The Council of Elders
"Past sixty, so he's certainly collected his years. But that venom of his still hasn't drained away. If anything, that old ambition of his—to unite the Jianzhou Guard and restore the glory of the former Jin dynasty—seems to fester worse with every passing year. Most people would call that a fatal obsession."
"A stubborn old wolf, then. I'd understood that ever since the Pajeo River campaign decades ago, his power had been uprooted entirely."
Jeong Ho-chan recalled the campaign King Sejong had launched against the Pajeo River. Then as now, Lee Man-ju had been the great thorn in the north's side, and Joseon had once committed itself fully to tearing out his influence by the roots.
Yeol Se-ho nodded in agreement. "That's true enough. Truly, we should have finished Lee Man-ju off back then. We ought to have done it, and in the end we didn't! My late father led our clan to guide the Joseon army on that campaign, but even he failed to lay hands on the man. Father believed he had bent Lee Man-ju's power enough for the time being—but it turned out he hadn't."
"Still, one might say he bought us nearly thirty years."
"That he did. Thirty years is no small span of time, so I can hardly say my father was entirely wrong. Even now, Lee Man-ju hasn't restored his strength to what it was in its prime. And he's well along in years himself—if things had stayed as they were, he would never have become a real problem again. But the murder of Minister Yi Jing-ok changed everything."
Yeol Se-ho shook his head and went on. "On our own, we cannot hold back Lee Man-ju's expansion. And luck favors him outrageously. To seize an opportunity without equal just when he ought to be putting his affairs in order for the end of his life."
He paused for a moment and sighed. "That said, Suyang hasn't been sitting idle about the Jurchens' movements either. I hear he's sent a trusted man—Yang Jeong, was it?—to take Minister Yi Jing-ok's seat. But whatever that man's abilities, they won't match Yi Jing-ok's. And even if they did, how could anyone replace in a single stroke a man who spent decades coiled in Hamgil Province, keeping the Jurchen tribes firmly in hand?"
"That's true enough," Jeong Ho-chan said.
"So lately we've been stretched thin ourselves, straining every nerve to track Lee Man-ju's movements. Even so, I can't promise what tomorrow holds. Our strength dwindles year by year, while the Jurchens grow theirs bit by bit."
Jeong Ho-chan nodded. Yeol Se-ho seemed about to continue, then stopped, as if something had just occurred to him.
"We've delayed too long already. The elders will be waiting. Let's save the rest of this talk for later—come, we should go."
"Yes, let's."
Yeol Se-ho strode off ahead, and Jeong Ho-chan and Cha Gyeong-yeon followed. Before long, a small ferry landing came into view, a single ferryboat moored there. Yeol Se-ho bounded aboard with nimble grace.
"Come on, then."
Once Jeong Ho-chan and Cha Gyeong-yeon climbed in after him, the boat pushed off and began drifting with the current toward the middle of the river. They had gone some distance when a dark, brooding island emerged from the gloom. Oddly out of place on it stood a single pavilion.
Yeol Se-ho stepped onto the island and headed straight for the pavilion. Out of the darkness, several men recognized him and bowed in salute. A tall man stepped forward.
"Welcome, elder brother. They're waiting for you."
"We're not too late, I trust, Se-chang?"
Yeol Se-chang nodded. Though his brother Yeol Se-ho was hardly a small man, Se-chang stood a full hand's width taller, broad-shouldered and powerfully built.
Jeong Ho-chan, following behind Yeol Se-ho, exchanged greetings of his own. "It's been a long time, Se-chang."
"Elder Brother Ho-chan!"
A smile spread across Yeol Se-chang's face; even in the darkness, his white teeth showed as he grinned. "I trust you've been well? It's been far too long."
"Catch up later," Yeol Se-ho said. Jeong Ho-chan nodded in answer and climbed the steps into the pavilion behind him.
A stern, resonant voice greeted them. "So you've finally come. Welcome."
"We respectfully offer our greetings to Daehyeong On Dal-hyeong."
Yeol Se-ho bowed first, bending at the waist, and Jeong Ho-chan followed suit. The old man called On Dal-hyeong gestured for them to be seated. Like the others inside the pavilion, he wore white garments and a hood, his hair and beard gone fully white. Though he presided over the council, he wore no conspicuous ornament of rank—yet an austere, resolute presence bore down upon the whole assembly all the same. His deep-set eyes came to rest, slowly and calmly yet piercingly, on Jeong Ho-chan and his companions. Jeong Ho-chan met that gaze with composure, unhurried. Only after a long moment did the old man speak.
"Yes—you are Jeong Ho-chan."
On Dal-hyeong turned to the assembly and continued. "Everyone, this is Lord Jeong Ho-chan. The elders among you will already know this well, but Lord Jeong's ancestors once rendered us no small service. And though he could not be present today, Master Joeui himself once taught this man—he studied under the same master as Commander Yeol Se-ho. It was on these grounds that we admitted him to this gathering today. But that is not the only reason. You are all well aware that Joseon's situation of late is anything but ordinary. What we are to hear today, and what we must decide, is precisely that."
With the introduction finished, On Dal-hyeong presented to Jeong Ho-chan the elders gathered there. Jeong Ho-chan swept a keen eye over the row of faces. One in particular caught his attention: the elder Eun Pa-seok. The man was somewhat small in stature, but his features were seamless and his eyes shrewd—someone not easily shaken.
Most of the other elders were likewise advanced in years—there were men named Woo, men named Boo, and the like. Yet to Jeong Ho-chan's eye, they seemed less like men of settled convictions than mere placeholders, likely to drift with whatever current came along, watered wine and diluted spirits. He was not much impressed. He gave a wry smile.
So the only ones here who seem likely to accomplish anything are that old man On Dal-hyeong and old Eun Pa-seok? If only Master Joeui were present—what a help he would be.
While Jeong Ho-chan sorted his impressions of the attendees and committed them to memory, On Dal-hyeong continued. "Some among you may still feel uneasy about bringing an outsider into our council today. The old discipline holds that only trusted members of our own—above all, elders fit to represent each family—may gather here. But since Jeong Ho-chan's ancestors once cooperated with this council, we have all agreed that he cannot simply be treated as an outsider. Does anyone feel otherwise?"
No one answered. Only Eun Pa-seok gave a low grunt of acknowledgment. On Dal-hyeong nodded.
"Good. It's true—the times are not kind to us of late. In Joseon, an uncle has stolen the throne from his own nephew, and the dynasty has not even lasted a hundred years! Yet such things are hardly rare in history. Did something not much like it happen in the Ming as well? The real question is how we are to weather this storm."
On Dal-hyeong sighed. "And of late, Yi Jing-ok himself has been caught up in it and killed. Truthfully, considering he was one of Kim Jong-seo's men, it was no great surprise. But the fact remains that we have lost a powerful ally because of it. There are others in Hamgil Province still inclined to support us besides Yi Jing-ok, but we'll hardly find another towering tree like him."
The elders nodded silently. "Of course, we cannot intervene directly in Joseon's politics. To speak frankly, we lack the power to do so." On Dal-hyeong admitted it openly. Jeong Ho-chan was quietly impressed. On Dal-hyeong possessed a keen grasp of reality—and the courage to admit its limits. Missing either one of those qualities was the surest way to ruin an organization.
Who would have thought it—this gathering is far more than old men drinking together.
While Jeong Ho-chan was thinking this, Eun Pa-seok spoke up. "Still, we cannot simply stand by and watch. If Hanyang descends into confusion and loses its grip on the northern frontier tribes, that turmoil will flow straight to the Jurchens as well. Even before this, Jianzhou had been growing restive since Yi Jing-ok's death. Moryeonwi is said to be no better. It's nothing to be glad about. You all remember how violently this region convulsed in the wake of Goryeo's fall and the Yuan's, do you not?"
The whole assembly murmured agreement. Of course, none of the elders here had lived through the Yuan-Ming transition or the twilight of Goryeo. But the aftershocks of that era had lasted well into their childhoods.
"We all know that is true, Elder Eun," On Dal-hyeong said. "For now, the Ming alone remains stable—small comfort, but comfort nonetheless. Their emperor was captured by barbarians at Tumu Fortress, but that too is nearly seven years behind us. True, they no longer press east of Liaoyang with any vigor, but their posture is a different matter from decades past."
"That much is true," Eun Pa-seok conceded. "The question is where Hanyang's politics go from here. And on that point, we will hear from Lord Jeong Ho-chan."
On Dal-hyeong turned to Jeong Ho-chan, who now realized the floor had passed to him.
"Yes—you've traveled the breadth of Joseon these past years. Tell us what you've seen."
"Yes, Lord Daehyeong."
Jeong Ho-chan explained the state of affairs in Hanyang to the old men. Save for the occasional question On Dal-hyeong interjected, Jeong Ho-chan did nearly all the talking while the elders listened. Every word he spoke was weighed with care. When he had finished, On Dal-hyeong nodded.
"Hmm. To sum up, then—Suyang's grip on the throne is already secure. A astonishing thing. With barely a few dozen men, a royal kinsman all but banished from central politics seized the reins of government in a single stroke."
"The method was violently rash, but it was efficient," Eun Pa-seok agreed. Then he fixed Jeong Ho-chan with a sharp gaze. "And at present, military authority in Hamgil and Pyongan Provinces appears to be in Suyang's faction's hands. Is there any likelihood of rebellion?"
"Nothing apparent at present."
"Hm." Eun Pa-seok pondered briefly before continuing. "Then the situation can hardly turn against us. Losing Yi Jing-ok, who understood the Jurchens better than anyone, is a bitter loss indeed—but so long as stability is restored either way, what more is there? Suyang himself will want the frontier settled, not thrown into uproar. So why don't we simply aid the trusted men Suyang sends, and help them control the Jurchen tribes as well as Yi Jing-ok did?"
"You're saying we should wait and see, Elder Eun?" At On Dal-hyeong's question, Eun Pa-seok nodded.
"Precisely that. There is nothing we need do. Let events flow as they have been flowing! When the flood is receding, there is no need to leap into the rapids. One might even call this fortunate. Now that Suyang has crushed Yi Jing-ok, he will need help to restore the frontier to order. So let us give him that help."
A considerable number of the elders nodded along with Eun Pa-seok. But On Dal-hyeong alone frowned, as if something in it left a bad aftertaste. He turned to Jeong Ho-chan. "And your view, Lord Jeong Ho-chan?"
"I believe Elder Eun is right as well," Jeong Ho-chan answered without a moment's hesitation. "If what you desire is to preserve the present state of things, precisely as it is now."
At that, the old men stirred. Eun Pa-seok's brow creased. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Exactly what I said. If you elders wish only to go on living as you do now, then it is sound counsel I've offered."
"Then are you saying there is another way?" On Dal-hyeong asked.
"Yes. We help the young king whom Suyang cast down."
At those words, the elders all fell silent. Eun Pa-seok shot him a doubtful look. "Help the young king? Is he not already deposed and confined?"
"He is," Jeong Ho-chan answered plainly.
Eun Pa-seok pressed on. "Is there any force in Hanyang today that opposes Suyang and could raise that young king up?"
"There are a few, but the odds of success are vanishingly slim. Since the scheme by the junior officials failed a few months ago, surveillance has only tightened."
"Hah—if the surveillance had been loose to begin with, they'd never have failed." Eun Pa-seok gave a short laugh, then asked again. "And the likelihood of the provinces rising against Suyang in arms?"
"As I said, nearly none. The central army of Hanyang has fallen into Suyang's grasp, and Hamgil and Pyongan—the finest of the provincial forces—are under his control as well."
"Well, that much is obvious with Yi Jing-ok dead. So then—isn't the story over?" Eun Pa-seok sniffed. The other elders nodded along in apparent agreement. Only On Dal-hyeong studied Jeong Ho-chan steadily.
"You didn't come all this way to state the obvious. Jeong Ho-chan—didn't you come to propose some plan to us? By your own account, any force capable of aiding that young king is all but nonexistent. So how, exactly, do you propose to help him?"
"If we were to step forward ourselves, go to Hanyang, and offer the young king our aid—hmph!" Eun Pa-seok stroked his beard. "That's beyond absurd."
"You're right. But if what we mean is to smuggle the young king out—then it can be done."
"Smuggle him out?" On Dal-hyeong's eyebrows rose. Eun Pa-seok shrugged.
"Smuggle him out? Run him away, is it?" Then he continued in a measured tone. "If that's all—yes, perhaps it might somehow be managed. But all eight provinces of Joseon lie within Suyang's grasp. Where, exactly, would you have him flee to? Within half a year he'd be dragged back to Hanyang in chains. Never mind the question of whether spiriting a king out of the Hanyang palace is even possible."
"Yes—to this northern frontier. To speak precisely, we would shelter him in the land of the Jurchens."
At that, the elders stirred in their seats. On Dal-hyeong's brow furrowed.