Chapter 14: Prince Gyeongjin Hwang Hyukgwang

1906 came, and warm spring arrived.

Manchuria was quite cold, but now that it was spring, it had gotten a little better.

I don’t know how long I’ll be staying here.

At the very least, once the war ends and Governor Lee Beomyun secures the Korean Empire after heading south, I’ll follow.

The reason I can remain here in Fengtian without any issues is partly because I am now a Russian count, but also because Qing China has sent envoys several times.

Yeah.

I tested the waters with them a few times, treating them with a bit of disdain, and now, finally, they’ve sent a man named Hyukgwang.

Sending a prince of their bloodline means they have something important to say.

The man before me, Prince Gyeongjin Hyukgwang, looked quite aged, but to me, he was just an old Manchu.

***

“This land belongs to the Great Qing. Stop invading neighboring countries and seizing their territory. Return what you’ve taken.”

“As a count of Great Russia, I have rightfully taken possession of South Manchuria. How is that an invasion? Manchuria has long been under Russian control, and Qing China turned a blind eye, did it not?”

“Korea is always treated as an easy target, huh? Even though it’s grown into a large egg now.”

“But Manchuria is still our land! And you are a Korean! We know that you led an army and mercilessly slaughtered the subjects of our Great Qing!”

Oh dear, anyone listening would think I was some kind of thief.

How unfair. This was the great cause of avenging King Injo! The restoration of Goguryeo’s lost lands!

It was never about plundering Manchuria’s riches.

Not at all.

“You misunderstand me. I am merely a Russian count. South Manchuria was granted to me as a fief by His Majesty the Tsar of Russia.”

“Then, at the very least, return the tombs of our Taizu and Taizong!”

“Oh. So losing Shenyang to Korea really hit them hard, huh?”

“Well, it makes sense. After all, the tomb of Hong Taiji, who subjugated Joseon, is there. They probably want to negotiate before suffering complete humiliation.”

This must be the real reason he’s here.

But no way.

That’s absolutely not happening.

Unfortunately for them, those two tombs are set to be exhumed and their remains disgraced.

“Wouldn’t it be something to send the bones of Nurhaci and Hong Taiji to Hanseong for public shaming? I bet even Emperor Gojong would love the idea.”

King Injo suffered humiliation at the hands of the Manchus, and now, during Gojong’s reign, that long-held resentment would finally be avenged.

Not that I personally care about the humiliation of Samjeondo.

For Qing China to suggest moving the tombs… That means they’ve practically given up on Manchuria already.

These bastards are scared of us.

Even in actual history, Qing troops were repeatedly beaten down by the Sapo, constantly worrying that Manchuria would fall into Korean hands.

“I’m sorry, but as a Korean, I cannot return the remains of Nurhaci, who dared to look down on Joseon, nor Hong Taiji, who humiliated us at Samjeondo.”

“You selective Korean! You Russian pawn! You despicable wench!”

He suddenly slammed the table and shot up in anger.

“Well, if you’re so upset, why don’t you go ask the Russian Tsar for a noble title yourself? This is ridiculous.”

“It’s hilarious how they’re panicking just because Korea took some parts of Manchuria. And coming all this way to retrieve some bones?”

As if a pile of skulls is worth that much.

But I have plenty of reasons to refuse.

“My lord is both His Majesty the Tsar of Russia and His Majesty the Emperor of Hanseong.”

“What nonsense is this? How can a subject choose his own ruler?”

I don’t know what delusion he’s under.

It’s all just a formality.

It’s not like I actually consider Gojong my lord.

“You must have forgotten that your ancestors, once mere vassals of Joseon, gained strength and declared themselves emperors, tormenting us in turn.”

“That was a long time ago! And you Koreans have already allied with the Japanese and proclaimed your own emperor! Isn’t that enough? How long do you plan to hold onto old grudges?”

Oh, come on.

I’m not that petty.

Besides, that’s something for the Jeonju Yi clan to dwell on, not me.

And the way they say we “allied with the Japanese” is disgusting.

I shook my head with a smirk.

“I cannot return them.”

“Then what do you intend to do?”

“For now, I will send them to the mainland for further decision. Perhaps placing the remains of your Taizong, who brought us the disgrace of Samjeondo, before the tomb of our King Injo would be fitting.”

‘If it were up to Gojong, he’d probably do something even worse to assert his authority.’

Now that he wants to pretend Korea is a civilized nation, he might refrain from desecration—but at the very least, some form of public humiliation would happen.

Upon hearing my words, Prince Gyeongjin Hyukgwang turned pale, frantically waving his hands.

“A-absolutely not!”

“Of course not. However, depending on how Your Highness responds to this conversation, I may be willing to negotiate as a Russian ‘count’ rather than a Korean.”

This is the power of selective nationality.

‘Who knew the title of Count, granted by the Russian Tsar, would come in handy like this?’

Negotiation isn’t too difficult.

“Negotiate? What is it that you want?”

“Since we need some insurance, I can’t return them entirely. There are two sets of remains, so I have two conditions.”

“Or you can just choose one.”

He clenched his fists, trembling in frustration.

“What is it that you want?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Even though I am Korean, I can’t keep relying on His Majesty the Tsar’s support forever. I plan to develop the region independently, but I’m a little short on funds.”

“You want funding for Manchuria’s development?”

“Manchuria is sacred to the Manchus, yet it’s in quite a poor state. Consider it as investing in your ancestral homeland.”

“Is that all?”

“And Korea’s formal recognition of its sovereignty over Manchuria. I want an official document from Qing China renouncing all claims to Manchuria.”

I deliberately set the bar high.

Even getting just one of these demands would be a win.

It’s not like I expect the Qing to agree to both.

So, let’s throw everything at them and see what sticks, just like we did with Russia.

“Hey, you wench! If our Great Qing Empire dispatches a large army—!”

“Hah. So the Great Qing is threatening to send a massive army? Do they think the Imperial Korean Northern Army is a joke?”

“Unlike the weak image Korea had when it easily fell to Japan, the Korean Northern Army had proven its strength against the remnants of the Boxer Rebellion, rebels, and Qing forces.”

“Even if hundreds of thousands of those queue-headed Qing soldiers swarmed in, we could take them down.”

“Well, I’m fine as I am, but you should keep this in mind. My homeland is allied with Britain and Japan.”

“I never expected to use this here. Of course, the alliance was formed to fight Russia, but let’s think this through.”

“If the Korean forces in Manchuria are attacked, Japan and Britain will have no choice but to intervene. And knowing them, they’ll take this opportunity to get a big score out of it.”

“No, in fact, Japan might not just stop at blocking Russia—they could use this chance to push north, starting from Fujian Province.”

“And if that happens? The Second Sino-Japanese War will break out even sooner.”

“If Japan acknowledges the foreign powers’ interests in China and doesn’t overstep its bounds, no one will be able to complain about Japan swallowing up the Qing.”

“It’s called using a tiger’s power for one’s own gain.”

“The Qing might find the Korean forces in Manchuria troublesome, but if they went all out, they could probably take us down.”

“Though, looking at the state of the Qing now, even if they reclaim Manchuria, the country will collapse.”

“In any case, from the Qing’s perspective, the Korean forces stationed in Manchuria are nothing more than the army of a vassal state. They fundamentally perceive us differently.”

“But what if this so-called vassal is allied with Britain—the nation that has beaten them down annually like a ritual—and Japan, the country that humiliated them on the Korean Peninsula?”

It wouldn’t be so easy to deal with Korea when it’s backed by Britain and Japan.

And on top of that, I’m a Russian count.

“If I wanted, I could even borrow troops from the Russian Tsar, who favors me.”

“How long do you think those two nations will protect you?”

“Are you insane? The real concern is whether those two will swallow us whole or not.”

“They won’t protect us.”

“Of course, as long as I give them the right justification, they’ll intervene for their own gain—there’s plenty of spoils to be had from Qing.”

“Even without those two countries, the Qing is no match for us anymore.

“It takes just 100 of our soldiers to defeat 1,000 Qing troops. If they send 10,000, we only need 1,000. If they send 100,000, then 10,000 of our men will be enough.”

“The once-mighty Eight Banners Army has declined in quality, and as for those ragtag Han Chinese troops, do you really think they can stand against us? Look at the situation objectively.”

***

Guangxu isn’t as much of an idiot as Empress Dowager Cixi.

At the very least, he knows how to hold a conversation and understands the predicament his country is in.

‘Sending a large army to reclaim Manchuria?’

“If they fight alone, without Russia, Britain, or Japan intervening, who would win?”

“Even if Emperor Gojong refuses to send reinforcements to avoid escalating the war, he will still provide supplies because he won’t want to lose Manchuria.”

“And judging by the state of the Qing military, even if they manage to reclaim Manchuria, they won’t come out unscathed.”

“Guangxu must already know this, which is why he’s just bluffing.”

***

“Manchuria is absolutely off-limits!”

“Well, the Qing’s military is in shambles, and they’ve already been plundered to the point where all they have left is their pride.”

“They lost land to Russia, but that was different—it wasn’t a complete occupation. If they were to officially cede Manchuria to Korea, the Qing imperial family in Beijing would become nothing more than Manchu nobodies.”

“If that happens, who knows what kind of internal chaos will break out?”

***

“Then, you’ll have to give up at least one royal tomb. Are you willing to hand over the development rights to Manchuria instead?”

“Let’s just keep Nurhaci’s tomb for them.”

“I was only planning to take one anyway, and it would be best to claim Hong Taiji’s tomb to resolve the disgrace of the Samjeondo Humiliation.”

“Alright. Then what happens next?”

“Well, we could return the remains of Emperor Taizu to the Manchu Great Khan.”

“But Hong Taiji’s remains will be sent to Hanseong.”

“That way, Emperor Gojong will ease up on his suspicions toward me, at least a little.”

“Fine. But don’t think this is the end.”

“…What?”

‘What nonsense is he spouting now?’

“We will return one day to avenge the humiliation our Qing Empire has suffered.”

“They want revenge for their humiliation.”

‘Is this man seriously saying this—to me?’

Ah, how dull. So utterly dull.

Sitting in the imperial palace, criticizing Empress Dowager Cixi, and dabbling in various policies—that’s the cushy life he leads.

A parasite, surviving comfortably even in a semi-colonial state.

A fire-and-forget retiree with a status that allows him to live well, eat well, and do nothing.

And yet, here I am—struggling to survive in this brutal world by any means necessary.

‘And he dares speak of humiliation?’ I can’t even find the words.

“This is what you consider humiliation? You bow your head before the great powers, begging for mercy—’Please spare us! We’ll give you everything we have!’—whimpering like cowards. But the moment a former vassal state pricks you a little, you fly into a rage. Do you still see us as a weak nation that can be trampled by a bunch of Manchu outcasts?”

Ah, it’s getting hard to control my temper.

This worm is really starting to annoy me.

Sure, I can understand that all the Qing has left is its pride, so I can try to sympathize.

‘But why the hell should I care?’

***

“What did you say?!”

I might still suffer under Japan one day, but I have no intention of ever taking blows from the likes of the Qing again.

Seeing this fool, still oblivious to reality and whining, makes me sick.

He’s like a spoiled brat, throwing a tantrum because his parents always bailed him out before.

Honestly, it would be tempting to just cut his head off right here and start the Korea-Qing War.

That way, Japan’s attention would shift toward China.

Even if they come for us again later, they’ll be too busy fighting in China for now.

“If we die, we’ll drag Qing down with us. If we survive, we’ll crush the Qing beneath us. But one thing is certain—Qing will never reclaim Manchuria, nor will they ever turn us into a vassal state again.”

Both Guangxu and Ito Hirobumi must think I’m a fool.

Guangxu clenched his fists, his lips quivering, then stormed away.

I laughed freely, watching his retreating figure disappear.

I must have really adapted to this world.

Seeing a pathetic Manchu mutt like him throwing a tantrum—it just feels cute now.

Honestly, can’t Japan just go crazy and start an all-out war with China? That would be the best-case scenario.