Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 375



Only Noblemtl

#2-31. Goodbye to all plans (3)

“The Korean army has already advanced into Yeonggwang before we could even intervene?!”

“Yes. South Korean Army General Kim Si-hyeok is personally commanding the punitive force, and is advancing northward at a rapid pace, commanding two divisions, two brigades, and a squadron including battleships!”

“30% of Jangjakrim’s forces have already been annihilated in Andong, and the remaining forces are being pushed back minute by minute on the outskirts of Yeonggu. If we delay any longer, Yeonggu, Jangjakrim’s main stronghold, will fall into the hands of the Korean army!”

Meanwhile, Saionji looked at the Foreign Ministry’s coded telegram report with surprised eyes and muttered in confusion.

The situation was worse than expected, and contrary to the military’s optimistic expectations, the Korean army was harshly pushing Jang Jag-rim and his men.

The information from the Republic of China Embassy in Japan and the Japanese Embassy in China was all but false. Fortunately, thanks to the activities of the mainland investigators, we were able to obtain information close to the current situation.

“All our plans have gone down the drain. Now, instead of discussing military intervention in Manchuria, we must focus on preventing the fall of Zhang Zuolin and preventing an all-out war!”

Until just before the incident, junior officers at the General Staff analyzed the seven previous border conflicts and pointed out repetitive and characteristic aspects of the Korean military’s maneuvers and responses.

And if this was used properly, they saw that it would buy them enough time until the Japanese army and navy could be redeployed to Manchuria.

To this end, he dispatched military supplies and advisors to Jangjakrim and deliberately left it to attack Japanese settlements dispatched from Dongchuk.

In any case, that level of sacrifice was something the Japanese Empire could endure, and it was even more regrettable because these people were rebels against the Japanese Empire’s system itself.

Rather, it would have been beneficial to send ground forces and a fleet under the pretext of maintaining public order in South Manchuria and take away some of the influence from the Korean Empire.

For this purpose, the military had already consulted with the Ministry of the Interior and discussed where and how to deploy police and military forces. But as always, things did not go as planned.

“Roske’s Far East Governor-General, what are they doing?”

“It still maintains neutrality. The Russian Empire mechanically maintains neutrality in this situation and recommends restraint from conflict, but does not intervene as actively as before.”

Perhaps he thought that it would not be a bad thing if the Korean Empire took the initiative and beat him up while he was struggling in a dangerous tug-of-war between Russia and Japan.

Recently, there have been many cases of deliberately ignoring the orders of the Governor-General and raiding settlements instead of leading the Horogun to conduct security activities, so it seems that the Governor-General of the Far East has become very angry.

“Furthermore, according to the Korean plenipotentiary, the 50,000-strong army commanded by General Kim Si-hyeok has already broken through the southern defense line and is advancing. They are threatening to advance all the way to Shanhaiguan. We must intervene immediately!”

“Hansung is vehemently opposed to our military intervention. They have sent us a warning that if we attempt to intervene militarily under the pretext of this incident, they will never sit idly by.”

“How can those Joseon guys be so arrogant… … .”

“Those Joseon bastards caused 300,000 casualties on the peninsula alone in the past 10 years. Never forget that.”

Moreover, the report from Minister of Foreign Affairs Komura that flew in from Gyeongseong was surprising. Not only was the Korean government and military already responding quickly, but he also sent a warning that if the Japanese military used this as an excuse to intervene, he would never sit idly by.

“You arrogant bastards, bragging about having only one battleship.”

“That’s the real problem. Unlike the last war, this time they also have a regular fleet, so if they take a stronghold on the West Sea and make Jemulpo like Lushun, we won’t be able to do anything. Even if we land in Manchuria, we will be hit hard by the enemy’s powerful ground forces.”

Those who had war experience, but who were moderates like the cabinet, who came from a military background, chimed in, saying that Saionji’s fears were credible.

“Their army has the same fanaticism as our warriors. That is hope. They have defeated us once, and they believe that they can defeat us again if they invade. We should not treat them lightly now. We should mediate with them now and prevent the downfall of Zhang Zuolin. If Zhang Zuolin falls, Yuan Shikai of the Beiyang government will have great doubts about our capabilities, and ultimately, we will lose all the efforts we have made over the past ten years.”

The new Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nobuaki Makino, was telling Saionji the same story.

“…If we fail to intervene this time, the cabinet will collapse.”

“At any rate, we must prevent war. Objectively, we cannot guarantee victory even if we go to war with Korea alone.”

Saionji hesitated in the face of the realistic problem that the ten-year-old civilian-military cooperation cabinet that he had maintained with all his might could collapse as a result of this incident, and that an unfortunate incident would occur where the military would no longer be able to be controlled.

The army generals of the Yamagata faction and the navy generals of the Yamamoto faction were already growling about their intentions to enter the next cabinet, and the civilian ministers were just anxious about their advancement.

‘Ah, if only Count Ito had been here at a time like this.’

Saionji thought about it for a moment, but decided it was pointless, so he took a deep breath and accepted the following reports.

“The Korean plenipotentiary has already sent us a strong warning not to intervene. The Korean fleet and ground forces have already been deployed to resolve the security and disturbance situation, and if the opportunity arises, they will strike at Yeongju and Geumju, which are dens of bandits, and seek permanent peace for the settlements of the Oriental Development Company… … .”

That was absolutely unacceptable. It was obvious what would happen if the Jangjakrim they were pushing so openly lost its base.

The Korean army was able to shake Yuan Shikai and his Beiyang government, whom they had worked hard to win over to their side, by threatening Yeongdeok and even Jinju and Shanhaiguan.

Because the Japanese fleet was far away and the powerful Korean ground forces were close to their hearts, a terrifying situation could unfold directly for them.

“That is absolutely unacceptable! The Korean army must absolutely not advance further than Yonggung!”

The thought flashed through my mind that this must have been exactly what it was like during the Russo-Turkish War, when the Russian army and the Balkan allies were advancing all the way to Istanbul, while the British watched anxiously, terrified that the situation was reaching a critical point.

“Tell Gomura in Gyeongseong immediately! Whether it’s the Minister of Foreign Affairs or the Minister Plenipotentiary of the Korean Empire, strongly request that he cease any further fighting!”

Then he quickly took out a piece of paper, wrote something diligently, and handed it over to another Foreign Ministry official nearby.

“Send a letter immediately in the name of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Russian Far East Governor-General and our ambassador to Russia, strongly requesting that the Korean army cease its hostilities. Also, tell Yuan Shikai in Beijing to stop Zhang Zuolin’s army from crossing the line any longer!”

Saionji recalled recent events in the Balkans and wanted to put out the fire spreading in Manchuria with Russia at the forefront. Russia was in deep trouble due to the two Balkan Wars.

As a means of checking the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Russia formed an alliance with the Balkan states, but by the end of the war, it had completely disintegrated, and the satellite states that were supposed to be Russia’s limbs were now baring their teeth and growling at each other.

Believing that they would not just sit by and watch as the Russian Empire’s foreign policy and strategy in the West deteriorated and problems arose in the East as well, Saionji decided to take a gamble.

“But will the Army and Navy watch this… … .”

“I’ll take care of that, so hurry up and ask Russia and the Beiyang government to mediate!”

He knew that he had no time, so he started moving in a hurry.

***

“Ahem, are you asking me to directly mediate the border dispute occurring in Manchuria?”

“Yes. Our home country is very concerned about a conflict between the Korean Empire and the Beiyang Government in the Far East.”

Honno Ichiro, the Japanese Minister to Russia, received an urgent telegram in the middle of the night, and as soon as the next morning, he rushed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Empire in St. Petersburg.

And there, Vite, with her expressionless face, was looking at him as if she was annoyed.

“You should talk about Far East affairs with the Governor-General. Why bring it up here?”

“Information has come in that the Korean army may advance beyond South Manchuria to the vicinity of Beijing. It is too dangerous for us to intervene, so your intervention is urgently needed.”

“Let’s see… … .”

Vite looked at the document in the Japanese ambassador’s hand as if he was snatching it away.

An intelligence report translated into Russian said three South Korean divisions and a flotilla were operating near Yeonggwang.

But Vite opened her mouth as if it was no big deal.

“I have already reported it.”

“No, if that’s the case, then mediation is needed now-”

“Why do we have to do that? The Tsar has already recognized the legitimacy of the Korean Empire’s military action.”

Beate cut him off coldly and replied, In fact, there was a back story exchanged between the Tsar, the Russian Imperial Government, and the Far Eastern Government General.

After the war, when South Manchuria was effectively handed over to the Korean Empire, an unexpected problem arose: the Chinese population was growing rapidly in Manchuria.

Even when Russia suppressed the Boxer Rebellion, the population it had surveyed was not small at around 14 million, but within 10 years, it had increased significantly to between 16 and 20 million.

And most of this population was flowing into relatively stable cities such as Mukden and Port Arthur (Lüshun), which could be called the Russian sphere of influence.

The Russian Ministry of the Interior was able to conclude that their influx was due to the severe deterioration of internal conditions caused by the collapse of the Qing Dynasty, civil war, chaos, and subsequent famine.

As the influx of people increased, the Russian government in St. Petersburg temporarily placed high hopes on them, believing that they would provide the population that was most needed for the development of the Russian Far Eastern territory.

But this was only an illusion, and the reality was harsh. The Russian governors-general, who had been supplying food and fuel to the Far East through trade with the Korean Empire, began to suffer greatly due to the rapidly increasing Chinese population.