Chapter 38: Rewarding Merit and Eradicating Traitors

“Ah, I understand. I will leave that matter to the Liaoning Governor of the Sapo.”

“Your Majesty, I am deeply honored.”

“Your Majesty, now that the nation of Daehan has been saved, the throne remains vacant. I humbly ask that you ascend the throne and oversee the affairs of Daehan.”

Army Marshal Park Seo Sangmu proposed that Yi Cheok ascend to the throne.

“Yes, we must quickly place him on the throne.”

A country like this, where the monarchy reigns, feels secure only when the throne is filled.

Though, the public’s opinion has been leaning towards Sapo because of this war.

“The Marshal’s words are correct. The Crown Prince must ascend the throne and become the rightful ruler of the vacant throne.”

Now, all that remains is the position of the Prime Minister, the Chief State Councillor.

The former Chief State Councillor, Jo Byeongse, had committed suicide during the coup led by Kuroki Tamemoto in Hanseong.

That is, the position of the Chief State Councillor (Prime Minister) is now vacant.

“We do not need to pressure anyone; the position will be filled on its own.”

“Your Majesty, the position of Chief State Councillor is also vacant. We must appoint a new one swiftly to stabilize the country.”

“Indeed. Who would be suitable?”

“I believe it should be the Governor of Gando, who wiped out the Japanese in Manchuria and the Korean Peninsula.”

I confidently put forth Lee Beomyun.

“Be cautious with the Governor of Liaoning. How can we appoint the Governor of Gando? He has been a warlord, strengthening his power from the outside for a long time.”

Cixi glared at me, clearly showing her displeasure.

She couldn’t directly speak out, but still, Governor of Gando Lee Beomyun had initially never even been mentioned to the Emperor and had aggressively expanded Gando into Manchuria.

“After Kuroki Tamemoto’s coup in Hanseong, many thought Daehan was lost. Instead of fighting back, they either committed suicide or were killed by Kuroki Tamemoto. Now, at this point, who else other than Governor of Gando, who saved the nation, could be more suitable?”

“Once Lee Beomyun becomes the Chief State Councillor, we will begin introducing elections and reform the nation.”

There is no justification to refuse my proposal.

Even if I appoint an ambiguous figure to the position of Chief State Councillor, it seems pointless.

In fact, there’s no solid reason to reject this idea.

‘Everyone praises Sapo; if we don’t appoint a national hero to the position of Prime Minister, who else would be appropriate?’

The others in the temporary cabinet, having no alternatives at the moment, didn’t actively support it, but they remained silent.

Thus, the reward system was set into motion.

“Lee Beomyun will be appointed as the Chief State Councillor. We will appoint Ok Jinseo as the Governor of South Manchuria and Foreign Minister, Park Seo Sangmu as the Minister of the Army, and promote Nam Sangdeok, the General in charge of the defense of the Imjin River, to the rank of general.”

“Kim Insu will be appointed as the Chief of Staff. Moreover, many died in this war, so we will release the patriots in prison and include them in the new cabinet.”

“Even figures like Lee Sangjae, a reformist in prison, were included in the new cabinet. And there was something suspicious—Yi Wanyong, this bastard, was serving as the Minister of Education.”

“Such a lucky bastard.”

In the future, the man who will stir up the most trouble is this Yi Wanyong.

“He is a pro-Japanese traitor, but he was a loyal servant of King Gojong, taking on the responsibility of leading the Korea-Japan annexation and negotiating so that the imperial family of the Daehan Empire could be preserved as a royal family second only to the Japanese Emperor.”

‘Though the truth may be different, he is a slimy man.’

‘Why didn’t we take care of him?’

The truth is, he walked the pro-Japanese path after the Russo-Japanese War.

Since the Russo-Japanese War became a Russo-Korean-Japanese war and Japan lost, Yi Wanyong’s fate changed from the original history.

‘But how do we deal with him?’ He followed King Gojong’s orders well and didn’t engage much in pro-Japanese activities.

In fact, after the fall of Hanseong, he left the capital, claiming he would return to the countryside and lived in seclusion.

Only now was he re-employed.

It’s hard to find any grounds to kill him, even if we want to.

“Pro-Japanese people are really getting ambiguous.”

“Anyway, now that Yi Wanyong’s name is mentioned, let’s talk about the pro-Japanese figures.”

“It’s become strange.”

“We also had to deal with the pro-Japanese figures we already know, but in a different way.”

“Figures like Song Byeongjun, Lee Jiyong, Lee Yonggu, who were directly involved in the puppet government established by Kuroki Tamemoto, as well as Go Yeonghee, Lee Jaegeuk, and others, were all involved.”

To be honest, they were all tangled up.

I won’t even bother to list them—those who were part of the “Seven Traitors of Jeongmi” and the “Five Traitors of Eulsa” are all included.

Sadly, these people had to be caught and killed.

“We didn’t commit pro-Japanese acts!”

“Your Majesty, we are innocent!”

Without hesitation, they were executed by gunfire, in full view of all.

“These fools! How long will Sapo last?”

“You won’t escape either!”

“Oh, they think Sapo won’t last long? Even if it doesn’t last, it’s still outlasting them.”

“I think we’ll last longer than you.”

“After this war, Sapo will have deep involvement in the internal affairs of the Empire, and perhaps will eventually become the leading force in the reforms.”

“To think a woman is calling for bloodshed in the nation! There’s an old saying that when the hen crows…”

“But who was the one who sold the country for their own gain, even worse than that hen?”

The ones worse than that hen are you now.

You, who formed the Iljinhoe Society and were discarded by the Japanese, are the real traitors.

“You… you think you can execute us and get away with it? Do you even know who we are? If you kill us, you all—bang!”

‘Did he say Lee Jaegeuk?’ Anyway, I made a hole in that bastard’s head.

Even when I tried to let him go, he was too noisy.

The soldiers hesitated, so I decided it was better to do it now.

“Since Koreans, exposed to the class system for a long time, would hesitate to execute higher-ranking individuals, I thought about bringing in Manchu or Han Chinese troops but decided to have Koreans execute them directly to break the class system.”

“It’s time to engrave that lesson into their minds.”

“See? No matter how high their position or noble their blood, once they’re dead, they’re just meat. All people are the same. So, don’t be afraid when dealing with people who will eventually become meat.”

“Yes, Your Excellency!”

With their minds set, the soldiers of Sapo aimed their guns at the traitors, who would soon become meat.

“Please, spare us! We truly did it for the country!”

“You followed the treacherous Japanese who tried to assassinate His Majesty? You still think that sounds convincing?”

***

Bang! Bang! Bang!

With my mocking laughter, the gunfire rang out.

‘Japan has fallen, and they are not even traitors, so what’s the need to involve them? Some might say that’.

But they are the ones who acted like traitors.

‘Just because Japan has fallen, does that mean their true nature has disappeared?’ They will try to sell out wherever they can.

The nature of a traitor doesn’t go away.

‘If a second or third Japan emerges, or if they can’t enjoy their wealth and glory, they will immediately align with whoever benefits them.’

They haven’t acted as traitors yet, but looking at their nature, it’s better to tie them down while I can.

But you know, this Yi Wanyong guy really bothers me.

“Yi Wanyong, this guy…”

‘If I kill him, it doesn’t seem like anything will come of it.’

‘But if I let him live, it feels uncomfortable.’

“From what I see, this guy doesn’t seem to have taken a side in the middle and just stayed neutral, watching the war until he was naturally appointed by Empress Myeongseong, right?”

“Maybe I should’ve just killed him during the war.”

‘He hasn’t done any pro-Japanese actions yet, but he’s a sketchy guy.’

‘It wouldn’t be bad to just get rid of him to avoid future trouble.’

“No, wait. Isn’t this why we have traitor-gall (Daeyeok)?”

***

[Author: Jinwi Bingui Ja]

[Title: What happened to Yi Wanyong after the Russo-Japanese War?]

—”Just as the title says.”

“I need information about this guy, not just from the textbook.”

[Comments]

[Daebung01: Are you talking about the Russo-Japanese War? Yi Wanyong was a really clever bastard. He probably would’ve immediately supported Japan if they won.]

[Jinwi Bingui Ja: Did he sell out the country to Russia and die?]

[Daebung01: This bastard. He was loyal to King Gojong, but as soon as Seoul was occupied, he tried to stay neutral and retired. If Japan had won, he would’ve sold out the country. Actually, it’s a little different. Later, when negotiating with China or Japan, this guy was really ruthless.]

In short, he hasn’t betrayed yet, but he might be a guy to watch.

I should’ve tied him down earlier, but… hmm, maybe it’s better to leave him alone like Daeyeokgal says.

Most traitors are already dead. Killing Yi Wanyong would be a pretty big political risk for me.

If I have to let him live, then…

“It’s better to keep using him until the end, right?”

I can’t trust Yi Wanyong, but if I have to use him, I should use him thoroughly and then dispose of him later.

‘I’m not sure if I should ask more about this because it’s risky, but doesn’t this sound like a good plan?’ My goal is to fight against China and Japan from now on.

The weak Korean Empire won’t even think about it, and they will probably just continue living in satisfaction.

In that case, at least Yi Wanyong is on my side.

It’s going to be harder from here on out. During the war, I just have to fight without thinking, but after the war, I’ll need to continue modernizing the Korean Empire.

***

[Author: Jinwi Bingui Ja]

[Title: What happened to Ok Jinseo after the Russo-Japanese War?]

“I need to research about Ok Jinseo. Hurry up.”

[Comments]

[Daebung01: This crazy question villain is back again.]

[Daebung02: She was too ambitious, and because she was a woman, there were a lot of rumors inside. The biggest issue was that even within the Korean Empire’s army, some people were influenced by the British and Japanese, so there was some resentment toward Ok Jinseo.]

[Jinwi Bingui Ja: Are they pro-Japanese bastards?]

[Daebung02: No, it’s just that kind of thing. “We are different from those bastards.” In the end, when King Gojong died, the Korean Empire’s army, which had received help from the British and Japan, would have hated Japan.]

[Anyway, Ok Jinseo’s northern Sapo forces were heavily influenced by France, and they were a multi-ethnic army that mainly did pillaging, including massacring Chinese soldiers. So, the Korean Empire’s army thought, “We’re not like those barbaric guys!]

[This led to a huge split, with Ok Jinseo’s Manchurian army being a successor to the Sapo forces, and the Korean Empire’s army splitting into two.]

[Daebung03: The country splitting was a big deal, and the reformist faction like Park Seo Sangmu and Lee Kang tried to control the Manchu faction, Ok Jinseo, by supporting the young Emperor Yeonglak, and this caused the modernization to slow down.]

[Even if they won the Russo-Japanese War, there was a lot of internal fighting for a while. In the end, Ok Jinseo gave up all his command in the northeast and went to Russia as a Russian count.]

[Jinwi Bingui Ja: So, he just abandoned the country?]

[Daebung03: Yeah. Because the internal fighting was all because of him, and with a Russian title, he went to Russia and supported the Korean Empire, but it was already hopeless. When Japan recovered, they intervened and made the Korea-Japan United Empire.]

[Ok Jinseo later supported the Korean independence movement, and after the First World War and the Russian Civil War, he participated in the battle at Chita and helped establish the Holy Russian Empire by defeating the Red Army. After that, his records are unclear, but since Russian forces later supported Korean independence, Ok Jinseo was probably behind it.]

I read through the comments blankly.

And I leaned back comfortably in my chair, staring aimlessly into space.

“Hm. Maybe he’s a lost cause.”

‘Just because I’m a woman, this is how it turns out.’

‘I have no intention of subscribing to feminism, but in this era, gender really seems like a big barrier.’

‘Honestly, if I just stayed quiet, the Daeyeokgal comments might come true.’

That’s because I have no patriotism at all.

I never had patriotism in this world, and I wasn’t even born in the world of the Korean Empire.

I have no loyalty to the Korean Empire to the point of sacrificing my life for it.

But still, as a nation of the Korean people, I probably would have tried to stop Japan from taking over or worked for independence from the outside.

I probably went to Russia or the U.S.

It seems likely that I would do what these comments say.

‘Maybe I helped Russia behind the scenes and then stayed out of the spotlight.’

The interesting thing is that Emperor Yeonglak used the Yeonglak era name.

‘I think the reformists used that era name to pump up national pride, but what’s the point if the country is taken over?’

It’s called the Korea-Japan United Empire, but Japan doesn’t have the strength to completely swallow it.

They probably formed the union just to use it however they want.

‘Then, maybe I need to change history a bit.’

“I need to start with the army.”

I need to cut off the hands and feet of the reformists.

‘Should I get rid of Lee Kang and Park Seo Sangmu?’

‘If I do that, I can’t just quietly support them from behind.’

“I’ll need to step forward and overthrow the country.”

“Would the Koreans say anything if I purged them right after the war ends?”

‘It would be impossible to do such a bloody thing within the country, right?’

‘But if I back off, that would be just as ridiculous.’

I don’t want to see those comments come true.

I want to change the future.

“The difficulty is really extreme.”

‘Why did that crazy old man make me a woman and make things this complicated?’

Honestly, I don’t care about gender.

But because of that crazy old man, I’ve experienced things I would never have if I had been a man.

It’s kind of annoying, but it’s better than dying.

I can bear this kind of debuff.

But if I can’t change history, it really means nothing.