Welcome to Hell Joseon
The year was 1901. The great powers, having finished modernizing the Gando region, were strutting around like peacocks in this age of imperialism—an era when every nation wanted to carve out colonies, expand their territory, and flex their muscles. It was a time defined by nothing but evil: oppressing other ethnic groups, tightening the noose around their necks, and plundering them dry. And yet, there was one country attempting imperialism at a weight class that didn’t suit it at all. Yes. The Korean Empire—too embarrassed to even call itself an empire—was that very country.
Thanks to its unprepared opening to the world and the government’s sheer incompetence, the Korean Empire was fated to be devoured by Japan, which eyed it with hungry ambition. Even as its own homeland was being swallowed up day by day by those island pirate bastards, it still wanted to do what it wanted to do. The Qing Dynasty, which had always played the role of the big brother as a colossal empire in East Asia, had been beaten like a dog on a hot summer day after the Boxer Rebellion—thrashed senseless by the Eight-Nation Alliance. Joseon, the typical tributary state that had always clung to that big brother’s side, bowing and scraping for safety, was now… well, after gaining independence following the Sino-Japanese War and declaring itself the Korean Empire, it wanted to poke the Qing while it was down.
Emperor Yi Hyeong of the Korean Empire dispatched General Yi Hak-gyun to completely occupy Gando, the disputed territory with the Qing. Along with him came the French envoy Victor Collin de Plancy, the diplomat Sands, Captain Peyou, and a group of French officers to observe the situation in Gando.
“What is your opinion of this Gando, Monsieur Envoy?” General Yi Hak-gyun asked cautiously, addressing Victor Collin de Plancy, who had come along to observe the region.
“The land itself is small. However, the population is rather substantial. At this scale, imposing taxes on the residents should help fill some of the Korean Empire’s insufficient revenue.”
“Is that so?”
“To the Qing, which has already become a walking corpse, Gando is nothing more than a remote frontier among remote frontiers—one they can barely spare the energy to worry about. But for the Korean Empire, this is land directly bordering your border. Acquiring it would not be a bad thing at all.”
The Qing was now little more than a giant cake waiting to be sliced. Manchuria may have been the sacred birthplace of the Manchu people, but astonishingly, the Qing’s current situation made it difficult to pay much attention to a frontier region like Manchuria when their core territories in China proper were under threat. The Korean Empire, on the other hand, possessed only a small peninsula compared to the vast Qing, and Gando was territory right on the border with them. Even in Plancy’s eyes, it wasn’t an impossible prospect.
“And if we end up clashing with the Qing army, what then?”
At Yi Hak-gyun’s cautious question, Plancy stroked his beard and replied.
“The Korean Empire is behind in modernization compared to our France, making it a lagging nation. Nevertheless, your emperor has invested quite heavily in the military, has he not? After the Boxer Rebellion, the Qing has already been thoroughly beaten by the Eight-Nation Alliance. In Korean terms, one might say they got their dog beaten on a dog day. Of course, if the Korean imperial army were to push deep into China proper, it would be difficult. But at the very least, the Qing’s local forces in Manchuria would be no match for your country’s troops. However—”
“However?”
What could be the problem? With the emperor’s will to seize Gando already rock-solid, there was no turning back now.
“Russia has its eyes on Manchuria. They might find this rather displeasing. Still, unless you take a truly massive bite out of Manchuria, I doubt they’ll foam at the mouth over it.”
Russia’s goal was to devour all of Manchuria, but a weak nation nibbling off a tiny piece of land should be tolerable.
“Thank you, Envoy. Your insights will be of great help to our empire.” Yi Hak-gyun showed proper courtesy in response to Plancy’s advice.
“Tsk. Japan is already eyeing their own house, yet the emperor is thinking about invading foreign lands.”
Victor Collin de Plancy, who had stayed on as the French minister to Korea, had developed a certain fondness for the country after introducing it at the World’s Fair. Even so, this nation called Korea was utterly frustrating. The emperor was only desperate to protect his own power. There was still such a long way to go, and with Japan watching like a hawk, they were still trying to act as equals to the other great powers. What more was there to say?
The Frenchmen who had come to Gando with Plancy kept their mouths shut.
“They say we can defeat the Qing. As expected, France truly is our friend. In that case, we cannot simply sit still. Now that the Qing has become a semi-colony of the great powers, this is the time to act!”
The Russian legation expressed concerns about the Korean Empire’s invasion of Gando, but Emperor Gojong’s will was firm. In 1901, while the Qing was distracted by the chaos of the Boxer Rebellion, they established a police station in Gando. Then, in 1902, they dispatched Yi Beom-yun to strengthen control over the region. In that way, they had set the stage just enough.
Here, the Korean Empire government sent Yi Beom-yun to North Gando and Seo Sang-mu to West Gando. They invaded Gando and began their plundering.
And then—
“Fuck. Why the hell am I here doing this shit?”
A female soldier was screaming in despair inside a village where the looting was taking place.