There is no such thing as the Kangxi and Qianlong eras

Chapter 406 The Evil Prison of Xinyou
Jeju Island is quite large, covering more than 1800 square kilometers, which is equivalent to one-twentieth of Taiwan Prefecture.

Wu Liehu had just finished organizing his army at Jeju Port, the only pier on the island, and was preparing to launch an attack on Mokseong, Jeju, when he saw that the city gates of Mokseong were already wide open.

Governor Yi Eun-hoo of Jeju led the escape, and everyone in the entire city, from officials to soldiers, fled.

When Wu Liehu arrived with his army, Mucheng offered no resistance and was easily captured by the Han army. There were even many officials and soldiers from Jizhou who were packing up their belongings and families and had not had time to escape.

Lee Chi-jung, the judge of Jeju, was also a member of the Joseon royal family, but he was not in the same faction as Lee Eun-hoo. So Lee Eun-hoo ran away so fast that he didn't have time to inform him at all.

“@#$%^&&**%$…”

Li Zhizhong immediately prostrated himself before Wu Liehu, while shouting something incoherently.

Zhou Zongfu followed up with the translator: "General, this man claims to be named Li Zhizhong, a judge from Jeju Island, equivalent to a county magistrate in our Han Dynasty. He has mistaken our Han army for a large army sent from Hanyang City. Perhaps the general can make use of him."

"Use my ass!" Wu Liehu sneered in dissatisfaction. "Do you really think I can't tell? We're using Chinese characters on our flags, what does that have to do with Korea? We're not even speaking Korean. This Korean county magistrate isn't stupid; he can't possibly not know that we're not the Korean army, but a large army from outside!"

Zhou Zongfu was also a little embarrassed. He had been too eager to show off and seemed to have genuinely not thought of that aspect for the moment.

Wu Liehu continued, “Tell this fellow that I am from the New Han Dynasty. Our New Han Dynasty has now conquered half of the country and will soon wipe out the pseudo-Qing and restore China. Now, His Majesty the Emperor of our New Han Dynasty has sent me to take back Jeju Island. Those who know what’s good for them should obediently submit, and His Majesty may spare their lives and let them become citizens of our New Han.”

Zhou Zongfu immediately translated Wu Liehu's original words, and even added a threatening sentence at the end: "Don't even think about deceiving General Wu anymore, General Wu knows everything!"

At this point, Jeju Magistrate Lee Chi-jung could no longer maintain his pretense. He had been deliberately feigning ignorance, intending to exploit the language barrier. It wasn't that he wanted to cause trouble, but rather that he was simply afraid that if Queen Dowager Kim were to retaliate, he would have difficulty justifying his current surrender.

Seeing that Li Zhizhong was kneeling down and dared not speak, Wu Liehu was about to continue ordering him to find all the books and archives in the Mucheng government office.

Wu Liehu's most pressing task was to find out exactly how many people lived on Jeju Island, and how much arable land and warhorses were available for raising.

"Wait..."

"Are you truly a general sent by the Chinese emperor, or a pirate or Japanese invader?"

Just as Wu Liehu was about to speak, a Mucheng official kneeling below suddenly raised his head and asked in fluent Chinese.

"Are you Han Chinese?" Wu Liehu asked, somewhat surprised.

Ding Ruoyong cupped his hands in a humble manner and said, "No, I am Korean, and my ancestral home is Hanyang City."

"You can actually speak Chinese?" Wu Liehu was even more surprised.

He also noticed a significant difference in Ding Ruoyong's accent. Although he spoke fluent Mandarin, which was the standard official language, his accent was quite distinct and unlike any other Chinese accent.

Ding Ruoyong added, “I once followed Father Zhou Wenmo from the Qing Dynasty and studied Chinese language and teaching for a period of time, so I can speak Chinese.”

Zhou Zongfu then explained: "General, priests are a special type of monk in Western religions. They are mainly responsible for managing churches and missionary work, much like Western monks stationed in China as missionary monks. However, these Western monks are quite despicable. Once you believe in their Western Buddha, you can no longer worship your own ancestors and can only wholeheartedly believe in their one and only Buddha. Therefore, they have always been prohibited and suppressed by the Qing government in the past."

Wu Liehu nodded slightly: "They actually forbid believers from worshipping their ancestors. The monks of the Western Sect are indeed despicable. The Tartars did the right thing this time." After saying that, he looked at Ding Ruoyong, who was kneeling, and asked: "Do you also believe in those Western Sects?"

Ding Ruoyong shook his head and said, "Replying to General Tianchao, I used to believe you, but I don't believe you anymore."

This is indeed true; at least until last year, Ding Ruoyong was a follower of Western religions, namely Catholicism. However, after Queen Dowager Kim launched the "Shin-yu Hell," Ding Ruoyong, who barely survived and was exiled to Jeju Island, had long since abandoned any of that Catholic nonsense.

Speaking of which, this guy was really unlucky. Queen Dowager Kim launched the "Shin-yu Evil Prison" immediately after the death of King Jeongjong, Yi San.

On the surface, the outbreak of the "Shin-yu Hell" was because North Korea rejected Catholicism and did not want Catholicism to become too powerful in North Korea, which led to the ruthless arrest, massacre, and exile of Catholics. But in reality, the core reason lies in two words: factional strife!
This can be considered a traditional skill of Joseon. Before the reign of King Yeongjong even began, the court nobles in Joseon were already divided into four factions: the Noron, Soron, Namin, and Bukin. The Bukin and Namin factions subsequently lost power in the factional struggles.

After King Yeongjong ascended the throne, the "Imo Incident" broke out (the King of Joseon starved his crown prince to death). The Noron and Soron factions, who had just gained power, then intensified a new round of factional struggles.

When King Seishon ascended the throne, the Shoron faction was defeated and withdrew from the scene, while the Oldon faction continued to split into two parties: the Toki faction and the Hokki faction.

The two parties finally diverged somewhat: the contemporary faction chose to closely follow King Jeongjong, while the eccentric faction relied on Queen Dowager Kim.

During King Jeongjong's reign, although the two factions were embroiled in factional strife, Jeongjong's skillful balancing act kept the two factions from ever achieving a decisive victory.

Last year, King Jeongjong finally passed away, leaving behind a crown prince who was too young. The maternal relative Kim Jo-soon, who was entrusted with the care of the young prince, was an ambitious man who chose to bide his time and watch as Queen Dowager Kim and the eccentric faction grew in power.

The Shipai lost its biggest backer, the Zhengzong Emperor, and many of the Shipai's pragmatists advocated absorbing foreign technology and culture, which inevitably led to contact with Western religions.

Thus, the "Xinyou Evil Prison" erupted.

Under the pretext of eradicating cults, the anti-establishment faction launched a comprehensive purge of ministers and nobles, including the current faction.

The three Ding brothers, who were Southern scholars absorbed by the Shipai faction, were caught in the crossfire of this great purge and were arrested. The third brother, Ding Ruozhong, was killed, while the second brother, Ding Ruoquan, and the fourth brother, Ding Ruoyong, promptly surrendered and were exiled to Jeju Island as slaves.

By the way, Father Zhou Wenmo, who taught Ding Ruoyong and Chinese, was also killed in this political purge, and was the only Chinese person killed.

After committing these disgraceful acts, North Korea, fearing accountability from the Qing court, sent a messenger to report to the court and inquire about its opinion.

Any comments?
My Great Qing Dynasty is vast and rich in resources. The death of a few Han people is nothing. As long as they are not Manchus or Bannermen, Emperor Qianlong has no time to care about such trivial matters.
Of course, Wu Liehu had no interest in the messy party struggles of North Korea, a tiny country. He only knew that the two brothers, Ding Ruoyong and Ding Ruoquan, were both talented.

Wu Liehu asked in surprise, "You just said you can build cities?"

“I have traveled to the Chinese mainland for research and study before, so I should have no problem with most cities,” Ding Ruoyong nodded and said.

It's more than just no problem!
Although this Jeong Yak-yong was not well-known, he was the most skilled fortification architect of the Joseon Dynasty, and was considered the most "proficient" expert in Eastern fortification among a group of short men.

Not only was he skilled in city building, but he was also knowledgeable in medicine, agriculture, local governance, commerce and economics, and criminal law. He left behind more than 500 books in his lifetime.

It's hard to say if this person is a great talent, but he's definitely a passable all-rounder.

This guy is already so amazing, so his brother Ding Ruoquan is naturally no less impressive. Although he is not as versatile as his younger brother Ding Ruoyong, he is also a professional who is proficient in fisheries and aquatic products.

Coincidentally, Jeju Island has an underdeveloped agriculture and a backward economy, and a large part of the island's food revenue comes from fisheries and aquatic products.

"Damn it, there's a reason why North Korea is such a small country! They have so many talented people but they don't use them. They just sit there doing nothing but playing partisan games."

Wu Liehu first cursed and swore, then said, "This general was personally appointed by His Majesty the Emperor of the New Han Dynasty to serve as the First Cavalry Division Commander of Jeju Island, and also to oversee the island's military, political and civil affairs. You two no longer need to be slaves. Be my clerks and do your jobs well. If you do well, you will be rewarded."

"This humble citizen thanks the General of the Celestial Empire!"

Upon hearing this, Ding Ruoyong felt no qualms and, together with his elder brother Ding Ruoquan, bowed to Wu Liehu.

Having already been caught up in factional strife, and exiled to this godforsaken Jeju Island, what loyalty could they possibly have left?

Especially in the eyes of the pragmatic school of Korean thought, such as Jeong Yak-yong, Korea was practically beyond saving. Now that the Celestial Empire was coming to save Korea, it was a good thing for Korea. As long as it wasn't the barbarian Manchus, anyone would do.

(End of this chapter)