Chapter 283: Scholar-Officials and Government Slaves

An archery competition was underway at the archery range of the Jeju Garrison. The Magistrate of Jeju was in high spirits for the event and had personally summoned the island’s principal officials to participate.

The ruling class of the Joseon Dynasty had a keen interest in archery. From the king to the yangban aristocrats, it was a popular form of recreation and entertainment. Archery competitions were often held in the palace and government offices, with rewards given to the winners. Under this influence, even civil officials were quite skilled in archery.

An arrow, released from the string, flew swiftly through the air with a whizzing sound. It struck the target a finger’s width away from the bullseye, quivered intensely, and then stood still.

The archer was none other than the Magistrate of Jeju, Yi Jin-gyeong. Seeing this, his face immediately darkened. Before he could compose his disappointed expression, he hastily glanced at the soldiers and his subordinates lined up by the training ground. They all wore expressions of utmost reverence, but their faces could not hide their surprise.

Although Yi Jin-gyeong was a civil official, his archery skills were not inferior to those of Adjutant Yi Dae-ha. The two were considered equals in archery.

Today was a fine, sunny day, and the wind had died down, perfect conditions for an archer to display his best skills. No one had expected the Magistrate’s first arrow to miss the bullseye.

The atmosphere grew somewhat tense, and everyone’s expression soured. After all, the Observer was known to pride himself on his archery skills, and such a performance would undoubtedly put him in a foul mood.

When a superior is in a bad mood, his subordinates’ day will not be easy. All eyes fell on Yi Dae-ha, who was next to shoot.

If the Adjutant could also miss the mark by a little—whether by accident or intentionally—it would at least lighten the atmosphere. But that was hard to say.

Yi Dae-ha was the Adjutant of Jeju—the island’s highest military official and, in effect, its second-in-command. Many practical matters were handled by the Adjutant, so the relationship between the Adjutant and the Magistrate was quite delicate. Due to the influence of the yangban aristocracy, the Joseon Dynasty did not have a strong tradition of despising the military in favor of the civil. Moreover, the Adjutant’s immediate superior, the Military Commander of Jeolla Province, Shin Gyeong-yu, had been a key supporter of the current king in overthrowing the previous King Gwanghae eight years ago. With such a newly powerful figure in the court backing him, Adjutant Yi might not necessarily be willing to play along.

Yi Dae-ha was in full military attire, a calfskin quiver with thirteen eagle-feathered arrows at his waist, and a bow wrapped in red lacquer and rattan in his hand. His appearance immediately drew everyone’s attention.

He took a deep breath and calmly drew his bow. When the bow was fully drawn, he stood as still and imposing as a mountain. The crowd stared at him without blinking.

However, his arrow also missed the mark. Yi Dae-ha shook his head slightly. A wave of unease swept through the hearts of the onlookers. Suddenly, a soldier came running in haste to report: the beacon fire had been lit—a large-scale Wokou invasion was underway!

Everyone was shocked. After the Tokugawa shogunate’s policy of national seclusion, Wokou raids on Jeju had decreased significantly. Since Korea and the Tokugawa shogunate re-established diplomatic relations in 1605, the Jeju area had been peaceful for nearly thirty years. Although small bands of Wokou landed and raided annually, there had never been a large-scale invasion.

The message from the beacon tower was extremely simple, only indicating that a large group of Wokou had invaded the main island from the direction of Seongsan. The specific situation would have to wait for reports from local soldiers and officials.

“The Wokou have broken in?”

The Adjutant was astonished. Although caught off guard, there was a contingency plan. Yi Dae-ha immediately ordered the beacon to be lit and the horns to be sounded to summon the garrison troops from all the forts.

Since the Goryeo Dynasty, the Jeju region had been constantly invaded by Wokou. Killing, arson, and robbery were commonplace. To resist the Wokou incursions, King Sejong, in his 19th year, had established defensive facilities such as three towns, nine forts, ten naval stations, twenty-five beacon towers, and thirty-eight smoke signal platforms. The then-Anmusa (Pacification Commissioner) Han Seung-sun had created the beacon system, forming a complete warning and protection network. Beacon towers were built along the coastline, and also on mountain peaks. In case of an emergency, they could promptly notify Jeju town and all other forts and defensive posts.

According to the operational plan, once the Wokou landed, the beacons would be lit everywhere. The forts and towns would transmit information to each other by blowing horns and lighting beacons. The garrison troops in the forts would hold their positions and control the ports to prevent the Wokou from using them for reinforcements. The garrisons of the main towns would dispatch their main forces according to the landing area, and in coordination with the warships from the naval stations, they would attack the Wokou by land and sea to annihilate them.

The problem was that this seemingly decent plan relied on an army that maintained a basic level of combat effectiveness, and the number of landing Wokou could not be too large. With only fifteen hundred men on the entire island, after deducting the necessary defensive forces for various locations, Jeju town could only dispatch three to four hundred men at a time. This was sufficient to deal with a few dozen or a hundred Wokou, but they would be overwhelmed by a larger force.

Of course, they could also rely on the “righteous army” (uibyeong) formed by the island’s villagers—similar to the Ming’s local militias. Compared to the regular army, the uibyeong fought to protect their homes as well as their country, and their combat effectiveness was quite formidable. During the Three Ports Rebellion, the uibyeong on Jeju Island had played a significant role, putting up fierce resistance against the Wokou. However, in recent decades, Jeju Island had frequently suffered from disasters. The island’s grain was insufficient, and a large number of people had migrated to the mainland. The population of Jeju had been in a state of continuous decline, so the number of available uibyeong had naturally decreased.

Hearing that the Wokou had landed near Seongsan, the face of Choe In-geon, the Magistrate of Jeongui County, turned pale. This area was under his jurisdiction. As the official responsible for defending the territory, he was undeniably responsible for resisting the Wokou.

“I request the Lord Observer to dispatch several hundred elite soldiers. This humble servant will return to the county to resist the Wokou!”

Though he was afraid, he could not escape his duty to defend his post. Choe In-geon said this with a show of courage.

It was better to be proactive and ask for more troops as reinforcements than to be forced back to his county. Whether he won or not was uncertain, but at least he could ensure his own safety. These Wokou were merely after plunder; they would naturally retreat after they had their fill.

“The situation with the Wokou is unclear. A rash dispatch of troops may not lead to victory. The only decent troops on this island are the company in Jeju. If anything goes wrong, the soldiers and people of the island will be doomed,” Yi Dae-ha said.

Although his words sounded grand, the underlying meaning was that he had no intention of sending reinforcements. Adjutant Yi had his own calculations: the Wokou would eventually retreat. Even if the county seat fell for a time, it would inevitably be recovered after the Wokou left. But the loss of soldiers and generals would be the Adjutant’s responsibility.

As the Adjutant, he knew better than anyone the state of the three companies of troops on the island. The only ones who were truly capable were a small number of special scouts and personal guards, at most one or two hundred men. They might not even be a match for the Wokou.

Just as Choe In-geon was about to think of a reason to refute Yi Dae-ha, Yi Jin-gyeong spoke. As a third-rank civil official, he truly possessed the ability to “remain calm in the face of change.” His expression was quite composed. He cleared his throat and then slowly stroked his beard, saying:

“Even if the Wokou are powerful, we must remain calm, calm.”

He repeated “calm” twice, and the officials indeed stopped their whispering and turned their gazes to him, waiting to see what brilliant strategy the Magistrate had to repel the enemy.

However, Yi Jin-gyeong had no “brilliant plan in a silk pouch.” Apart from holding Yi Dae-ha responsible for “immediately formulating a strategy to repel the enemy” and ordering Choe In-geon to “swiftly return to your county to oversee the defense,” he had nothing new to offer. Everyone could only respond with a chorus of assent.

In a tense atmosphere, the two county magistrates, Choe In-geon and Yi Gu, under the protection of their attendants and guards, rode back to their respective county seats on fast horses. In Jeju town, horns were immediately blown to summon the troops stationed outside the walls, the city gates were closed, and a state of emergency was declared.

Yi Dae-ha returned to his own office and immediately dispatched special scouts to reconnoiter the enemy’s situation. Then, he wrote a letter to his immediate superior, the Military Commander of Jeolla Province, Shin Gyeong-yu, informing him that a large band of Wokou had landed and that he was deploying his forces to repel them.

This letter was not a formal request for help, but a private message. Whether to officially request reinforcements would depend on the reports from the returning scouts.

He called a servant and instructed him to select a capable servant to deliver the letter immediately. Then he added:

“Please ask Adjutant Park to come.”

The archery session ended abruptly, and the attendants surrounding the officials scattered. Only a few minor officials from the Jeju Garrison were left, directing dozens of government slaves to clean up the mess.

A sunshade had been set up by the archery range, originally for the banquet after the competition. The tables were already laid out with cups, plates, chopsticks, and four kinds of fruits and four kinds of dried nuts for snacks. The official courtesans, who had been prepared for the entertainment, stood there with heavy makeup and gorgeous clothes, looking at the suddenly empty field in a daze, unsure whether they should leave immediately or wait for further orders.

Seventeen-year-old government slave Park Deok-hwan glanced at the courtesans under the sunshade and swallowed. He began to pick up the scattered objects on the archery range. Suddenly, he was hit hard on the back. Turning around, he saw it was his brother, Park Deok-maeng.

“Big brother, what are you still doing here? Hurry up and get some good food!” Park Deok-maeng still had traces of soybean paste at the corner of his mouth. “If you’re late, there’ll be nothing left!”

Hearing his brother, Park Deok-hwan immediately dropped the miscellaneous items in his hands and ran with his brother towards the temporary kitchen. All year round, the government slaves ate barley and buckwheat, with only low-quality soybean paste and seaweed to go with it. They couldn’t even get slightly better radish kimchi.

In the temporary kitchen, government slaves and minor officials were pushing and shoving for food. The food, carefully prepared by the garrison’s government slaves, was now left uneaten by the officials—a boon for the minor officials and slaves who usually only had salted vegetables and soybean paste to fill their stomachs. Their loyalty to the king and love for their country were not as strong as those of the scholar-officials. As long as a sword wasn’t at their necks, their appetites were still strong.

The best roasted meat and fish soup were out of reach for the government slaves, but there was plenty of ordinary food like fish paste, fish porridge, and kimchi. The Park brothers quickly got two large bowls of fish porridge, on which they haphazardly poured a lot of soybean paste, crab paste, and other things, and then hid in a corner to eat heartily.