Ch.220Island Conquest (1)

“Brother, everyone has gathered.”

At Munglig’s words, I nodded.

Then I took my stance while looking at everyone.

“Hmmph!”

“The Great Gurkhan’s posture for opening the Kurultai remains impressive.”

“No, the definition of his muscles has become even more pronounced.”

“The quadriceps development gives the whole physique a more three-dimensional appearance.”

The darughachis were looking at my pose with awe-filled gazes.

This was understandable since they had all already fallen into fitness.

Munglig had spread the gospel of muscles to the darughachis.

Thanks to him, the darughachis had developed muscles that, while not as impressive as the Kheshig, were still substantial.

In modern terms, they had surpassed the average person’s physique and reached the level of fitness club members.

Anyway, now that they had developed an appreciation for muscles, they were analyzing my posture in detail.

Munglig was watching this with a very satisfied expression.

“It’s a good atmosphere.”

“Do you really think this is a good atmosphere?”

“Didn’t everyone receive inspiration from your Kurultai-opening pose? This is a sign of the nation’s prosperity and evidence that the head of state is physically and mentally healthy, as well as…”

“Enough.”

Munglig’s tongue would loosen whenever muscle talk came up.

So I had to stop him at this point.

“This isn’t a Kurultai to discuss muscles. Let’s stop there and get to the main point.”

“Understood, Gurkhan.”

Munglig nodded with a somewhat regretful expression.

Then he looked at everyone and shouted loudly.

“Darughachis gathered here by the Gurkhan’s command! May God, Tengri, and our ancestors bless you!”

Some made the sign of the cross, some called upon Allah, and others invoked Tengri.

The darughachis from various regions paid their respects according to their respective religious customs.

“The reason we have gathered here today is to punish the islands that have sided with the Song Dynasty and oppose the order established by the Ulus!”

As mentioned earlier, the Ulus had conquered the Jin Dynasty and made the Great Capital its capital.

After that, I performed the feng ceremony on Mount Tai, making the Ulus the rightful celestial empire of the Central Plains.

A celestial empire didn’t just mean a nation with hegemony.

It meant establishing a new order and having the duty to protect and defend nations that conformed to this order.

By this logic, nations that didn’t follow this order could be punished.

From a modern perspective, this might seem like an absurd claim.

But in medieval times, the will of heaven—the Mandate of Heaven—was important, so such justifications were accepted.

To summarize, the Ulus had conquered the Jin Dynasty and established a new order.

This order included Goryeo as an ally and Liaodong as its vassal state.

The islands had rebelled against this new order by siding with the Song Dynasty, thus opposing the order established by the Ulus.

So we intended to punish the islands for challenging this order.

“On this matter, speak your minds freely.”

At my words, the darughachis nodded.

Then Elunka stepped forward as if he had been waiting.

“I have something to report to the Gurkhan.”

I gestured for him to continue.

“Goryeo and its vassal state Liaodong have provided 200 transport ships.”

“As expected of our ally Goryeo.”

“With transport ships from Liaodong, which is ruled by Lord Belgutei, the invasion of Japan should proceed without major issues.”

The darughachis continued the warm atmosphere with such comments.

Elunka nodded and mentioned more good news to maintain the positive mood.

“Additionally, they’ve provided warships to protect the transport vessels.”

“Good news. Is this the will of the Goryeo Emperor?”

“It’s both the decision of the Goryeo Emperor and the will of the coalition government, as I’ve been told.”

Currently, Goryeo was governed by military officials and the coalition government they had formed.

Though it might sound different, the closest equivalent would be an aristocratic government.

Anyway, unlike the original history, the Goryeo Emperor’s authority had essentially disappeared, and he remained as a figurehead.

So when the civil and military officials decided to send transport ships and warships at the request of their ally, the Ulus, the Emperor couldn’t refuse.

As mentioned earlier, the power was held by the Chief State Councilor and the Grand General.

“Additionally, the Tenno plans to cooperate within the islands, which will be a great help.”

Even within the islands, the power-hungry Tenno was planning to support us.

So there were no obstacles to our invasion of the islands.

“Good. With this level of military power, invading the Japanese islands shouldn’t be a major problem.”

At my words, the darughachis nodded.

“Prepare the entire army for battle.”

The darughachis nodded at this.

Then they stood up and suddenly struck a pose.

“Hmmph!”

“Haap!”

“…?”

I couldn’t hide my bewilderment at their bizarre poses.

As I made a confused expression, Munglig caught my eye.

“What are you doing?”

“Hmmph! This is the Kurultai-closing pose, signifying respect for the decisions made during the Kurultai, brother.”

“What is that…”

I looked at Munglig with an incredulous expression.

But Munglig replied nonchalantly.

“Our muscles symbolize respect for the authority of the Kurultai. This represents the legitimacy of the Kurultai, which leads the territory of the Ulus on behalf of God, Tengri, and our ancestors…”

Once muscle talk started, Munglig’s mouth ran away with him.

Looking at him, I could only sigh.

* * *

Bang!

Minamoto Yoritomo, the Shogun, made no attempt to hide his anger.

This was because the Tenno was acting unilaterally to bring in foreign powers like the Mongols into the internal conflicts of the islands.

“Foolish human! Bringing a tiger into a family quarrel!”

The officials couldn’t respond to Minamoto’s anger.

This was because Minamoto himself had brought in the Song Dynasty to resolve internal issues.

But the method was slightly different.

In Yoritomo’s case, he had gained recognition from the Song Dynasty through diplomatic means.

In that process, he hadn’t requested any military support and had only received recognition from the Song Dynasty without any additional aid.

Given this, he could only shake his head at the Tenno’s foolishness in bringing foreign armies to the islands to resolve local issues.

“If continental powers like them invade the islands, the realm will be divided.”

The Shogun had been a commander who had led countless battles since childhood.

So he had a thorough understanding of military matters.

From his perspective, the Ulus, specifically the northern nomads, were a very threatening presence.

This was because most of them were skilled cavalry.

It was difficult for infantry to stop cavalry.

While the islands did raise horses, they weren’t numerous enough to employ nomad-style cavalry tactics.

So battles often involved a mix of infantry and cavalry.

Since cavalry was an expensive force, battles on the islands typically started with hand-to-hand combat, followed by cavalry charges, leading to chaotic melees.

Given this, the core of the battle was always infantry.

These infantry used long weapons like naginata or yari, which were similar to polearms.

The reason for using polearms similar to spears was partly because spears were more efficient weapons than swords.

But the biggest reason was also the concern about potential cavalry deployment on the battlefield.

Anyway, for Japan with its infantry-focused army, the invasion of northern nomads was a frightening prospect.

“Moreover, they are said to use gunpowder weapons.”

“Gunpowder weapons…”

The islands knew about the existence of gunpowder weapons through the Song Dynasty.

But since they had never seen them in action, they had no idea how powerful they were.

However, there was some information they had heard.

Gunpowder weapons were said to have enough power to shake heaven and earth and make solid walls tremble.

“Additionally, they are reported to have siege weapons.”

The Shogun wore a troubled expression.

He felt in his bones that if they landed on the ground, the entire archipelago would be in danger.

So they had to block them at sea at all costs.

“We must conscript every ship in the realm. Send out edicts immediately to all notable Oonanuushi (daimyo) to follow the Shogun’s command.”

For the Japanese, the islands represented their entire world.

The notable figures in this world, equivalent to Chinese provincial governors or clan leaders, were called Oonanuushi.

These were essentially lords who governed territories and possessed private armies and fleets.

Given this, Minamoto Yoritomo had no choice but to request the help of the Oonanuushi to prepare for the Mongol invasion.

“Ha!”

“We obey the Shogun’s command!”

The officials bowed and accepted the Shogun’s orders.

Then they backed out of the room.

After everyone had left, Yoritomo called for his younger brother, Minamoto Yoshitsune.

“You called for me, Shogun.”

“Come in, brother.”

Yoritomo was Yoshitsune’s third older brother.

So on the surface, he treated Yoshitsune warmly.

But inwardly, he was wary of Yoshitsune.

The reason was simple: Yoshitsune’s military achievements were outstanding.

As the general of the Genji, he had defeated the large Heike army with just 70 cavalry.

Yoshitsune, who had jumped down a cliff to rout the Heike army, had earned the nickname “Kakeooshi” through this battle.

Given this, Yoritomo personally wanted to bring about Yoshitsune’s downfall.

Well aware of this, Yoshitsune maintained proper etiquette despite Yoritomo’s warm behavior.

“Was the journey difficult? And since we’re family, you can be comfortable like when we were young.”

To this, Yoshitsune immediately shook his head.

“The Shogun leads the realm. You are like a father to all, so you should receive the respect that comes with that position to maintain the nation’s order.”

At Yoshitsune’s words, Yoritomo smiled with satisfaction.

He decided to postpone his plans to eliminate Yoshitsune for now.

Besides, the reason he had called him was to give him troops to stop the invading force.

So there was no reason to show him any ill will at this moment.

“As expected of Kakeooshi, recognized by the realm. With you, my brother, I’m not afraid of the Mongol invasion.”

Yoshitsune bowed to express his gratitude at Yoritomo’s praise.

But inwardly, he harbored different thoughts.