The Fox and the Wolf
It was only natural. Even before the Qing could lodge a formal protest, Japan had already been preparing to devour Korea, so news from Gando and Manchuria reached them almost immediately.
“It seems the Joseon army is showing quite the appetite. Wouldn’t it be dangerous if Joseon grows too strong?”
“The Joseon Emperor is playing his cards well. I hear he’s treating the Gando Administrator he personally appointed, Yi Beom-yun, as a warlord and letting him act independently.”
That sly fox of an emperor had cleverly shifted all responsibility. How absurd. Unfortunately, the Empire could not intervene in the current dispute between Joseon and Qing—not while they needed a bridgehead into China.
“Then what should our Empire do?”
“The reason Joseon is running wild like this is because France and Russia are backing them. Of course, they won’t provide troops, but material support is almost certain.”
In other words, they had tacitly approved Joseon’s advance into Manchuria. Japan was not yet strong enough to openly oppose both Russia and France.
“Well, if we can’t even crush a country in that sorry state, can we really call ourselves a nation?”
“We can either condemn Joseon or support them.”
“Support? Why on earth would we shed the blood of the Imperial Army to help a country we’re supposed to swallow whole?”
Supporting the very prize they needed to devour? Were they insane? The General Staff buzzed with arguments, but it was time to view the world with colder eyes.
“How long will it take for Joseon to truly assimilate Manchuria? Two years? Three? Their capabilities aren’t up to the task. So why not let them overextend themselves, then simply take it from them later?”
“That makes sense!”
Japan was already pouring resources into shamanistic studies and colonial efforts in Fujian. Trying to swallow the Korean Empire and push into Manchuria on top of that would only drain them further. Better to let someone else do the heavy lifting.
“For now, let’s treat this as a war and dispatch a military attaché. We need to assess the strength of the Joseon forces in Manchuria while providing some nominal support.”
“No. I will go myself.”
“You, Lord President of the Privy Council?”
Itō Hirobumi, President of the Privy Council of the Empire of Japan, decided to personally investigate the situation in Gando.
“It seems Korea is putting up quite a fight.”
“Of course they are. Who trained that army, after all? Hahaha!”
Meanwhile, the foreign envoys stationed in Korea were so stunned by the Korean Empire’s lightning advance into Manchuria that they began to question whether this was truly a dying nation. Naturally, their attention turned toward a man named Yi Beom-yun.
And in the Korean Empire’s capital of Hanseong, Emperor Gojong was equally delighted when he read the report Yi Beom-yun had sent. He had been worried when the general took nearly every available soldier north, but the results were overwhelming—the Qing forces in Fengtian and Jilin had been utterly annihilated. The photographs of Imperial troops marching through the streets of Fengtian were every bit as impressive as the vaunted Imperial Japanese Army.
“At this rate, might we actually be able to recover Manchuria?”
The thought genuinely crossed his mind. Could they truly reclaim it?
“Absolutely not. If Korea truly sets its eyes on Manchuria, our nation may have no choice but to invade them.”
But Karl Weber, the Russian minister to Korea and a man Gojong deeply trusted, clung to the Emperor and talked him out of it. In the end, Gojong had no choice but to settle for Gando.
“General Yi Beom-yun, Administrator of Gando, has avenged the humiliation of Samjeondo by crushing every Qing bastard he encounters!”
“What a glorious achievement since Samjeondo! Long live His Majesty the Emperor! Long live the Korean Empire!”
After years of Japanese encroachment, the Korean people had been steeped in defeat and their pride buried in a coffin. Now, for the first time, they tasted confidence. And it didn’t stop there. Voices began calling for full-scale support for the Sapodae. In fact, Emperor Gojong had already dispatched additional troops from the northern Jinwidae to help Yi Beom-yun secure Gando. Combined with the private army Yi Beom-yun had raised, the Korean forces stationed in Gando now exceeded ten thousand men.
Though they had suffered humiliation at the hands of the Uihwadan during that earlier crisis, the Korean Imperial Army had now become, in every sense, the undisputed master of Gando.
Do you know about the Nishi-Rosen Agreement?
It was a secret pact between Russia and Japan that recognized each other’s spheres of influence—without the Korean government’s knowledge. Japan acknowledged Russia’s dominance in Manchuria, while Russia recognized Japan’s claim over the Korean Peninsula. In exchange, both nations agreed not to interfere in Korean internal affairs and not to obstruct Japanese investment in the Korean Empire’s development.
Of course, it was nothing more than a hollow piece of paper. It would eventually lead to the Russo-Japanese War.
At present, Japan had swallowed its pride and accepted Russia’s superior position on the peninsula in exchange for a free hand in Fujian. But there was no way they would simply abandon Korea. And indeed, foreigners—including Japanese—had already begun trickling into the region.
The Korean government was pretending not to notice, but the Great Powers, true to their colonial nature, had seen through Emperor Gojong’s little schemes. They knew exactly what he was up to and began sending their own people.
First to arrive in Gando were a large number of French officers previously stationed in Korea. It seemed the French advisors really had influenced the northern army after all.
No matter how hard I tried to keep things quiet, rumors were impossible to contain. Word about me had already spread far and wide. Even the foreigners entering Gando had heard the stories.
In times like these, I needed to look impressive. I couldn’t afford to appear like an empty rice cake that had somehow lucked into conquering Gando and attacking Manchuria. I had to project strength—solid, unshakable strength.
So I met directly with the French officers.
—You caused this mess, so you clean it up.
Yi Beom-yun was a funny one. He’d dumped everything on me, claiming he needed to reorganize the troops. In truth, he was also going to meet with the Russians. But was it really okay to leave everything to a young woman like me?
Well, it was probably because of my language skills. When you’re a multilingual all-rounder like me, this is exactly when you step up.
“To think the hero who led the charge at the Battle of Fengtian was such a young woman. Truly astonishing. Though now that I see how disciplined and elite your troops are, it makes perfect sense.”
The French officers didn’t hide their fascination with me.
“It’s all thanks to the teachings of the French advisory group, isn’t it? How could any of this have been possible without the greatest army in Europe?”
These frog bastards loved being flattered. And doing it in their own language would earn even more points. Look at them—blinking in surprise at my words.
“Your French is remarkably fluent.”
“I’ve admired European nations since I was a child, so I studied everything I could get my hands on. French was the first language I learned.”
This should put the French in a good mood. I considered sucking up to them a bit more, but there were people from other countries present as well. For now, maintaining an image of perfect order was the priority.
“Hahaha! Yes, yes! France is indeed the greatest in Europe! To think a beautiful lady from the Far East admires our nation—this is truly an honor!”
“I have the deepest admiration for Joan of Arc, the woman who saved France from crisis. Is she not a saint who saved her country despite being a mere woman?”
Extreme admiration for Joan of Arc. Surely that would raise my favorability with the French—knowing that a woman from the Far East knew their national heroine?
“Hahaha! A lady like you could certainly achieve similar things!”
“We will contact our homeland and request weapons to arm the Gando Army.”
Ha. Flattering them really was too easy. Still, I couldn’t just ignore them. France’s influence over the Korean Empire’s northern forces was considerable.
Next came the Japanese delegation.
But I never expected Itō Hirobumi himself to show up.
“So the madwoman rampaging through Manchuria was this young girl?”
Meeting Itō Hirobumi in person, I couldn’t help but feel a wave of disgust at the lecherous way his eyes crawled over me. What had I done to deserve being looked at like that by this old pervert?
But I didn’t show even a hint of discomfort.
“Did you know? Women can sense lustful stares directed at them. If the President of the Privy Council were to be shot dead here for sexual harassment, wouldn’t that make you the laughingstock of the world?”
“Ahem. My apologies. You carry yourself with the refinement of a European lady. And your Japanese is flawless. Before coming here, I was surprised to hear that some girl had accomplished such feats.”
Yeah, no kidding. Even I didn’t expect the rumors to spread this fast. At this rate, the Korean government would hear about me soon. Well, there was no point hiding anything from Itō. After all, while we might look like a warlord faction, we were still fundamentally Emperor Gojong’s army.
“When fighting for one’s country, what does gender matter? It is simply born from loyalty to His Majesty the Emperor.”
Someday I’d have to smash that roasted chestnut king’s skull, but for now I had to at least pretend to be loyal.
“You already seem quite strong. How much stronger do you intend to become?”
Was that sarcasm? Implying no matter how strong we got, it would be pointless? As expected, this old bastard needed to be dealt with. He was the most dangerous one here. This was clearly an attempt to keep us in check.
“At the very least, we must become strong enough to cripple anyone who dares invade our country, don’t you think?”
“Your words have quite the thorns.”
“One must have that level of resolve if we don’t want anyone looking down on the Korean Empire.”
“Any interest in working for Japan?”
The serious look on his face as he tried to recruit me nearly made me want to slap him. Who the hell did he think he was trying to turn into a pro-Japanese traitor? Not a chance. In this era, pro-Japanese collaborators were nothing but traitors selling out their own country.
“My loyalty belongs solely to His Majesty the Emperor and the Korean Empire.”
“What a shame. Our Empire is concerned about how close the Korean Empire has grown to Russia. What are your thoughts?”
What business was it of Japan’s whether we were close to Russia or not? Was he trying to tell us what to do here?
“After the Nishi-Rosen Agreement and the recent Xin Chou Treaty, Japan has already acknowledged Russia’s superior rights on the Korean Peninsula. Have you not?”
Did he think I was an idiot?
“You even knew about that.”
“I’ve learned a great deal by watching Japan.”
I deliberately looked away into the air, as if changing the subject.
“Oh? Do tell.”
“Shouldn’t our Korean Empire also show strength against the weak and weakness against the strong? That is why we crushed the Qing forces in Manchuria.”
At my words, Itō Hirobumi’s face flushed red. He clearly had a lot to say, but with so many foreigners present, he couldn’t reveal his true colors.
For a long time, we simply stared at each other. In the space between us, an invisible battle of wills raged.
“Now, now. We didn’t gather here to argue, did we? I, Jordan, British Minister to Korea, have no desire to see conflict between the Gando warlord faction and Japan.”
What the hell? Why was this son of a bitch from the hateful British Empire here? British Minister to Korea Jordan? Who the hell was this nobody? From what I remembered, he was the minister around the time of the Russo-Japanese War. He was probably just another vulture trying to carve up Korea.
“What brings the British Empire all the way here?”
“I became interested after hearing that the hero of the Battle of Fengtian was a female general.”
This was bad. If even Britain knew about me, there was no telling when the Emperor might summon me. That roasted chestnut king would probably call me out of sheer curiosity. At this point, it was better to lay all our cards on the table.
“Well then. Now that you’ve seen me, shall we show our hands? We still have many Qing forces to deal with, so we don’t have time to waste here.”
“The British Empire and the Empire of Japan intend to provide support to Administrator Yi Beom-yun of the Gando faction.”
“Support?”
It probably wasn’t military support. They’d supply weapons and ask us to fight Russia in their place. In exchange, they might dangle the carrot of letting us keep Manchuria. Or perhaps they genuinely saw our performance and wanted us as partners against Russia?
“We are speaking of military supplies to help you seize control of Manchuria.”
Ha. So in the end, they wanted us to fight Russia and die for them. That was the real message.