Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 265
Only Noblemtl
#265. Surprise Gift (3)
Hong Beom-do, who had taken off his military hat and was carrying a rather unusual pistol on his waist, reached out to the platoon leader behind him and asked for a map.
When he was handed the map, which was rolled up in a cylindrical box like a bamboo tube, he placed it on the narrow table in the bridge as if he had no time to waste.
“There are two targets on Ulleungdo that our direct unit must subdue. One is the wired telegraph network that runs from the northwest to the northeast of Ulleungdo, and the other is the Japanese surveillance tower located in the southeast of Ulleungdo.”
“Are you planning to destroy everything?”
“Of course. That’s why I got permission from the commander to ship a few dozen rounds of dynamite with him.”
He said, pointing to the wooden boxes with his thumb.
Somehow, I now understand why there were bright red letters written on the outside of the box saying things like “No fire,” “Handle with care,” and “No smoking within 150 steps of the box.”
“If we’re unlucky and get hit in the wrong place, we’ll all die.”
Although the captain of Jirisan told him his honest feelings, the army commander paid little attention.
“So, the commander of the Navy must have chosen Baekdu Mountain and Jirisan, which are the most excellent in navigation in the Navy. The time will be very short. As soon as we land, we plan to destroy all the Japanese facilities and barracks. The time required will be… about 3 hours.”
“There will be resistance, but is 3 hours really enough?”
“If we don’t get out within 3 hours, the enemy fleet at Jukbyeon may jump out. And the enemy forces deployed on Ulleungdo are about 40 in total. Even then, since most of them are non-combat troops related to the entire body, they should be easy to subdue.”
The explanation was fine. They knew exactly where the troops were deployed on Ulleungdo, as well as the enemy’s bases and key facilities, but there was still one question.
“It’s all good, very good. But there’s one important thing left.”
“What is it?”
“Ulleungdo has Japanese watchtowers and telegraph facilities, so we could be exposed to the enemy and intercepted before we even land. I don’t understand why we would take that risk and send two destroyers.”
“Oh, you mean that part?”
Instead of the blunt expression he had been showing until now, Hong Beom-do showed a faint smile.
The captains and officers all listened, wondering what on earth the army dog was talking about.
I heard that the army has a lot of strange authors, and at that moment, I thought that they were all yellow from the start.
“Captains, is there any wireless telegraph equipment on board?”
***
It had been three days since a group of Japanese soldiers, pale and pale, had entered Gaeseong.
While the soldiers suffered from cold and hunger, deprived of proper sleep and meals, the command of the Japanese First Army was suffering in a different way.
This was because they had to deeply contemplate whether to defend the area or retreat for survival, rather than going on the offensive any longer.
The Japanese First Army, which had retreated to Kaesong, was now in a desperate situation where it had to prepare for a counterattack by North Korean soldiers in Pyongyang, let alone launch an offensive.
The offensive in the Hwangju area almost succeeded, but they were caught up in an unexpected counterattack and barely managed to maintain their formation, only to make a relatively orderly withdrawal.
Immediately after that, the Roske cavalry appeared from nowhere, launched a surprise attack on the rear and flank of the retreating column, and then disappeared like ghosts. The number of cavalry was unknown, and their size was unknown.
That wasn’t all.
The mobs that had been active in the previously quiet area also rose up in large numbers and began to openly attack the retreating 1st Army units.
“What are we going to do about the losses we lost while retreating?”
“There was nothing we could do about it. We don’t have enough food for the soldiers right now, so if we don’t try to procure it locally, we have to be prepared to eat tree bark and grass!”
“What more are we supposed to do in this cursed land where the Japanese flag flies during the day and the Taegukgi flutters again at night?”
The shortage of supplies was also very serious. Ammunition was now limited to one day’s supply, and food to three days.
As the Guards Division was reorganized and reinforcements from the Korean garrison were brought in to Jemulpo and Gunsan ports, the burden on the supply corps increased noticeably.
“Because all the troops and supplies are tied up in Jemulpo, we are not able to proceed properly, Your Excellency the Commander···.”
“Fuck, fucking shit!”
It would be fortunate if Busan, which is relatively close to the mainland, remained intact, but even the headquarters was reluctant to use it after the large transport fleet was sunk last time.
In the end, most of the supplies and troops were concentrated in Jemulpo and Gunsan ports, and because bottlenecks were occurring on a massive scale, the 1st Army at the front was unable to receive timely and proper material support.
Fortunately, thanks to the timely arrival of Colonel Umezawa, the commander of the 1st Guards Brigade, who had been hastily reorganizing in Gyeongseong, leading his troops, we were able to secure our defensive capabilities and breathe a sigh of relief, but we still couldn’t hide our anxiety.
“The Joseon people are stronger than I thought.”
“We’ll be knocked out before we can even deal with the main force of Roske’s forces···.”
“It’s a shame, a shame, to have to retreat this far and live in fear of the enemy’s counterattack!”
To be honest, even Kuroki had no choice but to admit it now.
On the way to Pyongyang, they encountered the commander of the North Korean soldiers, Kim Si-hyeok, and the army he commanded, something far superior to them.
The fear that if they ever met again, they would not be able to survive was creeping in from the highest commanders of the 1st Army to the lowest soldiers.
‘The world’s best army and Kuroki failed.’
At first he looked down on them, but after the Guards Division was broken, he was filled with hatred, but this time it had turned into fear.
All this happened in just two months.
And the first army was on the defensive, gripped by uncontrollable fear.
The 1st Army command generally had to taste the bitterness of disappointment and frustration.
If things had gone as planned, we should have already attacked Pyongyang directly and then advanced towards Uiju.
However, even the one-sided offensive stance of Lieutenant General Kuroki, whom they had trusted, was exposed to the enemy’s counterattack and faced a situation where they had no choice but to retreat, and now they had no choice but to wait helplessly for the five divisions that were supposed to be reinforced from the mainland.
“We must retreat quickly from Gaeseong! The number of North Korean troops in Pyongyang may exceed 100,000!”
“Don’t just say unconfirmed information so easily!”
“Haven’t you seen the enemy counterattacking in Hwangju? The fact that the enemy was counterattacking the war of attrition that we had attempted in the first place means that those bastards had some corner they trusted! Your Majesty, Gaeseong is too difficult to defend. If the enemy decides to come down, we’re finished!”
“2nd Division Commander, stop talking about defeatism. It’s not too late to send the cavalry from the 1st Army to closely check the enemy situation and then retreat.”
“Cavalry? Where on earth is our cavalry? Are you saying that we should bring our Guards Cavalry Regiment, which was wiped out at Chinnampo, out of Yasukuni?”
The 2nd Division commander was talking about giving up on Gaeseong right away and moving the main force to Gyeongseong to prepare for a defensive battle.
Lieutenant General Inoue, the commander of the 12th Division, was displeased with the fact that he was steeped in defeatism, but he thought to himself that it was not unreasonable for such a mindset to have taken hold, considering the current situation of the entire 1st Army.
“From Pyeongnam to northern Gyeonggi, it is filled with Roske, Joseon cavalry, and the rabble actively cooperating with them! Where on earth and how can you get a close look at the enemy?!”
“Even if we have to take some casualties, we should dispatch the remaining cavalry to sort out the situation. No, are you saying we’re going to give up Gaeseong without a fight?”
“Look at the terrain here. Is it possible to defend with the remaining troops of the 1st Army that are currently in shambles?! I’m asking if we can defend with these exhausted and shattered soldiers!”
The 2nd Division commander shouted almost in a scream.
With the heavy casualties, the fatigue from the battle and the fear of the enemy seemed to have manifested themselves in cries.
As he said, the terrain of Gaeseong was advantageous for attack, but extremely unreasonable for defense.
The Yesong River and Songak Mountain to the west of Gaeseong were formed by a terrain that was high in the south and high in the north, which, in other words, also provided the ground for Joseon soldiers who were skilled in mobile infantry warfare.
In particular, Songaksan Mountain and its surrounding ridges overlooking the city of Gaeseong were even more difficult to defend. The moment one of those ridges was taken, the North Korean soldiers would have to open their eyes and face the artillery firepower and infantry maneuvers that they were so proud of.
“If we lose Songaksan, the entire Gaeseong will be exposed to enemy firepower! Are you sure that we can defend Songaksan and the northern hills of Gaeseong with this force? Are you saying that after seeing those devilish Joseon infantrymen and the vicious artillery that pours out shells over our heads no matter where we are hiding?”
“That’s why we have to defend this place even more! If we lose Gaeseong, our base north of the Imjin River will completely collapse! Furthermore, we will have no means of restraining the North Koreans in Pyongyang. We will have to repeat the same thing we did the first time. Do you think you can handle it?”
“It is realistic to use the Imjin River as a defensive line and receive reinforcements and troops through Jemulpo and Gyeongseong to reorganize the battle line. Jemulpo is too far from Gaeseong!”
I don’t know since when they started to care so much about logistics, but it wasn’t wrong.
Even with the help of the newly assembled Gyeongseong collaborators, these Koreans, far from helping out wholeheartedly with logistics work, would often openly sabotage the work or even escape when surveillance was lax.
“Umezawa, what do you think about the current situation?”
While the 2nd and 12th Division commanders were arguing, Commander Kuroki looked at the 1st Guards Brigade Commander, Colonel Umezawa, who had willingly rushed from Gyeongseong to support them.
He is still a temporary brigade commander, but since the previous commander was captured by the enemy, he would probably naturally take over.
“It may be presumptuous of me to say this, but you must give up your individuality and withdraw.”
“I see···.”
“The rear is too dangerous. When we were in Gyeongseong, both General Hasegawa, the commander of the reserve forces, and General Hidenori Tojo, the commander of the 2nd Reserve Infantry Division, were worried about the rear. Unless we suppress the rioters running wild in southern Korea, our victory is far away.”
“······.”
It was quite a blow to my pride to have to fight with a mob armed with such weapons.
But Umezawa’s next words had power.
“Your Excellency, the entire logistics depot and supply line that should support our army is burning. The local troops that follow the pro-Japanese Korean cabinet in Gyeongseong are hastily assembled and are not fit for battle. When most of them encounter the mob, they either desert or are annihilated even if they fight back. As a result, the logistics depots are busy defending their own immediate areas of jurisdiction rather than fully carrying out their logistics duties.”
It wasn’t just for a day or two that we heard insults saying that the militia we had called up was trash.
Of course, one problem is that it is hard to expect a bunch of thugs who haven’t even been properly trained to do anything right.
In any case, while he was in Gyeongseong, Umezawa, who had seen their disgraceful behavior to the point of being gnashed in the ears at the headquarters of the garrison, was one of those who insisted that the entire 1st Army should withdraw to ensure stability in the rear.
“If this happens, even if reinforcement divisions arrive from the mainland, it will take too long to attack Pyongyang. Their so-called second front is open.”
“Does that mean our troops are trapped on both sides?”
Lieutenant General Kuroki quickly turned his eyes to the map.
Unlike Japan, if a two-front war were to take place on the Korean Peninsula, which has a long and deep center and stretches from north to south, it would be clear that extremely unreasonable things would happen to them.