Sword Master of Joseon - Chapter 519
Only Ranovel
519. Chapter 63. hit from behind (2)
However, of course they did not listen at first, and reinforcements were sent occasionally every time they were repeatedly bombarded by battleships. However, as it went on for several months, the number of volunteers exceeded 10,000.
After that. When the Joseon army attacked Shanhaiguan from the front, they realized that they had entered a real war and requested a second reinforcement force, which proceeded immediately.
With the onset of the farming season, there was room to mobilize troops.
So the number of troops gathered now is as many as 50,000. This is the number of people that even the Bukpyeong Department has provided to Shanhaiguan.
‘Finally, we even requested a third reinforcement force.’
However, I thought this was not enough, and the Governor of Shanhai remembered the messenger he had sent a few days ago when the Jinjinmun Gate tower was helplessly destroyed.
From the Liaodong War to the Bukpyeongbu Civil War. Shanhaiguanju was a man with deep experience on the battlefield, and he guessed the end as soon as he was hit by the Joseon army’s artillery fire.
If we fight the same way as the Joseon army, we will never be able to defeat them.
So what should I do? They had to create a battlefield where their methods would work, and their method was none other than replacing people.
We planned to push through with a large number of people, which could be said to be a tradition of Chinese dynasties… but it was unclear whether the generals in Bukpyeong would follow suit.
Pushing through numbers is only possible for a unified Chinese dynasty, but it is not a hand that the Bukpyeongbu, with only the Bukjikrye remaining, can freely use. The number of 50,000 people already staying at Shanhaiguan is also a force that would be difficult to mobilize if it were not for the importance of Shanhaiguan.
‘If the battle continues, we have the upper hand as we can mobilize more soldiers. Joseon will have to protect Liaodong… It would be difficult to mobilize Liaodong people, and they would like to end this war quickly somehow. If we can hold out until Joseon becomes unable to hold on, we will win.’
Shanhaiguanju was pounding his head hard to complete the end of the siege… but for some reason, not the generals under his command who had called him to come, but the defender of Yeongeungmun, the western gate, was running towards him.
Both the governor of Shanhai and the commander of Cheonho sensed that something unusual had happened. Yeongeungmun Gate, located on the other side of Jindongmun Gate adjacent to the Liaoxi Corridor, was a safe place even when bombarded by the Joseon army.
Sure enough, the rush was so rapid that even if you just looked at the defender, Yeong Eung-moon, his complexion was as white as flour, which was grotesque.
“General!”
“What’s going on?”
“Well… Cheonjin Port has fallen.”
“what?”
“her…?”
The Lord of the Mountains and Seas raised his voice without realizing it, and General Cheon Ho, who was next to him, could not hide his bewildered expression in disbelief.
“How many enemies? “How already?”
Even the governor of Shanhai Province asked with his hands trembling without realizing it, and defense chief Yeongeungmun generously explained what he had heard from the messenger.
Of course, even the messenger did not know the exact details because he escaped right before the Joseon army landed, but you can guess it.
“eww…”
I don’t know if the commander of the defense, Yeongeungmun, who was from a different faction, was criticizing the Cheonjin naval force, or if he really did it… It seemed that the Cheonjin naval army did not defend itself vigorously against the Joseon army.
‘ha…’
Shanhai Guanju sighed in relief.
The distance from Tianjin to Shanhaiguan is approximately 200 kilometers.
Even if the messenger came running like crazy without any sleep, it would still take several days… If the news had arrived now, the Joseon army would have already occupied Cheonjin Port.
There was nothing I could do, so I just dug my fingernails into my palms.
“after…”
“You idiots! “I said so much about the need to defend Cheonjin Port…”
Commander Cheonho cursed without realizing it, but quickly managed his expression while observing the notices of the governor of Shanhae and the guard of Yeongeungmun.
All of this occurred because of factional fighting, but the governor of Shanhai Province and his generals could not be free from the factional fighting.
“…”
“…”
There was an awkward silence for a moment as Cheon Ho-jang’s words smeared my face.
As with all other provinces in China, factionalism was particularly complicated in the case of Bukpyeongbu.
There were native Han Chinese noble families who served the Mongolian nobility, there were immigrant noble families who came up as the Ming Dynasty advanced north and took over the rights of the Mongolian nobility, and there were soldiers and noble families from all over the country who came to march to Liaodong.
Afterwards, when the Yeonwangbu was created and the political uprising occurred, the Bukjikrye noble clan split into the Yeonwang faction, the emperor faction, and the neutral faction. Of course, the imperial faction was swept away by the King of Yan, and its interests were taken over by the nobles and the military generals of the King of Yan.
However, the Jeongnan army was blown away by the meteorite’s nuclear bomb, and King Yeon’s government was divided into a loyalist faction serving the successor to King Yeon and a rebel faction, leading to a civil war. Naturally, among the surviving nobles, sides were divided again, and with the traitor faction winning, the loyal faction fled to Liaodong with the remnants of the defeated soldiers.
The problem is when King Yeon is around, the generals under him. The generals brought in from all over the country to support Liaodong and control the northern nomads were all in the same position, but with the advent of the Northern Pyeongbu, didn’t they turn into warlords?
In the end, the current Bukpyeongbu was represented by indigenous nobles, immigrant nobles, and military factions, and military factions with different origins and hometowns were further divided into several factions, including the Tianjin Naval Forces, led by self-proclaimed generals.
At best, five or six factions share the power of Bukpyeongbu.
It was complicated up to this point, but when you look into the inside, it becomes even more dizzying.
All of these events happened over a period of 20 or 30 years at most.
There were families and factions that were part of the emperor’s faction, then surrendered and became part of the Jeongnan army, and then again belonged to the rebel faction, and in extreme cases, there were bat-like families and factions that changed horses three or four times.
Naturally, it was impossible to erase all of the past, so the factions were distant and wary of each other, and behind the scenes, they continued to unite and gather together depending on the issue, which was the current Bukpyeongbu.
And Shanhai Guanju also belonged to one axis of the faction, that is, the faction that opposed the Tianjin Naval Forces.
Like Gwangnyeongseong in Liaodong, the position of Shanhai Guanzhu was not a highly preferred position. It may be a cowardly excuse, but belonging to a faction was a choice for survival.
In order for a warlord faction to exist, there must be soldiers who can be called a support base, and for soldiers there must be money.
However, the place connected to Shanhaiguan is Liaodong, and Liaodong and Bukpyeongbu are between Cheolcheonji Marshal.
It’s not a place to make money at all.
Geoyonggwan in the north was a place of exile and a place to trade with the remnants of the Northern Yuan and Mongolian tribes through Kalgan, but it has long since been destroyed by the Joseon army and turned into a land of death.
The port of Tianjin in the east was a place where a huge amount of income could be earned by plundering trade ships from Liaodong and Shandong, but when it was raided by the Joseon army, it was practically non-existent.
On the other hand, Jahyeonggwan to the west was the gateway connecting Shanxi and Bukjikrye, so it was an attractive place. The only power that Northern Jikrye traded with was Shanxi, and the passage through which Shanxi could be reached was Jahyeongwan.
Lastly, the southern region adjacent to Shanxi and Henan was also a strategic point.
Although Hanam and Shandong did not officially trade with Bukjirye, they continued to trade luxury goods through smuggling, and the noble families and warlords benefited from this.
In this way, although Shanhaiguan was a place that must be protected, it was a place that was avoided among factions because it did not make money, and as the lord of Shanhaiguan, he could not maintain his position unless he belonged to a faction.
In addition, the defense of Cheonjin Port was necessary for the defense of Bukjirye, but wouldn’t it be good for the faction to see Cheonjin fall?
It was as if politics had swallowed up military strategy, so it was difficult for the governor of Shanhai Province to say anything to his subordinate, Commander Cheon Ho.
I just let out a word in emptiness.
“The fact that Tianjin Port was attacked… really means that Liaodong was completely destroyed.”
“under…”
“…”
Everyone was at a loss for words and only laughed.
Unless the Bukpyeongbu generals are also idiots. The fact that factional fighting occurred instead of rebuilding the Cheonjin Naval Forces was, in fact, based on common sense judgment.
It is clear that the Joseon army invaded China, but this was only possible because the Chinese nobles supported and sympathized with them.
Even though the Joseon army was great, landing in large numbers at Cheonjin Port and targeting Bukpyeong was unreasonable no matter how you looked at it.
However, when Shanhaiguan was attacked, anxiety and suspicion grew.
There is a real possibility that the Joseon army will attack Bukpyeongbu entirely.
But even during this time, there was a lot of talk. I was confused as to whether the Joseon army moved north to attack Yodong or to attack Bukpyeongbu.
And in the judgment of the Bukpyeongbu, no matter how you look at it, they believed that attacking Shanhaiguan was to divert attention, and assumed that the real target was Liaodong.
However… the problem is that as soon as the news of the war between Liaodong and Joseon was heard from Shanhaiguan and Beipingbu, Liaodong fell into the hands of Joseon in an instant.
Joseon took over all of Liaodong and Liaoxi in less than a month at most? It was to the point where I wondered if it was true that Liaodong and Joseon fought, or if they all opened the gates and surrendered without fighting.
The Shanhai Province and Beipingbu surrendered without really fighting, and could not even imagine that the Liaodong Tigers would survive and migrate to Shandong and Henan.
In this situation… what can be done if we suddenly shout that Tianjin Port must be defended just because Shanhaiguan is being attacked from land?
We spent several years trying to undermine the power of the Tianjin naval faction, but there is no way we could complete the defense of Tianjin Port in just a few months or days.
Even if I swear, it’s like spitting in my face. Shanhai Guanju quickly changed the subject.
“The news must have reached Beiping and Tianjin, right?”
“yes. That’s right. The messenger said that the Joseon army was concentrating on occupying Cheonjin Port. Of course, now that time has passed, they may be heading up the Haihe River and aiming for Tianjin… In any case, wouldn’t it take time for the Joseon army to manage the Tianjin navy and its people?”
“It means that they will be gathering troops to protect Tianjin as planned.”
“yes. Bukpyeong will also send reinforcements. “They will be gathering troops from other regions as well.”
Just because the power of the Tianjin naval faction has been diminished, it is foolish to give up Tianjin, which can threaten Beiping.
Since we have already felt the strength of the Joseon Navy, wouldn’t it be a heavy burden to go out to sea and fight? So, give up fighting at sea, draw the enemy inland, and fight the way Bukpyeongbu is good at.
Citing this justification, the Bukpyeongbu gave up Cheonjin Port and developed an operational plan to focus on protecting Cheonjin City.
By now, they are probably moving according to plan, and they may be planning a siege or even attempting a siege to prevent the Joseon army from escaping Cheonjin Port.
‘The problem is that since Joseon has landed at Tianjin Port, the requested third reinforcement force may go to Tianjin instead of Shanhaiguan.’
Shanhai Guanju imagined what kind of judgment the Beipingbu would make… but at the moment, with the lack of information, he couldn’t come up with a clear answer.
But… the Joseon army crouching in front of Shanhaiguan is also formidable, so wouldn’t it be possible to send the third reinforcement force to Shanhaiguan somehow?
‘But we don’t have enough troops. If we have to protect Bukpyeong and Tianjin… we will have no choice but to bring troops from somewhere else.’
No matter how wide the military designation and the large number of troops that the Bukpyeongbu can mobilize, it is not possible to pluck out people indefinitely like planting people in the ground. So, in order to cover two unplanned fronts, we may have to conscript troops from the west or east.
“Isn’t that so?”
“Maybe so. To be honest, Shanhaiguan here might be able to survive somehow, but it’s not Tianjin. “We have built a coastal battery at the Haeha River, but we do not know how effective it will be against the Korean naval forces, so we will try to concentrate our forces in Tianjin somehow.”
“no way. Here again…?”
Chief Cheon Ho-jang raised his voice in fear, fearing that politics might interfere with military strategy this time, and was afraid that his words would become seeds, so he quickly picked them up.
If Beiping decides, “We will block Shanhaiguan with your own strength, and we will focus on Tianjin,” then the defense will be doubly difficult.
When you are worried about the fire rising so far away and the fire falling on your feet.
“Huh… General!”
There was a soldier on horseback running from the other side, shouting like crazy.
At first glance, he seemed to be a subordinate of the defense chief Yeong Eung-moon… but somehow he looked exactly the same as the previous defense chief.
“…!”
“What else…!?”
Everyone’s eyes widened in horror at that ominous sight, and they hoped it wasn’t bad news.
However, optimism without measures is always vain.
“what…?”
“I… the Joseon Navy has appeared in Nanhe!”
As soon as Defense Chief Yeong Eung-mun could ask his subordinate, the subordinate cut him off, looked straight at the Lord of the Mountains and Seas, and raised his voice.
Do bad things always come at the same time? Or is it that the Joseon military is making a detailed plan and attacking all directions with a time lag?
It was definitely the latter, but to Shanhaiguanju and his party who didn’t know that, it felt like a series of bad luck.
“Nanhae…?”
“yes. General!”
“We have heard that all docks located in Nanha, including Junhwa’s port, are under attack.”
“omg!”
“…!”
“Ugh…!”
At the subordinate’s wailing cries, all three of them were unable to continue speaking as if they were starting a match and were left breathless.
Two people standing on the forecastle. The two commented lightly on the traces of destruction that were clearly visible to the naked eye, without the need to look through a telescope.
The fire demon was swinging its claws wildly, and black smoke was rising from all directions.
“You ride well.”
“yes. Well… the army does a better job than us. “We have to do it.”
“Do you want to make a contribution?”
“It’s not necessarily like that… it’s just that it’s so bland compared to how hard I worked on preparing it.”
“Hehe. The real thing starts now, so what? “From now on, you will smell gunpowder.”
Park Moo-yang, commander of the 3rd Fleet. He patted Captain Oson on the shoulder and laughed.