Chapter 177
Chapter 177
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 177
Chapter Title: Mu Wang's Death and War Preparations
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"What big news?"
Seon Do-hae, catching his breath at my question, replied.
"The ship... Baekje's Arah has passed away."
"What?"
It was truly unexpected. I knew King Mu died in 642, but after a moment, I steadied my mind.
'Time is accelerating. It could be advanced by about two years.'
Even Silla's Queen Seondeok had died seven years earlier than in the original history. So it wasn't strange for King Mu to pass sooner than expected.
'The problem is the aftermath.'
Crown Prince Uija ascended as Arah after King Mu's death and launched a massive offensive against Silla. In actual history, in July 642, he captured Mihu Fortress and over forty other castles. He then attacked Danghang Fortress, encircled Daeya Fortress, and seized it. He poured in the forces that had been steadily gathered since King Mu's reign. Silla, barely holding on, couldn't block Baekje's punches coming from all directions. In the world where I possessed Yeon Namsaeng, it hit even harder. Silla had no choice but to suffer greater damage. In the end, it led to Kim Chun-chu's death and Kim Yushin's exile. It was a measure to prevent Goguryeo from being hindered by Silla during the war with Tang.
Silla lost Danghang Fortress and the Ari River area, cutting off exchanges with Tang. With Kim Chun-chu dead and Alcheon ascending, the true bone nobles led by Bido seized power. They had no great ambitions for expansion, aiming merely to maintain the status quo. Thus, they wouldn't be a major obstacle in the war with Tang.
'But Baekje growing too strong is another problem.'
Thinking of King Uija's arrogant downfall, I couldn't fully trust it. Moreover, there was no law saying a bolstered Baekje wouldn't covet Silla's position.
'Time to put on the brakes.'
I made my decision and looked at Bu-sang, the Supreme Central Administrator, and Seon Do-hae. To the two awaiting my orders, I said.
"It'd be good to leak some information to Silla."
"What information, sir?"
"That after Crown Prince Uija ascends as Arah, he'll launch a major attack on Silla."
Seon Do-hae was the first to regain his composure.
"You're saying to warn Silla that Baekje will attack?"
"Baekje growing too big is a problem too. You've felt our relations cooling lately, haven't you?"
"O-Of course. Lately, we've barely been in contact."
"Personally, I trust and like Crown Prince Uija, but once he takes Arah's throne, he'll reveal his ambitions. If he seizes Silla, he'll become a headache for us from then on."
Bu-sang, who had been listening, chimed in.
"You mean to pit them against each other and let them wear themselves out?"
"We need to give Silla enough breathing room."
Seon Do-hae nodded at my words.
"Understood. But what should we say they're attacking? We don't even know ourselves."
"Mihu Fortress."
At my firm statement, the two were startled. Though Mihu Fortress's location wasn't clearly known in modern times, I'd investigated right after possessing this body.
"Isn't Mihu the old Daegaya lands?"
I nodded at Bu-sang's question.
"Yes, they're targeting Gaya territory recently annexed by Silla."
"Even if we tell them, can they stop it?"
"At least in defense, they'll put up a fight. For Silla, it's a matter of their fate, isn't it?"
"Of course. Their king, Alcheon, is a fierce general himself."
After finishing with Bu-sang, I turned to Seon Do-hae.
"Is Kim So-un, the former Nangdang Inspector, still in Seorabeol?"
"Of course. He's working as our communicator now."
"Let him know through him."
"If they prepare in advance, they can minimize the damage, right?"
I nodded lightly at Seon Do-hae's question.
"We can hope. Oh, and is Kim Yushin at Niha Fortress?"
"He's staying there."
"Thinking about it, doesn't Niha hold painful memories for him?"
"It does. And it's close to the Silla border."
"The Baekje border too, probably. Better to move him north entirely."
"Where to?"
"To around Jang'an Fortress. Any suitable spots nearby?"
Bu-sang spoke up after pondering my question.
"What about Ma'eup Mountain? It's a good distance from Jang'an Fortress, and being a mountain fortress, it's suitable for staying."
"Ma'eup Mountain?"
The name rang a bell, so I tilted my head, then remembered. In actual history, it was one of the bases during the Goguryeo revival movement. In 672, Tang generals Go Gan and I Geun-haeng led forty thousand troops to garrison Jang'an Fortress and crushed the Goguryeo revival forces at Ma'eup and Hansi Fortresses. The defeated forces were pushed south. Though the painful memory bothered me, I couldn't show it.
"Good idea. Send someone to Niha Fortress to bring them to Ma'eup Mountain."
"Understood. But we'll need a lot of provisions, which worries me."
"Maemul Merchant Guild promised help, so no worries."
"Got it."
"Now we need to start preparing."
"The war with Tang?"
Too tense to reply, I just nodded. Judging by the accelerated timeline, two years at most, three tops. Fortunately, we'd resolved the southern issue and gained the famed general Kim Yushin as an ally beyond our existing subordinates. Looking at the pond, I muttered.
"When Kim Yushin arrives at Ma'eup Mountain, I should go welcome him."
"Is that necessary?"
Seon Do-hae cautiously objected, but I ignored it.
"We must show sincerity when welcoming guests."
Half a month later, under the deepening autumn sky, I rode up Ma'eup Mountain. It was more hill than mountain, but the flat summit made it ideal for a fortress.
At Ma'eup Fortress, Kim Yushin and his men, just arrived, were unloading. Carts and wheelbarrows from the Maemul Merchant Guild carried tents and household goods. Many in the group were children, women, and elders. Having lost the inner war, their families faced guilt by association and punishment. Gazing at their weary, tense faces, Kim Yushin rode up. His usual attendant, Bi-ryeongja, was absent. Noticing my curious gaze, Kim Yushin looked sorrowful.
"He stayed behind to protect me and my family. Including my son Geo-jin and servant Hap-jeol."
Chills ran down my spine again at how closely it matched actual history. Turning from me, Kim Yushin looked north.
"Is that Pyongyang over there?"
I followed his gaze.
"Yes. We call it Jang'an Fortress."
"I never dreamed I'd come to Jang'an Fortress like this."
"You never know with the world."
"True. I thought about it dozens of times crossing into Goguryeo."
"What thoughts?"
"Whether I even had a reason to survive."
"Is there a reason to die, then?"
"Plenty. Over a decade ago, Ichan Chil-suk and Achan Seok-pum rebelled."
"Seok-pum's Rebellion?"
"You know it. Ichan Chil-suk was captured and executed, while Achan Seok-pum fled to the Baekje border. He could've lived by crossing, but he turned back."
"To see his family?"
"You knew. Disguised as a woodcutter, he returned to Seorabeol and was executed with them."
"If it were me, I'd have gone to Baekje, survived, then avenged my family."
"You would have. Seok-pum probably thought the same to reach Baekje's border. But he didn't return just from longing for his family."
"Then another reason?"
"He must've agonized over how to die. Live in Baekje harboring revenge forever? Or die as a Silla man?"
"He rebelled and failed—can he still call himself Silla?"
"Yet he died as one, and I felt his anguish to my bones."
"You have work to do. Forget the past cleanly."
"Fighting Tang?"
"An envoy named Jin Dae-deok came and went. He blatantly spied and tried taking Sui captives."
"I heard. What will you do if Tang invades?"
At Kim Yushin's question, I gazed at Jang'an Fortress awhile. Clouds from the west shrouded it momentarily.
"What else? Fight."
"Tang is a great power that subjugated Tujue and northern nomads."
"Forgot? We beat Sui too."
"True, but the damage wasn't light. And Tang's emperor won't repeat Emperor Yang's mistakes."
"We make him err. Trap him in our pitfalls."
"You're scared."
Though I forced strength into my voice, Kim Yushin saw right through me. Now I gave a wry smile.
"You caught on."
"I've never seen you this tense."
"Right. The war with Tang—we can't just win. We must win big, so they never invade again."
After the 645 defeat, Tang chose attrition warfare. Hit-and-run raids with small forces along the border. Without garrisoning the entire line, some damage was inevitable. And it handed initiative to the enemy. It paused after Tang Taizong's death, but the ongoing wars crumbled Goguryeo from within. As I pondered, Kim Yushin asked.
"Do you have a plan to fight back?"
"Not yet. I know where they'll strike, but not how to block."
"My father said to fight enemies, first clean the castle interior."
"Root out spies."
"Exactly."
"Already underway."
"Good. Next, consider if the fortress commander is suitable."
"I replaced Baekam Fortress's Cheoryeo Geunji. The issue is Yoksal at Liaodong Fortress."
"Why?"
"He's long-time, so he has the people's trust, but not the most capable."
"Leave him. Attach a capable general."
"A capable general?"
"Fortresses aren't held by high walls, but soldiers and people's hearts defending them. Even if he seems incompetent, if he has the people's faith, keep him as lord. Attach battle-ready generals as subordinates."
"And?"
"Finally, prevent sieges. Isolation shakes resolve."
"How to stop sieges?"
"Best is garrison nearby forces. They won't dare attack, and send couriers steadily."
I instantly grasped Kim Yushin's meaning.
"Maintain communication between fortress and outside?"
"Knowing relief is near bolsters defenders."
Listening to his confident voice, I sank into thought.