat the Qing and Russia?"
"If Joseon falls, I go down too. I'll make it happen."
"Fine. I'll stake everything on you. What do you want?"
Arthur whipped out a notebook from his pocket.
"First off, a share of the ginseng monopoly."
"You're joking."
"What else is worth sucking dry in this country besides ginseng?"
"'First off.' And next?"
"Mining development rights for me too."
"Again."
"I'll take a bite out of the grain shipping rights as well."
"I've never seen such a brazen robber under heaven! I'm dying here!"
"Don't worry. I'll deliver value equal to what I take."
"How exactly?!"
The twenty-first-century pro businessman brimmed with confidence.
"I'll build you factories."
"...Factories?"
The Industrial Revolution.
Arthur planned to sell modernization to Joseon.
Something they wouldn't even have a chance to buy otherwise.