Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 344



Only Noblemtl

#2-2. An Uncomfortable Cohabitation with a Set End (2)

“Are you saying that the Japanese proposed the Oriental Development Company?”

“That’s right. They seem to be in a hurry too. Food is starting to run out, so the internal chaos caused by that will accelerate.”

I shrugged at Kim Ga-jin’s words. The Oriental Development Company. It was an infamous dinosaur-like organization that I could never forget whenever I studied Korean history or the history of the Korean independence movement. I was curious that in 1908, the Japanese Empire was proposing a joint venture with us. Of course, it wasn’t a bad proposal, and it was a pretty good card in that it could lead to a thaw in the strained relationship with Japan.

“It’s hard to explain it simply by saying it’s urgent. There must be some hidden agenda.”

“Hmm, Chief of Staff… No, no. If you, as the Chief of Operations and Chief of Infantry of the Marshal’s Office, are saying something like that, then there must be something behind it. I’m curious, too, yes.”

Just like us, Japan was also experiencing a growing food security crisis due to the pressure of population growth. The pressure of population was very scary, but the bigger problem was that it could directly threaten the system. Of course, the political chaos was much less than in Japan.

This was because the bureaucratic and military groups in Gwanseo and Gwanbuk, which had grown through the war, began to emerge, and the power of Giho and Yeongnam, which had dominated the existing bureaucracy, greatly declined, so generational change occurred very naturally.

Of course, the demands of civilians, especially women, who had grown up due to the war were growing louder every day, and interest in establishing a parliament and a constitution was also growing, so it could not be denied that completely different types of social problems were lurking.

Still, the fact that we won the war, and the hope that came from it, and the large-scale social reforms and powerful economic reforms that were carried out through the introduction of large-scale loans, is fortunate in that everyone has a spoonful of sugar called hope in their hearts, in the name of bitter reality.

In any case, because of this, immediately after the Treaty of Portsmouth in 1904, when the Japan-Korea Commerce Treaty was newly established, which revised the Japan-Korea Treaty of Amity and Commerce in 1905, the export of grains including rice and precious metals such as gold and silver had to be controlled by the state.

The Japanese Empire naturally objected strongly, saying, “Do you think that the rice trade between the two countries was a tribute trade with Tsushima Island that had only been conducted in the old days?” However, since we also took a strong stance, we had no choice but to accept it.

In the end, the two countries of Korea and Japan discussed the volume of rice exports and imports every two years, and the initial sales volume was set at around 500,000 seok. Of course, that alone was enough for Japan to be grateful. The problem was that after the war ended and both countries began to recover from the damage, population growth, industrialization, and urbanization rapidly progressed, and they became desperate to secure food.

Just as Japan’s population has more than doubled in ten years, ours has also experienced a significant population growth since the war. We were similar. The Ministry of Agriculture, Commerce, and Industry and the Records Research Office said that the population would more than double in the next thirty years, and that food supplies would need to be more than three times the current size to be sufficient to prepare for unexpected situations.

In response, the emperor ordered that the lands of South Manchuria be reclaimed to increase production, but the cabinet resolutely opposed this. The reason was that it was impossible to push ahead with the reclamation of wasteland in the country, let alone South Manchuria, in an unstable situation.

Then, just as Kuroda of Japan had led his troops to Hokkaido to start reclamation, the Marshal’s Office also ordered the Gyeongryaksa to send troops to start reclamation in South Manchuria. Of course, the Marshal’s Office deliberately ignored the order regarding this ridiculous proposal.

In the end, in order to build a military base, a considerable amount of money, manpower, and resources would have to be poured into it, but that was impossible with the current capabilities of the Korean Empire.

“It will definitely benefit us too. Isn’t it funny? Using the money of the Japanese who fought against us to reclaim our wastelands?”

Well, that’s the charm of the economy. Until a few years ago, it would seem like Japan was buying rice and gold from countries that were fighting each other with guns and swords, and using that to stabilize the country, or receiving money from Japan to rebuild the country and stockpile military supplies in preparation for another war.

“Unlike Japan, we have the potential to solve our population pressure and food shortage problems in other ways.”

“Is it a reorganization of the logistics network?”

“That’s right. As expected, the math is faster when you get married that way.”

“The calculations were fast from the beginning. If the calculations of a swordsman are slow, he will kill all the soldiers on the battlefield.”

I shrugged my shoulders and said while looking at the newly built new headquarters building in Yongsan. As military affairs gradually became more sophisticated and specialized, it was decided that the existing headquarters building in Gyeongungung Palace would not be able to handle it, so the decision was made to move the building altogether.

Accordingly, immediately after the old Japanese military barracks in Yongsan were handed over from Hanseongbu, construction work on the interior of the buildings was in full swing.

“Thanks to the development of railways, roads, and shipping, we can compromise on our current problems. If we can properly transport goods from the heart of the empire to the most remote areas, we will be able to maintain stable prices throughout the country. The hundred-year plan of the empire is literally at stake in a single moment.”

“But even that is only for a moment. If the same problem arises after the logistics network is reorganized, it will be difficult to deal with it.”

“That’s why we absolutely need the Oriental Development Company.”

Kim Ga-jin looked at me and said, “As he said, the logistics network was currently undergoing a major reorganization. After the Portsmouth Conference, France provided us with a 300 million franc loan at an annual interest rate of 2%, and the United States also invested about 100 million dollars in us to build the infrastructure of the South Manchurian Railway.

As expected, the money invested by American businessmen was being used for a large-scale modernization of infrastructure in the northern regions, while the French loans were being used entirely for the construction of the Gyeongui Line, the most strategic section connecting Manchuria and, moreover, the only network connecting the two important cities of Seoul and Pyongyang.

“We too must look to the future and move forward. We can somehow maintain the present in various ways, but one day, we too must make South Manchuria our own land in order to prepare for the future.”

“… And we must also prepare for war with the Japanese who still have not given up their ambitions.”

In fact, we had to prepare for the aftermath of World War I, which was a war to end everything, but ended nothing. Of course, the special warfare through this enriched our lives, but it was also a place where another seed of war was conceived, so we could not let down our guard and prepare for the next few decades.

The Roaring 20th Century was not all that easy. Of course, in order to gain time for this, they also went in the direction of maintaining the current Japanese Imperial government.

It was necessary to somehow control the Japanese military, which was full of anger and hatred, and wear it down through power struggles centered around Count Ito, and this was also intertwined with the general premise of dividing and opposing each other.

“Perhaps the Japanese will use that company as an excuse to exert influence in South Manchuria, and even further, in the Korean peninsula. They will still do that. Even if the current Japanese Empire does not intend to do so, future rulers will be different.”

Not only that. They could also see it as a good opportunity to solve their population pressure. In particular, by temporarily moving the overflowing urban population to other places, they could solve various domestic problems, and by attempting a kind of tactic, they could create a new spark for future Korea-Japan relations.

“If the Japanese government, which has established settlements in South Manchuria under the pretext of reclamation and has thus overcome the aftermath of the last war, exercises its sovereignty, bad things will surely happen to us.”

“Hmm, I did think about that, but I think we could try to suppress it through negotiations.”

“You should not make fun of the Japanese Imperial Government. They will do whatever it takes to send their own immigrants to Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula.”

Well, that could be a typical way of turning those who were dissatisfied with the system out. But even considering this, the Japanese proposal for joint management of the Oriental Development Company was quite attractive. It was the perfect answer for the future.

Moreover, we could find another interesting point in another sense. With their money, we could maximize our profits by reclaiming the wasteland or reclaiming South Manchuria, which we needed.

“But even if it means taking that risk, we are more than willing to accept their offer. After all, it is an essential matter for us, and even without that threat, the Japanese Empire will do whatever it takes to mess with us… It would be better to accept it now.”

And it would have been better to block the Japanese Empire’s numbers by controlling the expected variables. This would have been much more efficient than creating unpredictable variables.

“That’s just like you.”

He smiled, patted me on the shoulder, and left, saying he would report the matter to the cabinet. The dawn of the 20th century had been shining brightly on us since the last war, but it would not shine on us forever. Rain, wind, storm, and snowstorm could surround us at any moment.

So, preparations were needed for such a time. Perhaps an uneasy coexistence with the Japanese Empire would be the answer.

***

So six months later, after many adjustments and meetings, Korea and Japan secretly agreed to establish the Oriental Development Company, and agreed in principle that each country would have a 50% stake, and agreed to have government agencies and companies participate and contribute investment funds. The emperor, hoping to get his share, put up a considerable amount of his own embezzlement as investment funds.

“Your Majesty is too greedy.”

“Leave it alone. We can’t do anything about His Majesty’s personal funds.”

… I wondered if they were confusing national treasury and personal property. In any case, it was good up to this point. It was because they were able to pursue their own interests by reclaiming wasteland and producing food based on the funds of both countries, and distributing it to each country.

But, although it is not known through what route, information was leaked within the Japanese government, and those who suffered a great blow to their pride were properly scratched, and it ended up becoming a fairly large political issue.

Since the Emperor himself invested, there was no room for any complaints, and since he was showing composure from the perspective of the victor, no objections were raised, but Japan was different. Those who tried hard to ignore defeat were saying things like they were joining hands with Joseon bastards who deserved to be torn apart and killed, saying they were in a hurry.

The situation finally came to a head in July 1909, when a group of assassins, mostly soldiers of the Imperial Guard Division who had been captured and returned from captivity during the previous war and who called themselves patriots, ambushed Ito and other cabinet members as they were walking to work near the Imperial Palace in Tokyo.

“Long live His Majesty the Emperor! Long live the Empire of Japan!”

“Kill the old fox, the enemy of the Japanese Empire!”

Exactly three gunshots rang out, and chaos broke out near the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. The police quickly subdued and dragged out the shooters, but they continued to shout “Long Live the Emperor and the Empire of Japan.”

Originally, the Metropolitan Police Department’s security personnel were protecting them, but for some reason, the incident happened before they could do anything. Ito had to take two bullets to the chest from the gunfire of the suddenly appearing assailants, and the same was true for Prime Minister Saionji, who was discussing state affairs while going to work with him.

Not only these, but also Minister of Agriculture and Commerce Oura, who took the lead in establishing the Oriental Development Company, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Komura, who was a target of many assassinations, were also targeted. Prime Minister Saionji was spared from death thanks to being grazed by a bullet, and the rest were also successfully subdued by the Metropolitan Police Department personnel who were protecting them, but Ito was different.

The bullet was aimed directly at the heart, and the doctor died before he could do anything. Although there had been numerous assassination attempts before and after the war, the political situation itself was thrown into chaos as the old fox of Japan met her end in vain.

“Count Ito is dead, oh my.”

As I read the story that was featured on the front page of the newspaper, I was busy preparing for work in the morning. No matter how I looked at it, this was something that had been done by the instigation or tacit approval of the discontented Japanese military. If that wasn’t the case, how could the other cabinet members, except Ito, be okay?

“… This time, it wasn’t a Korean but a Japanese person who shot him. It’s a matter of course, tsk tsk.”

I said, clicking my tongue. But this time, I thought it would be a little less unfair since it was not a Korean who was on the verge of becoming a colony, but a Japanese who died at the hands of another Japanese person.

Even without that, Yamagata had already mentioned that he would have to deal with Count Ito and his cabinet at some point, and given that the younger faction within the military was deeply dissatisfied with the last meeting, it was clear that there had to be some kind of connection.

The third division of the Records Investigation Office may have already obtained information that the dissidents had stolen firearms from somewhere.

Of course, the Oriental Development Company was still maintained. The discontented forces, including the military, assassinated Ito, claiming that he had humiliatingly compromised with the Joseon bastards, but that did not mean that they did not know the value that the Oriental Development Company would have for them.

Perhaps, he was designing his own future while he was vaguely passing through. And at the end of that future, he would bare his teeth without hesitation in order to monopolize all the harvest.

It should be noted that they were not stupid, but rather used irrational means to move in the most rational direction. That was the face of imperial Japan, the alpha and omega.

Anyway, things got crazy, and my plans to enjoy a long-awaited vacation were ruined. Of course, an emergency had arisen, and orders had been given to assemble all the key officials of the Marshal’s Office.

“It’s a holiday today, are you coming to work?”

“Oh, sorry. Something urgent came up… … .”

“I heard that Ito Hirobumi or something died in Japan? There’s been a lot of chaos since this morning.”

Roha yawned and straightened my uniform. Well, maybe that was why the kids selling newspapers were busier than usual today, even though it was a holiday. She handed me a neatly prepared military cap and spent the morning like any other day at work. The only difference was that she was looking up at me with her hair messy and not neatly arranged.

“Do you eat lunch at home?”

“Don’t wait up. You might be very late.”

“Tch.”

She grumbled, but she hugged me with her legs raised. Someone might click their tongue and say that I was being sarcastic, but it was none of my business.

“I’ll be back.”

I said hello to her and got into the car with the staff waiting outside. The cohabitation, which was more uncomfortable than I thought, seemed like a precarious relationship that was already beginning with an end in sight.