Even the Sea is Water Too - 2
Gu Gangwang hated water bandits even more than the Mongols. Of course, that didn't mean he was gentle or merciful toward the Mongols. It just meant he was even more ferocious, merciless, and ruthless against the water bandits. If Mongol troops and water bandits appeared before him at the same time, he'd beat them both to a pulp and still have energy left over. Saying it like that might make him sound like the ultimate bantam rooster, but there was no helping it. Before the founding war even began, Gu Gangwang had lost his family to water bandits.
If the Mongols were the villains who threw the world into chaos, then the water bandits were the fiends who had shattered Gu Gangwang's entire life. Thanks to that, from the founding of Great Song right up to the present, he'd been relentlessly crushing water bandits without a break. Fortunately, after he exterminated the Changgang Su-ro Ship-pal Chae—the enemies who killed his family—his campaigns had become somewhat milder. But even so, it didn't change the fact that the number of water bandits was dwindling rapidly.
In the end, this is what happened.
As a result, a question I'd long been curious about had become reality. What happens when Gu Gangwang's extermination speed outpaces the water bandits' respawn rate? When there are no more water bandits left to hunt, what would he do? For a man whose joy in life and everything he did revolved around wiping out water bandits, where would he turn his gaze? Anyone who knew even a little about Gu Gangwang couldn't help but wonder.
No water bandits? Fine, pirates it is.
And at the utterly unexpected outcome, I couldn't help but burst into wry laughter. Unable to play in the rivers, he turns his eyes to the sea. That level of action—was that the kind of madness you needed to survive and become a king?
"Don't end up like Gu Gangwang when you get old, Left Vice Inspector. Once you've lived that long, you should steadfastly hold your position and uphold a king's dignity, not go wandering all over the place. Think of the suffering it causes the officials and soldiers below you."
Tsking his tongue, Dong-gu Wang burned Gu Gangwang's letter with the Samadhi True Fire. As if he couldn't stand to look at it or even touch it anymore.
"I beg your forgiveness, Your Highness, but I want to stay in one place too. Unfortunately, that's not up to me."
"Haha!"
Dong-gu Wang erupted into booming laughter at my response. This damn old coot. Was what I said funny? Did I look like I was joking?
"Right, that's true. You're not wandering around because you want to, Left Vice Inspector!"
Whether he knew my insides were burning or not, Dong-gu Wang kept slapping my shoulder and chuckling away. Naturally, I wanted to cry. Unlike Gu Gangwang, who roamed by his own will, I was being dragged around by someone else's.
I'd even started wishing I could age like Gu Gangwang. Would things change if I became a king too...?
The one shred of hope I could cling to was that I was the eldest grandson of the Giwang household. When Grandfather's throne passed to Father, and Father's to me, I'd be able to live peacefully in Kaepyeong. But given my workload, it felt like I'd collapse before I even inherited it. Unlike Grandfather at Hwagyeong or Father at Chojeoljeong, I was just a lowly first-rate. Honestly, I couldn't ignore the odds of dropping dead from overwork.
"Well, you have to suffer when you're young to enjoy comfort in old age. Look at me. I traveled the Central Plains with Taizu the Great in my youth, and that's how I earned this peaceful retirement."
"Your Highness speaks wisely."
As I wallowed in visions of my grim future alone, I bowed my head to Dong-gu Wang, who was offering his own brand of consolation. Sure, if life had a fixed quota of hardship, I'd front-load it all. Burn through it while I was sturdy and full of stamina, so I'd have it easy later. That's what I wanted to believe—
"Y-Your Highness!"
A frantic voice called from outside the door.
"What is it? I'm personally seeing off my guest, and you're causing a commotion."
Dong-gu Wang's brow furrowed slightly at the sudden interruption. A king was bidding farewell to his royal grandson, after all. Sure, the conversation had veered off thanks to Gu Gangwang's letter radiating sheer presence, but it was still a formal send-off. Being disturbed like this would naturally irk him.
"Forgive me, Your Highness! But there's urgent news I must report to you directly!"
His brow furrowed even deeper. An official braving the king's wrath to speak? This was no trifling matter. It would've been better for Dong-gu Wang's mental health if it'd just been pointless noise.
"Speak."
"G-Gu Gangwang just passed through the west gate!"
"What?"
Dong-gu Wang abruptly closed his eyes, muttering, "That madman."
I wasn't sure if he'd actually sensed Gu Gangwang's presence, but a low curse slipped out regardless. "This damn old man. He hid his aura and came all the way here."
I quietly lowered my gaze at Dong-gu Wang's incredulous mutter. If I'd moved just a bit faster, I could've bolted before Gu Gangwang arrived. Too bad—I was now stuck between two kings, getting squeezed from both sides.
Damn it. Could I still dash out the east gate?
True to his mastery of wind techniques, Gu Gangwang burst in like a storm.
"Dong-gu Wang! How have you been?"
"I was doing fine until you showed up."
"Haha, come on! No need to say it like you're offended!"
Despite Dong-gu Wang's reply dripping with displeasure, Gu Gangwang kept roaring with laughter.
"Looks like the messenger pigeon I sent died on the way to you. Guess I should round up the local falcons soon!"
I nearly applauded his audacity in chalking up Dong-gu Wang's read-and-ignore to a simple delivery error. Was he really that oblivious, or was he slyly throwing shade while pretending otherwise?
"More importantly, Han Un! You're here too!"
"Ah, yes. Greetings, Your Highness Gu Gangwang."
Finally, Gu Gangwang's attention turned to me, standing blankly in the corner. But was it my imagination? His smile seemed to deepen the moment he saw me.
"These days, I feel disappointed if I don't run into you, Han Un. Are you everywhere I go?"
Not my imagination. My mere existence had somehow become Gu Gangwang's personal laugh button.
"After Gui Prefecture, now Zhejiang. What are the odds?"
I swallowed tears inwardly as he clapped my shoulder. I didn't want these meetings either. We weren't supposed to cross paths, but you'd raced all the way to Hangzhou and caused this disaster.
"Oh, right, Han Un. I hear you're not wandering alone anymore—you're with your fiancée these days?"
"Yes, Your Highness. She's accompanying me as my Jo-ma from the Dochalwon."
"Dear me."
Gu Gangwang shook his head slightly at my words, muttering as if it were a pity.
"The other day, while making an offering to the Buddha, you suddenly came to mind. So I prayed: 'Great Song has this capable young man, but it's heartbreaking that he's wandering alone despite having a fiancée. Please let him have company.'"
"Ahem."
Dong-gu Wang, who had been scowling behind him, hurriedly bit his lip. This bastard. More cruel than outright mockery.
"The Buddha went too far. If he was going to grant my prayer, he should've done it fully. Who knew he'd only half-answer?"
Of course, the cruelest part was Gu Gangwang openly teasing me to my face. Truth be told, I doubted his offering had actually reached the Buddha. With a reincarnator like me around, divine beings might exist, but if prayers were always answered, the world would've already gone to hell. Still, I decided to blame Gu Gangwang for me and Ak I-yeon drifting through the Central Plains. I needed someone to resent to ease my mind.
"I'll atone for this karma by wiping out the sea pirates."
"Why are you bringing up pirates all of a sudden? Why should you handle the pirates?"
Dong-gu Wang swiftly reined in the topic veering toward pirates.
"Isn't it because my virtue is lacking that the Buddha only half-granted my prayer? I need to accumulate more merit so Han Un can rest easy!"
"What kind of—"
Dong-gu Wang, starting to say something, quietly shut his mouth. He'd realized no words would persuade him.
"I know what you're worried about. Fighting on rivers is different from fighting at sea, obviously."
At that, Gu Gangwang spoke in a softer tone than before. Shake the opponent's mentality, then switch to moderation. A ruthlessly cunning tactic.
"That's precisely why the Gu Gangwangbu's navy needs experience subduing sea pirates. Great Song's navy is traditionally accustomed to rivers and lakes, not the open sea. Since Taizu rose up, the Central Plains' rivers and lakes have regained peace. We can't let this vast, powerful navy go to waste as idle hands."
"So, show the navy the taste of the sea before they get complacent?"
"Exactly! And didn't you say even the Dong-gu Wangbu alone can't handle the seas?"
Dong-gu Wang let out a groan. It was a valid point. Hangzhou monopolizing international trade's prosperity meant it alone shouldered the vast ocean's stability and pirate defense. Thus, while Great Song's forces were called the Water Army, only the Dong-gu Wangbu could claim to be a true Sea Navy.
"Taizu's vision gazing out to sea must never crumble. If Dong-gu Wangbu can't guard it alone, then Gu Gangwangbu must step up!"
With that, Gu Gangwang pulled something from his bosom and spread it on the desk.
Whoa.
It was a map of Great Song, Goryeo, and Japan—the three nations of Northeast Asia. And remarkably accurate to real coastlines.
Where the hell did he get this?
As a king, having a Great Song map was normal, but a Northeast Asia one? That was another level.
"And this is the only chance for Gu Gangwangbu to gain subjugation experience."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Look here."
Pointing at Japan, Gu Gangwang continued in a now-serious voice.
"The Japanese are currently serving two Wae-hu. There's the northern one enthroned by regents, and the southern one who's escaped their grasp."
I inadvertently glanced at Gu Gangwang's face during his explanation.
"What happens when two lords vie in such a tiny land? With the court's prestige in the dirt, the people's lives grow destitute. That's spawned countless pirates, and local warlords use them as their limbs."
This guy was more informed on foreign affairs than I'd thought—
"And the southern Wae-hu, to gain the upper hand over the northern one, has scattered pirates everywhere. They're practically his army, not mere sea rats."
"...So?"
"The recent pirate raids on Goryeo were annihilated. The remaining ones aren't the elite troops you remember—they're just lowly pirate trash."
... Insane.
A chill ran down my spine. This went beyond being well-informed; he was getting real-time intel.
"Got it from the Minister of Revenue, so it's reliable. If we want to gain pirate-sweeping experience, we strike now while their momentum's broken."
Dong-gu Wang, silent amid Gu Gangwang's confident words, finally sighed.
"You didn't just rashly call for a sweep, did you."
"Would any general declare war without knowing the enemy?"
"If you can't say it nicely."
Flopping into his chair, Dong-gu Wang stared at the ceiling for a long while before sighing again.
"We'll move together soon enough."
"Thanks! In the end, all that's left in old age are friends!"
Dong-gu Wang had surrendered.