Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 288
Only Noblemtl
#288. Suspended Sentence (4)
“The 1st Army and the 2nd Army are continuously requesting supplies and personnel to reorganize their forces, but···.”
“If there were troops to send there, they would have been sent to Lushun.”
There were no troops left to reinforce Joseon, which had now been relegated to a secondary front.
Even though the 2nd and 3rd Armies in Lushun were suffering massive damage, they were receiving reinforcements of their insufficient troops and ammunition once a month.
Because of this, the 1st and 2nd Army Corps were continuously experiencing a significant reduction in troops.
“By the way, is the situation in Joseon really that bad? You say you’ve locked up the Joseon guys in Hamgyeong Province? Then, wouldn’t you be able to send the remaining 1st Army troops here?”
“That’s not exactly what they locked up. They went there on their own. They recently reorganized their forces, and their numbers are now well over 100,000. What would happen if the 1st Army were to leave?”
It was clear that they were all just trying to harass the Japanese army as much as possible.
Although they were conscripting auxiliary troops from within the occupied territories of the Korean Peninsula with the help of the new Korean government, which was hastily cooperating locally, this was not a particularly good idea either.
“The stupid new government of Joseon is conscripting troops at will, causing riots to break out here and there, and the number of troops that should be sent to the front is continuously decreasing. The 1st Army is practically a shell, except for the Guards Division.”
“No, didn’t you assign the 15th Division to the Korean Army?”
“They are busy suppressing the activities of the rioters, scattered throughout the Samnam region with the remaining 2nd and 12th Division troops. They say that the rioters hiding in the mountainous terrain are resisting in an organized manner, so even if an entire division-level force is deployed, it will not be enough.”
In Lushun and Joseon, the front line was wider and more sluggish than expected.
In Lushun alone, 50,000 people were lost, and in Joseon too, more than 50,000 people were lost.
All of this was an ongoing loss.
At least 100,000 casualties were expected, and if the war continued, more than 200,000 casualties were expected.
“In North Korea, only the 2nd Reserve Infantry Division and the Guards Division of the 2nd Army and six battalions under the direct command of the 2nd Army can be said to be immediately available forces.”
“It still hurts to see the first team worn out so easily.”
As the Minister of the Army said, the loss of the elite troops that had been prepared before the war was extremely painful.
Of course, the majority of Japanese still believed that the war was being won.
Although news of the destruction of the convoy did spread through the press for a brief moment, it was quickly covered up by other news, successfully turning public fear into cheers again.
The news of the fall of Hansung and Pyongyang, and the victory in Dalian, were enough to excite the people.
If the war lasted longer than expected, there was no way to control the press and the angry public.
“What if the media bites me like this?”
“That’s fine, because we can use the newspaper law to keep them quiet, but the problem lies elsewhere. It’s an issue that everyone at the headquarters should be aware of.”
Ito, who had been silent, opened his mouth and spoke.
When the veteran fox himself came forward and said that there was another problem, the military hardliners, including Yamagata, listened to him for a moment.
No, I had to tilt it. The fox didn’t come out carelessly.
“If you say it’s a problem···?”
“We can’t keep this war going for long. We’re spending too much money and too many men. If the war goes on to next year, our economy won’t be able to sustain it. In the five months since the war began, we’ve already spent four years’ worth of budget. If the war ends, we’ll have spent ten years’ worth of budget, and we’ll be busy paying off debt for a while.”
Money was provided to some extent by Jacob Schiff, a Jew who hated the Russian Empire, and Britain also provided some capital, but if public opinion rapidly worsened, even that would have to be cut off.
The fluctuations in the war bonds were already so great that even the Japanese Empire’s Ministry of Finance could not control them.
While Russian war bonds were being traded steadily, Japanese war bonds were being sold in large quantities, causing interest rates to rise to unmanageable levels.
“Bond sales are slowing down. There are some in the UK and US, but there are still more listings.”
Although Britain and the United States bought Japan’s war bonds, everyone was worried because interest rates were so high.
“They say that the bonds of Roske and Joseon are selling like hotcakes···.”
“If foreign military experts predicted Joseon’s defeat, why is it being sold like that?”
Not only did the war bonds of Russia and the Korean Empire greatly offset the difficulties in raising war funds when they were purchased by friendly countries like France and Germany, but it also seemed that there was a craze in the United States among pro-Korean senators to purchase Korean war bonds.
“···We are losing the battle of public opinion. They have transformed themselves into sacred defenders in the US and Europe.”
Like Washington crossing the Delaware River, he raised a pretty good amount of money for the war by selling bonds, under the slogan that he was waging a holy war to defend his homeland from the invasion of oppressors.
It was so disheartening to see those Joseon guys transforming themselves into freedom fighters.
Germany and France didn’t even expect it, but even businessmen in the United States invested in North Korean bonds instead of Japanese bonds, calling them safe assets.
“I think it’s because of Joseon’s underground minerals and potential rather than public opinion, but that’s not important right now, folks.”
Roughly speaking, while Russia and North Korea’s wartime bonds maintained interest rates in the 4.5-5% range, Japan’s soared to over 6%.
Although Lushun had collapsed, the Russian army in Manchuria was still holding out, and Joseon was also resisting fiercely and was targeting the Japanese army, so the international financial market was not particularly good at evaluating them.
“No matter what happens, we must end the war within this year. Otherwise, our Japanese Empire will not only lose the war against the enemy, but will also begin to collapse from within.”
“···The emergency military budget already far exceeds the average annual budget. Any further tax increases would be suicidal.”
At Ito’s words, Yamagata also counted the budget with his fingers one by one, then stopped.
This is because the Ministry of Finance was already working hard to secure finances by imposing all kinds of miscellaneous taxes, including taxes on tobacco, salt, liquor, and business, in order to make national finances sound.
As taxes were imposed on soy sauce, sugar, and hunting, public discontent was increasing regardless of the country’s will to wage war.
“···That’s the conclusion. We have to end the war within this year, isn’t that it?”
In the end, a quick decision was the only answer.
“Yes. Today is March 4th… Even if they can’t, the Roske will deploy their troops here around September. If we sweep through Joseon, Dalian, and Fengtian before then and achieve a great victory, we will be able to negotiate with them from a favorable position.”
If that happens.
The strategic locations of Port Arthur and Dalian, which served as springboards to Manchuria and the continent and allowed the Empire of Korea and Asia to conquer, fell into the hands of the Empire of Japan.
The prediction that if the gold and rice produced in the Korean Empire and their manpower were mobilized to conquer Manchuria and then build up strength there and advance into the continent, the Japanese flag would dominate Asia for a long time was not going to remain a mere dream.
“No matter what happens, we must fall to Lushun before summer comes. And we must completely crush Fengtian and Joseon. Our officials will somehow control the Western countries and their subjects, so I hope the army and navy will do their utmost to complete their assigned missions.”
“Well, I understand what you’re saying. We will also continue to support the 2nd and 3rd Armies by concentrating our troops and supplies.”
Through the cigarette smoke, Ito suddenly remembered something that General Aesong of the Joseon army had once said.
If war breaks out as it is, Japan could lose one-third of its youth population.
It seemed like it was becoming a reality, but he tried to ignore it and continued to persuade the warring army and navy to occupy Port Arthur.
It was a war where the buttons were sewn wrong from the beginning, but it didn’t matter. The wrongly sewn button could be unbuttoned and put back in the right hole.
Of course, it was questionable whether their enemies would just let it go, but Ito was trying his best, thinking that things would work out somehow.
Of course, it remained to be seen whether that would be the best option or a narrow escape from the worst.
***
The harsh winter had passed, spring had passed, and now summer was clearly approaching.
The eternal winter that seemed like it would freeze everyone to death was now slowly coming to an end.
Meanwhile, the battlefield was filled with countless stories of joy and pain.
The news of victory in Korea was enough to secure the emperor a fairly important political position.
When congratulatory telegrams from the Tsar and other European countries arrived, and similar congratulatory messages were sent from pro-Korean senators in the United States, he acted as if his shoulders and neck were tense.
As if he had chosen to win.
Well, it wasn’t all bad. It was because several countries, surprised by our victory, bought up war bonds like hotcakes.
Thanks to this, we were able to secure the funds to endure the exhibition and a justification for the exhibition to be held externally.
Above all, the fruits of victory were elsewhere. Beginning in early March 1904, the Russian Tsar began sending out his troops in earnest for the decisive battle.
Seeing our victory, the Tsar also decided to make a bold move, and the morale of the military, officials, and civilians soared to heaven.
Of course, the news quickly died down when it was revealed that it would take half a year for them to arrive, but it was certainly encouraging news.
Well, whatever the case, the spring and early summer of 1904 were relatively warm and quiet throughout Hamgyong Province.
Due to their previous defeat, the Japanese army avoided further battles with the regular army and did nothing more than send some troops to the eastern regions of Gangwon and Pyeongan provinces to strengthen the encirclement.
At this point, the only Japanese troops deployed on the Korean Peninsula were the three divisions of the 1st Army, the 2nd Reserve Infantry Division assigned to the 2nd Army, and the 15th Division.
Among these, the 2nd and 12th Divisions, which had lost most of their replacement troops to Lushun and could barely form a single brigade, were turned around to suppress guerrillas, and the 15th Division was dispersed to defend the supply line.
Thanks to the Japanese army’s hesitant abandonment of movement throughout the Korean Peninsula, I was able to reinforce my defenses and prepare for future actions relatively freely.
In addition, the Navy still maintained control of the East Sea coast and prevented the Japanese Guards Division that had occupied Wonsan from advancing further north.
But time, which we always thought was on our side, is now starting to strangle us again.
The fall of Lushun, which had been holding out with fierce resistance for so long, was approaching.
With the fall of Hill 203 and the Japanese conducting heavy artillery bombardment of Port Arthur, surrender was becoming inevitable.