Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 259
Only Noblemtl
#259. The Brave Answer (5)
“The war came too soon. We were not properly prepared for anything. Except this damn vodka.”
As he spoke in a self-deprecating tone, Director Rennenkamp shrugged his shoulders and said:
“Isn’t that why you dispatched Major General Roman Kontrachenko there?”
“Yeah, if he’s passionate, he could probably do something.”
Even though they had mobilized the hope of the Russian engineers, there was still a lot of information that had not been shared with the staff of the Manchurian Army Command.
Originally used as the home port of the North Ocean Fleet, the Russian Imperial Navy and Army initially believed that they could construct proper defensive facilities and defense lines within five years if they used existing facilities.
But as soon as construction actually began in 1899, the staff faced quite a few complicated issues.
The problem was that the existing facilities were built in the 70s and 80s, which meant they were outdated and not suited to the fortress defense warfare that Russia wanted.
In addition, 25% of the budget for fortress construction and maintenance provided by the Ministry of War was being sucked into Lushun every year, but the construction project was so huge that even that was insufficient.
Ultimately, the Russian government had no choice but to extend the construction period for defense facilities far beyond the five years it had expected to last from 1899 to 1904.
“It would have been 1909 before a port could have been built to defend all of Lushun, but the war broke out too early.”
In fact, the longer the war was delayed, the more advantageous it was for them, so I had thought that Japan would take action at some point. It wasn’t to the extent of breaking expectations, though.
“How many troops are currently deployed in Lushun?”
“Ah… The current troops deployed in Lushun are approximately 44,000, including two divisions, fortress artillery, cavalry, engineers, and the navy. The number of field guns in total is approximately 650.”
It seemed like a large number at first glance, but Kuropatkin shook his head. Even 100,000 men were not enough to defend the entire vast Lushun.
Even if the entire Manchurian army had been there, it would not have been enough.
It was not for nothing that Major General Kontrachenko sighed deeply and arbitrarily reduced the defense line again and again as soon as he took office.
“With Lushun in such a state, there will be no troops left to defend Dalian even if they eat and die.”
He sighed deeply and complained about the unreasonable situation.
As Kontrachenko once said, the vast area from Hill 203 to Mt. Dagushan required the stationing of 25,000 troops, nearly 60% of the Lushun defense force, so there was no room to deploy troops to defend Dalian.
Of course, there was a disadvantage that if Dalian was taken, Lushun would be exposed, so Kuropatkin wanted to deploy defensive forces there as well, but the situation on the ground was not easy.
“How about moving some of the troops gathered here to Lushun right now?”
Rennenkamp asked with sparkling eyes, but Kuropatkin shook his head and answered negatively.
“If reinforcements of division level or higher are sent from the mainland, then that would be possible. However, the number of troops themselves is too small, so it would be difficult. If reinforcements come quickly, we wouldn’t have to worry about such things···.”
That damn Trans-Siberian Railway, it was so poorly established that it was not reaching the vast imperial army when it was most needed.
If only it had been done properly, the waves of boots would have drowned those dwarfs.
“Since the Korean Empire army in Pyongyang is holding up well, how about mobilizing the 2nd Siberian Army Corps dispatched there to defend Port Arthur? It only has about 16,000 troops, but at least it can provide great flexibility in the defense of Port Arthur…”
Kuropatkin became irritated by his staff’s words.
“If we withdraw them, the well-held Korean Empire army may collapse. The northwestern defense line they are supporting not only guarantees the safety of Lushun, but also of Mukden (Fengtian) here. They are the Sevastopol. But you are withdrawing troops from there?”
Seeing them talking nonsense, it seemed like everyone was full.
Even though you clearly know that you are forcing the Japanese army to form a two-front war and dividing their forces, you are saying such stupid things.
“No matter what happens, leave the 2nd Siberian Army Corps and Major General Mischenko alone. And urge them to send troops from the home country. Only when a significant number of troops arrive, whether it be the Guards or the elite grenadiers, can we change our defensive position here.”
“Understood, Commander.”
Certainly, the news of victory brought from Korea was enough to boost everyone’s morale, but it was still far from enough to turn the tide of the war.
As of now, the number of troops Japan could mobilize was more than six times their own.
“Damn, I wish they would send the Baltic Fleet quickly.”
In St. Petersburg, it seemed that the decision on whether or not to mobilize the Baltic Fleet was still difficult to make.
It seemed that the opinion had emerged that the Korean army, which had been raised thanks to the tsar’s foresight, and the local army and navy in the Far East would be sufficient, whether it was because they were intoxicated with their victory on the ground or because they looked down on the Japanese military.
Of course, I had told Commodore Fuchata, who had been dispatched to the Korean Empire, to tell the local defense forces that ‘the Baltic Fleet will arrive soon’ so that they would not desert, but even they would notice this after some time had passed.
Then what excuse should he make then? With the ground forces and fleet he had trusted still far from arriving, Kuropatkin had no choice but to drink alcohol to relieve his frustration.
For some reason, what I had thought was the dawn of the Russian Empire, that brilliant sunlight, now seemed to be slowly turning into a fading twilight.
***
The cold winter air still hung in the air, and the shattered enemy was finally retreating to the second line, abandoning their seemingly impenetrable concrete fortresses.
No, that wasn’t a retreat, it was a rout.
The Joseon bastards, who had not yet admitted defeat, were resisting from all sides, but with two entire divisions going on the offensive, it would be difficult to hold out for long.
After the terrible defeat at Jinnampo and the even more terrifying war of attrition, the Joseon people, who were like mosquitoes and cicadas, seemed to be showing the end of their resistance.
If we only look at the numbers, the Imperial Army had overthrown the Japanese Empire dozens of times and easily subdued even the Chinese, but the Joseon people were on a different level.
Despite being a pre-modern people suffering from the emperor’s despotism, just like the Qing Dynasty, they went to war with more passion than anyone else.
Even amidst the storm-like firepower of the 1st Army troops pouring in ceaselessly and the incredible barrage of artillery fire, the Koreans willingly died with their weapons in hand on the defensive line, as if they were entrusting their lives to their country.
While also taking the lives of countless Japanese youth.
“Everyone, wake up! The enemy is now cornered! If Hwangju falls, Pyongyang is just around the corner! The enemy has been holding us back tenaciously, and we have been fighting hopelessly with the Roske, but now it is over! Let us completely destroy the Roske, who are trying to annex Asia, and the Joseon guard dogs who have been fooled by them and are pointing their bayonets at our Japanese Empire!”
The company commander himself came forward and gave instructions, as if an offensive was imminent, but fear still spread like an epidemic among the Japanese soldiers.
The enemy’s assault infantry, who appeared like a storm in the deep night when no one moved and disappeared with the morning dew, leaving behind only a huge number of casualties, had already begun to call them ‘Oni’, a name mixed with fear and respect.
“They say the enemy’s main force is not visible yet.”
“Shh, the platoon leader is passing by.”
As the platoon leader, armed with a sword, passed by to inspect his men, the two veterans began to talk again.
If I said something like that, I would definitely get in big trouble for spreading rumors that would lower morale within the military, so I had to be very careful about what I said.
“They say that the enemy cavalry and those monsters that destroyed the Guards Division are nowhere to be seen.”
“You said there were Roske?”
“That’s true, but those devils haven’t come out yet. Our regimental commander said that we should be careful because of that, but it seems like the headquarters ignored it.”
When I first boarded the transport ship, or even when I finished the departure ceremony in Sendai, I thought Joseon was nothing more than a light picnic.
But as time went on, that wasn’t the case.
Here, with every step you took, enemy firepower would pour in like a storm, taking the lives of your comrades and superiors.
If there was a divine wind, or kamikaze, that saved the motherland of Japan, the enemies were protecting themselves with a storm of shells and bullets.
Although some officers and non-commissioned officers did not hesitate to express their awe for them as fellow soldiers, calling them real men, most were filled with hatred and anger towards them.
“But… what if those devilish bastards really show up?”
“What should we do? We should just shoot them all to death. Do you think it’s okay for soldiers of the Empire of Japan to say such things because they’re afraid of their enemies?”
As the platoon leader, who I thought had just passed by, spoke with a displeased expression, the veteran soldiers stood motionless, their discipline evident.
“Alright, alright. We won’t be meeting them anyway. Even if they are called ‘Oni’, it will be difficult to break through to this point. To break through here, we have to break through the 12th Division’s defense line and also break through the 2nd Division’s comrades who went ahead of us. Do you think that’s possible?”
“But, but···.”
“The Imperial Guards were destroyed thanks to the Satsuma idiots, but we are different. We are completely attriting the enemy, so there will be no space for them to run wild.”
The platoon leader, who had a cigarette in his mouth, handed the cigarettes to the veteran soldiers and said:
“So don’t worry. No matter how hard the Joseon guys resist, three months is the limit.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Well, if the higher-ups say so, then that must be so.
It was the first time in a long while that even the veterans were smoking cigarettes and taking a few puffs.
There was a sound like the air was being torn apart, and then a flash of light appeared right in front of me.
“Artillery fire! Enemy artillery fire! Everyone, hide!”
“These little shits, I thought they were quiet, but they’re acting up again!”
“Everyone, stop being stupid and take cover in the trenches! Quickly!”
The entire unit, which had been waiting for the order to attack for a long time, jumped into the trenches to avoid the artillery fire.
The unlucky soldiers were exposed to artillery fire in front of me and were scattered in all directions.
Some soldiers even threw up what they had eaten that evening because of the crazy sound of shelling, the sound of shells hitting, and the shock waves and vibrations that spread in all directions as shells exploded.
“Eww! You little shits, stop shooting!”
“What the heck are these···.”
The officers were even more confused than the soldiers.
They assumed that the shells had probably fallen, as there had been no enemy artillery activity during the week.
But the fact that they suddenly appeared like this and attacked this place, which was relatively far behind the front lines, seemed to indicate some kind of impure intention.
“Ahhhh!”
Just then, a scream was heard from the trench next door.
The shrapnel hit hard, blowing the soldiers hiding there to pieces, scattering human remains inside and around the trench.
The horrified friendly soldiers called for medics, but their arrival would only result in picking up pieces of the corpse rather than providing treatment.
“···Fuck, this is fucked up.”
“What is it? What is it?”
“Oh, they’re little kids.”
A creepy sound came from far away.
And then the enemy artillery, which had paused for a moment like a ghost, began to fire again. Perhaps that was a funeral march.
The veterans and non-commissioned officers who realized what this meant began to sweat profusely.
Death was approaching.
They were the only ones on this planet with the audacity to play the prelude to death so brazenly in the darkness.