Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 129



Only Noblemtl

#129. Last days in Beijing (1)

“Your Majesty! The enemy has already invaded the outskirts of Kyoto!”

“Send out the Northern Ocean Lord Yeongrok and the Wuwei Army to fight the enemies with dignity!”

“We can’t just evacuate the Beiyang Grand Chancellor’s troops without even evacuating the foreigners within the territory!”

“Then what do you want me to do? Are you telling me to just die together like this?! The enemies are lurking on the outskirts, trying to kill us?!”

Empress Dowager Cixi’s head ached as she watched her ministers fight among themselves.

Not only had Joseon, which had been swift in the past, falsely claimed to be an empire and sent a proclamation of war against them, but now their army was lurking on the outskirts of the capital.

Their troops were also disturbing the borders of Manchuria.

Although General Jilin and General Hun Chun-do were leading their troops to block them, a counterattack was far away.

There was no way to get them across the river.

This was a huge blow to the pride of the Qing Dynasty. So they wanted to vent their anger by killing the minister extraordinary and plenipotentiary in the foreign embassy area, but even that was not an easy task.

If that had been possible in the first place, we would have killed all the foreigners and traitors who were resisting right now and spread the evil religions of the West.

Empress Dowager Cixi believed in the power of the angry people, but she was wrong. The power of Western tactics and firearms was so great that they could even cover up their anger.

They looked no different from the Long-Haired (a derogatory term for those who joined the Taiping Rebellion) or the Boxer gang.

However, the slogans they shouted were different. Unlike Jang Bal-jeok who shouted “Destruction of the Qing and Prosperity of the Han Dynasty,” they strangely shouted “Prosperity of the Qing and Prosperity of the Western World.”

“Can’t we resolve this through dialogue with them, even now?”

The Qing Dynasty’s most powerful man, who had kept his mouth shut under Empress Dowager Cixi’s pressure, opened his mouth.

However, unlike during the Sino-Japanese War, he had no real power. He had tried to reform the declining Qing Dynasty through the Wuxul Coup, but failed due to conservative reactionary forces including Empress Dowager Cixi, and effectively lost all power.

“Your Majesty, those Western barbarians have already brought their armies outside the city walls to kill us. How dare we talk to them!”

“Ha, but···.”

“All those who want to talk now are traitors and traitors! Your Majesty, keep your composure!”

Empress Dowager Cixi lost her temper because everything she had ordered up to that point had gone awry.

After the fall of Tianjin, when the Yang Yi were advancing too quickly, she immediately ordered all her officials, great and small, to support the king in defending North China.

But most people either ignored it or openly turned a blind eye to it. The fox-like Li Hongzhang in particular openly ignored it.

As if ignoring them was not enough, they were openly showing signs of division in the Gangnam area by declaring the independence of the South East and suppressing the Boxer Rebellion and making peace with the West.

I would have liked to catch all these traitors and hang them by their necks, but the situation was not one where that could be done.

Their power had already surpassed that of the Qing Dynasty long ago. They already had the power to overthrow the Qing regular army, and they were the kind of people who would betray at any time if they wanted to. However, they still did not change their flag because it was advantageous to remain under Qing rule.

Even the Governor-General of Zhili and the Governor-General of Shandong, who had gathered troops and bravely gone out to fight under Empress Dowager Cixi’s orders, were both defeated.

When the Qing Dynasty was in crisis, such as during the Taiping Rebellion and the Yan Rebellion, the last bastions that had firmly protected the imperial palace collapsed without lasting even a day.

Their end was desperate, but it did not change the course of the war. It only proved that there were still martyrs in the Qing Dynasty.

“Call all the Northern Ocean ministers and the admirals of the Wuwei Army (modern-day generals, i.e. commanders of each army).”

“Are you finally preparing for the battle?!”

And here, the stupid single prince who has no idea what’s going on.

Empress Dowager Cixi wanted to immediately spit out insults, but held them back. No matter what, she couldn’t say anything offensive to the prince in front of the ministers.

At times like these, I sometimes missed Prince Gongchin. Although he was my political enemy, at least unlike Prince Danchin, his political ability and ability to read international situations were incomparably superior. Perhaps it was after his death that the Qing began to fall apart.

Deliberately ignoring the prince’s words, she prepared to muster all the troops still remaining near the capital.

Since the commander of the Wuwei Front Army, Xie Shicheng, had died in the previous Battle of Tianjin, Dong Fuxiang’s Wuwei Rear Army, Song Jing’s Wuwei Left Army, and the Wuwei Middle Army and Beiyang Minister Yonglu and Yuan Shikai of the Wuwei Right Army should have been present.

The only people present were Yeongrok and Dongboksang.

“No, why were the admirals commanding the Left and Right Armies absent?”

“Your Majesty, they sent word that they cannot come here to defend the Shanhai Pass area.”

“The interests···.”

Without them, the defense of the Imperial Palace was in vain. Of the five armies of the Wuwei Army, the most elite were those of Song Jing and Yuan Shikai.

While the other three armies had not completely eradicated the old-fashioned Eight Banners system and appeared pre-modern, the armies of Song Jing and Yuan Shikai were the most powerful units the Qing had in terms of equipment, command system, and training.

But without them, it’s a different story.

Of course, the entire Muwi Army appeared to be strong on the outside due to the introduction of German-made rifles and artillery equipment, but it would not be an exaggeration to say that, except for the Muwi Left Army and the Right Army, they were almost inferior in terms of level.

The Wuwei Army of the Sheishan, who fought bravely but were defeated in Tianjin, was at exactly that level.

Empress Dowager Cixi sighed deeply. Since the last war, she had raised five armies with 100,000 men, and thought she could definitely protect the palace and its surrounding areas, but the dark-hearted generals each had their own ulterior motives and were not taking action.

“How many troops do you have left?”

“Your Majesty, are you preparing for a battle with the sheep outside of Gyeongdo?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

At this, Yeongrok and Dongboksang made bewildered expressions. Seeing that their reactions were different from what she had expected, Empress Dowager Cixi asked strangely.

“Why is that so?”

After pondering for a moment, Yeongrok, the Minister of the North Sea, cautiously opened his mouth.

“Your Majesty, it will be difficult to drive out the sheep with the remaining troops.”

He also did not like the current war. He had joined the mad Boxer Rebellion and had them fight with the Qing army, but in the end, as he had feared, they were losing battle after battle to the Western army.

Even if all 100,000 soldiers from the five armies of the Muwi Army were gathered together to prepare for a decisive battle, it would not be enough, so it was impossible to do anything by bringing together people who were moving around individually.

With the armies of the Qing dynasty annihilated, the armies of Song Jing and Yuan Shikai on the watch, and Dong Fuxiang’s army having lost nearly half of its total strength in the previous battle at Langfang, the only regular Qing army that could effectively defend Beijing was Yonglu’s 20,000 men.

“There are 100,000 Boxers, right?”

“They just melt into the fire of the West.”

“So you’re saying we can’t guard this place?”

“It’s a sad story, but it’s true.”

It was the story she most wanted to hear. And only one thought was on her mind.

‘The Qing Dynasty is ruined.’

“Your Majesty, are you okay?”

“Oh, no.”

She almost stumbled, but she held on and endured. She had made enormous sacrifices and suffered great blood to enjoy this position and this power.

No matter how close the Qing Dynasty was to destruction, there had to be a way.

“The situation is urgent, so I dare to suggest that you first evacuate to Jehol···.”

The voice of the Dongboksang was as if it was crawling. It was the first time since the Second Opium War that the capital was in danger of falling.

Even in the war with Japan, it wasn’t this urgent, because they couldn’t cross the Shanhaiguan Pass.

“Shanhai Pass is still holding out.”

“Tianjin has already fallen, so what good is Shanhaiguan? You should escape before they complete their encirclement and plan for the future.”

Now, for the Qing Dynasty, who were on the verge of taking their last breath, there was no more hope left. If only the Han Chinese gentlemen, admirals, and military officers would step forward like they had done when they had suppressed the previous long-legged enemies.

Once Empress Dowager Cixi had pulled herself together, she gave orders to intercept the rebels on the outskirts of Beijing or launch a full-scale offensive against the embassy district.

It was a decision that was virtually tantamount to a suicide attack.

Yeongrok and Dongboksang did not say anything about Empress Dowager Cixi’s order.

But they also knew that whether they stayed still or not, the Western armies would never stop.

***

“Why is it so quiet today?”

“I know.”

The embassy district was able to enjoy a quiet day for the first time in a long while.

There was no continuous artillery fire or rifle fire that occasionally came in. The standoff just continued to be boring.

The long-awaited peace allowed the small group of legation guards and the foreign and Chinese Christians who had been fighting alongside them to get some respite.

“Why did those guys who had been on an all-out offensive for two weeks since July suddenly become quiet···.”

“It seems like something is going on. At times like this, you have to be determined.”

Of course, not everyone enjoyed this break.

Goro Shiba, a Japanese artillery lieutenant colonel who was effectively in command of the defense plan for the embassy, ​​could not hide his bewilderment.

Until yesterday, they were the ones who were overwhelming our forces by launching a ground offensive.

Of course, we were able to catch our breath a little thanks to the unexpected madmen and the Skoda M1893 machine guns that the Austro-Hungarian sailors brought with them at just the right time.

“Last night was truly horrifying to think about. How the defenses could be broken down so easily.”

“Perhaps everyone is exhausted from the prolonged siege. When such a terrible siege continues, it is easy to become mentally broken.”

Lieutenant Shiba Goro clicked his tongue and shuddered at yesterday’s events.

A large number of Boxers surged into the area occupied by the Russian army, and in an instant the entire Tatar wall was nearly breached.

This was a problem that no one could blame. It was truly an oversight.

“If it weren’t for your dedication, we would have been in big trouble a long time ago.”

“It’s nothing.”

He thanked the people right next to him, the ones he had previously thought were crazy.

These men had come in as escorts for the Korean ambassador, and their skills were outstanding. They showed everything they could do with shotguns used for hunting animals.

Although they were only a dozen or so, I couldn’t help but be amazed at how they supported the collapsing front line by pouring out shotgun shells, and how they literally tore down the Boxers.

Even though they were not wearing formal military uniforms and were wearing plain clothes, you could tell without even asking that they had received professional military training.

“I guess I can hold out somehow since Betsy is still here…”

“Do you have enough 9-pound shells left?”

“Well, I lost a lot of energy in the battle last night…”

The Russian officer trailed off. The old-fashioned bronze cannon they called the Betsy was the only artillery piece available to the Allied forces in the International Legation area.

A US Marine accidentally discovered an old cannon, likely dating to the 1860s, that had been used as a horse tie-down post, and they worked with the Royal Marines to restore it to working condition.

The shells were replaced with 9-pounder shells carried by the Russian army and improvised shotgun shells.

Originally, the Russian army in Tianjin was supposed to come in together with the artillery force, but they were cut off after mid-June, and the shells they brought in first were left over.

Luckily, the caliber of the bronze cannon and the 9-pounder shells matched, so I was able to give anyone who approached me a taste of the heat.

“Are you going to attack the outskirts again tonight?”

“No, that won’t happen. We’re all too tired.”

Lieutenant Colonel Shiba Goro spoke to a vicious-looking Korean man holding a shotgun who asked him if he would go on a night attack.

He was fluent in Russian, English, French, Chinese and Korean. Given his background as a continental explorer, it would be strange if he couldn’t do that.

The records investigation office of the Wonsoobu also had some idea of ​​who he was.

While serving as a military attaché at the Japanese embassy in Qing, it was common for him to leak a lot of information. In the first place, Qing’s counterintelligence was close to something that did not exist.

He also had a connection with Joseon. No, it was closer to a bad connection than a connection. He was the person who visited Seoul in April 1893 and collected all the facts about the Joseon army.

And it was also well known here that the plan of the Japanese army that raided Gyeongbokgung Palace was based on the information he had provided.

In any case, thanks to such a career, Lieutenant Colonel Shiba Goro was fluent in several languages ​​and was able to become the person in charge of unifying and commanding the entire embassy guard.

Meanwhile, Lieutenant Shiba Goro also looked at the Koreans standing in front of them, or rather, the men who now defined themselves as ‘Koreans’.

They were well trained and moved mechanically as if they were born for war. Lieutenant Colonel Shiba Goro felt a strange sense of kinship and deja vu when he saw such Koreans.

Perhaps because they couldn’t shake the feeling that they were starting down a similar path to themselves.

The Koreans I have seen from the beginning of the war until now are not like the shabby Joseon army of 1893.

If they were friends, it would be great, but if they were enemies, a feeling ran down my spine that they might have to be quite prepared.

“Do you have any instructions?”

“Oh, no. Your ammunition doesn’t look that good. Are you okay?”

“We’re running low on ammunition. If we have two or three more battles like yesterday, we’ll have no choice but to survive with just one cannon.”

The expressionless Korean sighed for the first time and spoke.

As they withdrew, the ammunition wagons they had brought with them seemed to be slowly running out of supplies. In fact, most of them were like that.

“At first, I thought these guys were out to hunt ducks because they had shotguns.”

“···Anyway, didn’t you Westerners view coolies as beasts?”

“Ugh.”

A US Marine officer, who was chuckling and joking nearby, made a joke and got properly countered.

“Damn, that’s not wrong. They’re easier to catch than turkeys.”

“Anyway, I’ll go back knowing there won’t be any night raids today. I’ll have to rest a little so I can fight again.”

“Well, let’s do that. Each of you defend your positions, and if any problems arise, please contact us immediately. We will respond immediately.”

Lieutenant Shiba Goro was always secretly waiting for reinforcements to arrive.

At least the communication line can be reconnected···.

An uneasy night began to creep in. It felt like it might be my last night in Beijing.