Ch.320The Sword Path (1)

# The Day I Visited Prince Anchang’s House

The day I visited Prince Anchang’s house.

That’s when he and I formed an alliance.

To be precise, it was less of an alliance and more of an agreement to achieve our respective goals.

This was because I didn’t have any power base to begin with.

Nevertheless, my conversation with Prince Anchang was quite positive.

“He’s trying to use me politically, but I suppose it means he sees me as someone useful.”

A descendant manipulating me.

If I approached it from that perspective, it might seem like a strange situation.

But since I was now in the body of a descendant, it was natural to be treated this way.

“Because I’m no longer Yesugei.”

No longer Yesugei.

It sounds a bit strange, but that was correct.

It was time to adapt to my new body.

“Eunuch Jang. Did you bring what I asked for?”

“Yes, I brought it, Your Highness.”

Eunuch Jang handed me something wrapped in high-quality cloth at my request.

Receiving it, I smiled with satisfaction.

“A fire lance…”

With the emergence of long-range weapons called fire lances, the decline of cavalry began.

To be precise, cavalry was still dominant, but infantry, which was easier to train than cavalry, gradually gained the upper hand as they acquired long-range weapons like fire lances.

This was because training a single cavalryman took quite a long time.

In Mongolia’s case, people rode horses from birth, lived on horseback, and died on horseback, so they could field cavalry at a national level.

However, there’s a slight misunderstanding here—being able to field cavalry doesn’t mean being able to maintain it constantly.

What this means is that maintaining cavalry required enormous costs.

Apart from the rations consumed by the cavalrymen, the fodder consumed by the horses was also tremendous.

Mongolian horses could eat almost any grass, but that didn’t completely eliminate maintenance costs.

After all, horses were living creatures.

In contrast, fire lances were weapons.

Being inanimate objects, they were easier to maintain.

This, coupled with easily trained infantry, allowed for overwhelming firepower.

“If I can handle these properly, I could push back even the Mongol main force with their cavalry focus.”

The reason I was considering battle with Mongolia was simple.

Our forces were very inadequate.

My father Mungke was a scoundrel through and through, so he had no power base.

Being someone without even a single loyal retainer, the possibility of having troops in the family was very low.

Therefore, before reaching adulthood, I needed to recruit forces under my command.

Of course, within limits that wouldn’t offend the Emperor.

“In a situation where the Emperor is favorable, recruiting soldiers might be possible, but that would be limited to infantry.”

Even if the Emperor was favorable toward me, it was highly unlikely he would simply watch elements that could threaten him.

Therefore, the maximum number of troops I could recruit without offending him seemed to be about 500 infantry.

Five hundred infantry was larger than what a typical local lord might have.

This was a level that could be justified as a foundation for me to claim the position of Khan, if well explained.

This was because the number of troops a prince, the Emperor’s son, could lead started at a baseline of 1,000.

In other words, even if I commanded about 500 soldiers, any royal family member would have more than enough troops to suppress me.

Anyway, apart from this, facing cavalry with 500 infantry would be very challenging.

That’s why I planned to make fire lances my main weapon.

“If I just give them fire lances, they’ll end up like the Ming Dynasty, so I need to teach them tactics well too.”

Pike and shot.

I was thinking of incorporating the musketeer formation that originated in Spain and flourished in the Netherlands.

“If I deploy pikemen at the front with musketeers supporting from behind, even Mongolia would find it difficult to withstand.”

The essence of pike and shot lies in its tactical flexibility.

Originally, the tercio was a formation created by the 15th-century general Gonzalo de Córdoba.

Under a captain, pikemen, musketeers, and infantry were combined into a single unit capable of responding to various combat forms such as anti-cavalry, shooting battles, and hand-to-hand combat.

Among these, pike and shot was just one anti-cavalry tactic.

Excluding anti-cavalry tactics, if we look only at hand-to-hand combat, the Spanish tercio would inevitably be outmatched by Central Plains or Korean Peninsula nations.

Hand-to-hand combat was a battle of scale.

Therefore, engaging in face-to-face combat with nations from these two regions, which typically fielded hundreds of thousands of troops, would be foolish.

The reason for this lengthy explanation was simple.

It meant that I would follow the tercio formation but focus on teaching the anti-cavalry tactic of pike and shot.

“Nothing else matters—we just need to defeat Mongolian cavalry.”

I said this as I got up.

To reclaim the position of Khan, I would have to face other throne successors.

They were Mongolian princes, so they would naturally employ cavalry.

Therefore, I needed to become their hard counter.

“Before that.”

As I opened the door, Eunuch Jang appeared.

He bowed politely before addressing me.

“As you instructed, I’ve examined all the leaders of the criminal underworld near Hanyang.”

“Good.”

Honestly, I didn’t think highly of the content in alternative history novels where they cooperate with gangsters to create slush funds.

They were clearly criminals, often used like convenient blades for handling covert matters.

Therefore, I had no intention of dealing with them.

If I associated with them, I might erode the Emperor’s goodwill that I had worked hard to build.

“Who among them is the most vicious group?”

“The gang based in Mount Surak appears to be the most dangerous.”

“I understand.”

I nodded and gestured for Eunuch Jang to lead the way.

He looked at me with an expression of incomprehension.

“What…”

“We’re heading to Prince Anchang’s residence. I intend to seek his help.”

“Ah, I see. Understood. I’ll escort you right away.”

So we immediately crossed Cheonggyecheon and headed to Prince Anchang’s house.

Having met him once before, Prince Anchang looked at me with an expression that seemed to ask why I had come again.

“I have a favor to ask of you.”

“You’re speaking to me?”

“Yes.”

“Judging by your expression, it seems we need a private conversation… Please come inside.”

Prince Anchang said this after examining my countenance.

I followed his suggestion and went inside.

As soon as I sat down, I got straight to the point.

“I wish to eliminate the criminal underworld.”

“The criminal underworld? Why do you suddenly want to eliminate them?”

Prince Anchang’s eyes were full of concern.

It seemed I appeared to be acting out of blind ambition.

In fact, that was correct.

I needed to appear that way to get what I wanted.

“I wish to catch the Emperor’s eye by making a name for myself.”

“That seems like an ambition appropriate for your age. However, I believe now is the time for self-improvement.”

It was like an uncle soothing a tantrum-throwing cousin.

If that’s how he saw it, I needed to act accordingly to avoid suspicion.

“Your words are wise. However, if I don’t act, I cannot escape my father’s shadow.”

Khan Mungke’s infamy was so great that even common people knew about it.

In this situation, if I didn’t do good deeds, people might lump me together with him.

It was a rather weak justification, but it was the kind of impulsive behavior someone my age might display.

Especially regarding wanting to escape my father’s shadow.

“Hmm…”

Prince Anchang wore an expression of deep thought.

The reason for his contemplation was obvious—he too was unable to escape the Emperor’s shadow.

In a way, it was something he could project onto me—a point of empathy.

Because of this, he was seriously considering my request.

“Very well. Eliminating the criminal underworld would be for the benefit of the people, so the Emperor would likely approve.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

I showed joy like a child receiving a toy gift.

Prince Anchang nodded with a satisfied expression.

* * *

The palace was secured by the Kheshig.

Other areas, like any region, had separate administrative offices.

“It is an honor to serve you, Khan Tolui. I am Goyul, the Panyun who will be serving Your Highness.”

Panyun was a rank 2 official, corresponding to a high-ranking position.

Though it seemed like a high position, since the military authority of Hanseong was divided between the Ministry of War and the Police Bureau, his actual power could be considered weak.

Still, his rank was high, making him more than suitable to assist princes like me.

Apart from that, I was greatly surprised by Goyul’s appearance.

And for good reason…

“Munglig?”

“What did you say?”

“Ah… nothing. You just look so much like Munglig…”

He looked identical enough to be Munglig’s descendant.

Of course, Munglig had no descendants.

He hadn’t seen any children before I died.

That’s why I had arranged for him to adopt a smart child from Khamag Mongol to continue his lineage.

In other words, Munglig’s family line continued, but not being direct descendants, they couldn’t possibly look genetically similar to Munglig.

Anyway, apart from that, meeting someone in Goryeo who looked exactly like Munglig made me feel so happy I could almost cry.

Unaware of my feelings, Goyul looked at me with a confused expression.

“Why… why are you looking at me like that, Your Highness? Did I do something wrong…”

“No, no… I’m just glad to see you.”

Is this how it would feel if Munglig came back to life?

I couldn’t control the emotions welling up in my chest.

So I took a deep breath to compose myself.

The Goyul before me is just someone who resembles Munglig. That’s all, I told myself.

“I’m fine now. Let’s go eliminate the criminal underworld.”

At my words, Munglig—no, Goyul—nodded.

Then he looked at the soldiers behind him and shouted loudly.

“We’re moving out to eliminate the criminal underworld! Move it, men!”

As the order was given, the soldiers began preparing to march.

Seeing this, I couldn’t help but shake my head.