Chapter 56: Grand Duke of the North (2)

In 1906, the situation in the Korean Empire could be summed up in a single word: complicated.

With the Russo-Japanese War ending in an overwhelming Russian victory, Japanese influence within the Korean Empire had effectively vanished.

Russia promptly gobbled up most of the rights to the Gyeongui Line that Japan had been frantically laying, and the Japanese merchants who had strutted around as though the country belonged to them were immediately brought to heel.

“Japs, get out! Korea belongs to us!”

“Long live Russia, friend of Korea!”

The Japanese residents of the foreign settlements in Busan and Incheon complained that their lives were in danger and fled like the receding tide, while those who had no choice but to remain lived in fear every day.

Some intellectuals predicted that Russia, having won the war, would simply become the new Japan and oppress them in its place, but surprisingly, nothing of the sort happened.

“…What?”

“Could Russia truly be a nation that understands righteousness so well and conducts itself with the virtue of a gentleman?”

Those who remembered what Japan had done after winning the First Sino-Japanese War were deeply shocked by just how gentlemanly Russia was being.

Of course, Russia had not suddenly discovered the virtue of mercy.

After the Russo-Japanese War ended, Russia itself had been plunged into tremendous turmoil.

There had been Bloody Sunday, the purge of the remaining Grand Ducal factions, the sudden eruption of the Rasputin affair, and then the confrontation with the nobility.

The Korean Empire did not even exist in Nicholas II’s mind, and he had no time to spare for it anyway.

The nobles in the capital were no different.

With the Emperor scheming every which way to put collars around their necks, who had time to care about some tiny country at the far end of the Far East?

But precisely because of that, the pro-Russian faction in the Korean Empire began running wild.

The worst offenders were the opportunists who had once been pro-Japanese before switching over to the pro-Russian faction.

Yi Ji-yong, the human bat of his age who had gone from pro-Russian to pro-Japanese and then back to pro-Russian again, openly proclaimed that Nicholas II was a sage ruler the likes of whom the world had never seen.

“I have heard that the Emperor of Russia endured humiliation and waited for his moment for no less than 9 years in order to accomplish his great cause. This is the very essence of enduring the humiliation of crawling between a man’s legs. His Majesty of Russia can truly be called a gentleman under Heaven, utterly unlike those Japs.”

“Yi Ji-yong daegam, until only recently, you were saying that the Japanese Emperor was a gentleman….”

“Ahem! How could one possibly place the king of an archipelago consisting of a pitiful 4 scraps of land on the same level as His Majesty the Emperor of mighty Russia? The only path to survival for our Korea is to become Russia’s younger brother, so that the great powers will not dare covet this land!”

Yi Ji-yong’s impassioned speech plunged those present into an awkward silence.

No one could openly object.

It was certainly ridiculous to hear him praising Russia with the very same mouth that had been extolling the Japanese Emperor only days ago, but when they thought about it, their own situations were hardly any different.

Park Je-sun cleared his throat and went one step further.

“Yi daegam speaks nothing but the truth. Since ancient times, it has only been proper for a small nation to serve a great one. Now that we have such a broad-minded great power to look upon as our elder brother, what greater blessing could there be?”

“Indeed. Nothing matters more than choosing the proper nation to serve.”

Once Gwon Jung-hyeon joined in as well, the audience hall quickly began to resemble the inaugural meeting of a Nicholas II fan club.

Gojong sat upon the throne, silently looking down on the spectacle while feeling as though his insides were burning away.

It was not as though he had failed to predict that these men would blindly follow whichever way the wind blew.

They were veterans when it came to bowing their heads in the direction of the prevailing wind.

The problem was that the wind was blowing far too hard.

And then one piece of news that had recently leaked out from around the Russian Legation poured oil onto Gojong’s anxiety.

Russia was finally beginning the full-scale development of Manchuria.

“Your Majesty, they say Russia is laying railways through Manchuria and moving troops into the region. There are even rumors that they intend to extend the tracks across the Yalu River all the way to Hanseong.”

…Wasn’t this actually a serious problem?

If Russia seized Manchuria and connected those railways all the way down to the Korean Peninsula….

Would that not mean Russia’s fearsome army could come and go through this land as though it were their own backyard?

With the sea blocking the south, the Korean Empire would effectively find itself trapped in the middle of Russian territory.

The very mouths praising Russia today would eventually become Russian whips aimed at his own throat.

Gojong could see that future all too clearly.

Which meant he needed a counterweight.

Another giant capable of preventing Russia from swallowing the East whole.

That night, Gojong dismissed everyone and secretly summoned Yi Ha-yeong.

Among the pro-Russian faction that currently dominated the court, he was at least not part of the mainstream.

“Minister of Foreign Affairs, I need you to take care of something for me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Whatever you command.”

“I need you to quietly establish connections with England and America.”

Yi Ha-yeong’s eyes widened.

“But Your Majesty, Russia is currently….”

“Which is precisely why I am asking you.”

Gojong sighed and lowered his voice even further.

“If those railways in Manchuria descend into this land, the Korean Peninsula will become a strategic military stronghold, allowing Russia to tighten its grip over the entire East. All you need to do is quietly let England and America hear this, and they are certain to react.”

“…Is that all I need to tell them?”

“Yes. England has always ground its teeth at Russia, after all. Throw them some bait and they will bite on their own.”

Watching Yi Ha-yeong’s retreating back, Gojong slowly stroked his beard.

Set the great powers against one another, then survive in the gaps between them.

Was that not the cleverest path available to a weak nation?

Gojong could not help but admire his own diplomatic skill.

Of course, Gojong’s grand plan reached the Okhrana through an internal informant only 3 days later.

Such was the reality of the Korean Empire.

—

It did not take long for one small disturbance from the Far East to turn the entire political world of Petersburg upside down.

Until only a few days ago, there had been a single topic dominating politics.

Which side would put a chain around the other’s neck first, the nobles or the Emperor?

The nobles, driven into a corner by the flour hoarding and profiteering scandal, had begun showing signs of division, leading many to predict that peace would soon return to Russian politics.

And then, out of nowhere, the word Britain began looming over Northeast Asia once again.

“Britain? And Korea? Are you certain?”

“Our intelligence reports that the Korean imperial court has reached out to Britain and America. It appears they intend to exaggerate the dangers of developing Manchuria in order to draw the British and Americans into the region.”

Viewed dispassionately, with Japan having been thoroughly crushed, there was almost no chance Britain would intervene in Northeast Asia simply to help the Korean Empire.

The problem was that Russia and Britain were incapable of judging anything involving one another rationally.

Britain suffered from the delusion that, given the slightest opportunity, Russia would cross the Hindu Kush and invade India.

Russia suffered from the paranoia that Britain would interfere with and ruin everything Russia attempted.

This dumpster-fire duo treated it as an absolute axiom that either side might smash the other over the back of the head at any moment.

“Think about it, gentlemen. Was that last war truly something the Japanese started with their own strength? Britain was behind them, training those monkeys and setting them on us.”

“Quite right. Interfering with us has always been their reason for living.”

Now that Japan had been smashed to pieces, who knew how Britain might worm its way into the Korean Empire next in order to sabotage Russian interests?

On top of that, rumors were spreading within Russia that Britain intended to revive the half-dead Japan and turn it against Russia once again.

Was that not enough to send a chill down anyone’s spine just imagining it?

In the end, a consensus formed that this was a matter requiring serious discussion.

The Emperor personally convened the State Council and even made the extraordinary move of announcing that he would attend in person.

It was to fill the vacancies left by the Grand Dukes, all of whom except Grand Duke Mikhailovich had been barred from attending the Council.

Perhaps because the confrontation between the factions had grown so sharp, the meeting chamber carried a strangely frigid atmosphere.

Following behind Director-General Yakov with documents in my arms, I quietly swept my gaze across those present.

-A 10-year-old aide sitting in on a meeting to put an entire country on the chopping block. What a wonderfully functional nation.

Of course. I’m the gifted prodigy personally selected by the genius monarch Nicholas II to become the next Director of the Intelligence Bureau. Who’d dare complain?

Once everyone had taken their seats, the State Council meeting began, and Foreign Minister Lamsdorf was the first to speak.

“Korea is already a protectorate within our sphere of influence. There is no reason to plant our flag there prematurely and provoke Britain. Why rush to pluck a fruit that will ripen and fall into our hands on its own?”

The rebuttal came immediately.

Makarov, hero of the Russo-Japanese War, tapped the table with a thick finger.

“Vladivostok freezes over in winter. I know that better than anyone, seeing as I was the one who brought in the icebreakers. We do have Port Arthur, but it is too tucked away in a corner and limits our ability to project naval power into the open ocean. Whether Masan or Yeongheung Bay, we need to secure a proper ice-free port.”

Chief of the General Staff Palitsyn slowly shook his head.

“Your argument sounds plausible, but the Trans-Siberian Railway is still single track. We are already at the limit merely supporting Manchuria. Taking on the peninsula as well may be excessive.”

“Korea is a country capable of feeding itself. And we can simply double-track the railway.”

Witte, who had been listening all this time, raised his voice in frustration.

“You are all getting sidetracked by completely irrelevant details. Our first priority must be to lay railways, saddle them with foreign loans, and install advisers. Once Korea is economically subordinated to us, everything else will follow naturally.”

Director-General Yakov, who had been standing quietly, added his own opinion.

“If I may speak from the perspective of intelligence, the Emperor of Korea has already reached out to Britain. As we cannot know what sort of variable that may introduce, this particular matter requires an immediate response.”

Because everyone’s opinions differed slightly, the State Council descended into chaos in no time.

For hours, arguments collided over everything from whether Britain even intended to intervene to the full annexation of Korea, the stripping of its diplomatic rights, and the counterargument that such actions really might provoke Britain into moving.

This had long since transcended the question of the Tsar’s faction versus the nobles’ faction.

Even men who had called for unity against the Tsar in the Nobles’ Committee were divided, and the pro-Tsar faction itself could not agree on a position.

-See? The State Council really is completely useless. Nobody agrees on a damn thing.

From behind the stack of documents, I gave a tiny nod.

Isn’t the whole meeting going in circles because there’s nobody at the top to provide a clear axis?

Nicholas II, who had remained silent for quite some time, finally spoke.

“…But why is this Emperor of Korea so fickle? First he was pro-Qing, then pro-Russian, and now Britain again. And all their names sound so alike that I cannot tell any of them apart.”

For an instant, the room fell solemnly silent.

The ministers took his remark as a penetrating insight that had instantly seen through the true nature of Korea’s ruler.

“Your Majesty is correct.”

“The ruler of Korea is a man who clings first to one side, then another. He is utterly untrustworthy.”

No, I’m pretty sure my old man only said that because all those names genuinely confuse him.

In the end, that day’s State Council meeting had no choice but to dissolve without reaching any conclusion.

What was to be done with the Korean Empire?

No answer emerged in the end, and the Emperor merely said that he would give the matter further thought before leaving.

As we returned to the Alexander Palace, leaving the empty meeting chamber behind us, I asked Director Yakov about something that had suddenly occurred to me.

“Director-General, how did word that the Korean Empire was trying to contact Britain leak out so quickly? I heard the Okhrana’s intelligence network picked it up only 3 days after the Korean imperial court set things in motion. I didn’t realize our overseas intelligence network worked this well. Frankly, I’m a little surprised.”

Yakov chuckled and pulled a slip of paper from his coat.

“It is true that our overseas intelligence network has become more capable than before, but we were also a little lucky this time. One decisive piece of testimony simply fell into our laps from inside Korea.”

“Ah, so someone exposed the whole thing.”

“Yes. Apparently, the informant walked into our Legation on his own.”

Just what kind of opportunist had stabbed his own king in the back and spilled everything to us?

The instant I saw the name written on the note he handed me, I couldn’t help but give a wry smile.

[Informant: Yi Wan-yong, Special Counselor of the Korean Ministry of the Imperial Court.]

Now that is definitely a name that sounds made for betrayal. [TL Note: In real history, Yi Wan-yong was the Korean minister who signed the treaties by which Japan first made Korea its protectorate (1905) and then annexed it outright (1910), making his name a byword for “traitor” in Korea.]

Now it all makes perfect sense.

~~~

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