Chapter 187 — Jin's Military Strength 2
When Choe Yanghak found himself in difficulty, Youngwoo stepped forward.
His armor gave a clattering, ringing sound.
"It was made with reference to the armor of Western Xia. It also drew from the iron cavalry of ancient Goguryeo. Its disadvantage is that it becomes heavy. It is not the best possible form."
The king asked,
"Then how is Jin handling that?"
"They have each rider bring spare horses and packhorses."
The king asked again,
"You mean three horses are basic for one rider?"
"Yes. The armor is heavy."
"Where did they get so many horses?"
"Even for the Jurchens, obtaining horses is not easy. It is easier than for Goryeo, however. They raise many horses in the northeastern plains, and they also bring in a considerable number from the plateau, from Mongolia. A portion of those then comes again to Goryeo."
"I see. One must have horses to put men in heavy armor."
Even without listening to the sangjanggun and daejanggun, the king agreed completely with Youngwoo's words.
It was favoritism in anyone's eyes.
No one in the Jungbang could oppose it.
They carried the guilt of the past.
The king slowly looked around at the commanders of the Jungbang.
"Jin has defeated Liao completely in three battles. Could we do the same?"
The room lost its words.
The military leadership was put in an awkward position.
They had no answer to give.
If commanded, they would obey.
Money and horses were lacking, but they did not regard it as something impossible.
The king opened his mouth.
"The Jurchens are likely poorer than us. Yet they have equipped iron cavalry. They made and supplied these small iron plates, and their soldiers laced them together to create invincible iron riders. What will we do?
Jungnangjang Lee says they will remember Goryeo's grace and not attack us. Will that truly be so? Will it still be so after they destroy Liao?
Prepare. Make a plan for what must be done. Stop fighting over the rice bowls already in your hands and put your heads together in discussion. Gather information with humble hearts.
Then produce an answer.
If you cannot do it, then at least imitate them."
"Loyalty!"
"Loyalty!"
"Loyalty!"
"Loyalty!"
"Loyalty!"
The replies of several commanders followed.
Jin Garyang did not open his mouth to the end.
The king said,
"We cannot sit idle and wait merely on the guess that they will not invade our country. We must strengthen our military power."
Banju Choe Yanghak answered,
"That is so, Your Majesty."
"Make the fullest use of Jungnangjang Lee's information."
"Loyalty."
"And do not kill him by blaming everything on Jungnangjang Lee again."
The king did not think the earlier problem had been caused by his own favoritism.
He thought it had happened because the leaders of the Jungbang were petty.
He still favored Youngwoo.
Fortunately, even while receiving that favor, Youngwoo did not use it.
Another official might have climbed onto the king's head and tried to control the political situation.
People are not all the same.
Even while hearing the king's command, there were men who thought that Lee Youngwoo, who had caused this discomfort, had to be dealt with somehow.
The king asked about Jin's army.
"How many are they, exactly? Their troops."
Lee Youngwoo answered,
"At present, about ten thousand riders. Because of their victories, more are continuing to submit, so soon they will rise to fifteen thousand, and then perhaps twenty thousand. On the day of the great field battle, the plan is to raise them to twenty thousand."
"And among them, the iron cavalry?"
"Currently, about two thousand five hundred. The plan is to increase them to five thousand."
But the way he spoke was strange.
It sounded less as if he was reporting their information and more as if he was explaining his own thoughts.
Jin Garyang asked,
"Is that your thought, or their plan?"
Only then did Youngwoo realize the nuance had changed.
It was a question about the subject behind the statement.
"This low officer worked with them from a core position within their military strength. Their information was my plan and my direction of implementation. Fortunately, they understood my thinking well and followed it."
The words sounded even stranger.
"Are you saying the iron cavalry was your idea?"
"No. I saw the equipment of a few riders and judged it good, so I suggested increasing their number. At first, there were only a few dozen. Armor is expensive, and iron is very difficult to obtain in Liaodong. Since conditions did not allow full production, I set standards and had them produce iron lamellae and other parts. Then we made the armor in the field. We did it together."
The nuance remained strange.
Most commanders try to raise their own merit.
That attitude becomes clearer when they write reports, increasing the number of enemy heads taken or men cut down.
They thought Youngwoo was speaking in that same context.
But in his words, there was the tone of someone who had intervened as a principal actor.
The king seized upon his words.
"Then you can do the same for Goryeo."
Youngwoo slowly lowered his body.
At last, he knelt on one knee.
"Your Majesty, please withdraw those words."
"What? Withdraw them? Why? Can you not do it?"
"What was possible for this low officer in Jurchen land was possible because they treated even the smallest request as precious as gold and jade, and accepted it with all their strength. They did not dismiss any request as minor. They supported me with all the manpower, equipment, and skill they possessed. Once they decided to do something, there was nothing they would not do."
The king nodded.
"It seems you were treated well among the Jurchens."
"They were that desperate. A single defeat could have made all those tribes disappear."
The king tilted his head.
"But here, you cannot do it? Do it the same way."
Youngwoo lowered his head.
"I am ashamed, Your Majesty. There, this low officer was welcomed as part of a military advisory force. Here, it is not so. If I speak one word, hundreds will rise and say no. Technology and military affairs are not merely technical matters. They are connected to the whole system. It cannot be done simply because I struggle alone. There will be millions of reasons why it cannot be done."
"Damn."
The king lowered his head and muttered something close to a curse.
In the end, vested interests were the problem, yet there was no easy way to resolve them.
There would be market merchants who supplied armor, and corrupt soldiers colluding with them.
There would be soldiers who disliked wearing heavy armor, and commanders who allowed that.
If Youngwoo spoke, dozens would oppose him, saying it was absurd.
They would not listen to his request.
Even if he followed them around and begged, it would not work.
This young jungnangjang knew that.
The king looked at the banju with a regretful expression.
It seemed almost as though he was pointing out, This is your problem.
The banju came out to the side and knelt on one knee.
"Your Majesty!"
"So you are saying it cannot be done. Even though this king so strongly desires it."
"Your Majesty, do not forgive this low officer's disloyalty. As Jungnangjang Lee has said, there are many problems that must be resolved first."
"You mean there is an existing system?"
"That is so. We cannot do it like the Jurchens."
"Because that system exists, Goryeo exists as it does now. Please understand it that way."
The king asked,
"Then are you not saying Goryeo will lose on the battlefield?"
"Military power is the gathering of all the strength of a country. For example, obtaining a single horse costs twenty to fifty seok. A military warhorse costs fifty to one hundred seok. Because horses are scarce, operating iron cavalry is difficult. Armor, however, is a more favorable matter for us than for them. This is a matter that must be pursued in light of the country's conditions. Armor made from iron lamellae rusts if it is not frequently maintained. Oil must be applied carefully to prevent rust. I am not saying we will not do it. I am reporting that our conditions differ. If the law of war is changing, then naturally the Goryeo army must also develop to match it. We will promptly pursue improvements to the Goryeo army."
"You must. Yet I do not trust it."
"It is Your Majesty's army."
The king slowly nodded.