After arriving in Gaegyeong, O Geolmae sat across from Park Geun-su.
Park Geun-su was a naturally sociable man. He welcomed O Geolmae with a broad smile.
"I've heard a great deal about you. I'm told you've been of tremendous help to Commander Yi."
O Geolmae felt himself relax a little. Park Geun-su's warm smile was a striking contrast to Yi Yeong-u's blunt manner.
"Oh, I have heard a great deal about you as well, General Park. Whenever Commander Yi must make a decision, he often says, 'In such a situation, General Park told me to do this.' He uses your advice as his standard."
Park Geun-su burst into laughter.
"Ha ha! Does he still do that? How embarrassing."
The room itself was modest.
Yet there was more space occupied by documents than by people.
Folded military reports, troop registers, records of verified command tallies, and reports submitted by the various Guards were stacked in layers across the desk. Several brushes with dried ink on their tips lay carelessly beside the inkstone, while red cords hung in tangled loops from sealed documents.
The room felt more like a civil official's study than the office of a warrior.
Only the armor and spear hanging on one wall, the folded signal flags, and the command banner used to summon troops revealed that the master of the room belonged to the military.
The weapons had been polished until they gleamed, yet bundles of documents leaned against them as well. Beside the scabbard lay a list awaiting approval, and beneath the shaft of the spear was a record of fodder distribution.
Sword and paper supported the same army within that single room.
Park Geun-su maintained an office in one corner of the Jungbang, where he assisted the Senior Generals and Grand Generals. Reports from the various Guards, troop registers, inventories from military storehouses, and records of horse fodder were all mixed together on his desk.
Armor and signal flags hung from the walls, while bundles of documents awaiting authorization were piled beneath them. One glance at the room was enough to show that Park Geun-su spent far more time wrestling with paperwork than fighting on the battlefield.
For that reason, his office was always busy.
In the morning, clerks came in and unfolded the documents submitted the previous day. During the afternoon, commanders and vice commanders arrived one after another to report the conditions within their respective garrisons.
By evening, junior officials carrying brushes replaced the small wooden plaques hanging on the wall.
Written on those plaques were the numbers of soldiers, horses, suits of armor, bows, arrows, and grain reserves.
The figures changed every day.
Whenever those figures failed to match, the breathing of the army itself fell out of rhythm.
O Geolmae looked around the room and felt something difficult to describe.
Park Geun-su greeted people with an easy smile, but the seat he occupied was not one from which matters could simply be laughed away.
Within that room, O Geolmae saw another face of the Goryeo army.
Even the generals who rode onto the battlefield moved upon foundations made of written reports, troop registers, warehouse ledgers, and sealed orders.
"Ha ha. I've never had much talent for keeping things organized," Park Geun-su said.
O Geolmae laughed as well.
"Neither have I. There are always too many people talking and too many matters demanding attention. No matter how many documents one clears away, another pile appears."
After the light greetings were exchanged, Park Geun-su introduced his adjutants.
The officers in the room stepped forward one by one.
Some offered a slight bow in the Goryeo manner, while others placed a hand over the chest in a Jurchen military salute.
Their customs briefly failed to align, but even that awkwardness blended naturally into the cautious atmosphere of a first meeting.
Park Geun-su asked carefully,
"Is Commander Yi Yeong-u doing well?"
O Geolmae smiled.
"He rushes headlong into trouble more often than I would prefer, but he remains energetic, and his achievements have been considerable. We entrust many matters to Commander Yi."
Park Geun-su's expression brightened slightly.
"Oh, good. I had begun to worry that he was doing nothing but rushing headlong into trouble."
"That is certainly not the case. In truth, we often feel ashamed that we cannot keep pace with his requests."
As Park Geun-su studied O Geolmae, he began to feel that the man before him was far greater than Yi Yeong-u's descriptions had suggested.
O Geolmae spoke plainly and smiled without reserve, yet there was an unmistakable weight in the way he dealt with others.
He never tried to press the other person down, but his own position never wavered. He spoke with humility while preserving his dignity.
The feeling resembled what Park Geun-su had sensed when standing before the king of Goryeo.
O Geolmae possessed the air of a man capable of gathering people, listening to their voices, and carrying great decisions within himself.
Park Geun-su gave that quality a brief name in his mind.
Wangjae.
The qualities of a king.
The natural capacity to embrace and govern a great multitude.
O Geolmae possessed exactly that.
Park Geun-su carefully straightened his robes.
The proper order was to listen first.
"I shall humbly hear the purpose of your visit."
O Geolmae answered at once.
"I have come to request Goryeo's support."
"We have been expecting you."
"A great battle is imminent. Before it begins, we ask that Goryeo declare war upon Liao and dispatch its army. What we seek is to force the Liao forces to divide into two or three fronts. Once their strength has been scattered, we intend to crush the core of their main army in the decisive battle."
Park Geun-su asked,
"That cannot be all."
"You are correct. Beyond that, we request a formal covenant between our Great Khan and His Majesty the King of Goryeo."
O Geolmae continued.
"The cooperation between Jin and Goryeo, the dispatch of troops, future relations following the matter of the Nine Fortresses, and the question of Liaodong are all tied to this meeting. These are matters too great to resolve through the exchange of envoys alone. We believe the swiftest way to establish lasting peace is for the supreme rulers of both nations to meet and reach a broad agreement in person."
O Geolmae lowered his posture slightly.
"My visit is intended to prepare the bond that will make such a covenant possible."
Park Geun-su smiled faintly.
"Do you believe Goryeo's deployment will naturally follow?"
O Geolmae looked at him.
Park Geun-su was still smiling, but his words carried no lightness.
"On the contrary, there will be considerable opposition. The difficulties are substantial. We lack enough cavalry horses for a long-distance campaign, and we would have to prepare fresh supplies of grain, weapons, armor, and military equipment."
O Geolmae looked startled.
The Goryeo forces he had seen possessed firepower equal to any army of the age.
He could understand a shortage of horses.
A shortage of grain, weapons, and armor was harder to accept.
"That powerful Goryeo army could truly be so poorly supplied?"
Park Geun-su smiled.
"After the return of the Nine Fortresses, Goryeo reorganized its forces around defense. Our circumstances differ from the days when we placed greater emphasis on distant expeditions. We strengthened the system of county fortresses and mountain strongholds and shifted our weight toward defending each region."
"Ah. You mean the military has become defensive in structure."
"Yes. We possess fewer cavalry supplies than one might expect. Horses are scarce, and we also lack sufficient armor and tack fitted to those horses. An army defending a nearby frontier requires different provisions from one expected to march far from home and remain in the field for a long time."
O Geolmae slowly nodded.
"I understand. In truth, we believe that the mere news of Goryeo's deployment would force Liao to divide its forces. There may be no need for your army to engage in actual battle."
O Geolmae's explanation was thoughtful.
Park Geun-su, however, knew Goryeo could not proceed on that assumption alone.
An army did not cross a border through words.
The instant soldiers entered foreign territory, there could be no expectation that battle would never come.
If Liao responded, an army on the road would immediately become an army on the battlefield.
Goryeo could not move merely to display its name.
If it marched, it had to possess the strength to fight.
O Geolmae said,
"We have little time. Liao has already issued orders for mobilization, and troops from every region are gathering."
Park Geun-su asked,
"Surely that was not unexpected."
"The decisive battle became inevitable the moment we attacked Huanglong Prefecture. Huanglong was the line from which Liao could no longer retreat. What remains is a single struggle upon which heaven and earth will turn."
O Geolmae's voice hardened.
"It is a war we must win. Once this battle is over, Liao will never recover its former strength. That is how important this fight will be."
He paused to steady his breathing before continuing.
"We expected the great battle. What we did not expect was an army numbering in the hundreds of thousands. We believed Liao could gather no more than a hundred thousand men. Now it appears their strength may far exceed that number."
"Why?"
"After our three victories, many tribes submitted to us. Yet far more still maintain ties with Liao."
O Geolmae looked directly at Park Geun-su.
"If we can divide their forces, our victory will be assured. The mere news that Goryeo has moved will force Liao to turn its gaze eastward. That single glance, that single division of troops, could determine the outcome of the northern battlefield."
Park Geun-su asked for confirmation.
"So you anticipated the battle itself, but the number of troops gathering is far greater than you expected."
O Geolmae nodded.
"Exactly. Liao is deliberately buying time. The longer they wait, the more tribal and provincial troops they can gather. We, in contrast, must strike before their forces are fully assembled. That is our greatest difficulty."
Park Geun-su slowly nodded.
"I understand. Despite your victories, the broader balance of power in Liaodong still favors them."
"That is correct. We are exerting every effort to encourage further submissions, but it is still fair to call this their world."
O Geolmae paused.
"However, if we destroy their command structure in the opening stage of battle, the tribal armies may scatter quickly."
He lowered his voice.
"Loyalty is highly relative. The moment it becomes clear who will win, their hearts will move with the balance of power."