Chapter 1067: Deploying Troops

Two thousand cavalry rode into Korea that same day with the Korean envoy.

Pan Yun, urgently summoned into the military, served as the vanguard, tasked with leading the Korean envoy ahead.

The Korean envoy was still dazed; he had been sent by his king to Great Ming seeking aid, expecting that from Jianzhou Garrison to the capital, it would take at least three days, and once the Emperor decided to dispatch troops, it would take at least half a month—but now, he met the Liaodong General that very day and already received troops?

The Korean envoy grew anxious, fearing the Liaodong General had acted on his own initiative; no matter his intent, if the Emperor mistook this as collusion between Korea and its king, disaster would follow.

But mounted on horseback, he found no chance to speak until nightfall, when the army halted to rest; then he staggered over to Pan Yun and ventured, "General, has your king's request for troops been reported to Your Majesty? My king has always served the Emperor with utmost reverence, never daring to overstep…"

Pan Yun reassured him: "The Korean king's reverence toward the Emperor is known throughout court and realm; thus, when the Emperor first learned of the Japanese pirates' invasion of Korea, he was furious."

Pan Yun praised the Korean king repeatedly, stating that Korea's allegiance to Great Ming and the king's steadfast submission as a subject meant that, faced with this crisis, the Emperor, who cherished his subjects, would surely seek justice for the Korean king and his people.

The Korean envoy stared blankly for a long while, then asked uncertainly, "Does Your Majesty know of the Japanese pirates' invasion of Korea?"

"Indeed," Pan Yun gestured to his aide, who immediately brought forward a radio operator carrying a radio set.

Pan Yun said: "This device can transmit messages over a thousand li. The Jianzhou Garrison's radio has high power and a long range; ours is handheld with lower power, but we're close enough to Jianzhou to communicate—we can send this message back to Jianzhou, and they'll relay it to the capital."

Pan Yun added: "Once we reach your destination and meet your king, he may use this method to communicate with the Emperor."

He said: "Upon receiving the report from Jianzhou Garrison, the court was stunned; less than a quarter-hour passed before the Emperor decided to dispatch troops to aid Korea. Envoy, the Emperor holds Korea in great favor."

The envoy burst into tears, deeply moved, and immediately knelt, bowing three times and kowtowing nine times toward the capital.

Pan Yun helped him up after he finished kowtowing and said: "The State Master's birthday is approaching; we must drive the Japanese pirates out of Korea before then—as a birthday gift to the State Master."

The envoy's eyes lit up; he immediately declared that the Korean king had prepared an excellent gift for the State Master's birthday, and to reach the capital early and cultivate favor with the Emperor, they had originally planned to depart on May 20, arriving by June 10—he was one of the envoys.

But the sudden Japanese invasion delayed the mission; Korea lost three cities, and the Japanese massacred their populations; the Korean king faced imminent national collapse, forcing him to urgently seek aid from Great Ming.

With forty-two days left until the State Master's birthday, the journey from Korea to the capital need not take a full month—if they rode hard, they could arrive in ten days; thus, if they expelled the Japanese pirates within a month, they could attend the State Master's birthday on time and present Korea's tribute to the Emperor and the State Master.

Pan Yun also wished to end the war quickly so his sister could celebrate her birthday.

Even if he could not return, he could not let the shadow of war darken her birthday.

Li Song may have calculated this precisely—he specifically appointed Pan Yun as vanguard, ordering him to lead troops ahead.

Pan Yun galloped to Kaeseong, where the Korean king, Lee Nang, and the royal family had fled.

The Japanese attack came without warning, and Korea had many internal collaborators, mostly Japanese ronin who had arrived over the past two years.

In fact, this matter had some connection to Great Ming.

Because the maritime ban was lifted, the imperial court gained substantial customs revenue, and with the exploitation of the Da Senxiang silver mine, the court had launched three major campaigns to eradicate sea bandits—to ensure maritime trade, the southeastern coastal navy had conducted another purge last year under the guise of military reform.

The Japanese pirates dared not risk another raid; with the new Emperor's ascension and his successful repulsion of Japanese incursions, they feared Great Ming even more, so they turned their eyes toward Korea.

After Great Ming's maritime trade expanded, not only did trade with Ryukyu and Japan grow, but Korea's development accelerated even faster.

Korea possessed many goods Japan also had, but Japan was now in constant civil strife, its economy in poor shape; merchants faced robbery and fraud.

Korea was different: under Lee Nang's rule, its environment was stable, its economy and culture advancing steadily, and its relations with Great Ming remained excellent—Great Ming merchants traveled safely within Korea, so merchants preferred Korea.

Overland routes were long and dangerous; sea routes were far more convenient.

Moreover, the route could pass through Korea first, then follow the coast north to the Nuergan Regional Military Commissioner's territory, where abundant resources could be traded.

Seeing Korea's booming trade across the strait, the Japanese grew envious; many merchants came to Korea, trading with Korea and acquiring Great Ming goods.

Along with them came large numbers of ronin.

Japanese pirates were largely composed of ronin.

These ronin would raid fishing boats and merchant ships at sea, then change clothes and go ashore as merchants or laborers.

Korea suffered terribly; Lee Nang dispatched a large army to purge the bandits, but no one anticipated the Japanese had bribed and taken control of the army's deputy commander.

With internal collusion, they landed at Busan on May 14 and captured it within a single day.

After Busan fell, Korea's southern defenses collapsed; the Japanese army advanced unopposed, and Korea's forces offered no resistance.

The ronin hidden within Korea quickly assembled; as the Japanese army approached, they sparked chaos inside the cities—some even reached the city gates and opened them, letting the enemy in.

By the tenth day, the Japanese army stood before the gates of Korea's capital.

At this time, Korea's capital was called Wangjing, also known as Hanyang; in crisis, Lee Nang fled north in panic, and many ministers and princes were captured.