Joseon Military Officer, Establishing Balhae - Chapter 336



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Episode 336

Joseon’s noble family (1)

Seoul Station located on the northern bank of the Nuri River.

As soon as Jeong In-hong and his party got off the train and came out to the wide Seoul Station Plaza in front of the station, they were shocked by the sight that suddenly caught their eyes. As soon as they came to their senses, they began to chatter without even realizing it.

“Excuse me, what are all those houses?”

“Oh, that’s right. It looks like they’ve built a huge wall along the road.”

“Come to think of it, weren’t there houses like that in Dancheon and Gyeongheung as well?”

There were some tall buildings in the big cities I passed by on my way to Seoul, but none of them had a forest like Seoul, creating a spectacular view. That’s why they were even more excited.

“Look at the road. Isn’t it too flat? It looks like it’s made of large, square rocks.”

“Haha! They said this was the capital of Balhae.”

The place that caught their attention was Geumoh-daero. They were excited by the sight of the wide road that stretched straight from Seoul Station to Taehwamun, the south gate of Geonheunggung Palace, and the tall buildings that formed a forest along the road.

On both sides of Seoul Station, Nuri-daero was built along the riverside, and there were already quite a few buildings there.

Jeong In-hong stared at the street for a long time with his mouth wide open. He asked Kang Kyung-woo in a trembling voice.

“What on earth has been happening in Balhae all this time?”

“Heh heh! Well, as you can see.”

“If you look at the clothing and the appearance of the people, it’s not much different from Joseon, but how come the appearance of the capital is so different?”

“Hasn’t your attire changed a little?”

Kang Kyung-woo asked in a playful tone, without holding back his smile.

“Well, that’s true. They seem to be dressed more neatly and more extravagantly. But are they all Koreans?”

“No. There are some Jurchens and Japanese among them. However, most of them have abandoned their traditional clothing and hairstyles and changed to the Joseon style.”

“Well, I don’t see anyone with a pigtail.”

“There are still people like that in the mountains, but those who live in cities like this have completely assimilated. That’s why they wear topknots and hats. The Japanese who migrated from northern Europe to the mainland are no exception. They might get into trouble if they go around like that, so they change their appearance as soon as they arrive here.”

“But doesn’t the brim of the hat look quite wide? They say there is no class discrimination in Balhae, so why does everyone walk around dressed like a nobleman?”

In response to Jeong In-hong’s question, Kang Kyung-woo recalled what had happened and burst into laughter.

“Hahaha! You could see it that way. In fact, in the beginning, if a nobleman tried to be treated like a nobleman, he would be immediately ostracized or ridiculed by his neighbors. That’s why narrow-brimmed hats were popular, but as time went by, they got wider and wider. That’s how you look like you have something. That’s why they wear wide hats.”

“A trend? Is that even a trend?”

“Yes. I don’t know how much our clothing has changed. In the past, people used to prefer white durumagi as outerwear, but these days, thanks to the full-scale production of artificial dyes, people are starting to prefer colored ones.”

“Your Majesty! Look, look over there.”

Lee I-cheom, who was busy looking around the street while listening to the conversation between the two, hurriedly called Jeong In-hong. What Lee I-cheom had discovered was a steam bus.

“It looks like it runs on its own power, like a steam locomotive.”

“Is this a dream or reality, damn it! Hehehe!”

Kijaheon burst into laughter without realizing it.

“What do you call that?”

Jeong In-hong asked.

“They are called large passenger cars. Since there are many people commuting to and from work in Seoul, these steam passenger cars run along set routes at regular intervals.”

“Of course I have to pay the fare, right?”

“Yes. It varies by street, but the fare is usually less than 1 cent.”

According to the Balhae currency system, 1 won was equivalent to 100 jeon, so 1 jeon was equivalent to 1,000 won in the future Republic of Korea.

“Is that run by the country?”

“That’s the case for now. But in the future, private businesses will jump into this business.”

“What is that? It looks like a person is rolling on a step.”

Kijaheon discovered something new and asked Kang Kyungwoo.

“It’s a bicycle. It just came out.”

The streets of Seoul were crowded with all sorts of vehicles. Traditional carriages were running, but steam cars, steam buses, and bicycles also began to run around.

“Ouch! There are iron carts coming towards us.”

In his haste, Lee I-cheom called it an iron carriage instead of a steam car. It was the name he gave himself when he first encountered a steam car in Dancheon.

“This is the car that will take us. Let’s take this and go to the lodging. When you get there and rest, someone from the court will come to pick you up.”

As soon as Kang Kyung-woo finished speaking, the Joseon delegation quickly approached the car and began to inspect it.

* * *

In the evening, Heo Seong and Hwang Jin, guided by Kang Gyeong-woo, came to find Jeong In-hong and his party resting at Nuri Guesthouse.

“Oh! General Hwang. No, Akrok has come too.”

Some of them were familiar with each other, while others were not. Just before leaving Joseon, Hwang Jin was a military officer in Chungcheong Province, and Heo Seong was a court official. So, although there were some who were meeting for the first time among the representatives of the envoys, everyone knew their names.

“I’ve already heard the news about you two. How are you doing?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I really did well.”

“Both of you are truly gifted.”

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Hwang Jin and Heo Seong were very healthy for their age. If history had gone as it was, Heo Seong would have passed away last year. However, living in Balhae, he looked middle-aged even though he was in his mid-60s. Hwang Jin also overcame the aftereffects of torture and exuded the robust energy typical of a warrior.

“If you are the Minister of the Military, you are the military commander in Joseon?”

“Did you find out through the spies? Originally, I was going to be treated as a dead person in Joseon.”

“Do we really need a spy to find out the name of a country’s minister? In fact, we were reading the Balhae newspaper as well.”

“Oh, I see.”

Jeong In-hong’s speech was blunt.

“Haha! I read the Minister of Education’s letter well too.”

“I am so embarrassed.”

Heo Seong bowed his head slightly.

“It is heartbreaking to see you, Minister of the Armed Forces. I am truly sorry.”

Ryu Yeong-gyeong bowed her head deeply toward Hwang Jin.

“You shouldn’t treat a general who achieved great success in defeating the Japanese and saving the country like that.”

“It is dizzying to think what would have happened to Joseon if it had not been for the efforts of the Commander-in-Chief and the Chungcheong soldier in the early days of the Imjin War.”

Kijaheon and Lee Icheom also joined in the apology.

“It’s all in the past. It wasn’t just me. Don’t you know how much King Giha suffered because of the jealousy of the previous king of Joseon? In fact, Balhae was founded because of him. Isn’t it a blessing in disguise?”

dripping!

When he heard a knock on the door, Kang Kyung-woo got up and opened the door.

“Ah, what is the Prime Minister doing in the middle of the night……”

Kang Kyung-woo quickly bowed his head and greeted him.

“I heard that an honored guest has arrived.”

“Minister of State?”

The Joseon envoys jumped up from their seats and greeted Lee Ha-ryun. Lee Ha-ryun greeted each Joseon envoy one by one, then laughed heartily and offered them a seat.

“Hahaha! Please sit down.”

Among those present, Lee Ha-ryun was the youngest, but he was the highest in terms of status. That is why even Jeong In-hong could not treat him lightly. They also knew Lee Ha-ryun very well. He was Tae-geon’s closest confidant, a sworn brother, and a prime minister. Although he looked young and acted lightly, he was the second-highest power in the great Balhae Empire, so they could not treat him lightly.

“I thought it must have been difficult for you to come all the way here, so I prepared a table for you.”

As Lee Ha-ryun gestured, the guest house staff brought several awards into the conference room.

Lee Ha-ryun treated the Joseon delegation comfortably and without hesitation. Jeong In-hong saw this as a good opportunity to resolve his curiosity.

“I would like to know more about the situation in Liaodong.”

Lee Ha-ryun gave a simple answer to Jeong In-hong’s question.

“Nurhaci of the Later Jin Dynasty knelt before our Great King and apologized, and in return for his defeat, he handed over most of the territory in Manchuria. And of the Ming province of Liaodong that we had occupied, we gave them the area west of the Liao River.”

“Well, that’s what I thought. Then how did Myeong respond during that time?”

“In the case of the Liaodong region, there is no movement at all, except for the confrontation with the Later Jin along the Soryung River. Our army has even occupied the Miao Islands in Shandong and even Dengzhou, but Ming has given up on reclaiming them and has not yet sent troops to counterattack.”

In fact, Ming’s lack of response was something that surprised Balhae somewhat. Since Dengzhou was such an important strategic point, it was expected that they would immediately gather troops and counterattack, but Ming’s army only guarded the surrounding strategic points and routes and did not move for half a year.

“It seems that the internal situation of the Ming is very serious right now. Isn’t it because we have exhausted a significant portion of our forces in this war?”

Hwang Jin-do joined in on the conversation.

“It can’t be otherwise. Because we’ve blockaded the southern coast of Ming, the shortage of silver has become serious. Because of that, the national treasury is not being replenished, so we can’t expand our military power.”

Jeong In-hong asked again about Lee Ha-ryun’s diagnosis.

“I read in the newspaper about a blockade of the southern coast. What exactly is it?”

Since it was a question that required a rather complex explanation, Lee Ha-ryun personally explained it in detail. Thanks to this, Jeong In-hong was able to broaden his knowledge by asking questions about not only the European powers that had advanced into Northeast Asia, but also the three countries of the Wa lineage, Ryukyu, and Formosa.

His attention returned to its original point.

“If that is the case, are you thinking of sending additional troops to Dengzhou to attack Ming?”

“Is there really a reason for us to do that? There’s a later payment.”

“Huh, what is the aftermath?”

“It is now.”

“Ah! Yijie… So you plan on supporting the Later Jin?”

“Yes. Now that we have reconciled, you should support us.”

“Then is Balhae plotting the destruction of the Ming Dynasty?”

“How could that be? Then we have to deal with the powerful Later Jin. The land of China must be divided. Only then will our people be at ease.”

“Huh! So you’re planning to balance the power between the Ming and the Later Jin?”

“That’s right. Right now, the Later Jin is somewhat weak, so we are supporting the Later Jin.”

“Haha! It’s truly amazing. Joseon was truly stupid. They blindly followed orders without even knowing how the world worked.”

Jeong In-hong now criticized the Joseon government without hesitation. He got down to the main point.

“Do you know why I came here?”

“Well, I have a general idea, but let’s discuss that in a more formal setting. I’ve prepared this place today just to welcome you, so make yourself at home.”

“Okay, I see.”

As the thorny conversation about the current situation came to a close, the other envoys also came forward and began to ask questions. Their barrage of questions became even more intense as they were intoxicated.

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