Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 397 The Battlefield of the Traitor (Part 1)

Kim Gae, the commander of the Uiheung Guard of Joseon (a third-rank official), stood on the city wall of Ganghwa Prefecture, his five fingers gripping the bricks of the crenellations, the sea breeze carrying the salty smell into his armor.

In the distance, the sails of the last Dongjiang Town warship were being swallowed by the twilight, like ink being wiped away. He sighed softly, a strange sense of melancholy washing over him.

"Envoy, is the Heavenly Army going to abandon us like worn-out shoes?" Li Jingrui, the commander of ten thousand soldiers (fourth rank), slammed his fist against the city wall, the iron guards making a dull echo.

Jin Jie didn't turn around, but simply pointed into the city—torches were being lit one by one, outlining the granaries and barracks.

“Abandon? General Shen left behind half a year's worth of provisions, and this…” He slammed his boot heel down, and the newly rammed artillery position beneath his feet made a muffled sound.

“Envoy…” Li Jingrui frowned upon hearing this. “Jianghua Prefecture is less than a hundred li from Hanyang City. If the imperial army wants to destroy us, they can reach us in no time.”

"Does the imperial navy still exist today?" Jin Jie asked rhetorically.

"Although the imperial navy was destroyed by the Dongjiang garrison, it is possible to rebuild the ships and restore the navy!"

"Rebuild the navy?" Jin Jie sneered. "Hmph, as long as the court does not submit to the Ming Dynasty, Dongjiang Town will not allow Hanyang to rebuild its ships."

“What if… what if the imperial court secretly builds ships?” Li Jingrui said worriedly. “Furthermore, Ganghwa Island is only two miles from the mainland at its narrowest point, which can be easily crossed even in small sampans or rafts. How can we, with only two thousand soldiers, defend against it?”

"How could we not defend it? In the past, the Qing invaders attacked Ganghwa Island twice, and they were both defeated!" Kim Gae said confidently. "As long as we set up many sentry posts along the coast and build a few more beacon towers, we can be ready for battle once the imperial court gathers its troops. We will definitely repel the enemy at sea!"

“You all…” Li Jingrui said with a helpless expression, “As the saying goes, there’s no such thing as being able to guard against thieves for a thousand days. The imperial court has ample resources and can make a hundred or a thousand mistakes. But if we fail to guard against thieves even once, we will be in a situation of no return!”

"You must understand, ever since we surrendered Hanyang, we have become traitors in the eyes of the court and rebels in the eyes of the world. Moreover, Jianghua Prefecture is the most important place for the court to maintain its defenses and is also the location of the royal palace. How can the court allow us to live here illegally for a long time?"

"What, are you afraid?" Kim Gae looked at him with a half-smile. "Back then, your uncle was the only hero in Joseon's history to capture Hanyang with the power of a regional military governor. Why are you hesitant and full of doubts now? A true man should die if necessary, what is there to fear!?"

"..." Upon hearing this, Li Jingrui was immediately stunned, and the expression on his face changed constantly.

His gaze instantly drifted into the distance, as if he were seeing that blood-red sunset from more than a decade ago again.

Beneath the walls of Lichuan, his uncle was beheaded by a traitorous general. He hid among the corpses, his mouth filled with the taste of rusty blood.

Finally, he sighed heavily, cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Jin Jie, and said, "So be it. I should have died in Lichuan with my uncle more than a decade ago. I am already barely clinging to life, so I shall fight the court to the very end!"

“Hehe…” Jin Jie chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. “Dezhang (Li Jingrui’s courtesy name), don’t be so pessimistic. Dongjiang Town and Xinhua people have placed us on Jianghua Island, but they may not necessarily abandon us.”

"The island guards the outlet of the Han River, like a sharp sword hanging over Hanyang City. It is also a window to spy on the imperial court. Its strategic position is extremely important. They will definitely protect us and prevent the imperial court from capturing this place."

"Moreover, Baengnyeong Island, which is occupied by the new Chinese, is only half a day's journey from here. If we encounter an emergency, we will rush to its aid. As long as we hold out for two days, the Dongjiang Town army will also send troops to rescue us, so that the imperial army will not be able to retake Jianghua."

As he spoke, he walked up to a cannon, touched the cold barrel, and a glint of light appeared in his eyes: "With just these few powerful Xinyi...Xinzhou cannons, no matter how many imperial armies attack, they will all be blasted into dust and reduced to nothing!"

"If the commander-in-chief had possessed such a divine weapon in the past, he might have become the minister who helped establish the dynasty in Korea and the emperor he supported!"

The "Grand Marshal" mentioned by Jin Jie was Li Shi, the Deputy Grand Marshal and the Inspector of Ping'an Circuit, who raised an army in Ningbian in 1624.

With over 10,000 elite border troops as his main force, he captured more than ten prefectures and counties, including Jiachuan, Shunchuan, Jiangdong, Suian, Huangzhou, Fengshan, Ruixing, and Pingshan, from Ningbian. In just half a month, he approached Hanyang.

Upon hearing that Yi Jeok had led his army to break through the Imjin River, King Yi Jong of Joseon immediately fled south in panic with his royal officials.

Thus, Yi Gye-suk entered Seoul without bloodshed, becoming the only rebel army in the hundreds of years of the Joseon Dynasty to enter Seoul using the power of a regional military governor.

Moreover, this guy even supported his relative, Prince Heungan (son of King Seonjo), as the King of Joseon, attempting to emulate the actions of Cao Cao and Sima Yi of the Wei and Jin dynasties.

However, his good fortune was short-lived. Less than a month later, Li Shi was defeated by the imperial army at Anhyeon, a suburb of Seoul.

He had no choice but to hastily retreat from Seoul, preparing to return to Pyongan Province, establish his own territory, and become a small warlord.

As a result, infighting broke out in the army halfway there, and Li Shi was killed by his subordinates Li Shoubai and Qi Yixian, whose heads were presented to the court.

Kim Gae was a remnant of Li Shi's rebel army. After surrendering to the court, he was pardoned and incorporated into the Yixing Guard to serve his crimes.

Li Jingrui was Li Shi's nephew. Under the cover of his many subordinates and guards, he escaped the court's purge and, after lying low for several years, miraculously infiltrated the Shinmu Guard, one of the five guards of Joseon, through his previous military connections.

In the Second Sino-Japanese War, the Korean government forces were routed by the Qing forces, with many junior and middle-ranking officers killed in action. Kim Gae and Lee Kyung-seo were subsequently promoted and entered the ranks of senior officers in the Five Guards Army.

If the Korean political situation could remain stable after their defection to the Ming Dynasty, they would naturally have no other thoughts, and would be content to accept the court's salary and serve the country loyally.

Unexpectedly, after the Qing army retreated, the situation in Korea was not stable. The "anti-peace faction" and the "pro-peace faction" continued to fight. Moreover, because King Injo of Korea surrendered to the Tartars in an extremely humiliating manner, it aroused the dissatisfaction of countless Korean scholars.

Moreover, the "anti-peace faction" in the court split into a very radical "pro-Ming faction," which resolutely refused to submit to the Tartars and advocated continuing to unite with the Ming to resist the Tartars and restore the "Chinese spirit."

Even Cui Wanji, the younger brother of Cui Mingji, the leader of the pro-peace faction who had always advocated compromise and surrender to the Qing, expressed strong opposition to the act of kneeling to the barbarians and launched a scathing attack on his brother's policies in the court.

Two years ago, the Qing army, riding high on its victory in the invasion of Korea, launched a fierce attack on Tieshan on its return journey, intending to take the opportunity to destroy Dongjiang Town and completely eliminate the threat to its flank and rear.

Unexpectedly, the Qing and Korean armies, numbering in the tens of thousands, besieged Tieshan for over forty days without success, suffering heavy losses of over five thousand men and women, shattering the myth of the Qing's invincibility. What the Koreans found even more objectionable was that the Qing used Koreans as cannon fodder during their attacks on Tieshan and Pidao; over 70% of the casualties suffered during the sieges were Korean soldiers and officers.

Moreover, by cooperating with the Qing invaders in their attack on the Ming Dynasty, they angered the imperial army.

Not long after the Battle of Tieshan, Dongjiang Town joined forces with Xinhua people, assembled more than 60 warships of various sizes, attacked the mouth of the Han River, and annihilated the Korean navy hiding in the Ganghwa Gorge. They then swaggered and bombarded the Ganghwa Garrison.

Then, in late August, Dongjiang Town, together with the new Chinese, launched a surprise attack on Dongnae Prefecture (now Busan), a major town in southeastern Korea. They looted for five days, almost leveling the area. More than 10,000 Korean people were taken away, and the loss of gold, silver, goods, livestock and food was incalculable.

Over the next year, Dongjiang Town began to raid North Korean coastal towns like pirates, kidnapping people and robbing supplies, plunging the entire west coast of North Korea into endless panic.

Left with no other choice, in August of last year, the imperial court issued an order to relocate the border and prohibit maritime trade, requiring all counties, towns and villages within a 30-mile radius of the west coast to be moved inland to avoid being ravaged by the Ming army.

Although this move was made by the imperial court out of consideration for the people living along the coast, it aroused complaints and opposition from countless scholars and commoners throughout the country.

It is truly disappointing that the officials in the court are unable to even protect the borders and ensure the safety of the people.

What shocked the entire nation of Korea even more was that more than a decade ago, the deposed former King Gwanghaegun Yi Hun suddenly reappeared and raised an army in Gangnyeong County. He denounced the court's betrayal of the Ming Dynasty and its defection to the enemy, claiming that the current King Yi Jong was the real traitor and a hypocrite who deceived the world. He called on all Koreans to respond to his call to overthrow Yi Jong's "pseudo-dynasty" regime and restore the "legitimate" regime.

It should be noted that when Yi Jong launched a palace coup and deposed Yi Hun, the charges he listed were "disloyalty to the Celestial Empire and collusion with the Later Jin."

But now, the hypocritical King Injo openly performed the grand ceremony of three kneelings and nine kowtows to the slave chieftain Huang Taiji, surrendering the entire Joseon Dynasty to the Qing invaders and betraying the Ming Dynasty.

Such perverse actions hardly befit the status of a King of Korea.

False rebellion!
Traitor to the nation!

Not long after, at Dongjiang Town's repeated requests, the Ming Dynasty finally issued an imperial edict, re-establishing Prince Gwanghae, Yi Hun, as the new King of Joseon, while Yi Jong was deposed and no longer the King of Joseon appointed by the Ming Dynasty.

As a result, after suffering a heavy blow from the Qing invaders, the Joseon Kingdom found itself in a situation where there were two rulers and two courts coexisting, plunging the entire court into chaos and complexity.

Not to mention, the Qing dynasty would frequently order Korea to send grain, cloth, iron and other supplies to Shengjing, without any regard for the widespread famine and poverty in Korea, which caused widespread resentment among the people.

Is such a court truly worthy of loyalty?
A month ago, while the court was debating whether to send a new batch of grain to Shengjing, the allied forces of Dongjiang Town and Xinhua suddenly came knocking on the door.

They unexpectedly broke into the mouth of the Han River, went upstream all the way, and directly reached the city of Hanyang, catching the imperial court off guard. While closing the four gates, the court urgently summoned troops from various prefectures and counties to come to the aid of the emperor.

Faced with the arrival of the Ming army, Kim Gae, as the commander of the Uiheung Guard, immediately realized that the moment to change his fate had arrived.

He contacted more than ten former generals and confidants of Yi Gye, and after some secret planning, prepared to launch a coup, capture King Yi Jong of Joseon, hand over Hanyang City to the Ming army, and then welcome Gwanghaegun to the throne to restore the country.

At that time, they could use their merit in supporting the emperor to request the court to pardon Li Shi and others, restore their merits, and promote them to higher ranks and honors, thus bringing glory to their families.

Unfortunately, during the planning, the news was inadvertently leaked, and someone informed the chief councilor, Choi Myung-gil, who almost got strangled by the other garrison troops in the city.

In haste, Kim Gae led several hundred trusted subordinates to forcefully open the Donuimun Gate (West Gate) of Seoul, urgently calling for a Ming cavalry unit outside the city to quickly enter.

Although the Ming army hesitated and dared not enter the city rashly for a while, the opening of Dunyi Gate plunged the entire city of Hanyang into fear and chaos. Countless soldiers and civilians shouted "The city has fallen!" King Yi Jong of Joseon was so frightened that he abandoned his concubines and princes in the palace and fled in panic with his officials out of Sukjeong Gate (North Gate) and headed for Cheorwon County.

The Korean capital, Hanyang, was inexplicably captured by the Ming army.

During the occupation, Donggang Town and Xinhua people certainly reaped great benefits, but Kim Gae and his gang of Korean "rebels" also made a fortune and took revenge on the Yangban officials who had humiliated and oppressed them.

Although, under the constraints of the Allied Forces, they did not massacre the entire family and create a bloody and terrifying scene, they still managed to plunder the century-old wealth of the opposing family under the pretext of collusion with the enemy.

When the Donggang-Xinhua Allied Forces were about to withdraw from Seoul and prepare to flee, Kim Gae thought they would be taken back to Liaodao with him, or transported to Kangryeong County to submit to Gwanghaegun.

Unexpectedly, the Allied forces settled them on Ganghwa Island, guarding this strategic location at the mouth of the Han River.

At first, Kim was both shocked and angry, feeling abandoned by the Allied forces and left to fend for themselves on this small island.

Because once the Qing reinforcements reach Seoul, unable to find the Allied forces, they will surely vent their anger on these rebels, joining forces with the imperial army to launch a large-scale attack and wipe them out completely.

General Shen Shikui of Dongjiang Town reassured him not to worry too much, as the Korean navy had been completely wiped out and was powerless to cross the sea to attack Ganghwa Island.

Furthermore, the New Chinese Association will help them reinforce and renovate Jianghua City, and provide several heavy artillery pieces to strengthen the defenders' capabilities.

At that time, the island will serve as a maritime fortress, firmly anchored at the mouth of the Han River, threatening Hanyang City at any time and preventing the Joseon king and his officials from acting recklessly.

Moreover, the existence of this military outpost will inevitably force Seoul to station a large army at any time to prevent the Ming army from using Ganghwa Island to launch another surprise attack on the capital.

As a result, the court's control over the eight provinces of Joseon would likely weaken, allowing some "enlightened individuals" to seize the opportunity to establish their own independent regimes or submit to Gwanghaegun, thereby further weakening the court's power.

I've heard that the General of the Jingdong Protectorate, who is entrenched in the northeastern part of Hamgyeong Province, has been recruiting soldiers and accumulating strength since the Battle of Bingzi, and has great ambitions to swallow up the entire Hamgyeong region.

There's also the Iron Mountain Castle that's part of the Yellow Sea Road, the ruined Uiju Castle, the chaotic Dongnae Prefecture, the ever-expanding power of Prince Gwanghae, and the constant civil unrest in various counties and prefectures—all of this points to a cruel reality.

With numerous warlords rising up, Korea is on the verge of chaos!
(End of this chapter)