Chapter 83: War Begins

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye.

The price of salt rose steadily, jumping from thirty-three wen to thirty-six wen. At the same time, a shocking event swept through the entire Joseon like a hurricane.

The Woguo army had attacked Gyeongsang-do.

For a time, the whole country was in an uproar.

Inside the royal palace in Hanyang, the King of Joseon, Li Yan, hurriedly summoned two ministers: one was the Chief State Councilor Liu Chenglong, and the other was the Left State Councilor Zheng Che.

According to the Joseon official system, the Uijeongbu was the highest administrative organ, and its head was called the "Chief State Councilor."

Two deputy positions were established, called the Left and Right State Councilors respectively.

Li Yan was inherently a timid and fearful person; having previously been hoodwinked by Zhang Yunxiu and the others, his heart was already like fifteen buckets drawing water—seven up and eight down.

Now that the battle report from Gyeongsang-do had arrived, he was struck as if by lightning.

He was in a state of constant, panicked anxiety.

And so, he immediately sent people in a frantic rush to summon the two ministers to ask for a strategy to deal with the situation.

Upon seeing the two, Li Yan asked urgently, as if his house were on fire: "My two beloved ministers, now that the Woguo thieves have invaded our territory, what strategies do you have to defeat the enemy?"

The one on the left, Liu Chenglong, held a higher rank and should have answered first, but Zheng Che, who was at odds with him, snapped back first: "Your Majesty, I believe we should now seek help from the suzerain state and request the Liaodong Regional Commander to send troops into Joseon."

"Yes, yes, yes, seek aid from the suzerain state." Li Yan began to dance about, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw.

"Your Majesty, you must not!" Liu Chenglong's brow ridges rose, and he picked up the battle report to analyze it with reason and evidence. "First, the report says the Woguo have over a hundred warships and tens of thousands of men. I believe this must be an exaggeration by the garrison."

"Why?" Li Yan asked, craning his neck.

"Your Majesty, think about it: how many people are there in Woguo in total? Now that Oda Nobunaga has recently passed away, the whole of Woguo is fighting amongst itself for territory; how could they have such a large-scale army to invade us?" Liu Chenglong remained unhurried, maintaining his composure throughout. "Our Joseon garrison, in order to shirk responsibility, loves to exaggerate the enemy. In my view, it is at most a few hundred pirates."

"At most, a thousand people."

"Ah, so you mean I can rest easy?" Li Yan let out a long sigh of relief.

"Hmph! This statement by Administration Commissioner Liu is simply misleading the country and the people!" Zheng Che gritted his teeth and said firmly, "Sun Tzu's Art of War says: 'War is a matter of vital importance to the state; the province of life or death; the road to survival or ruin, it must be thoroughly examined.'"

"The Woguo are coming with great momentum, yet you are bewitching the monarch and ignoring it. What is your intention?!"

"I did not ask His Majesty to ignore it." Liu Chenglong flicked his sleeve, turned, and glared at Zheng Che. "It is you, Councilor Zheng, who are blowing the Woguo threat out of proportion. What is your intention?"

"I am only thinking of His Majesty and calculating for the imperial court."

"I think it is that you have long since had people hoard large quantities of scarce goods, and you are hoping the Woguo numbers are as high as possible."

"Slander... this is naked slander!"

Zheng Che's neck turned red, and he pointed at Liu Chenglong, shouting loudly. Then he turned to face Li Yan, knelt, and said, "Your Majesty, Liu Chenglong is relying on his high position and power to slander me. I hope Your Majesty will decide for me!"

Liu Chenglong did not show weakness; he straightened his body and knelt down, saying in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, Zheng Che is forming cliques, deceiving the monarch, and hoarding large amounts of salt, sugar, and other goods vital to the people's livelihood. He must have ulterior motives!"

"You are making false accusations." Zheng Che became agitated again.

"Hmph, whether it is a false accusation, you know in your own heart." Liu Chenglong raised an eyebrow and laughed coldly.

"I only have a few friends who do some small business."

"Heh, just friends? I think they are almost wearing the same pair of pants as you, Zheng Che. Tell me, if not for them, how could your family afford such a large mansion and eat fine food every day? Don't tell me this all comes from your salary." "Then you explain first where your family's large mansion came from!"

The two argued incessantly, their faces red and necks thick.

"Enough, enough, be quiet for a moment. You two are giving me a headache." Li Yan looked helpless, waving his hands as if shooing flies, and then ordered, "Order the Right Naval Commander of Gyeongsang-do, Yuan Jun, to lead the navy to meet the enemy. Do not let the Woguo continue to ravage the land."

"Your Majesty, Yuan Jun is a man who holds a post but does no work; he has courage but no strategy. Sending him is likely inappropriate." Liu Chenglong's tone was serious; he knelt and moved forward, bowing to request, "I recommend one person who will surely be able to expel this group of Woguo."

"Who?"

"This person's surname is Li, given name Shunchen. He is resourceful and adaptable, with strategy in his belly. If he leads the troops, a small group of Woguo is nothing to worry about."

Liu Chenglong stroked his beard, straightened his body, and answered loudly. Beside him, Zheng Che rolled his eyes and deliberately said with sarcasm, "Administration Commissioner Liu, I have heard that you and this Li Shunchen are on good terms. You wouldn't be abusing your power for personal gain, would you?"

"I am recommending the virtuous without avoiding my own kin!" Liu Chenglong did not flinch at all.

"What a 'recommending the virtuous without avoiding kin'..."

Zheng Che smiled coldly and was about to refute him when Li Yan, on the throne, slapped the dragon chair and shouted, "I am not dead yet! Or should I give this position to you two to sit in, so I can listen to you two talk enough?"

At this anger from the King of Joseon, the two immediately prostrated themselves on the ground, their bodies shaking like chaff, calling out "I am guilty" repeatedly.

Hmph, if the tiger doesn't show its power, do they really take me for a sick cat?

He sat up straight, tidied his robes, and then asked Liu Chenglong: "This Li Shunchen you speak of, what is his official rank, and where is he now?"

"Last year, he was stripped of his official position and is currently living in idleness at home." After hesitating for a moment, Liu Chenglong reported in a low voice.

As soon as the words fell, Li Yan's brows furrowed into two large knots.

He thought it was some kind of figure; it turned out to be a disgraced official. If he could get himself stripped of his position, how much ability could he have? This Liu Chenglong is really something, actually recommending this kind of person to me.

But Liu Chenglong was, after all, the Prime Minister, so he could not refute him to his face. He just nodded and said, without joy or sorrow, "I have noted it. You two may go down first; I will consider it carefully."

"Your Majesty, he was dismissed for a reason; it was absolutely not due to his own ability." Seeing the King like this, a sense of unease rose in Liu Chenglong's heart, and he was about to say, "He was suppressed in factional strife, which is why he was dismissed."

But the words reached his lips and he could not say them.

To tell the King that his subordinates were engaged in factional strife and had squeezed out someone with extraordinary ability—wouldn't that be a roundabout way of saying the King was a muddled ruler?

Realizing this, Liu Chenglong shivered.

He stood there motionless, unable to advance or retreat.

"Speak, why was he?" Li Yan urged.

"Because the people under his governance were plundered by the Jurchen. Although he later beheaded the invading Jurchen and recovered the people, it also caused many people to be displaced." Liu Chenglong drafted the words in his mind and told the whole story truthfully.

"Since the merits and demerits cancel each other out, that cannot be considered dereliction of duty. Very well, let him be restored to his original position first." Li Yan nodded and added, "At the same time, order Yuan Jun to lead five thousand troops to pacify the invading Woguo within three months."

"Your Majesty is wise."

The two below looked at each other and bowed in unison.

(End of chapter)