Black Corporation: Joseon - Chapter 1215



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Side story 29. 1592 South Sea War. (29)

Yi Sun-sin persistently wore down Japan’s stamina through advance operations.

So persistent was the effort that by late March, Japanese aircraft and naval forces trying to repel the imperial attack were barely visible.

“At this point, I think we can just march in?”

This joke was circulating among the staff members of the Expeditionary Forces Command, and when Yi Sun-sin heard it, his face became serious.

“Don’t be optimistic! Have you forgotten the Battle of Boryeong? The landing is the most dangerous time! Remember that the success or failure of that battle can change the situation!”

“Yes, old!”

“Then, re-examine the geographical information of the expected landing point!”

“ancient!”

Following Yi Sun-sin’s orders, his staff began to review the geographical information secured by the Imperial Army’s Communications Management Office.

* * *

One of the tasks managed by the Communications Control Bureau was obtaining geographical information about other countries.

The Imperial Army was becoming increasingly mechanized, which had both bright and dark sides.

On the bright side, the Imperial Army’s firepower and mobility were overwhelmingly superior for a force of the same size.

To stop the Imperial Army, which was centered around assault vehicles—well, now divided into equipment using the time-honored name of tanks, self-propelled guns, and chariots (armored vehicles of the 21st century)—it would take several times more troops.

The Navy was similar.

Internally, the Imperial Navy fleet, which was divided into the ‘Battleship Faction’ and the ‘Carrier Faction’ and was growling, was an object of fear, with battleships and carriers as its mainstays and even supporting forces such as cruisers, destroyers, and submarines.

If this is the bright part, the dark part was also darker than other countries.

The first was the enormous operating costs.

In order for the imperial army to operate properly, enormous resources were consumed. In the past, armies had at least built military fields, but the imperial army had none of that.

That is, everything that the Imperial Army ate, wore, and used came from the Imperial budget.

The second was that, regardless of whether it was an army or a navy, it became difficult to move around arbitrarily as they became more mechanized.

In the case of the army, it was difficult to move without solid ground for the heavy tanks to run on.

Even for the Navy, it was impossible to approach the coastline of another country without certain information about its shape and water depth.

If you approach it carelessly and it runs aground, it will be a huge loss.

Because of this, the Imperial Army’s Communications Management Agency has been making great efforts to secure this geographical information.

They traveled around foreign countries disguised as merchants or vagabonds, sometimes using bribes to obtain necessary information.

The country that put the most effort into this information gathering effort was, of course, Ming, followed by Japan. The third place was surprisingly France in Europe.

Because in history, which changed due to the intervention of the Empire, the European country that most frequently clashed with the Empire was France.

* * *

While the preparatory work was underway, preparations for the central operation, the ‘monkey hunt’, were also reaching their final stages.

150,000 army troops who had arrived from Shinji began preparing for landing by staying in Busan, Tsushima Island, and Jeju Island.

Thanks to this, the streets of Busan, Jeju Island, and Tsushima Island began to be filled with imperial troops wearing decorations different from those of the mainland.

The Imperials of this land looked at the Imperial Army belonging to this new land with curious eyes.

It was because of the curious decorations on their military caps and helmets.

Soldiers from the northern part of Shinji attached eagle feather decorations to their helmets and caps. Soldiers from the mainland also attached pheasant tail feathers or peacock tail feather decorations to their helmets and caps, but the way they were attached was very different, which aroused curiosity.

Soldiers from the southern part of Shinji wore helmets and helmets with belts made from the skins of jaguars and other wild beasts.

It wasn’t just the hat decoration.

There were countless soldiers carrying tomahawks or clubs with sharp obsidian stones attached.

Of course, these kinds of gadgets were prohibited from being carried out.

As Shinji’s soldiers marched through the streets in groups of three or four, the people of Bonji began to feel the war for what it was.

And the older ones muttered with worried faces.

“Once they’re all gone, then it’ll be a real war… ”

And then, on the last day of March, all the soldiers from Shinji disappeared from the streets.

Three days later, transport ships carrying the vanguard of the 100,000-strong force of 150,000 soldiers began crossing the Korea Strait.

* * *

The first places Yi Sun-sin targeted were Shimonoseki and Kitakyushu.

“If we can properly control these two places, the sea route to Yamaguchi will be ours.”

The staff officers and commanders all nodded at Yi Sun-sin’s words.

Any route from the Empire to Yamaguchi had to pass through the Kanmon Straits between Shimonoseki and Kitakyushu.

The Kanmon Strait was a natural defensive fortress for Japan.

At its narrowest point, it was barely more than 170 jang (about 510 m) wide, and was a strait that curved sharply between Shimonoseki and Kitakyushu.

Because of this, Japan also built a strong coastal battery here.

“… Therefore, in order to attack properly, you must be prepared to make great sacrifices.”

Yi Sun-sin continued, pointing out the strait on the map and explaining it.

“So, we don’t go through this strait. Our destination is….”

The places that Yi Sun-sin pointed out with his baton were two places on the coast, a little north of Shimonoseki and a little northwest of Kitakyushu.

“It looks close on the map, but it’s about 200 ri (about 80 km) from Kitakyushu and about 100 ri (about 40 km) from the coastal fortress of Shimonoseki. It’s a distance that can be traveled quickly by tank or chariot, but according to the information, the road is not good. Check the information booklet that was distributed.”

The expressions on the faces of the army commanders who were looking through the thick books they had received in advance at Yi Sun-sin’s order became clouded.

Even if you read it roughly, it wasn’t a good path.

-There are very few straight and wide roads, and most of them are narrow.

-All the flat land is rice paddies or fields.

-When you enter the city, the streets and alleys are even narrower than the outskirts, and it is like a maze.

“It is not an easy road. Because…”

Yi Sun-sin paused for a moment and then gave a cruel order.

“We clear the way using self-propelled guns.”

For a moment, there was a commotion in the conference room, but it soon died down.

* * *

When looking at the history of the Imperial Army, the most useful weapon in urban warfare was the firearm. Imperial commanders of the past were not shy about using firearms.

The problem was that the world was going through a fairly long period of peace.

The changes brought about by the intervention of incense caused the world to move much faster towards industrialization.

The massive increase in productivity through industrialization also increased the scale of war, and wars of mass destruction became the norm.

Through the experience gained through this bloodshed, many nations quickly came to realize the importance of human resources in war and industry.

Because of this, there were many interventions in the process of waging war.

One of them was the use of cannons against civilian areas.

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-It is not right to shell civilian areas.

As such claims emerged from Europe, the world began to ban the use of cannons in civilian areas. As always, Europe was the place that was hit the most.

Of course, the Empire was taking a contradictory stance of ignoring this without giving a clear answer, but not completely ignoring it either.

To be more precise… .

-The life of one friendly soldier is more valuable than ten enemy civilians.

-I will try my best not to break that ‘taboo’ as much as possible, but if I make a mistake, there is no such thing as a taboo.

-So, do it well by ‘knowing it in advance.’

This was the position of the Empire and the Imperial Army.

The problem was that Yi Sun-sin was the first person to openly state this position.

Because of this, there was a brief commotion at Yi Sun-sin’s order.

* * *

Yi Sun-sin, reading the mood, explained in more detail.

“There are two reasons for taking such drastic measures. One is to minimize the damage to our own troops. The other is to impress upon the Japanese the following: If war is waged against the Empire, the responsibility is not only borne by those who rule. It is you, the people, who bear the greatest responsibility. Do not forget this.”

Everyone present nodded their heads at Yi Sun-sin’s explanation.

“Through this war, we will make it so that the Japanese will never think of attacking the Empire again. This is the biggest goal of this operation. Do you understand?”

“I understand!”

After hearing the commanders’ loud answers, Yi Sun-sin concluded his speech in a calm voice.

“I will trust you, gentlemen.”

* * *

The imperial fleet that crossed the Korea Strait soon split into two groups and began landing operations.

The most notable presence in the landing fleet responsible for the Shimonoseki area were the fire support ships.

-Elderly people are passing by. Get out of the way.

The Imperial ships quickly cleared their positions after hearing the approach of the fire support ships via flash signals and radio communications.

The surrounding imperial navy members joked as they watched the old ships leisurely passing through the gap created in this way.

“You guys! What are you doing! The elders are passing by, so bow quickly!”

“Oh my, sir! Please accept my bow!”

The fire support ship’s nickname was ‘Elder’.

Since their inception, fire support ships have been a burden.

Although the ‘Punitive War’ against France achieved remarkable results, the following was a problem.

“We don’t have to do a landing operation, do we?”

If you only look at the results, it would be okay to produce them in large quantities, but the problem was that there was no need to carry out landing operations, and where to station them.

If I were to mass-produce them and station them in my home country, it was certain that the Ming and Japan would be in an uproar, and if I were to place them in Shinji, there would be no place to use them. On the other hand, if I were to place them in Gibraltar, all of Europe would be turned upside down.

“But why just throw it away…?”

Ultimately, the decision reached by the Imperial Court and Navy was as follows:

-Keep the 24 ships currently under construction as they are.

-Hold on as long as you can, and then build a new ship.

-However, as I said at the beginning, the number remains at 24.

The Imperial Navy was able to make this decision thanks to the concept of the fire support ship.

– The replacement devices are loaded onto transport ships with simple structures that can be mass-produced.

In other words, it meant that mass production was possible whenever necessary.

Because of this, the Imperial Court and Imperial Navy decided to ‘hold out with 24 ships.’

Thanks to that, among the fire support ships taking up position in front of me now, there were still three ships that had participated in the old ‘Punitive War’.

“As far as I know, my grandfather was on this ship….”

In any case, the full-scale prelude to the Japanese invasion was opened by these old, no, antique ships.

“Release!”

“Bomb!”

“Bomb!”

Swish! Swish! Swish!

As soon as the order to fire was given, 24 fire support ships began firing their anti-aircraft guns and oxygen-propelled grenades simultaneously.

* * *

The northwestern coast of Shimonoseki was instantly reduced to rubble by the barrage of fire from the fire support ships.

While the fire support ships, which had finished firing in an instant, loaded their shells, the cruisers and battleships waiting behind them began firing their main guns toward the coastline.

Boom! Boom!

The sky rumbled and the seas heaved as the battleship’s main guns fired.

And then, the ground at the landing point was torn and shot up into the sky.

As time passed, the fire support ships loaded with grenades opened fire again.

While the fire support ships, battleships, and cruisers continued to bombard the transport ships behind them, soldiers were being transferred to landing craft.

The funny thing is….

“The text written here is Japanese, right?”

“Is this Japanese? Why is this here?”

It was said that the large-caliber bullets left behind by the Japanese army during the Battle of Boryeong were being used.

* * *

The problem of ‘the Empire never having to fight an amphibious war’ not only made fire support ships a liability, but also led to the absence of amphibious warfare ships.

The methods the Empire has used so far to attack its enemies across the sea have been as follows:

– Suppress the enemy’s port by bombardment.

– Unload troops from transport ships at the conquered port.

This was a tactic with many limitations. Because of this, there were constant calls within the Imperial Army for an alternative.

However, this claim was reduced to an empty boast due to the premise that ‘the empire will never engage in an amphibious war.’

However, Japan’s great agility displayed in the recent Battle of Boryeong was a suitable answer to such a problem.

“Wait? A port is always well-defended, right? But if you use that well, you can land in places that aren’t ports, right?”

“I see! Japan had a good idea?”

“Then you should use it well!”

The Imperial Navy quickly swallowed this great ship.

Not only did they completely repair and rebuild the large-caliber submarines that the Japanese Navy had abandoned, they also reverse-engineered them and produced them in large quantities.

Thanks to this, the large-caliber landing craft currently used for landing operations were a mixture of Japanese and imperial products.

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