Chapter 118 – Continuing Discord
Discord I
Yeongu was summoned again the next day.
A courier was already waiting at his house.
It seemed the king intended to grasp the full extent of the military's problems through him.
Yeongu laid bare the hardships of the Goryeo army without holding anything back.
The contents were relayed directly to the council, which began investigating and identifying the causes.
The king satisfied his curiosity, but for Yeongu, it was suffocating.
The officials seated alongside him attacked without pause.
Though the king called it mere inquiry, the ugliness of military society was exposed without restraint.
The conditions were wretched.
Everything was lacking—resources, preparation, sincerity.
Under incompetent commanders, soldiers carried out orders that made no sense.
Absurd directives repeated themselves endlessly.
Discord II
A few days later, Yeongu was promoted to a higher rank.
The size of the Jurchen advisory force increased.
Previously, only one unit remained as a formality, but now that structure was reinforced.
Talented officers skilled in martial arts and tactics were selected and placed under his command.
Men capable of transmitting tactics, formations, and combat doctrine to the Jurchens were included.
The order was clear—no more symbolic support, only practical assistance.
The tactical instructor was said to be a master of military classics, a strategist-like figure.
Many others were chosen whose abilities were not easily discernible.
Numerous instructors from the training corps were also selected.
Archery instructors,
specialists in spear and sword doctrine,
and trainers of infantry and cavalry formations joined the group.
Yet the training corps itself had limits.
The aristocratic military system constrained their effectiveness.
Goryeo lacked a sufficient standing army.
Deployment always took priority over training.
There was no room to gather troops solely for instruction.
As a result, real combat experience had become fragmented.
While warfare had shifted toward heavily armored cavalry, Goryeo lagged behind.
Its shortage of cavalry made this unavoidable.
But being sent as instructors to the Jurchens opened a new path.
It gave them a chance to prove their worth.
The instructors repeatedly questioned Yeongu about conditions in the north.
What weapons were used,
how battles unfolded,
how troops were commanded and signaled.
They asked whether certain equipment could be employed,
and how much emphasis was placed on blades in heavy cavalry training.
Their questions were precise.
Yeongu knew more than expected.
Because of that, the instructors could prepare thoroughly before departure.
Discord III
The third discord came from the Liao envoys who had not yet departed.
Though Goryeo claimed neutrality, they remained.
And they did not sit idle.
They gathered information relentlessly.
They sent people to the Secretariat, the Ministry of Rites, and the Bureau of Interpreters.
The Secretariat determined foreign policy.
The Ministry of Rites handled diplomatic procedures.
The Bureau of Interpreters managed translation and envoy support.
The Liao envoys moved constantly among these offices.
They pressed for aid,
demanded meetings with key officials,
and personally visited homes bearing northern gifts.
In time, they learned that Goryeo had dispatched a small advisory force—about twenty-five men—to the Jurchens.
Though nominal in form, they were treated as honored envoys.
They also realized Goryeo would not actively respond to Liao's requests.
Eventually, they discovered that an important Jin figure had arrived in Gaegyeong.
His name was Wanyan Zonghan.
A cousin of Aguda, and a formidable commander.
Though unofficial, he was already in contact with influential figures.
They could not identify those figures.
Meanwhile, Yeongu was being dragged from place to place, nearly losing his mind.
He had never been trained as an administrator.
He had no structured experience.
He had simply done whatever was put before him.
He lacked even the foundation to organize his work.
Called here, he spoke.
Called again, he repeated himself.
Each day blurred into the next.
He wandered between palace, barracks, and offices like a hollow shell.
Then he encountered a Liao envoy.
He had just finished reporting to the king.
As he stepped out, he crossed paths with the envoy.
Xiao Yejin recognized him immediately.
Yi Yeongu—the man at the center of everything.
He already had information.
A commander sent to the Jurchens, skilled in martial arts but blunt and unrefined in speech.
If that was true, he would be easy to deal with.
Xiao Yejin approached.
"Is that Yi Yeongu?"
"It is."
"I would like to speak with him."
The official eagerly handed Yeongu over and fled.
Yeongu looked around, confused.
Xiao Yejin smiled.
"I must have troubled them too much."
Yeongu laughed awkwardly.
"I know nothing. Why seek me?"
"I heard you played a decisive role in handing over the northeastern territories."
"I did not. I was a mere junior officer."
"And now you lead the advisory force."
Yeongu scratched his head.
"It is nothing. We were sent because we were useless. A discarded unit."
His words were clumsy, but honest.
Xiao Yejin saw it clearly.
No calculation.
That made him dangerous in a different way.
He pressed further.
"Let us dine together. Speak of the northern situation."
Yeongu waved his hands.
"I truly know nothing."
"It would be discourteous to refuse an envoy."
Yeongu hesitated.
"I will speak to your superior."
Not understanding diplomacy, Yeongu agreed.
It was the gravest mistake he had made since arriving in Gaegyeong.
He failed to recognize Liao as an enemy.
He separated the battlefield from the envoy before him.
Because the man seemed courteous.
"I will come tomorrow evening."
"Do you know the location?"
"I do not."
The envoy himself explained it.
The guesthouse was a state-run residence for foreign envoys.
Food, lodging, and guards were provided.
Guests—and subjects of watch.
The Liao delegation was large.
That place was a battlefield without swords.
Yeongu walked into it willingly.
When he returned, Park Geunsu exploded in anger.
"You agreed to go?"
"Yes."
"Do you know what you have done?"
Yeongu did not understand.
"He asked politely."
Park shouted.
"Envoys are snakes. One tongue splits into two meanings."
"Surely not…"
"You fool!"
Yeongu still could not grasp it.
To him, trust and words were simple things.
"I will just speak plainly."
"Say nothing of our secrets."
"I know that much."
But Park knew.
This meeting was anything but simple.