Striking the Scholars
The meeting with Ok Jin-seo haunted Yi Gang like a ghost that refused to leave. The words that had poured from her without hesitation. From the mouth of a woman in her prime, the very lips that should have whispered words of love, she had spoken of monstrous things. She had laid out plans so colossal that the feeble subjects of the Korean Empire could never have conceived them.
“We must wage war to survive.”
If they did not, they would be devoured by the Qing and Japan. No—in truth, without Ok Jin-seo and her position as Minister of Foreign Affairs, the country would already have been swallowed by Russia. That much he had to acknowledge. And her current military power could not be ignored either. If he truly set his mind to crushing her, it was not impossible. But that would mean civil war. All the time the Empire had spent growing stronger would become meaningless.
Ok Jin-seo was that kind of existence. She was not someone who could be carelessly removed, not with the character she possessed. If she had been the sort of person who could be easily toppled, would a woman of her appearance have been able to declare that this country must wage war?
If Yi Gang simply brushed off her words, ignored them, and tried to eliminate her anyway—
“If you try to remove Ok Jin-seo, Russia stands behind her.”
The Russian Emperor cherished her so much that he would not overlook the betrayal of his Korean protégé. If Ok Jin-seo were expelled or killed in the Korean Empire, he would raise an army. He could even use that as a pretext to invade. The Northern Army under her command would side with Russia and serve as their guide to swallow the entire peninsula. That, too, would be disastrous.
“Above all, her eyes were filled with absolute conviction.”
This had to be done. There was not the slightest hesitation, deception, bravado, or personal ambition in her. This country had to become a nation capable of waging war more effectively than the Qing or Japan and expand in every direction. In any case, Lady Eom, who would rather let the nation perish than lose the imperial family, was beyond saving. A woman who thought only of the imperial house, and a woman who thought of the nation’s people. The latter held no particular loyalty to the Korean Empire itself. But she believed the people living in this land—the Korean people—must survive. That if the people lived, she too could live.
What on earth made her so desperate?
Of course, this was an era where one had to be desperate to survive. Especially a weak nation like Korea had to thrash about desperately in every way just to stay alive. Yet at first glance she was clearly a woman raised in comfort. Though born into a peddler family, her ancestry traced back to the Goryeo royal house. As if inheriting that noble blood, her skin was purer than any subject in the Empire, and even if every woman in the land were lined up, she would shine the brightest.
Such a woman. One who should have been cherished and raised with love by her family. No matter the circumstances, the woman who had lived in Europe had been that desperate. For this country. For the Korean people. It was not simple ambition. It came from something she had experienced. She had realized that this nation could only survive by striking other countries, and she had declared that the only path for the Korean Empire was war—the path of quenching its thirst with the blood of its enemies.
Perhaps she even dreamed of a nation greater than the mighty Goguryeo of old, when the Korean people had been at their peak.
Just what has she been through?
He still could not fathom the reason. But she was a different breed from the officials of the Korean Empire, who had never existed before and who spent all their time worrying about whose side to take. So perhaps he should trust her just this once. How absurd it was that the Korean Empire had reached a point where it had to place its faith in a woman.
The Korean Empire had been rotten and twisted for a long time.
Well then. Yi Gang had wrapped things up nicely. If so, what we needed to do now was obvious.
We had already prepared to use the Japanese reparations—funneled through Allen—as reform funds. It was time to begin the reforms in earnest.
“All right. Now we can begin the reforms without any worries.”
“What exactly do you mean by that?”
What else? We start with land reform, obviously. I had already brought in foreign advisors and laid the groundwork for how to proceed. Of course, no one in this era had ever actually completed land reform.
“The scholars were swept away in the last war for their crimes. And in the provinces, the damage caused by Kuroki Tamemoto still remains.”
There was still significant damage in the countryside. Of course, it was far less than in the original history, but still. Shockingly, the current Korean Empire—proving just how incompetent Gojong had truly been—had allowed a huge amount of provincial land to fall into the hands of the yangban nobility.
“Then?”
“We will use the pretext of completing postwar reconstruction to carry out land reform. We cannot allow this country’s land to continue rotting in the hands of yangban landlords. We need infrastructure. That is, we must install all kinds of facilities. What would happen if the great landowners continue to monopolize the land?”
We could not keep reforming only the capital of Hanseong forever. Now was the perfect time—while the chaos left by Kuroki Tamemoto still prevented proper land reform—to strike.
“Will they willingly give up what they possess?”
“That is exactly why this is the perfect opportunity.”
Everything was still unsettled. If I seized them by the collar now and set the board in every sector, it would be much easier later. There were capitalists in this country, after all. Choi Jae-hyung had settled in Russia, but many capitalists who had made their fortunes in Southern Manchuria under his influence existed. We would use them to accelerate land reform. In the process, we would eliminate anyone who hindered food production.
“No matter how weakened they are, they will resist us.”
Of course they would. No one gives up what they own easily. Especially not weeds that have sunk their roots deep for hundreds of years. What more was there to say?
“What can yangban landlords do in front of guns?”
Whether they shouted at us using their noble status or did anything else, unless their rank somehow became a shield against bullets, there would be no contest. I saw no possibility of that. In any case, the yangban were now nothing but decrepit relics who belonged in a coffin. We had to wipe them out before they could reclaim their old privileged positions. Everything that had only been reset after 625—we would finish it all now.
“But aren’t the current yangban the very people who raised the Righteous Armies? Suppressing them with guns will be difficult to justify.”
Kim In-soo spoke in alarm. Yes. We were talking about uprooting the very foundation of Joseon.
“That is correct. In any case, are you not the Minister of Foreign Affairs? Rather than guns and blades, wouldn’t it be better if we used threats first?”
“I agree as well. If we start a bloodbath here, it will tarnish the reputation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, who also serves as administrator of Manchuria.”
Even though they had been with me all this time, it seemed this particular matter frightened them. Especially Kim In-soo and Nam Sang-deok were strongly opposed. Hong Beom-do, the Army General of the Manchurian forces, also appeared to be against it.
Was there really anything we couldn’t do? In the end, I was the one giving the order to crush the scholars. Wasn’t it more appropriate for me to focus on diplomacy? I held the position of Manchurian Army Commander at the same time as Minister of Foreign Affairs. If I said I would do it, what did it matter?
“All they ever did was raise insufficient armies with bamboo spears and old matchlocks, claiming they were avenging the late Emperor. What achievements did they actually accomplish? Did they kill Kuroki Tamemoto? In the end, we did everything. Look at this. The very fact that I, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, am even discussing this proves how deformed this country’s structure is.”
“If you are truly determined to walk that path, we will have to support you. But I fear it may only create unnecessary trouble.”
“That’s not what I’m afraid of. What terrifies me is failing to uproot those weeds and watching this country’s modernization collapse.”
We would uproot the privileged class of scholars. If we left these so-called scholars of the Korean Empire as they were, they would inevitably fester again someday. Using land reform as the excuse, we would tear them out by the roots.
“Still, this country must still obey imperial commands.”
At Yi Beom-yun’s words, I nodded. He was right. This was a country that only functioned when it obeyed imperial edicts. A nation that regarded the Emperor as its parent and followed him to the end. But many things had already changed. Just as in the past, during the military regime when Choi Chung-heon had governed in the king’s stead, we could simply govern in the Emperor’s place.
“Yes. I have already prepared for that possibility. All we need is to obtain an imperial rescript.”
It was simple. We just needed to get a suitable rescript from the golden child. If the yangban landlords who claimed to revere imperial commands accepted it obediently, there would be no bloodshed. If they resisted, then we could justifiably open fire.
“Your Excellency. Lady Eom might hide the royal seal in her skirts.”
“That’s fine. Prince Ui has already agreed to help us.”
We just needed to persuade Prince Ui to make Lady Eom hand over the royal seal. When you thought about it, that woman was nothing special yet still schemed from behind to manipulate the Emperor.
“You mean His Highness Prince Ui?”
To be honest, I was still somewhat suspicious, but for now, yes.
“That’s right. His Highness Prince Ui will help us.”
So we would inform them that land reform must be carried out and obtain an imperial command from Sunjong.
“Even so, if we keep doing this, Lady Eom will become a problem.”
“If she doesn’t want to see her son’s head smashed open, she’ll keep her mouth shut.”
It was unfortunate for Prince Yeong, but if he wanted to live, that was what had to happen. Yi Gang would help, of course, but I had no reason to be swayed any further by that ugly bitch who kept defying me. It was time to lay her down beside Gojong. Don’t you think?
“Hoo… I wonder if we are going too far in committing treason against the imperial family.”
Treason? It was a stretch to call this treason. Because we had the card called Yi Gang. He had immediately understood what I had said to the consort.
“There is no need to worry.”
If she wanted to live, if she wanted to preserve even the imperial family, Lady Eom would have no choice but to bow her head. Besides, I had the document Bezobrazov had handed over. The one granting me Southern Manchuria as a fief and enfeoffing me as a Countess. Though they called it the ‘White Country,’ the proper name was the County of Corea. Even after becoming the Korean Empire, the West still called it Corea, after Goryeo. I had more than enough material to blackmail them with.
No matter how lacking in realism she was, Lady Eom would not want me to defect to Russia. Once we swept away all the yangban who formed the imperial family’s support base, completed modernization, and stabilized Yi Beom-yun’s military government cabinet, who would dare say anything?
After that, I would hold military power for a while, then pull down the imperial house, have Yi Beom-yun’s cabinet advance into China, recover Balhae’s territory, crush Japan, and install a prime minister. Simple.
After the meeting ended, I went to have an audience with Yi Cheok.
“Your Imperial Majesty. This land reform must be completed without fail. Therefore, I humbly request that Your Imperial Majesty issue an imperial rescript as an imperial command.”
“A rescript? I… I am to issue one?”
Even when issuing a rescript he was this timid.
“Yes. All you need to do is stamp the royal seal once.”
“If we do this, the scholars of this country will not remain silent, will they?”
The scholars of this country? At best they would come at us with bamboo spears. And only the lower ones at that. The real scholars would just shout from the back. That was the reality of this country’s scholars. They vehemently opposed everything the government tried to do, yet when foreign enemies came they would commit suicide to show their loyalty to the imperial family and the nation. What could such useless people do even if they attacked?
“We are currently establishing a firearms factory in Southern Manchuria. We must test the various rifles acquired from different countries and decide which one will become the Empire’s standard service rifle.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“In other words, we plan to test which of the rifles obtained from Russia, Germany, France, or Japan performs best.”
I stared into empty space, stroking my chin with a grin. I wondered how it would feel to be used as a test subject. Would they feel wronged and resentful for failing to protect the Emperor? Or would they fall into despair at the fact that this country was falling into the hands of beasts?
“I-is that so?”
“If the scholars truly care for this country, they will step forward themselves and test with their own bodies just how powerful those rifles are.”
I rolled my eyes round and round as I spoke, as if to say that one should never oppose me. In short, if they resisted, we would test which weapon suited the Korean Empire best while shooting every last scholar dead. That was exactly what I was saying.
“But… wouldn’t that mean shedding far too much blood?”
“How can those who disobey an imperial command truly claim to serve this country and the imperial family?”
If the Emperor gave a command and they defied it, it meant they had no excuse even if they died justly.
“Still… when my father passed away, the scholars risked their lives and raised the Righteous Armies. Are you saying you will suppress those people?”
Yes. I did evaluate that point highly. After all, I had wanted them to raise those armies in the first place. They drew aggro while fighting the Japanese, got themselves killed, caused the deaths of innocent civilians, and lost public support. Only after those incompetent fools proved their incompetence could we uproot the foundations of this country.
“The Righteous Army soldiers died completely in vain. The number of young men who perished is beyond counting. If they had simply waited quietly, the Manchurian Army would have handled it. Instead, they thoughtlessly raised the Righteous Armies and brought calamity upon everyone. The result of trying to stop the Japanese with nothing but old matchlocks, bamboo spears, and crude blades. And the so-called great scholars stayed safely in the rear the entire time. Only the innocent Righteous Army soldiers died. This too is because we have not yet achieved modernization.”
The scholars had recklessly raised hopeless Righteous Armies for the sake of the imperial family alone and suffered enormous losses. Therefore, we absolutely had to achieve modernization so that such things would never happen again in future national crises. Our clever golden child would understand that much. As I spoke, I casually toyed with the handaxe at my waist.
“Mmm. That is also true.”
The golden child could not refute a single word. He couldn’t. Because he never knew when I might draw the axe. Moreover, even he must have felt, at least to some degree, that what I was doing was right. He was simply worried that the imperial family’s support base would collapse in the process.
“Since even His Excellency the Prime Minister, who is busy with state affairs, agrees, I would be grateful if you would grant permission.”
“Very well.”
“If the country grows strong and prosperous this way, all the achievements will belong to Your Majesty.”
I spread both arms wide, telling him that everything was his accomplishment. Giving the golden child both the whip and the carrot in equal measure was the right approach. At my words, Sunjong’s eyes sparkled.
“You mean it will all be mine?”
It was no different from soothing a child.