Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 665 No Negotiation
The imposing title of "General" really tickled Luo Rengui's itch, causing him to hold his head even higher. However, Luo Rengui's smugness didn't last long; he was slapped across the face as soon as he raised his head high.

"What are you grinning about? What did he say?" The officer withdrew his hand.

"Master Zhang." The squad leader's slap landed on Luo Rengui's bright red helmet with the character "勇" (brave) on it, causing no real damage, but Luo Rengui was still startled and shrank back. "What did you say?"

"What did I say?" Zhang Guandui rolled his eyes at Luo Rengui. "Are your ears blocked by the wind? I'm asking you what he said!"

Luo Rengui quickly said, "This man said his name is Chen Ning'en, and he is a judge of the so-called Grand Protectorate. He came here specifically to reward the troops and wants to see Admiral Shen."

"Hmm," Captain Zhang nodded slightly, then turned to look at the squad leader surnamed Liu who had fired the whistle arrow earlier. "Did you hear me clearly?"

"I heard you clearly, sir." Sergeant Liu nodded with a simple smile.

"Then what are you still standing here for? Hurry up and go back to report!" Captain Zhang glared at him.

"Yes!" Sergeant Liu turned his horse around and rode away like the wind.

About 45 minutes later, Chen Ning'en and the rice, grain, wine, and meat he had brought were led by Zhang Guan's cavalry to the defensive position outside the vanguard camp. They had to stop there; they would need others to lead the way from there.

"Is this the judge from the Grand Protectorate?" He Guangrong, the battalion commander of the artillery battalion, stood with his hands in front of his chest, gazing at the Koreans behind the cavalry with an expression akin to watching a circus.

"Commander He." Zhang, the squad leader, dismounted and bowed to He Guangrong. "It's them."

"What rank is it? Judge." He Guangrong had excellent eyesight and could see the bird insignia on Chen Ning'en's chest from afar. However, the quality of that homemade insignia was so mediocre that it was almost abstract, so He Guangrong couldn't recognize what it was.

"Judge, judge, should be similar to a prefect or magistrate, right?" Zhang Guandui could only guess.

"That's a sixth or seventh rank." He Guangrong turned sideways and peered into the distance. "Why aren't they even riding in a sedan chair?"

“There is a sedan chair,” Zhang Guandui explained, “behind the ceremonial procession, a two-bearer sedan chair.” The so-called two-bearer sedan chair was just a chair tied to two wooden poles, without even a canopy.

"He's quite frugal," He Guangrong nodded. "Call him over, come alone."

"What about those things?" Zhang Guandui asked. "They said there were fifty shi of rice, one hundred jars of wine, and some pigs, cattle, and sheep."

“Let him stay outside for now. General Shen has made it clear that he only wants to go in alone,” He Guangrong said.

"Where is Admiral Shen?" Captain Zhang asked.

"I don't know, he's probably still on the ship." He Guangrong scoffed. "A mere sixth or seventh-rank official, it's already an honor for him to even see our Lieutenant General Shen. To see Admiral Shen, at least a high-ranking official from the capital would have to come." When He Guangrong said this, he didn't even consider that he himself was one of those "mere sixth-rank officials."

"You're right," Zhang Guandu flattered, then asked, "Does Lieutenant General Shen have any other instructions?"

"That's all. Go ahead, just return to camp to relieve yourself when it's time." He Guangrong shook his head.

"Yes, sir." Zhang, the squad leader, bowed again before mounting his horse and returning to speak with Luo Rengui.

Upon hearing Zhang Guandui's words, Luo Rengui rode his horse to Chen Ning'en's side and said, "Judge Zhang."

"What are your orders, General?" Chen Ning'en had already guessed that the person speaking to him was just an interpreter, but he still adopted a respectful attitude and addressed the other party as General.

"Go ahead," Luo Rengui said with a smile, pointing towards the camp gate. "Alone."

"What about all this rice, grain, wine, and meat?" Chen Ning'en turned around and glanced at the meat that was being transported with grain and wine.

"Just leave the things outside," Luo Rengui urged. "You should go over there quickly; General Shen is waiting."

"Okay," Chen Ning'en thought that General Shen, whom Luo Rengui had mentioned, was tolerant, so he smiled and turned around. But before he could take a step, his smile froze on his face.

The Ming scouts blocking his way had cleared a path, allowing him an unobstructed view of the Ming army's position—the scene before him was laid bare.

Six armored vehicles, primarily armed with breech-loading cannons, were arrayed in a semi-circular formation outside the camp. Simple wooden chevaux-de-frise stood on either side of the vehicles, behind which were two rows of ten musketeers. The muskets were currently standing, but Chen Ning'en knew that if an alarm sounded, the musketeers in the front row would crouch down, assume aiming positions, and exchange positions with those in the back row after firing a round.

To the sides and rear of the musketeers were honeycomb-shaped rocket racks. Once the enemy broke through the long- and medium-range firepower network formed by the breech-loading cannons and muskets, they would be subjected to area fire from the rockets.

Chen Ning'en gazed at the position, and the soldiers on the position scrutinized him in return. Hundreds of eyes were fixed on Chen Ning'en, as if weaving an overwhelming net of pressure. Fortunately, this net of gazes contained only curiosity, not hostility; otherwise, this little old man, who was trembling more and more as he walked, might have wet himself in front of the position.

"What are you doing! Hurry up!" He Guangrong shouted, almost scaring Chen Ning'en so much that she knelt down on the ground.

Chen Ning'en had never been to the capital and couldn't understand He Guangrong's Beijing-accented Mandarin. He wanted to ask Luo Rengui to explain what the military-looking gentleman in front of him was saying, but when he turned around, he realized that Luo Rengui's cavalry sentry squad had already left. So he turned to look at his own troops, hoping to call over the interpreter who "understood the language of the Celestial Empire," but Chen Ning'en looked around for a while and still couldn't find anyone.

"Hey! Give me Kim Dae-gi."

Before Chen Ning'en could finish speaking, the owner of the voice shouted again, "I told you to hurry up, why are you still standing there!"

Chen Ning'en turned around with a smile, only to find that the man was already standing in front of him. "Come on, the general is waiting for you!"

"What?" Chen Ning'en, of course, didn't understand a single word.

"Tsk, you old man, you look like a scholar, why are you so silly?" He Guangrong lost his patience and simply grabbed Chen Ning'en's arm and dragged him into the camp.

During the forced movement, Chen Ning'en saw more soldiers. These were rattan shield bearers and wolf-tooth spear bearers deployed behind the chariots to shield against arrows and block enemy charges; spearmen responsible for bailing out the enemy; and halberd bearers responsible for hooking the horses' legs and providing backup for stabbing.

Fear welled up in Chen Ning'en's heart. Even without touching him, he knew that once these heavenly soldiers launched their attack, Incheon City's pitifully low walls probably wouldn't last even half a day.

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With He Guangrong half-pulling and half-dragging him, Chen Ning'en arrived at the tent of Shen Xun, the adjutant of the Fourth Battalion of the Divine Machine Army.

At this moment, Shen Xun was neither wearing official robes nor armor. He sat cross-legged on a simple linen blanket in a relatively relaxed posture. In front of him was a low, long wooden table, on which were placed the Four Treasures of the Study (writing brush, ink stick, inkstone, and paper) and a map of moderate size. This map was a newly made rubbing of the map of the area surrounding the capital, commissioned by Chen Lin, the former Admiral of the Navy and Commander-in-Chief of the Anti-Japanese Pirates, when he entered the court in the twenty-sixth year of the Wanli Emperor's reign.

Sitting cross-legged beside Shen Xun was another person, dressed similarly to Shen Xun, also without official robes or armor. However, compared to Shen Xun, the person looked much younger, appearing to be no more than thirty years old at first glance. Chen Ning'en didn't know who was who, only subconsciously assuming that they were probably Admiral Shen and his son.

“General.” He Guangrong stopped at the edge of the linen blanket and bowed. “This subordinate has brought the man.” “What time is it now?” Shen Xun’s expression was very unpleasant. A day after landing, the nauseating seasickness still lingered in his stomach.

He Guangrong tensed, thinking Shen Xun was reprimanding him for being slow, so he explained, "General, the Koreans brought wine, meat, and grain, that's why..."

"Why are you bringing this up?" Shen Xun waved his hand to interrupt He Guangrong. "I'm asking you what time it is."

He Guangrong paused, then glanced back at the sky. "It's probably around 5 PM."

"Change shifts, have a meal," Shen Xun nodded, "and have someone bring me a few more oil lamps."

He Guangrong breathed a sigh of relief and quickly replied with a smile, "Yes, I'll go right away!"

"Come here." Shen Xun beckoned to Chen Ning'en with his finger.

"The general wants you to come here!" The young military officer beside Shen Xun greeted Chen Ning'en in a standard, almost deliberately affected, Korean Mandarin.

Chen Ning'en quickly walked to the spot where He Guangrong had been standing, knelt down and said, "I am Chen Ning'en, the judge of Renchuan, paying my respects to the two generals."

“General Shen, he said he is a judge in Incheon named Chen Ning’en,” the young military officer said to Shen Xun.

“Chen Ning’en?” Shen Xun turned his head and asked the young military officer, “Isn’t the governor of Incheon Prefecture a man named Li Liting?”

“That’s exactly what those villagers said,” the young military officer said.

"Ask him. Be serious." Shen Xun gestured towards Chen Ning'en with his lip.

The young military officer nodded in understanding, adding a cold tone to his voice: "Isn't your Incheon Prefecture's commander Li Liting?"

Chen Ning'en curled up on the ground, not daring to raise his head: "What this general said is correct, Lord Liting is indeed the head of this prefecture."

"Then why didn't he come?" the young military officer pressed.

The reason Li Liting didn't come was simple: he was afraid the Ming army would detain him directly.

However, Chen Ning'en dared not state the reason openly. After a moment of contemplation, he offered his usual platitude: "Reporting to the General, Prefect Li is ill."

"Hehehe." The young military officer immediately burst out laughing upon hearing this. "General Shen, he said Li Liting is ill."

"Is he sick?" Shen Xun took a step with his left leg, his body leaning to the side. "Can he still live? Ask him."

The young military officer's smile vanished, and he asked Chen Ning'en in a cold voice, "Is Li Liting going to die?! He sent you here to fob us off?"

"This, this..." Chen Ning'en's breath hitched, and her voice trembled as if she were about to cry.

"Tell him to look up," Shen Xun said.

"Look up when you speak!" the young military officer shouted.

"Ah!" Chen Ning'en cautiously raised her head, and was immediately frightened by the gloomy eyes of Shen Xun and the young military officer.

"I have nothing to talk to you about. Go back now and tell Li Liting to come over, or you can wait for us to come over." Shen Xun waved his hand outside.

Chen Ning'en didn't understand Shen Xun's words, but he understood Shen Xun's actions and roughly grasped his meaning. Without waiting for the young military officer to translate, Chen Ning'en kowtowed sharply, mustered his courage, and said loudly, "General Shen, Your Excellency! For two hundred years, our Joseon Kingdom has been renowned throughout the world for its propriety, righteousness, loyalty, and obedience. Our King sincerely serves the Great, sending envoys and paying homage every year, a fact known throughout the land. Last year, Li Gongtinggui led a delegation to refute the false accusations and received two imperial edicts from the late Emperor to appease him. I humbly ask General Shen, Your Excellency! Why has such a powerful army suddenly come to Incheon to carry out such intimidation?"

Shen Xun couldn't understand a single word and could only ask the young military officer beside him, "What is he babbling about?"

"Uh," the young military officer paused for a moment, "he's probably protesting his innocence."

"Cry foul? I didn't ask anyone to beat him up, what's there to cry foul about?" Shen Xun was completely baffled.

"He wasn't protesting for himself, he was protesting for North Korea." Although the young military officer didn't understand every word Chen Ning'en said, he still grasped the general meaning of that passage.

“Oh,” Shen Xun also “understood.” “They must have seen the proclamation written by Yuan the Guardian.” After He Guangrong’s chariot battalion set up its formation and gained a foothold, Shen Xun sent out two hundred cavalrymen as planned to spread the “Proclamation of the Guardian of Korea.”

The young military officer nodded and asked, "General Shen, what's next?"

"The affairs of the realm rest with the Emperor above and the court below. When did it become the place of a ignorant official from a small vassal state to meddle? Tell him that military orders are absolute, with no room for negotiation! Tell him to go back and inform Li Liting that if the civil and military officials of Incheon Prefecture do not want to be stubborn and rebellious traitors, they should immediately open the city gates and welcome our army into the city. If Incheon is still closed by Chenshi (7-9 AM) tomorrow," Shen Xun leaned forward, one hand on the edge of the table, the other pointing heavily to the location of Incheon on the map, "our army will definitely attack the city!"

The young military officer turned around and translated Shen Xun's words, omitting the beginning and end, to Chen Ning'en: "The affairs of the world are the Emperor's and the court's; it's not your place to interfere. Go back now and tell Li Liting that if the gates are not opened by Chenshi (7-9 AM) tomorrow, our army will definitely attack the city."

"But, but why is this happening! What on earth happened?" Chen Ning'en asked anxiously, her eyes filled with tears.

"What happened?" The young military officer stared at Chen Ning'en for a while. "Have you seen that proclamation?"

"What proclamation?" Chen Ning'en shook his head repeatedly, tears streaming from his eyes. "I've been busy all day preparing rice, grain, wine, and meat for the army; I have no idea what proclamation is."

“General Shen said he hadn’t seen the proclamation,” the young military officer told Shen Xun.

"It doesn't matter anymore." Shen Xun rubbed his aching temples. "Let him get lost, I have nothing to say to him."

The young military officer nodded first. "Why don't we give him a proclamation and have him take it back?"

"Are there any more?" Shen Xun asked.

"Also, with so many copies, how can we possibly distribute them all in one day?" the young military officer said.

"Then give it to me." Shen Xun nodded.

(End of this chapter)