Chapter 247
Chapter 247
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 247
Chapter Title: Sejong's Territory (3)
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Though it might seem like pouring cold water on the感動 and passion of the people of Hamgyong Province, Kim Unhaeng's decision to defend Hamgyong from Bulyeong wasn't born of affection for the discriminated masses.
It was because if the Yanggye pass fell, there would be no army left in Joseon proper. Kim Unhaeng himself had wiped out most of the inland provincial forces, excluding the Northern Army.
Even the Capital Army held little meaning. Hanseongbu was a city with virtually no military function.
In truth, whether rebels or foreign forces, Hanseongbu had never withstood an attack on its own even once. The pathetic city of Hanyang fell the moment anyone—be it Japanese invaders, Jurchens, or Yi Gwal—gave it a light tap.
Thus, if the Qing army invaded, they had to be stopped in Hamgyong Province. Losing Hamheung's main palace would also jeopardize Kim Unhaeng's political standing, as an added reason.
And even as a military layman, Kim Unhaeng possessed the commonsense thinking honed by long years as a bureaucrat.
If you're going to redo a past project, use the same methods that worked before.
It was the golden rule that rookies had to burn into their minds more than any civil service exam subject. True to his wish, the status window had truly turned him into a civil servant.
From that perspective, the Six Garrisons—fortresses King Sejong had built to crush and seal away the Jurchens—were the optimal terrain for facing them.
However, General Bu Sheng'a of the Black Dragon River and General Hangluo of Jilin, holed up in Jongseongbu, harbored no fear of Sejong, in irreverent fashion.
"General of Jilin, you've already earned merit by seizing the forts along the Tumen River. Rest your troops here. We'll take over from behind."
Hangluo scoffed at Bu Sheng'a's suggestion.
"If they're that worn out, they aren't my men. Besides, 3,000 of our soldiers have already pressed ahead. If we don't support them and let other forces do it instead, chaos is sure to ensue."
It would be fairer to say the two generals possessed the grand strategic vision befitting the three great generals of the Jurchen Banner rather than petty greed.
The east was currently the Qing's sole escape route. To preserve influence west of Shanhai Pass in Zhili while relocating the empire's core functions to Manchuria for the future, there was no choice but a successful reconquest of Joseon.
Thus, the meritorious in this war would be akin to the heroes of a second founding. With other armies bungling everything, the eastern Manchurian forces stood out even more—that was just icing.
And with the emperor's keen insight proven right that Hamgyong had no troops, ascending to that position seemed an easy windfall.
But that dream shattered, starting with General Hangluo of Jilin.
A messenger galloping from the south reported breathlessly.
"The Blue Banner vanguard (Zhenghai's forward unit) that went ahead first seems trapped. The path is blocked by rocks and trees, and stray soldiers in the woods nearby are firing guns nonstop—several messengers have been hit!"
Zhenghai's vanguard was a third of General Hangluo's forces. If they were caught in a trap, his remaining 7,000 main troops might not suffice.
Hangluo wrestled with a terrifying dilemma for a brief moment. And General Bu Sheng'a of the Black Dragon River, knowing exactly what that entailed, prepared to step in smugly, offering aid.
Had there been no report from the opposite direction, he surely would have.
"The supply train from Hunchun has been cut off. Joseon troops appeared in droves along the Tumen River out of nowhere, and smoke is rising everywhere in the northeast!"
Northeast of the Tumen was Hunchun itself—the frontline base of the Eight Eastern Manchurian Banners, now a supply hub ferrying goods from behind under the Black Dragon River General.
"You bastard, in the army, babbling nonsense disrupts the chain of command from top to bottom—it's a capital offense. 'In droves'? What kind of rubbish is that? Tell me exactly how many Joseon troops there are!"
The messenger hastily corrected his mistake, in a way Bu Sheng'a absolutely did not want.
"My apologies. At least 20,000! And more keep gathering behind them!"
His base farther away, the Black Dragon River General had brought slightly fewer than Jilin's—around 8,000. Jilin's 10,000 was down to 7,000 without their Zhenghai vanguard.
Thus, scraping together, the two generals had 15,000 at most.
Meanwhile, Joseon forces numbered 20,000 visible near Hunchun alone. Who knew how many were toward Bulyeong.
For perhaps the first time in history, the Chinese army was outnumbered by the Joseon one.
Bu Sheng'a's face paled. Hangluo fared no better.
After staring at each other for a long while, the two generals made the most rational decision.
"I... I'll go rescue our Jilin troops heading toward Bulyeong. General of the Black Dragon River, you handle Hunchun!"
"Th... that sounds good. These sly Joseon bastards—I'll go smash them all right now!"
The two generals bolted in opposite directions from their posts.
Just as the Joseon army had hoped.
Among military enthusiasts, the perennial debate of this era—cavalry charges versus infantry square defenses—is better called a clash of tastes than academic discourse.
It's that hard to declare one superior. Whichever side you back, counterexamples abound. In the end, you just learn what each likes.
But one unchanging truth from antiquity remains.
Infantry needs density.
Cavalry, conversely, needs space. Victories for cavalry in narrow mountain valleys without flanks are exceedingly rare.
George Washington and John Stark didn't squander that advantage but exploited it fully. It was the humble yet essential quality of great commanders.
Zhenghai's Qing cavalry, their fifth charge failing disastrously, retreated with countless men and horses broken. The battlefield's intangible air—unperceived by third-party observers—convinced both sides this was the final assault.
Qing commander Zhenghai trembled with humiliation, like a magnanimous god cast into mortality.
Washington, thrusting his bloodied saber, roared a cheer.
"This is! Right here! Virginia!"
The Virginia Volunteers' remnants were pitiful too, but that didn't matter. The survivors bellowed for their fallen comrades' shares.
And from safety behind, Joseon military officers fiddling with cannons wiped soot-blackened hands and faces, chatting.
"What'd he say?"
"Says he's a virgin."
"What? A grown man saying that? Bizarre even for a bachelor."
"Tsk tsk. How long ago did Lord Kim Dog-Beater fling open the seas to all directions, and you still don't know the ways of the world? All the Nine Barbarians revel in sodomy. Japan, Qing—same deal. West too."
The officers gazed admiringly at their English-speaking, worldly colleague. Flattered, he led them on.
"Anyway, time for our job."
The Joseon men pulled out kites. Not to celebrate the late Lunar New Year, of course.
Soon after the kites soared on mountain winds, Hamgyong Northern Military Commander Jang Ji-hang arrived with all his subordinates.
Passing the ragged Virginia Volunteers, he tossed warm encouragement.
"Fine slave soldiers indeed. You can withdraw now!"
Only a thousand, mostly infantry, but to Zhenghai's unit now, they were grim reapers.
As Zhenghai dithered—flee or shoot?—the Joseon troops pulled triggers on Brown Bess muskets from Kim I-hwan.
Zhenghai tumbled from his horse, shot in panic, and the Qing vanguard collapsed in moments. Watching Virginia soldiers weep and hug, the Joseon troops nodded meaningfully.
Meanwhile, Black Dragon River General Bu Sheng'a, racing northeast toward Hunchun along the Tumen, witnessed a maddening sight through his spyglass.
Joseon troops brazenly piled Hunchun supplies across the river, bustling about like they owned them—hauling carts, dismantling tents, carrying sacks.
"Have you seen such impudent scum! Boys, charge them all! They seem to have no cavalry—a mere 20,000 is nothing!"
Charging an enemy fronted by a river was taboo, of course—unless frozen, as now.
Supply lines severed, their desperation fueled rage at these brigands. The Qing charged full tilt.
Commanding this force was none other than Liberation Detachment Iron Chain Soldier Commander Kim Eung-seok.
As Kim Unhaeng envisioned—not Vladivostok (his only known Maritime Province city) but close enough east of the Tumen—the Liberation Detachment landed and struck Hunchun.
Hunchun's garrison was usually but a thousand. Now, fewer troops, more supplies—an pirate's dream prey.
Across the river, they taunted "Nice rations!", and as expected, Qing eyes bulged in fury. Kim Eung-seok ordered merrily.
"Fire every gun we dragged off the ships! What? Hey, I never expected you'd hit the enemy! Shoot the river, got it? Even if you're lumps of bean paste, you can't miss that big Tumen, right?"
General and troops, growing pirate-like, chuckled and yanked lanyards.
Wild mix of field guns and ship cannons ripped from non-owned vessels, but as Kim said, "hitting the river" was easy.
And late first lunar month now. The saying "Great jar cracks in deep freeze by second month" fit—the harsh Six Garrisons near (relatively milder inland) sea.
Plus, Tumen's flow was never huge. Low water froze and thawed fast.
Thus, relentlessly shelled, the Tumen startled, forcibly springing in spots.
"Aaaagh!"
"Th-the ice is breaking!"
Cannonballs warmed only to ice-melt; not the river.
Mid-column Qing cavalry plunged into icy water, splitting front and rear, shattering formation. Instant heart attacks were the lucky ones.
Not like Austerlitz's frozen lake horde, though. Qing weren't annihilated yet.
But conditions were prime.
Joseon marines, famed on eastern seas, activated pirate instincts—spotting foes turn from terror to prey.
Leading was Kim Eung-seok, kicking his horse ahead of all.
"Enemies flailing in water? That's Liberation Detachment Iron Chain Soldiers' turf! Follow me!"
Indeed. Marines, briefly daunted by unfamiliar land war, roared after their commander.
General Hangluo of Jilin, gone to rescue Zhenghai's vanguard, saw no good end either.
The Qing knew Joseon internals better than expected—but only for foreigners.
His 7,000, lacking guides, had one path: the Gyeongheung road.
Conversely, Gil-sang's Hamgyong guerrilla band ambushed from mountain bypaths.
As Black Dragon forces chilled at Tumen, Jilin main body idled in Hoe Ryeong-Bulyeong corridor, sans sightseeing.
"Guns! More Joseon bastards!"
"Grab the horses! Catch them! Urk!"
"Bushes over there—chase!"
"No, we'll get hit from the flank like yesterday. Hold position! Decapitate anyone yelling or running!"
Qing "mobility" was worthless.
Mountain forts? Bypass as Zhenghai said. But these were mobile—Jurchen ankles snared relentlessly.
Gil-sang's guerrillas marveled at "magically fitting matchlocks," hunting Qing.
No need for kills—just slow advance, wary of snipers and terror. Gil-sang ordered flee post-shot, hit or miss.
Hangluo raged, brows furrowed.
"Childish tricks. Think you own the mountains?!"
He unleashed Jilin palace guards, hunting-trained. Boldly, or stupidly, they delved deep after guerrillas in friendly turf.
And never returned.
By then, Jang Ji-hang, done with Zhenghai, joined with Hamgyong forces. Amateurs or not, army was army—numbers mattered hugely.
Day: nailed queues lined roads, grating nerves. Night: sudden shots and fireworks maddened men and horses.
Facing Gil-sang's barricades, Hangluo had lost all will.
"With enemies rampaging this wildly, rescuing the vanguard is too late now. Retreat, replan."
Humiliating, but wait for Black Dragon to crush east, then aid. No petty greed before grand goals—befitting a Jilin general.
Reunited soon after, the generals faced each other like beasts shot in the heart.
Hangluo irked by guerrillas; Black Dragon's 8,000 clashed frontally with Liberation's 20,000—nearly halved.
Combined barely 10,000+, surrounded by double Joseon— no options. Rely on Sejong's five garrisons.
"Ancient forts in harsh terrain—might block Joseon this time. Hold till reinforcements from main base."
But they overlooked "speed."
Like demons scorched by holy relics, Sejong wouldn't tolerate filthy barbarians in his castles.
As Joseon struggled breeding Qing-style cavalry or mass gunners, Qing couldn't master Joseon mountain forts short-term.
Plus, these five were originally Joseon's.
Joseon knew weaknesses—and centuries of management left them trashed, no military fort. Jang didn't abandon five on whim per Kim's order.
Hamgyong North Commander Jang Ji-hang and Liberation Iron Chain Kim Eung-seok met east-west across Tumen and five garrisons—like Western Allies and Soviets at Elbe.
Qing became 1945 Nazis.
Beaten like dogs in dog days. Jurchens, no dog-eaters, softened unwittingly in alien land under strange assaults.
Crucially, upper Tumen was wasteland for convicts only.
Spring famine overlapped—food scarcity crushed morale. Qing starved first, collapsing.
In Sejong's territory, Jurchens had no rights.
Not even life.
Author's Notes
1. Zhenghai was indeed of the Blue Banner. Despite Aisin Gioro surname, belonging to Plain Blue suggests not core imperial clan.
2. As described, 18th-century cavalry vs. infantry superiority defies generalization. Cavalry tactics alternated shock charges and mounted firearms (non-linearly)—trials and errors. But in American Revolution, colonial foraging parties withstood nearly double British cavalry even in open fields, winning.
3. "Great jar cracks in deep freeze by second month"—proverb for lunar Jan-Feb cold cracking brine-filled jars (spring by calendar, yet freezing). Mismatch of Korean weather and sexagenary cycle, perhaps.
4. At Austerlitz, defeated Franco-Russian allies retreated over frozen lake; French artillery cracked ice, drowning many men and horses. Theories doubt Napoleon's intent or if it happened.