章節 196: The Timeline of the New World (After the Kirin Lord era) Part 2
The First Sino-Korean War (1565 – 1567)
(Note: Most of the statements here are based on the records from Chinese, Korean and Japanese historians, most of which are conflicting in their claims. While they only joined later, the Japanese records are held as the most reliable due to their embedded photographs and audio records of first-hand accounts. At the time when the official Japanese forces were still not present, the accounts of spies became the main source of information that this book decided to follow.)
[June 4, 1565] – The declaration of war by China arrived in the capital of Joseon and immediately caused a frenzied stir among the nobility that quickly spread to the commoners. Before a royal decree can be sent out to order every able-bodied man to conscription, many have already fled with their families to the mountain valleys and remote islets, causing delays and shortages of men.
As the Joseon army has not faced war for the past few decades, bringing the conscripted men into fighting form was slow and arduous and their reluctance to make use of muskets and field cannons hampered their fighting capability.
By June, the Chinese army crossed the border into northern Korea where they met stiff resistance from the Korean army that manned the fortresses in the mountainous regions. For a couple of months, it was a grueling and bloody war for both sides.
[August 19, 1565] – After sending their soldiers wave after wave into the Korean defenses like an unceasing meat grinder, the defenders finally buckled from the mix of exhaustion and poor supply lines of food and armaments. Seeing the inevitable fall of their defensive emplacements, the Korean generals agreed to pull their forces back just enough for the supply lines to be more manageable and buy enough time for the new soldiers to become more viable reinforcements.
[October 27, 1565] – The initial decision of the Korean generals to pull back their battle lines became a liability after a Chinese naval landing in Incheon smashed through the garrison forces of the area. This was only a few kilometers away from the royal capital of Hanseong (Seoul). Because of this encirclement maneuver, their main army was wiped out in Yultong, depriving them of their most numerous and experienced forces and military leaders.
The royal court and a massive number of nobles and commoners would retreat towards Hanbat (Daejeon) which only three weeks later, would be abandoned for a retreat towards Taegu (Daegu) after a failed offensive to dislodge the Chinese foothold in Hanseong. Eventually, during the winter season, the royal court and what remains of the alive and free nobility and commonfolk would make the dangerous and freezing trek towards Busan where the king and his ministers would request Sung Min-Seok, the very same man who once visited Japan, to act as the country's intermediary to Japan in order to request their help in fighting against the Chinese.
[December 19, 1565] – Upon receiving the request of the king of Joseon from their spy network, Japan would greenlit the operation that they have long prepared for this war that they have predicted. In the emergency war council that was held between the House of Commons, House of Lords, Shogunate government and the Imperial court, a unanimous vote set the nation's decision to aid Joseon against the Chinese Imperial invaders.
One hour after the decision was made, Kiko's First Expeditionary and Rapid Response Forces would be the first Japanese military force to cross the Chushima strait into Busan. Comprised of combat engineers, machinegun platoons and mortar teams they would set up defensive points, minefields and light artillery emplacements to defend the last surviving province of Joseon alongside its remaining forces.
[January 7, 1566] – The Second Battle of Busan would commence after a 12,000-strong Chinese army formation mounted an attack towards the north of Busan. Here, the so-called "Demon's Banquet" incident would happen where Japanese machinegun positions would cut down wave after wave of the charging infantry formations and if one appears on the battlefield, officers and high-ranking leaders would either be shot on their forehead or chest by sniper shots or blown up by accurate mortar fire.
Two weeks later, another invasion attempt would be made by a 15,000-strong combined infantry and cavalry division led by a renown Chinese general by the name of Luo Wan Ping. Learning of the failure of the initial mass charge attempt and the other skirmishes that ended with massive losses, he sent out his cavalry first to rush the combined Japanese and Korean defensive lines, betting that they could overrun their trenches and clear them.
However, this would only end up with the almost complete annihilation of the Chinese cavalry regiments as the field they crossed was filled with both high-explosive (landmines) and anti-personnel mines (claymores). Not knowing that he has set his men in range of the light artillery lines behind a nearby hill's ridge, the general would be annihilated alongside much of his remaining forces by a three-hour long shelling from the artilleries.
[February 2, 1566] – Hearing of these failures after he has already declared their total victory against Korea, Emperor Mao Xiang Dan would send another invasion force into Korea with the strict order of defeating the country before the year ends. However, he didn't even bother to learn what it was that caused these failures and the involvement of Japan whom he has dismissed as a "paper tiger" that can only make threats.
With those strict orders given to the generals, 3 million Chinese imperial forces would be sent to Korea aboard thousands of transport ships and some newly made siege engines. While it would take weeks or even months to restructure their forces, the arrival of this news in Korea scared much of the populace save for the followers of the Sung and Yi family who saw it instead as an opportunity.
[March 13, 1566] – Three and a half months after the declaration of their participation in the war was declared, the initial Japanese forces belonging to Kiko's army was relieved from their duty after the arrival of the main Japanese force in Busan and numerous other island harbors.
Led by renown war heroes of the Sengoku period such as Lady Ayanami Mitsuhide, Admiral Fumikage Ryuusui, General Shimura Nobisuke and even the controversial General Himeji Kotori, those who were in-the-know understood that Japan took their pledge to aid Korea seriously, something that only became apparent to the locals after they saw the strange and near-mythical machines of war brought over by Japan.
(T/N: Editor ZERO and Author Rai military nerding out session incoming. Feel free to skip until the next highlighted section if you don't mind being too swamped by details and immersion.)
According to official records, the following armed groups and forces participated in this overseas defense force:
- 15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and 20th Japanese Infantry Divisions belonging to the United Lords' forces (1.2 million soldiers)
- 21st and 32nd Shogunate Army Divisions (400,000 soldiers)
- 45th Heavy Artillery Corps of the Kiko Army (3000 soldiers and 170 artillery pieces)
- 801st Special Operations Airborne Battalion of the Shogunate Army (700 soldiers and 20 high-altitude transport planes)
- 7th Combined Combat Fleet of the Kiko Navy (3 Battleships, 8 Cruisers, 16 Destroyers and 4 Aircraft Carriers)
- 10th Submarine Fleet of the Kiko Navy (12 Attack Submarines, 9 Ballistic missile submarines (non-nuclear armed))
- 9th Mechanized Cavalry Division of the Kiko Army nicknamed "The Hikigaya Rough Riders" (42 Tanks and 86 Infantry fighting vehicles)
- 14th Fighter Wing of the Shogunate Air Corps (64 "Makibishi" Propeller fighters)
- 12th Fighter Wing of the Kiko Air Force (30 "Taka" Jet Fighter-bombers)
- 21st Air Cavalry Combat Wing of the Shogunate Air Force (25 "Tsuchinoko" Attack helicopters)
- 5th Air Cavalry Transport Wing of the Kiko Air Force (32 "Tonbo" Transport helicopters)
- 1st Combat Medical Corps of the United Lords' forces (300,000 medics and 5 medical ships)
- Numerous other forces including Engineer corps, Supply and Logistics battalions, etc.
- Various armed volunteer forces who was permitted to sneak into occupied territory to smuggle out trapped locals. (Numbers estimated to be under 10,000)
- Clandestine forces belonging to Kiko, Shinka and Shogunate secret services tasked with sabotage and espionage behind enemy lines (numbers still unknown)
(T/N: This is the highlighted section for those who skipped all of those details.)
To enhance the royal Joseon forces' own capabilities, two refurbished and rearmed Cruisers from the Kiko Navy would be handed to the Yi family alongside 7000 Seiryuu battle rifles.
[April 30, 1566] – In a sudden turn of the tables against the Chinese, a combined Japanese and Korean force would strike Ulsan wherein Japanese bombers would carpet bomb the large encampment outside the city before jet fighters carrying precision-guided bombs would strike numerous buildings inside the city, limiting the civilian casualties.
Moments later, Korean infantry carried by Japanese transport helicopters entered the city and engaged the remaining Chinese garrison in melee combat while Japanese attack helicopters and sniper-carrying transport choppers provided long-range strafing and precise fire.
After reports of the offensive reached a nearby Chinese garrison in Gyeongju, their commander assembled his troops to march towards and reinforce the city but was met by a combination of Korean guerilla fighters backed by Japanese special forces who ambushed their formations and forced them to retreat back to Gyeongju.
By the 3rd of May, Ulsan would become the first city liberated from the invaders and marked the beginning of the invasion's eventual downfall. Although Korea would incur large losses during the fighting, this victory invigorated the morale of the populace with some people who were in hiding appearing in Busan to join the conscripts. As for the Japanese forces, save for an injured helicopter crew whose vehicle crashed due to a mechanical failure, the only losses were munitions.
[May 19, 1566] – The news of Ulsan's liberation didn't become unnoticed as it only took a week for reports to arrive in Pyongyang, which is the place that the Mao generals chose as their headquarters. Learning about the attack and the strange "flying metal carts" that aided it, they would send half a million soldiers towards the south in an effort to retake Ulsan.
However, by May 28, another city named Jinju would be liberated through an amphibious landing by the Joseon navy aided by Japanese fire support through their aerial gunships. Once again, this would raise the once-nearly defeated nation's morale as many of the men in the liberated areas either volunteered as soldiers or as craftsmen aiding the war effort.
By this time, a workshop in Busan has been established and began to produce the first indigenously developed firearm of Korea. Patterned after the donated Seiryuu rifles, the Korean rifle was a rifle in name only as it still fired using a separate powder and bullet sparked to ignition by a flintlock mechanism although it did have a rifled barrel, aiding its accuracy.
[June 1, 1566] – Just days after their victory in Jinju, a counterattack in Pohang was planned where Korean Admiral Yi Do-Hyun of the Yi family would lead his fleet of 45 ships near the city's harbor to bait out the Chinese navy garrisoned at the port. After drawing them out of range of the harbor's defensive cannons, but still within sight of those at the port, the two Cruisers given to them by Japan appeared from behind the sea mist and alongside the other Korean ships, destroyed over 80 Chinese ships in under an hour with the rest of the survivors sailing away in fear of joining their fellows.
After this victory, the cannons of the two Cruisers would be pointed towards the naval fortresses that lined the harbor and would fire upon them one by one, disabling them from any further use in preparation for the amphibious landing three days later which was considered as a great success.
[June 24, 1566] – Fed up with their strings of decisive losses and the battlelines not being in their favor, the Chinese generals decided that only a handful of garrison forces in the already secured northern regions of Korea will be left and all 5 million troops including forcibly levied Korean peasants would be sent to the south to crush the Joseon forces once and for all.
Additionally, after a few drunken Joseon nobles and high-ranking generals leaked vital information to gisaeng (Korean female entertainers similar to Japanese geishas) hired by Chinese spies, Japan's involvement in the war was proven and a report was sent straight back to the Chinese imperial capital where the news quickly gained the outrage of the nobility and general populace.
According to reports sent back to Japan by Kiko spies stationed in China, several lynch mobs formed to track down both Japanese and Korean people across China, many of which would either be beaten or stoned to death, or publicly humiliated once caught. While these spies did their best to save as much of these individuals from being found or attacked as they possibly can, some were truly unfortunate and ended with horrifying deaths. Today, these persecuted people have been referred to as the "Blood Martyrs" in both Japan and Korea.
[July 2, 1566] – The orbital spacecraft named Soaring Hiryuu would launch out from the Hitachi Space launch compound. Carrying several satellites for purposes such as weather forecasting, television broadcasting and wireless communication, it would be the second space launch since the Soaring Kirin over ten years ago. It was also the first unmanned mission where the spacecraft would orbit the earth and lay out the satellites independently. Additionally, this is the first space mission partially funded by a private company in the form of the Imperial Broadcasting Service who sent out three satellites to allow televisions in offshore and foreign areas to access their service.
[July 10, 1566] – Half a year since they declared their involvement in the Sino-Korean war, the entire Japanese government assembled once again to deliberate their further involvement in the conflict. While many among the House of Commons would request for additional reinforcements and more advanced equipment to be sent to the warzone, they would be rebuffed by the House of Lords and Shogunate who has analyzed the data from battle reports in their own prior unilateral meetings and ascertained that only providing naval, air and medical support would be optimal now that the Korean forces are growing in size, morale and capabilities.
A week later, much of the Japanese infantry forces would be ordered to return to Japan save for three divisions tasked with manning the newly established air and naval bases. While many Korean officials and military leaders thought that Japan was withdrawing from the war, they were reassured that it was only a "lessening of active troops" given the current circumstances of the war.
[July 28, 1566] – While Admiral Yi Do-Hyun would terrorize the Chinese navy in the seas east of Korea (Sea of Japan), his younger sister, Yi Soon-Jin, would lead her own ragtag group of navy vessels in hunting the Chinese ships in the Yellow Sea which is a far more dangerous place. While initially, all of her actions would fly under everyone's attention, a skirmish on this day against a renown Chinese admiral would become her baptismal of fire.
With a mere 10 ships that are nothing more than requisitioned fishing ships laden with cannons, Yi Soon-Jin would come across Admiral Zhang Yichen's infamous Black Flag fleet numbering over 400 large ships. Being a former pirate who won his rank through his service to the reigning emperor during his coup, he wasn't a stranger to any kind of cheap tactic that a weak and outnumbered fleet like Soon-Jin's would use.
However, he would soon realize that his opponent wasn't a mere nobody after Soon-Jin's faster and nimbler row-powered ships outmaneuvered his ships that was dependent on sails and during their encounter, the winds are not blowing. After she outmaneuvered him, Soon-Jin would wreak havoc within the formations of unarmed transport ships that the Chinese admiral was meant to protect until it arrives in their base in Gunsan. One by one, her ships that followed a line formation fired into the transports, sinking them alongside the troops, supplies and armaments that they are carrying. It was said that this action stopped a counterattack to Gwangju that may have caused thousands of casualties.
In the end, without even being fired upon or firing upon the armed Chinese warships, Yi Soon-Jin's battle against Zhang Yichen would be the largest ever naval victory in the war so far… something that only she would beat later on.
[August 14, 1566] – Yi Soon-Jin's victory would proliferate across Korea until it reached the royal court in Busan. There, while many of the court officials would praise her achievement, they would also admonish her for "breaking taboos" by impersonating a man and fighting in war. Seeing this as a chance to kick the Sung and Yi family down, they would plead to the young king to give a royal decree for both families to be rid from their so-called "undeserved positions of power", something that would be granted and end up with the Sung family being removed from their leadership of the army and the Yi family's leadership of the fleets. This would even include the metal cruisers Chil-Woo and Gil-Dong, that the Yi family would not have given up if not for the threat of being labeled as rebels.
[August 30, 1566] – Learning of the unfair treatment given to both the Sung and Yi family, the current leader of the Japanese forces in Korea during that time, General Ayanami Mitsuhide, would lodge a protest against the court officials that perpetrated the dismissal of the two families from service. While her protest was written in a mild manner and due respect which she even handwrote in formal hangul, her request to have the decree rescinded was denied, followed by an anonymous letter arriving in her office that contained a scathing message similar to the one sent to former consul Yamaguchi Kaede years ago, saying that she is a: "Weak, mere woman acting tough in a man's world where she would inevitably fail in attracting a suitor".
While being told that she is weaker than a man may have been a tolerable slap on the face, the next statement regarding her failed romantic endeavor was a metaphorical stab through the heart. Obviously enraged yet still being level-headed, Mitsuhide informed the leaders of the Southern Quartet Alliance about the mishap where Hiroshi, Kyoko and Koshiro all agreed that an appropriate response should be done to teach the corrupt nobles a lesson.
Later on, Mitsuhide would talk about the contents of the anonymous letter in a group chat conversation where only women who once rivaled against each other for Hiroshi's love was included. They would jokingly tease her about it initially but would later tell her that they'd have to teach those behind it a lesson not only for her and Kaede's sakes but for the other women that are being insulted and belittled in the country.
[September 9, 1566] – The day when Hanbat would be retaken came and both the Joseon army and navy postured themselves to assault the enemy-held city. However, after the dismissal of the Sung and Yi families from their forces, it deprived them of the leaders who had extensive experience and know-how about tactics concerning their modern armaments.
While they eventually succeeded in taking over the city after a bloody and brutal week, the losses that the Joseon forces incurred slowed down their previously undeterred momentum and allowed the Chinese leadership in the northern regions to have enough time to consolidate and reinforce their troops and supply lines.
Additionally, there was an undeniably obvious lack of Japanese aerial and naval fire support during the battle of Hanbat where previously, a fire support call that would only take 3 minutes to be responded to became as late as 30 minutes later. This convinced many of the ground troops that the insults thrown to the Japanese commander by the court nobles have trained the relationship between the two parties.
[September 26, 1566] – In the Chinese imperial capital, reports about the recent repeated failures in the war reached the imperial court. Emperor Mao Xiang Dan was said to have had an outburst in the court where he took the blade of his royal guard and pointed it towards his generals and ministers whom he called "incompetent imbeciles" and threatened to cut them down.
After being calmed down, he would set an ultimatum until the end of the year for the war in Korea to be finished. Wanting no part in the headaches it would cause anymore, he gave all power and authority regarding the war to the second prince, Mao Jun Hie. Seeing this as his chance to gain enough merit in order to win the position of crown prince, the young prince led a 10 million strong army into Korea, arriving in the country before autumn ended.
[October 15, 1566] – The first retaliation of the Japanese leadership against the Korean nobles happened during the defense of Hanbat wherein Japanese fire support officers embedded in Korean platoons were ordered to return to their respective camps and to not partake in the battle. While this didn't affect the eventual victory of the Joseon forces against the enemy assault, it created a massive hole in their defenses that was previously filled by fire support provided by the Japanese.
The second retaliation came just days after when the material aid of grain and meat were disseminated amongst the commoners by Japanese aid workers instead of being handed to the nobles who would usually take the best portions before distributing it to the public. Once they learned that the peasants have received provisions and they were left out, the nobles would protest to the royal court about it and the young king, unable to resist the pressure from his ministers, ordered for the leader of the Japanese forces to appear before his court and explain this act.
Initially, the Japanese would disregard the letters as if completely ignoring its existence but after three such orders were given, they would send a reply that states: "We, in the military, are forbidden to appear in public without our weapons while we are in active duty and know that it is decorum to not appear in the royal court with such weapons, creating an unsolvable impasse. But fear not, the former consul to Korea, Yamaguchi Kaede-himesama, is en route to your honored royal court, and would gladly answer your questions after her arrival in three weeks' time."
This response enraged every noble in the court after they realized that instead of sending a male diplomat, the other party was sending the very same person whom they rejected a few years ago. When they raised this concern, the liaison officer would say that: "We are dealing with another sovereign nation and wouldn't dare to compromise about the quality of the person whom we would send. While we regret that it would take such a long time for said person to arrive, we request your utmost understanding about the matter."
During this time, the push towards reclaiming the capital Hanseong was postponed after Japan declared that they cannot provide sufficient support to the Korean troops due to the lack of armaments and fuel.
[November 4, 1566] – The first televised national Baseball tournament was broadcasted by the Imperial Broadcasting Service and with the newly-established satellite TV service, even the soldiers in Korea and the inhabitants of the settlement in Prussia was able to seamlessly tune-in to the Kiko Kirins' fight against the Hitachi Tigers. With a difference of only one occupied base, the Kiko Kirins moved to the semi-finals where they will fight against the Myoko Giants.
It was said that a few Prussian workers in the Japanese embassy joined in the public viewing and even without knowing much about the sport, enjoyed it and emulated it afterwards, playing it at the dry, open fields during the autumn season.
[November 15, 1566] – After being delayed for another week due to a typhoon, Yamaguchi Kaede would appear in front of the Joseon royal court where she would be questioned by the obviously hostile ministers. Although they actively prodded her in order to elicit a harsh reaction, Kaede would respond respectfully and with grace.
This would change once the Joseon Minister of war and the generals haughtily asked her: "When do you plan to have your soldiers to stop playing that paddle-and-ball game and do some work again for once?", something that she would answer by nonchalantly saying that: "I apologize honored ministers, but it's a tradition of our soldiers to spend their last few weeks of deployment by playing baseball.".
That statement alone was enough to make everyone in the room who understood what it meant to nervously swallow their spit while thinking about how to steer the conversation back to a favorable tone for the Japanese consul. By simply stating that their troops are going to withdraw from the war, consul Yamaguchi Kaede sowed fear into the hearts of the officials whose minds now raced about the possibility of their circumstances being returned to how it was months ago.
[November 27, 1566] – After the meeting with the Japanese consul told them that Japan is planning to rescind their participation in the war, many among the upper nobility began to panic and tried to look for ways to escape the country in favor of the secure lands of Japan.
Some planned to smuggle their selves in by bribing the naval supply ships that regularly ferried supplies between the two countries, but none took their bribes. Next, there were those who pretended to have been sent for a secretive diplomatic mission to Japan but when asked about their passport and diplomatic entry permit, failed to show the documentation and was rebuffed from even leaving Korea.
The greatest attempt of all was that of a minister who planned to have his entire family brought into Japan by chartering a fishing boat that is conveniently fishing near Chushima. There, he and his family rode a paddle boat to finally slip into the island prefecture. However, this "elaborate plan" has long been busted and as soon as they arrived in Chushima, they were caught and deported back to Korea where the royal court had a very special punishment waiting for them.
As winter drew near, the leaders of the Korean royal court surmised that this war would likely end once the snow melts next year. Whether they would be ready for such or not is something that they have to properly look into.
[December 19, 1566] – A week before Christmas, the Japanese troops in Korea was permitted to go around the towns of their respective camp areas. Some used it to sightsee, while some took the opportunity to get fresh produce from the markets in order to prepare for the Christmas feasts.
As the piled snow made it difficult to play baseball, it was replaced with football which allowed for more movements and lax rules and directions. The sport caught on with the locals and kids, who at Christmas eve, each received their very own soccer ball to play with.
As the war drew closer to its first year, the incoming Chinese reinforcements led by Prince Mao Jun Hie and the very possible retreat of Japanese troops from Korea made the Joseon leadership and nobility become more and more anxious about the future.
[December 30, 1566] – After much deliberation in several sleepless nights, the Joseon royal court finally decided to send a messenger to send their apology to both consul Yamaguchi Kaede and General Ayanami Mitsuhide alongside a request to stop the withdrawal of the Japanese forces. After receiving these apologies, the two would send their appreciations for the apologies but also stated that the decision to withdraw from the war was out of their control as it was something decided by the government. Learning about the bureaucracy behind it, the Joseon royal court acted swiftly and sent a diplomat to the Japanese imperial capital in order to give their request directly to the government.
[January 7, 1567] – Eager to show his mettle and earn merit, Prince Mao Jun Hie disregarded the pleas of his generals and led his troops into Korea where he postured his troops against the defensive lines of the Joseon forces. He was joined by Admiral Zhang Yichen who wanted to avenge his hurt reputation after being beaten by Yi Soon-Jin. While this information was quickly reported by the spies inside Chinese-occupied Korea, it didn't reach Japan until January 9 due to a localized geomagnetic storm.
[January 8, 1567] – Upon the arrival of the Korean diplomat, an emergency meeting was held between all three main branches of the Japanese government (House of Commons, House of Lord and the Shogunate Bakufu) to hear and decide about the request sent by Joseon.
The meeting lasted for a day with several hearings between the three branches split into 30-minute breaks where each branch privately conversed about the matter in their own chambers.
Finally, in the evening by 7:30 PM, a resolution was passed wherein the withdrawal of Japanese troops was postponed and friendly fire support was permitted to return on the condition that the Sung and Yi families of Joseon will be handed back their command of the army and navy respectively. Although the Korean diplomats knew that they would be heavily reprimanded by the royal court ministers for making that decision without consulting them, they knew that time was of essence and accepted their eventual fate.
[January 9, 1567] – The news about the devastation of the Joseon frontlines finally arrived in Japan after the geomagnetic storm subsided and communications was restored. The loses were catastrophic for both sides as the Chinese troops sent wave after wave of charges into the Korean defenses in a bid to overwhelm them. After 8 hours of continuous fighting, the defenders buckled from the pressure and retreated from the frontlines and into the more fortified sections at the rear lines.
The greatest loss for Korea however was when Admiral Zhang Yichen and his Black Flag fleet engaged the Joseon fleet near Gunsan where the new Korean admiral, Won Man-Shik, disregarded the opinions of his sub-commanders to employ the tactics of former Admirals Yi Do-Hyun and Yi Soon-Jin, and decided to fight the Chinese fleet head-on despite being outnumbered and outgunned.
In the end, out of the 117 ships of the Joseon navy, only 15 would survive the battle, many of which escaped as soon as they sensed their impending loss. One of the ships that survived was the cruiser Gil-Dong, whose captain tried to rescue the other cruiser Chil-Woo but ended up having to scuttle it using torpedoes upon the request of its captain in order to avoid having the modern ship fall to the Chinese's hands. This would be later referred to as the "Gunsan Massacre".
Learning of the devastating damage to the navy, and the loss of one of their strongest ships, the Korean royal court lost their collective minds as a blaming game started out until it reached Admiral Won Man-Shik who was sent to be hanged to death for his failure. Coincidentally, just as the diplomat they sent to Japan arrived to tell them that the Japanese gave the condition of returning the command of the army and navy to the Sung and Yi families respectively, the royal court decided the same and the diplomats never received any punishment for their decision.
[January 17, 1567] – After the Koreans lost their naval power alongside the ability to guard their waters, the Chinese began to harass their western shores by sending raiding parties to loot the villages and towns in the shoreline as well as taking the local populace back as slaves for various purposes. Admiral Zhang's Black Flag fleet received commendations from Prince Mao and was given free rein to do as they wish so long as it would be for the good of the war effort, something that the admiral's men abused by ramping up their looting raids to amass wealth and slaves.
This would only be blunted after Admiral Yi Do-Hyun led over half of the remaining 15 Korean ships to hunt down the raiding fleets in the eastern shores and Admiral Yi Soon-Jin, who was begrudgingly given the rank and command by the royal court due to her exceptional abilities despite their Confucian conservatism, faced off against Admiral Zhang's right hand man and sank all 37 ships under his command using only 5 of her ships.
[January 29, 1567] – The first instance of a naval battle between China and Japan happened when a naval detachment of Kiko Destroyers was sent to try to salvage the scuttled Chil-Woo cruiser and was sighted and charged to by a group of the Black Flag fleet ships.
Composed of 3 top-of-the-line Destroyers, they made quick work of the assailing ships using naval gunfire from their 8-inch guns and a few short-range anti-ship "Falcon" missiles. Out of the 81 ships that charged towards the Japanese ships, only 3 would be able to escape to speak about the terrible battle and their unbelievably strong foe.
While fighting off the Chinese ships delayed the resurfacing of the scuttled ship, the cruiser Chil-Woo will be salvaged from the sea bed and sent back to Kiko's Sagiri military harbor where it would receive repairs and rearmaments funded by the Joseon government who wanted to have the ship back into their navy.
[February 20, 1567] – After the reformation of the Joseon army under the Sung generals' leadership was finished, the plan to retake Hanseong was continued and for the next two weeks, a relentless advance further and further north from the frontlines was achieved. By this day, the main Chinese army led by Prince Mao, who coincidentally also marched south with the plan of finishing the war once and for all, met the Joseon army at the outskirts of Hanseong in the largest battle fought in the Korean peninsula.
[March 1, 1567] – While the Joseon army was outnumbered, the total conversion from an army composed of spearmen and cavalrymen supported by archers, to one composed mainly of riflemen and artillerymen, gave the Koreans their badly needed edge against the Chinese. Although the initial large losses in the battlefield was casually swept aside by the Chinese leadership as an obvious loss in war, the growing losses and minimal gain of ground against the Koreans slowly made it apparent to the prince and his generals that they need to deal a decisive blow.
After the battlefront in Incheon became the new focal point of the overall battle, the prince decided to contact Admiral Zhang with the intention of having the Black Flag fleet provide naval gun support and to land a large detachment of marines in a pincer attack against the Koreans.
However, his message lost its receiver after Admiral Yi Soon-Jin and Yi Do-Hyun combined their fleet of 30 ships (the additional 15 vessels came from survivors of the Gunsan Massacre who only reappeared after hearing the reinstatement of the Yi admirals) to attack the Black Flag fleet alongside the Japanese aircraft carriers Shoukaku and Taihou.
The Black Flag fleet, numbering over 500 warships, attacked the Korean fleet in the Yellow Sea with the intention of encircling and overwhelming them. This would fail after Japanese jet fighters from their aircraft carriers launched strafing attacks on the flanks of the fleet and missiles struck the center of the fleet, opening a gap in the Chinese formation that the Korean ships exploited to reach the Chinese flagship.
There, it was said that after the Korean flagship boarded the Chinese flagship, Admiral Yi Soon-Jin shot Admiral Zhang Yichen's bodyguards using her rifle and pistols and Admiral Yi Do-Hyun would engage his opponent in a sword fight.
As the Korean Hwando and Chinese Dao of the two admirals clashed, the same went for their men who fought in a frenzied melee while the other ships around them shot cannon and arrow fire against each other. The duel between the two admirals only ended after a rough wave assisted Admiral Do-Hyun's jumping sword strike that snapped Yichen's sword and cut a fatal wound on his throat. His agony was later ended by a well-placed rifle shot from Admiral Soon-Jin that struck him right at the forehead. After which Do-Hyun decapitated Yichen and raised his severed head atop his ship's main mast, instantly breaking the Chinese fleet's morale.
[March 4, 1567] – The destruction of the Chinese Black Flag fleet, the mounting losses in the battles and the death of numerous highly-experienced generals and officers ended Prince Mao's plans of destroying the Joseon army and stopping their enemy from retaking Hanseong. Finally, after many losses of life and precious supplies, Prince Mao would order a retreat towards Pyongyang where he plans to consolidate his troops for a more calculated and tactical approach in the war.
The retaking of the royal capital of Hanseong raised the spirits of the Korean people who saw it as a miracle after their country was almost wiped out just two years ago. A week later, the king and his royal court returned to the capital where a huge feast was thrown in the entire city. It is said that for the next few days, food and liquor was freely given and people danced and sang with joy at the streets.
While they were also invited to take part in the formal banquets and street parties, the Japanese leadership, which during that time was headed by General Himeji Kotori, politely declined under the reasoning of "military regulations against drunkenness and ungentlemanly behavior in the battlefield". In truth, the reason was due to General Himeji's suspicion that the Chinese retreat wasn't simply for the prince to reconsolidate his troops but instead, to await the arrival of springtime when the ice-locked Incheon harbor would be once again accessible for an amphibious landing. For this reason, he requested for Crow agents from Director Akizuki Minori who granted her a group of spies to infiltrate Pyongyang and learn what the prince and his generals are planning.
[March 17, 1567] – The investigations of the elite Crow agents bore fruit after they learned that the prince planned to assail not only Incheon harbor but also Pohang and Busan in a massive naval blockade composed of over a thousand ships, effectively encircling and isolating the entire Korean peninsula. After this was transmitted back to General Himeji and later on, the Japanese government, it was decided that it was time for Japan to ramp up their support in the war in order to finish it in one fell swoop.
While there were some arguments in both the House of Commons and House of Lords about who should be sent to Korea, the voice of a man who commanded everyone's respect would arise, this man being no one else than Kirin Lord Iwasawa Hiroshi.
Although initially, it was a controversial proposal since other highly-skilled and regarded leaders such as Lady Kusanagi Kyoko and even retired General Furutani Garou was available, after Lord Iwasawa explained his position that he has command of the Kiko Submarine fleet and even half of Japan's nuclear weapons, the decision was made and he flew to Korea two days later where he was met with a grand arrival procession courtesy of General Himeji, much to his annoyance.
Although some among the Joseon leadership was baffled about why such a "mere man" was received so grandly by his countrymen, an extensive explanation from Sung Min-Seok, who now holds the position of minister of war, promptly made them to shake in fear that such a person has come to their land.
[March 24, 1567] – Utilizing his expertise with small-scale skirmishes, Lord Iwasawa would send out several special force battalions into the enemy-held territories where they wreaked havoc in the patrol and supply lines of the enemy, weakening and poking holes in their frontlines.
Not content with the moderate damage that they are attaining, he would later order a large-scale carpet bombing of numerous encampments by Japanese bomber planes where several high-ranking Chinese commanders would lose their lives. It was only after a buffer zone was formed between the two sides that the offensive would be called off in order to await springtime when the war can start again. However, similar to the tactics he employed before, he would send Crow agents into Pyongyang and other northern provinces who assembled rebel fronts in preparation for the attack in spring.
[April 14, 1567] – The spring offensive commenced, and the Chinese navy began to encroach into both the Yellow sea (east) and the Sea of Japan (west) in order to fulfill the encirclement plan. However, they were shocked to find that the Joseon fleet has grown to over 600 vessels. While they still outnumber them, the fact that the Koreans are being aided by modern Japanese ships became their horror.
While he thought that they are winning in the sea, Prince Mao and the remaining 8 million-strong Chinese army marched towards Hanseong with the intention of overwhelming them with both numbers and speed. However, numerous ambushes by Korean guerilla fighters along their marching route made them bleed both manpower and armaments whilst only incurring minimal damage to the attackers.
After much struggle and losing over a million men, they arrived at the buffer zone where instead of the Joseon army, they were met by a detachment of Japanese soldiers who sent a messenger telling them that the Joseon army have marched out to retake their northern lands and even go beyond their borders to invade the Chinese towns there.
While initially, Prince Mao was skeptical, the messenger then told him word-for-word the conversations that he had the past few days and when he demanded to know how he knew all of it so accurately, the messenger responded by saying: "For the same reason that the Koreans knew your plans and the fact that by bringing almost all of your soldiers in this march, they can just mow down your remaining garrisons and even go as far as do unto China what it did to them."
Hearing those words, Prince Mao knew that if he let the Koreans to invade China, he would not only be shamed but even possibly executed. Due to this, he made his entire army to march back as fast as possible to the north in an attempt to quash the invasion. Even though they were already exhausted and demoralized, the Chinese army who learned about the reason why they're going back, followed the order in fear that the Koreans wouldn't stop with the border towns but even possibly invade further into China.
However, all of this was a ruse made by Lord Iwasawa who delivered it himself as that "mere messenger". Knowing about Prince Mao's greatest fears and ambition to become the crown prince, he thought up the scheme and offered it to the Joseon royal court who placed their trust that it would be a success. In truth, the Joseon army had never even crossed the buffer zone and was only waiting for Lord Iwasawa's response if the scheme was successful, and the Chinese are following a fictional "Korean invasion army". After six hours (which was enough time for the Chinese army to march far enough to not go back after hearing the sound of battle), the real Joseon army marched north where the open and lightly guarded city of Pyongyang was retaken with no struggle.
[May 3, 1567] – After being tricked and losing their main foothold in Korea, Prince Mao began to weigh his options in the war. While they still hold a few northern provinces in the country, his odds of even turning the tides back to his favor was a little as the acclaim he would get after going back to China.
To add to his loses, an outbreak of cholera and gonorrhea amongst his army further immobilized and caused casualties in his army. Lord Iwasawa learned about this from his spy network and sent a messenger to his territory, telling him that: "If you back down and sign the peace agreement offered by the Joseon government, I will see to it that your country will not pay the exorbitant reparations demanded by the Koreans but just an adequate one. Similarly, you can save face in front of the Imperial court by stating that you admitted defeat to an overwhelming Japanese force instead of the bloody struggle of the Koreans. Think through it properly and give me an answer later."
Two weeks and three losses against the Joseon army later, Prince Mao sent his admission of defeat and request to take his forces out of Korea to the Joseon royal court. While they demanded all kinds of reparations and diplomatic hostages from the Chinese imperial family, the intervention of Lord Iwasawa cut these demands out of the final peace treaty that both countries signed which stated the following provisions:
- The Chinese army and navy will leave the territory of Joseon within two weeks. Any straggler left behind after this would be declared as prisoners of war subject to immediate execution.
- The Imperial government of China would pay war reparations equal to one and a half of their yearly total government expenditure in a period of five years. Failure to do so would seen as a sign of belligerence and this peace treaty would be rendered null and void.
- China will cede their entire coastline around the Yellow Sea to Joseon during the period of the reparation payment. This is to further ensure that they will be able to fulfill their obligations.
[May 21, 1567] – The First Sino-Korean war formally ended with the victory of Joseon and the loss of China. Seen as the two families where heroes emerged, the Sung and Yi families of Busan are heralded as the saviors of Korea despite the numerous attempts to disparage and undermine their efforts both during their time and modern history scholars. While some argue that Korea was only saved by the intervention of Japan, the official stance of Japan has always been: "The human desire to be free and have their own unique identity cannot be broken by any act of violence or the passage of time. If the people of Joseon lost and was conquered by China, we have not a sliver of doubt that sooner or later, they would rise up in rebellion and reclaim the land and identity that are theirs and theirs alone."
[May 30, 1567] – While everyone's attention was at the aftermath of the Sino-Korean war, an under-the-table agreement was signed in the imperial capital of China between Japan and China wherein as per the promised terms of saving them from a ludicrously large war reparation sum and being declared outside of the region to have lost to Korea instead of Japan, China signed a trade agreement at the exact terms as penned by Japan.
This "trade agreement" which appeared to be just as such to most of the people in power in China, was instead an enormously unequal contract that made China to practically cede all the resources that Japan used to fairly trade with them while giving them the illusion of being the one in control. These terms are as follows alongside the steps taken by Japan to swing them to their favor:
- All the active metal ore mining operations in China will be available for perusal of Japanese companies wherein they are forced to take 30% of the annual output of these mines regardless of the price during that period.
(While it may seem to favor the Chinese mines who has mountains of idle stockpiles of these raw ore whose price wildly fluctuates, Japanese-owned and operated mines in China would soon run these prices to the ground through their sheer output volume due to their advance machinery and geological techniques)
- Japanese mining companies will be permitted to operate inside China and they would be forced to price their products at the same price in China alongside a "foreign export" tax fee.
(While it may seem to be in favor of China, the condition of their prices being the same as that of the local price is undermined by the fact that as soon as these Japanese mines began to market their output, the prices dropped due to oversupply. Additionally, as the "foreign export" tax fee was fixed to the tonnage of the shipped product, the mines also refined and formed the metals into pure ingots and bars to avoid having to ship out the weight of dirt, stone and other impurities back to Japan. Lastly, their shipments outside of China became unimpeded as they were sent out through the harbors held by Joseon.)
- Chinese grains such as wheat and rice would be bought by Japan over the regular price on the condition that it would be packed and shipped by Japanese trading companies or cooperations.
(While this may seem to be in the advantage of China, the grains bought by the Japanese consortiums were in their raw form (e.g unprocessed wheat, barley and rice grains) and are bought by Japan with the intention of bringing it to Japan where it can be processed in a large-scale by industrial mills into flour, white rice, etc. and the excess was brought back to China to be resold in a controlled pace to maintain a balance between supply and demand, preserving its price.)
While to this day, it is regarded as the "greatest scam of all time", all of this blame was directed to Edogawa Gin whose companies profited greatly and used the loopholes in the agreement the most. Consequently, this agreement would be cut off after the five years of reparation payment of China ended, mainly due to much of Japan's demand for resources plateauing after the diversification of the sources of their goods, as well as the outcome of the Second Sino-Korean war.
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