Chapter 205
Chapter 205
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 205
Chapter Title: Northern Grand Duke Kim Chunsik (1)
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Even as Kim Seongu was guided by Yun Pildeok into Seonhwadang, he was still fuming over the mad dash through the midsummer heat.
But the next moment, he experienced a terror that blew away all thoughts of the sweltering warmth.
"You, you're...! Didn't they say you were dead?"
It was Maeng Chan, whom he had clearly heard had been beaten to a pulp by the soldiers.
Maeng Chan turned around blankly.
"No need for any testimony, I suppose."
Kim Unhaeng emerged from behind the screen with a deflated look on his face.
Seeing Kim Unhaeng too, Kim Seongu spat out words as eloquently as Eoji might.
"Uh, um. What. Is. This. You?"
"Military Commander, sir. What if you've 'recognized' this man's face? Even if I tried to make excuses for him, I couldn't write a single word in the written statement."
Kim Seongu quickly backed away.
"Wh-what are you talking about? I don't know anyth... ."
"Eoji. Help the Military Commander sit down."
The next instant, Maeng Chan was impressed. The moment Eoji's hand touched his shoulder, Kim Seongu executed Thousand-Jin Drop, a supreme realm of Chinese martial arts.
Boom! It was pure overwhelming gravitational acceleration. Sinister cracking sounds came from his waist and knees, but Kim Seongu didn't even feel the pain.
Kim Unhaeng spoke in a gentle voice.
"I promise you this. No stain will mar your name in the official records."
In any case, Kim Unhaeng couldn't publicly punish Kim Seongu even if he wanted to.
In modern nations, "legally speaking," all citizens are equal. So when a powerful figure falls victim to a crime, they can fully play the victim card and demand strict justice. Those maximum sentences in the lawbooks, which seem like they'd never be used, exist precisely for times like these.
But for a Joseon power holder who is "legally" high up, the situation gets awkward.
In 1827, Kim Yugun, stabbed on his way to his post as Pyeong'an Governor, petitioned King Sunjo to relieve him of his duties.
Of course, the shock of the horrific crime played a big part.
But there was an even more important reason. It was made clear in Kim Yugun's memorial at the time.
"This servant governs forty counties in Pyeong'an Province, yet a mere subordinate dared commit such outrage without fear. How can I face the clerks and the people of the western regions?"
In pre-modern societies where even the hierarchy from emperor to commoner inherently follows gangster logic, getting "looked down on" means you're done for.
Being punished from above for embezzlement or breach of duty is survivable, but getting attacked from below ends your career. Even the delinquent who scoffs at school violence committees has to watch out for the transfer student blowing in with the wind.
Just as a samurai in Japan couldn't dodge a commoner's challenge to a duel, those truly at the top bear responsibilities befitting their status. Once the case enters judicial proceedings, by convention, Kim Unhaeng would have no choice but to step down as Pyeong'an Governor.
But then the sole purpose of his appointment—money—would fly out the window.
Money aside, the odds of Kim Seongu facing execution were surprisingly low.
Joseon's high nobility were like Korea's ultra-rich. They were exempt from punishment for common crimes. Kim Seongu tried to kill me, not the king.
Of course, if the king had any conscience, he'd see an attack on me as an attack on himself.
But from my experience, Joseon people lack conscience.
And Crown Prince Sado Seja is the king of the conscienceless.
Publicly announcing and investigating Kim Seongu's crime would doom the northern expedition. The White Lotus Cult's existence and the smuggling trade would be exposed at once.
The court was in full northern expedition euphoria, brains overclocked to burnout. Normally, Qing-fearing Joseon would slap the death penalty on even minor smuggling without mercy, but now? No chance. Viewed solely through the White Lotus smuggling lens, Kim Seongu's actions were loyal patriotism, not treason.
They'd probably hit me with a "You didn't die, so what's the problem?" and quietly ship Kim Seongu off to some island. I'd bet my Pyeong'an budget on it.
No matter how many allies I have among the officials, "noble execution immunity" is a systemic issue across factions, not something many would risk their necks for me to override.
Weighing all these factors, I decided to forgive Kim Seongu.
True to my promise, his crime won't appear anywhere—not even in the annals.
Two weeks later, quite a lengthy entry was recorded in the draft records.
……
Kim Unhaeng immediately ordered General Yun Pildeok of the Hunkuk Central Army and General Sin Heup of the Pyeongyang Central Army to capture all the ringleaders, execute them, and confiscate their assets. It turned out some of the smuggling gang, resentful of not getting a cut, were behind it.
……
The king, greatly shocked, said, "How about having Kim Unhaeng, who caught the murderers, also oversee Pyeong'an's military until his successor arrives?" Right State Councillor Seo Myeong-eung replied, "What is the law's intent in separating the military commander and provincial governor? They cannot concurrently hold office even briefly."
But the king would not hear it and said,
"In urgent times, we must bend the rules, and border defenses cannot be left vacant even momentarily. In the past, the Capital Defense Command also concurrently held Gwangju's magistracy, and discussions to have the Total Defense Command do the same for Suwon have arisen for decades, with the former king deeming it right. Why should Pyeong'an be different? Implement it as is."
The scribe notes: The Right State Councillor's words seem to uphold the law at first glance, but actually reveal (Noron) factional bias.
If Kim Unhaeng were untrustworthy, wouldn't it have shown when he commanded the southern regions as Ododo Marshal? Ah! We nearly repeated the old mistake of banishing Yi Sunsin based on Won Gyun's slanders. The king's discerning eye, rejecting sly words, mirrors the sages of old.>
Sim Hwanji, now Deputy Librarian of the Hall of Worthies in Post-Park Mun-su's cabinet, was quite strict on matters of loyalty and propriety.
Yi Hwon’s "sage-like discerning eye" lived up to Sim Hwanji's praise.
Indeed, the king's vision was one step sharper than his ministers'. Just one step, but still.
Disguised as a letter to his daughter Sukyeong, Kim Unhaeng secretly submitted an extreme proposal to Yi Hwon.
"Restoring the Ming (Central Dynasty) is the long-cherished wish of the three royal bloodlines. This servant will risk death to ally with Shandong's heroes."
It sounded like he was initiating the venture himself. Yi Hwon remained oblivious to Kim Seongu's patriotic smuggling operation, which got wholly hijacked.
Deeply moved, Yi Hwon didn't hesitate to grant Kim Unhaeng de facto control over Pyeong'an.
Yi Hwon had no reason to hesitate. Kim Unhaeng was essentially himself. Minor policy differences aside, such internal conflicts exist in everyone.
Even his young daughter-in-law, who unflinchingly delivered the letter despite her age, seemed like a true daughter. The Jangdong Kim clan was surely sent by heaven to aid his great cause.
Thus, Kim Unhaeng became Pyeong'an Governor兼 (temporary) Pyeong'an Military Commander兼 Marine Commander.
Yi Hwon's revival and addition of Yeongbyeon Grand Protectorate—the top land military stronghold in Pyeong'an—was icing on the cake.
Calling him the Northern Grand Duke was no exaggeration.
Northern Grand Duke Kim Unhaeng pursued policies similar to another 21st-century Northern Grand Duke. Well, that one was a young black-haired duke too.
Market vendors who didn't offer loyalty funds to Kim Unhaeng faced ruthless crackdowns. Camp officers and full-beard merchants aligned with Kim Seongu, who had supported his ventures, had already been labeled "murderers of the Military Commander" and mostly hanged, so there were no obstacles.
Still, the full-beard merchants, survivors of centuries of international trade, switched sides swiftly.
Belatedly, they flooded Uiju's customs office with paperwork and fees. Membership in Kim Unhaeng's Uiju Customs Alliance absolved all smuggling crimes.
His foreign policy mirrored that one's too.
Bribery got the Qing navy officers in Shandong on board, and the White Lotus fleet, slipping out under pretense of illegal fishing in Joseon waters, got "caught" by the Joseon navy.
"You scoundrels! Sneaking into state waters again to fish without permission! As long as Pyeong'an Marine Commander Kim Unhaeng stands, no way! What are you waiting for? Grapple those ships! Board them all!"
"Eh, Maeng Chan, you're ali... Oh, right. Mercy, sir! We've sinned gravely!"
"Ahem. Your tribute of grain and silver will cover the fines, so don't pull this again."
"Of course not, sir."
"And our ships are so loaded they're liable to sink, so take our trash with you. Don't dump it, or the sea gets polluted and fish and crabs can't spawn."
"Your mercy extends even to fish, General Kim of Goryeo. Vast indeed. We humbly obey."
Kim Seongu's former aides, who had handled the operation's logistics, were all executed beforehand. But with his Huawei phone, Kim Unhaeng had no pipeline issues.
Unlike Kim Seongu, who amateurishly hid smuggling by constantly shifting to remote coasts,
Kim Unhaeng conducted 환적 smuggling openly at sea near Pepper Island off the Daedong River estuary in Hwanghae.
In the middle of the ocean "battle," no one nearby could see, but distant fishing boats could.
That was key. Impossible to hide mass-participant smuggling from the start. Get caught, but on your terms.
Truth spreads as rumor, but mix in lies and black-and-white becomes gray—that gray zone is Kim Unhaeng's playground.
As at Myeongnyang, Joseon navy battles draw nearby fishing boats. They don't do much but cheer, yet they show up.
Kim Unhaeng staged a spectacular naval clash before them, racking up "military merits." From afar, it looked like cannon fire, drum beats, and troops boarding—pure illegal fishing crackdown.
Beyond the intended personnel evaluation merits—ongoing results let Yi Hwon fend off court pressure for a formal commander dispatch—it yielded unexpected effects.
No province hates the Jurchens like Pyeong'an. Fishermen sympathized with the commander forced to release captured criminals under "mighty Jurchen oppression," rolling up sleeves in righteous fury.
"They say the Military Commander's ancestors include Kim Sangyong, who martyred himself igniting the armory at Ganghwa in olden days! Like our local hero Namiheung, who scattered his forces at Anju Castle, no?"
"Privately kin to Kim Sangyong, publicly a Pyeong'an Military Commander like Namiheung—their spirits united in one man. If not now for northern expedition, when?"
"Spot on. Kim Chunsik tamed southern barbarian pirates with sheer prestige as Ododo Marshal without a fight. Time to shine north!"
Northern expedition fervor swelled daily.
Boarding a ship to Shandong, Maeng Chan received his comrades' blessings.
"As expected of the expert favored by the True One (Wang Lun). You've earned great merit. Top among the Eighteen Great Protectors!"
But Maeng Chan wasn't listening.
Instead, he recalled his conversation with Kim Unhaeng.
Hearing about the White Lotus from Maeng Chan, Kim Unhaeng laughed heartily.
"Your Way is ancient indeed, but that True One's words are utter nonsense."
Maeng Chan bristled. But not wanting another beating, he toned it down.
"But the True One's miracles are real. His martial prowess too..."
"Not calling it fake. Saying it's 'his own' is the nonsense. Don't you know why that flame-spewing machine he uses is named Chunsik Armor?"
Maeng Chan, clueless about Kim Unhaeng's courtesy name, stared blankly. Kim Unhaeng produced the "original."
Exploiting Europe's top scientists and engineers like a Joseon sweatshop, his Chunsik Armor spewed flames leagues beyond. Hitting that would sicken in multiple ways.
Then he had prized disciple Eoji demonstrate Dongchun Gong—the model Haedong Chunsik Yeon Gong Beop.
Expert recognizes expert. Maeng Chan shuddered.
Push-ups crushed like Mount Tai Press, runs swift as Immortal Points the Way. That ironclad lower body could hold horse stance all day—Maeng Chan felt ashamed for scolding his own disciples.
The cultivation method he thought came from the cult leader originated here on Haedong Bongnaesan. He'd challenged the master's master.
"Now do you see? I held back from striking you at the yamen then, lest like a child crushing a dragonfly in his fist, I accidentally kill a rare talent in one exchange."
Maeng Chan knelt.
"I didn't know my place."
"Not over yet. That 'spirit-seeing' sorcery is just clever wordplay mimicking street magicians. The Way lies in clarity, not complexity. I'll show even a three-year-old child."
He had an incongruously seasonal brazier brought in.
Offering a cigarette, Maeng Chan lit it puzzledly.
Not opium—just tobacco. Kim Unhaeng wanted to prove real fire.
Tossing in straw to blaze, he unhesitatingly covered the brazier with his hand.
"Gah!"
Maeng Chan coughed out smoke.
He'd seen pinching the wick, but anyone could do that sans superpowers. Especially this era's callus-covered folk.
But a brazier laughs at calluses. Even shoving in a horse's hoof would enrage it.
Yet when Kim Unhaeng lifted his hand, the fire was out.
His hand unscathed, of course.
"This is Immunity to Fire and Water realm. Has your True One shown such proof?"
"...No. Everything I knew seems a lie."
Of course, self-proclaimed pinnacle of modern political correctness Kim Unhaeng didn't trash another's faith.
"As I said, not that your Way is wrong. Would rotten scholars exist if Confucius and the Ten Irons were false?"
Instead, he seemed bent on founding a new religion.
"I tell you truly: What's wrong is never the teaching, but the people. Remove that Wang-clan conman, and the true Way revives."
Kim Unhaeng didn't know, but shattering blind loyalty to the cult leader sparked another change in Maeng Chan.
A subconscious truth he'd ignored now asserted itself.
O Samrang was the cult leader Wang Lun's lover. His hopes were futile without Wang Lun's death.
To the crumbling Maeng Chan, Kim Unhaeng's silent gaze was an ironclad command.
Go kill that false prophet.
Liberate the people from the Jurchen emperor, O Samrang from the cult leader.
Maeng Chan resolved to do it.
Kim Unhaeng held no grudge against Wang Lun.
He just wanted control of the White Lotus trade route and latest Chinese intel via Maeng Chan's overseas-roaming backdoor. Essential for influencing northern expedition timing and form.
Kim Unhaeng soon began mass-producing Western muskets.
With all Pyeong'an power in his hands, no need for red tape or coordination requests.
But the autumn prototype batch was mostly duds. Even dragging in a few British slaves from Ganghwa under royal backing, tech doesn't perfect overnight.
Kim Unhaeng wasn't disappointed. He exported failures to China as "successes" for profit. Rebels care more about having guns than their quality.
Successes went to Yun Pildeok's training vanguard or elite guards. Visible results mattered.
Then Pyeongyang General Sin Heup visited.
"We'll have surplus guns at this rate. Why not include the Jangshipbu and Subu forces the old Commander trained? Skilled at mountains and rivers from chasing smugglers, soldiers aren't just for pitched battles—night raids need special forces cavalry too."
He meant Kim Unhaeng's bandit gang.
Kim Unhaeng had framed them as legitimate guerrilla suppressors. With Uiju merchants pinned for the murder, no one called them thieves. His specialty: swap sequence, muddle right and wrong.
With smuggling marks drying up, reabsorbing them into regulars for headcount boost and "Pyeong'an military buildup" merits seemed smart.
Kim Unhaeng gladly approved the Pyeong'an guerrilla unit. Sin Heup aiding the cover-up suggested he'd read the winds and pledged loyalty.
"Great idea. Lifelong bookworm here, no military savvy—so training's yours."
True to word, save stressing spotless guns for royal inspections, he meddled little—like a priest butting into heresy hunts.
Under history's most militarily clueless Commander, Pyeong'an built its strongest army since Yi Gwal's rebellion.
Author's Note
1. For official-related crimes below torture level, the Office of the Inspector General handled preliminaries. For high officials immune to summons due to rank or noblewomen shielded by inner/outer laws, proceedings used gongham (official query) and hamsa (response) documents.
2. Yeongbyeon Grand Protectorate was originally concurrent with Pyeong'an Military Commander but later separated.
3. Seo Myeong-eung is the current Right State Councillor from 200's "Ascension Chart Play" part. Elder brother of Chun-dang's Seo Myeong-seon; same faction as Kim Unhaeng and brother, but fundamentally Noron like his sibling.
As noted then, he's also seen as a forebear of Northern Studies school. Proof "Practical Learning" wasn't a fixed faction or lineage.
4. UN sanctions restrict North Korea's bulk cash, oil, electronics imports, etc., but Russia/China smuggling circumvents via open-sea transshipment laundering, as depicted.