Chapter 1037: The Princess Arrives (Please Subscribe)

Duo'erbo understood — his good brother wanted him as a meat shield, using Joseon's three thousand li of territory to block the Ming's mighty armies and iron legions!

But the Ming Emperor had already made it clear that as long as he stayed in his place... On one side were his brothers, on the other his domain — how was he supposed to choose!

"Fifth Brother!" Duoni said, his tone dark and sinister. "We brothers are not the same as Dong'e and Ajige!

We are men of the Aisin Gioro clan! On our shoulders rests the foundation passed down by our ancestors, the soaring ambitions of our Aisin Gioro family, and our blood feud with the Ming dynasty!

But Dong'e and Ajige are women. Taking the heads of enemies and the women of enemy houses as spoils of war — that is the greatest joy of a steppe warrior!

Fifth Brother, think about whose hands Ligdan Khan's consorts fell into. Those were women who had been married and borne children, and they were still so sought after — let alone two young girls like Dong'e and Ajige. But what of Ligdan Khan's son Ejei? He died young, without leaving a single heir! That Abunai was merely too fortunate — before his turn for an early death arrived, our Great Qing had already fallen into decline.

Besides, we are not Dong'e and Ajige's blood brothers. Even if they gained favor, would they go to great lengths to protect us brothers?"

Duo'erbo shuddered at these words, a look of terror on his face.

Duoni was absolutely right! He was not the same as Dong'e and Ajige! He was a man of the Aisin Gioro clan — not someone who could become a peaceful king in Joseon just by staying in his place. And even if the Ming Emperor left Joseon alone for the time being, Duoni would never allow him to live at ease in Joseon.

Moreover, he was not Dorgon's true son after all. Of the Plain White Banner troops stationed in Joseon, few truly regarded him as their master. This kingship was truly hard to hold!

"Second Brother, I understand!" Duo'erbo nodded emphatically. "As soon as I return, I will move the capital from Hanyang to Gyeongju."

Gyeongju lay in the southeastern corner of the Korean peninsula. It was the ancient capital of Silla, just over forty li from Gulongpo, the former Qing concession port in Joseon, over seventy li from Ulsan, another port city in southeastern Joseon, and a hundred and sixty or seventy li from Busanpo.

Moreover, the area around Gyeongju, Ulsan, and Busan formed a continuous stretch of hills. The peaks were not high, but the terrain was extremely complex, with valleys everywhere and rivers crisscrossing. As long as one controlled the key valley mouths and river junctions, one could hold the entire region.

And the terrain of the three ports — Busan, Ulsan, and Gulongpo — was equally formidable; all could be sealed off with artillery batteries.

"Not only must we hold Gyeongju, Ulsan, Busan, and Gulongpo," Duoni continued, "Wonsan is also a place that must be defended!"

Wonsan was an important port in the northeastern part of the Korean peninsula. If the Ming army wanted to bypass the Korean peninsula and launch a landing operation near Haishenwai, they would have to seize one or two usable ports along the eastern coast of the peninsula; otherwise, an amphibious assault would be very difficult to carry out.

With the Manchu forces currently on the Korean peninsula, holding all eight provinces of Joseon was impossible. But once they turtled up in the small mountainous regions centered on Gyeongju and Wonsan, they would be quite hard to sink one's teeth into.

"Good!" Duoni nodded. "Once I return, I will certainly divide the troops and defend Wonsan to the death!"

Duoni nodded, then glanced at his third brother Bakdu and fourth brother Ceni. Like Zhulan, the two of them were sons of concubines, without power or standing.

Among Dodo's sons, too, those born of the principal wife were honored, while those born of concubines were lowly. Duoni and Duo'erbo were legitimate sons; all the other sons were born of concubines.

And after Duo'erbo was adopted into Dorgon's line, only one legitimate son remained among Dodo's sons — Duoni.

According to Manchu tradition, all of Dodo's followers and territory were to pass to his sole legitimate son, Duoni! Zhulan, Bakdu, and Ceni were all sons of concubines; they would receive no territory or followers, and could only serve Duoni as subjects.

Duo'erbo, meanwhile, inherited Dorgon's estate — Dodo could swallow up the followers of Ajige and Fulin, but he could not swallow up Dorgon's own Plain White Banner.

To prevent Duoni and Duo'erbo from fighting over power after his death, Dodo, while gravely ill, had divided up the core old-Manchu followers. He assigned Dorgon's own niru companies to Duo'erbo, the King of Joseon, and transferred them all to Joseon, stationing them around Hanyang, Kaesong, and Pyongyang. He also appointed four of Dorgon's trusted men from his lifetime — Heluohui, Bo'erhui, Subai, and Wubai — to serve respectively as Chief State Councillor, Commandant of Hanyang, Commandant of Kaesong, and Commandant of Pyongyang, assisting Duo'erbo in governing the eight provinces of Joseon.

But Duoni was deeply uneasy about these arrangements Dodo had made before his death!

The brothers Bakdu and Ceni were both men of brawn and no small cunning, and they had always followed Duoni closely, understanding his thoughts. Now, seeing the look in Duoni's eyes, they immediately grasped his meaning.

Ceni spoke first: "Fifth Brother, let me return to Joseon with you! With us brothers united in purpose, we'll turn Joseon into the place where the Ming army's spears break!"

Bakdu added: "Fifth Brother, I'll go back with you too! For over a year now I've been studying Western military arts under the foreign officers of España, and I've achieved some modest success. I can go to Joseon and help you train troops!"

"Good!" Duo'erbo nodded heavily. "Let us return to Joseon together and fight the Zhu Emperor to the death!"

"Right — fight the Zhu Emperor to the death!"

"To the death!"

Duo'erbo, Bakdu, and Ceni spoke bravely, vowing to return to Joseon together and fight the Zhu Emperor to the death.

But the course of events defied their expectations. After the three of them returned to Joseon, what they had to deal with was not the Ming army, but Dorgon's own daughter — his only bloodline — Princess Dong'e.

"What? The Princess is here? When? What for?"

Duo'erbo learned of Princess Dong'e's arrival in Joseon from the sixty-something-year-old Commandant of Pyongyang, Wubai, as he was entering Pyongyang city.

"Great King, the Princess arrived at Incheon Port three days ago aboard a Ming gunboat. She says she has come to Joseon to visit her relatives!"

"To visit relatives?" Duo'erbo frowned. Weren't Princess Dong'e's relatives none other than himself?

He thought for a moment, then asked: "How many gunboats came? Did she bring troops? Where is she now?"

"Replying to Your Highness, only one gunboat brought the Princess over. Apart from her attendants, there were also one hundred musketeers aboard. The Princess's party is still at Incheon, awaiting Your Highness to come in person to welcome her."

"She expects Fifth Brother to go welcome her in person?" Bakdu, who had come with Duo'erbo, burst out. "A daughter born of a concubine — is she worthy of the King of Joseon going in person to receive her?"

Wubai frowned slightly at this. Princess Dong'e's mother was a woman of a cadet branch of the Joseon royal family; her status was indeed not high, and in life she had ranked last among Dorgon's secondary consorts. So Princess Dong'e was only a daughter of a concubine — and a concubine-born one at that.

But she was Dorgon's only flesh and blood!

Wubai said: "But she is a consort of the Ming Emperor!"

Ceni snorted. "What consort — she's only a pin."

Consort and pin were two very different ranks. The hierarchy of the Ming inner palace was somewhat jumbled, but broadly there were four tiers: empress, consort, pin, and lady. At present, Zhu Cilang's empress was Wu Sanmei — high above all, mistress of the inner palace! At the consort tier there were three women: Zheng Chagu, Ning Xiangyu, and Fei Zhen'e. Among them, Chagu held the title of Imperial Noble Consort, which could also be considered a rank of its own. The pin tier had an establishment of nine, but currently held only three: Dong'e (Jin Dongzhu), Xu Erlin, and Ajige. At the lady tier there was only one — Kong Sizhen, who had risen from bondmaid to become a Lady of Virtue.

Princess Dong'e's status was not particularly high, and she did not seem to be especially favored — otherwise she would not have remained merely a pin after so many years in the palace.

Duo'erbo thought for a moment, then asked: "What does the Chief State Councillor think?"

"The Chief State Councillor's view is—" Wubai paused, then said, "We still ought to welcome the Princess to Hanyang, show her every courtesy, and then send her off safe and sound."

Duo'erbo nodded. "That is indeed the prudent course."

Bakdu asked: "But what if the Zhu Emperor sent her to Joseon to poach our people? What then?"

Duo'erbo's face darkened. "If she dares show the slightest sign of stirring trouble, then she must not blame me for disregarding the bond between brother and sister!"

(End of Chapter)