Chapter 1108 - Defense
Another worry gnawed at Lord Kim's mind. From the Pak brothers, he knew the Dwarf-Crop-Heads were extremely interested in horses. That Dwarf-Crop-Head chief—something like "Nick"—had been spending his days at the horse corrals from the moment he set foot on the island. Recently, they'd been organizing people to sort through all the horse registers and land documents from the various government offices.
Though the official archives were a chaotic mess, they still contained enough information to give a rough sense of the scale of the island's official horse herds and ranches. This was Lord Kim's greatest worry. During that brief window after the three cities and nine towns had fallen—when Yi rule had just collapsed but the Dwarf-Crop-Heads hadn't yet extended their reach into the interior—he had directed his men to plunder the government ranches on a massive scale. They'd seized vast numbers of official horses and cattle, and absorbed many ranch government slaves into his own stockade. In many places, his men had simply moved boundary markers, claiming the richest lands of the official ranches as their own.
Though Lord Kim rarely left his compound, the active efforts of his agents—Huang Yunyu, Choi Hyun-taek, and Cho Myeong-gwi—kept him well-informed about the entire island's situation. He could see the Dwarf-Crop-Heads methodically laying out their positions like a master strategist, placing one piece after another in an orderly pattern.
Recently, small groups of Dwarf-Crop-Heads had been moving through the interior. Now they'd sent notices summoning everyone to attend some "Political Consultative Conference." Lord Kim felt the crisis closing in.
It seemed that unless these Dwarf-Crop-Heads were eliminated, he would never know peace. After several days of deliberation, he finally resolved to welcome back the Royal Army.
Lord Kim was indeed a local strongman, and he had seriously considered the matter of his "misappropriation of state assets" after the Royal Army's return. Following thorough discussions with his advisers, the conclusion was reassuring: it would pose no problem. Though Jeju Island had always been a place of exile, it remained "Royal Territory"—the Court would never abandon it. If his side contributed to welcoming back the Royal Army, the Court would certainly let past matters rest. Horses, cattle, and government slaves were living things—one needed only to report them as "lost in the chaos of war," and there would be no proof. As for the ranch boundaries, the Court was too preoccupied these days. Between natural disasters, the Jurchen troubles, and political instability, any new Magistrate would surely just want peace and quiet, without investigating too closely.
Originally, Lord Kim's scheme to have Cho Myeong-gwi collude with Huang Yunyu in bribing Pak Deokhwan had been merely traditional self-protection for a wealthy man: monitoring the new rulers' movements and seeking ways to profit. Now he felt that having Pak Deokhwan under his control added considerable weight to his plan to "welcome the Royal Army."
Choi Hyun-taek's trip to the peninsula had been specifically commissioned to meet with Sin Gyeong-yu, the Military Commander of Jeolla Province. The Jeju Vice-Magistrate who died in battle when Jeju fell had been his trusted subordinate.
"...Commander Sin says the Court is indeed discussing the recovery of Jeju," Choi Hyun-taek said quietly. "There's no disagreement on the matter—it's just that the Court currently lacks troops and provisions. They can only order him to 'act according to circumstances to recover the island.' Since Commander Sin doesn't know the Dwarf-Crop-Heads' true strength, he can't dispatch troops immediately."
"'Act according to circumstances'—that's just evasion!" Cho Myeong-gwi cursed.
"No—according to Commander Sin, the Court's atmosphere is different from Gwanghaegun's time. His Majesty is deeply displeased with the Jurchens' arrogant attitude and despises the previous peace negotiations," Choi Hyun-taek explained. "The Old Westerners faction is in power now, and all the officials at Court are clamoring to prepare for war and march on the Yalu River."
Cho Myeong-gwi said impatiently: "What officials at Court say is not our concern. Just tell me—will the Court do anything about the Crop-Heads on this island or not?"
"If they're willing to fight even the Jurchens, what do a few Dwarf-Crop-Heads on this island matter?" Choi Hyun-taek drank some wine. "Commander Sin says we need to thoroughly investigate the Dwarf-Crop-Heads' true strength before he can dispatch troops."
"Is there more?" Cho Myeong-gwi pressed. "These officials won't send troops so easily."
"Master Cho, you truly see a thousand li!" Choi Hyun-taek immediately offered a flattering remark.
"Stop the nonsense. Quickly—what are Commander Sin's terms?"
"Commander Sin says his troops are insufficient. When the time comes, he'll need Lord Kim to organize 'righteous militia' to coordinate the action."
Cho Myeong-gwi thought this wouldn't be difficult. Lord Kim already had two hundred household retainers. Counting the serfs, dependent commoners, and hired workers attached to him along with their families, there were about ten thousand people. Organizing over a thousand militia would pose no problem.
Militia required little expense—just three meals a day, plus promises to reduce some tribute payments and rents. Far more economical than official troops who demanded money before marching, and no death benefits needed if they died. Lord Kim already had this in mind—historically, militia fought better than regular troops. Once victorious, the Dwarf-Crop-Heads would flee by ship, but the people and property they'd brought couldn't escape. Not only would there be enough to feed the militia, but plenty of profit besides.
Cho Myeong-gwi nodded: "And then?"
"Then there's the matter of provisions and reward money..." Choi Hyun-taek said uneasily, glancing at Cho Myeong-gwi.
Cho Myeong-gwi kept a straight face and said nothing for a moment. Lord Kim had anticipated this too. But the exact terms depended on the other side's price, and Lord Kim hadn't authorized him to agree or refuse anything specific. After thinking it over, he said: "Provisions are no problem. Of course Lord Kim will contribute to the campaign to drive out the Dwarf-Crop-Heads. As for the reward money, we'll need Commander Sin to propose figures." He smiled. "This matter will require you to make a few more trips."
"Certainly, certainly. Serving the masters is my duty," Choi Hyun-taek said with a fawning smile. "Now that I can come and go from the island freely—with Pak Deokhwan as cover..."
"Pak Deokhwan is quite useful. We must keep him firmly in our grasp!" Cho Myeong-gwi declared.
"I understand." Choi Hyun-taek spoke so loudly that he startled even himself.
"Present arms!" At Kim Yongjoo's command, the twenty-four-member military band of the Jeju Island Public Security Army's Korean Unit—wielding traditional instruments such as xiao, pipes, and flutes, all wearing black broad-brimmed hats—launched into their months-practiced rendition of "Salute to You, Comrade Commander." Though the majestic march was underpowered for traditional instruments, it at least stayed on tune.
The entire Public Security force simultaneously raised their spears upright. Accompanied by Nangong Wudi, Zhu Mingxia reviewed the three hundred soldiers of the Public Security Army's Korean Unit.
The locally-recruited Korean Public Security force, composed of former government slaves, had taken initial shape. The three companies trained and performed duties simultaneously, having completed most of the Public Security training curriculum. Since they weren't to be issued Southern Seas pattern rifles for the time being, there had been no rifle marksmanship training. Nangong Wudi had used training rifles to drill them in formation, weapons handling, and bayonet practice.
Due to the lack of ranged weapons, and at Nangong Wudi's approval, Kim Yongjoo had instituted archery training—so everyone now had a bow and arrows. Zhu Mingxia wasn't particularly enthusiastic about this; it was merely better than nothing. They needed to be equipped with rifles as soon as possible.
To the strains of the folk-music march, Zhu Mingxia, hand on his command saber and saluting, reviewed the troops.
The music stopped. Zhu Mingxia returned to the front of the formation. At his nod, Kim Yongjoo quickly called out: "At ease!"
The entire formation snapped to ease in unison. Zhu Mingxia found this satisfactory. The formation was quite orderly. Though their physiques weren't impressive due to nutritional deficiencies, their spirit was evident. Nangong Wudi's training work was clearly competent. The Japanese NCOs responsible for the actual training contributed as well, constantly bellowing "Sanbin no gei!"
Zhu Mingxia cleared his throat and began reading aloud the General Military Affairs Command Order signed by the Committee: officially bestowing upon the Jeju Island Public Security Army's Korean Unit the designation "Public Security Army Korean Advance Column," with the epithet "White Horse" Unit, using a galloping white stallion as the unit's emblem. As he read in his clear, standard Mandarin, Pak Deokmeng translated loudly—truthfully, he'd puzzled over the designation for a long time without knowing how to render it. In the end, Official Nangong himself had provided a draft translation.
After the order was read, all personnel gave three cheers of "For the Committee and the People"—in somewhat garbled Mandarin. This too was the fruit of months of diligent training. According to Fu Sansi's recently promulgated directive: whether Regular Army, National Army, or Public Security Army, Mandarin must be uniformly adopted as the common language.
There was some flexibility for Public Security units composed of foreigners or ethnic minorities, but the work of implementing a unified language was to proceed as quickly as possible.
After the review, Zhu Mingxia returned to the Provincial Administration command center, where Nangong Wudi briefed him on the current state of Jeju Island's defense.
Nangong Wudi explained using the map. Currently, of Jeju's three walled cities, Daejeong and Jeongeui each had one agricultural labor company stationed there. These functioned essentially as garrison-colonist units, equipped with cold weapons, primarily focused on agricultural and pastoral production while secondarily serving as local guards.
Since the agricultural companies were armed only with cold weapons and lacked fighting power, Nangong Wudi had reinforced each county with a platoon of Fupo Army soldiers as a core framework. Once the local Public Security units were activated, each county would receive a Public Security company.
"...Once the refugees are purified in large numbers, several hundred households will be settled in each county. From them, we'll gradually train local National Army soldiers to replace these Public Security units." Nangong Wudi outlined his next steps.
"Good. How have you deployed the other units?"
The splintered company's headquarters and remaining platoon were stationed at Chocheon Port as a garrison force. To prepare for a possible Yi Court counterattack, Nangong Wudi had concentrated the remaining infantry company, an engineer company, and other miscellaneous units in Jeju City and its vicinity as a mobile force. At the other towns, he'd deployed only token guard detachments. The Japanese Public Security company served as the Jeju City garrison, with the Korean Public Security force as an auxiliary. The defensive posture was weighted heavily toward the north and lightly toward the south.
"Our troop strength is really insufficient for an island this size," Nangong Wudi said. "The interior is a blank. We have no control over the landlords and major households hiding in the mountains—they've even occupied many of the official ranches. Nick pesters me about this every day, but where would we find the troops and manpower to go into the interior and take over the ranches?"
(End of Chapter)