But what had been going on in the north? Chang Man, arriving at P‘a-ju, learned that the king had fled, and immediately called a council of war. It was decided that, as the people of Seoul were not largely in favor of Yi Kwal, it would be a good thing to make a demonstration at once lest the people should come to recognize the government. So one body of troops was sent to watch the road outside the East Gate and to cut off supplies. Another guarded the roads outside the South Gate. Gen. Chöng Ch‘ung-sin said that they must encamp on the hills immediately outside the West Gate and then Yi Kwal would be forced to fight. In order to do this Kim Yang-ön took cavalry and surprised the signal fire station beside the Peking Pass and so prevented any signal being given. That night Chang Man and all his forces came around the hills and stationed themselves behind the hill just back of Mo-wha-gwan. This movement was further favored by a strong east wind that carried the sound away so that all Seoul was ignorant of the extreme proximity of the enemy. At the same time Yi Whak with two hundred troops secreted himself outside the Northwest Gate, to enter the city when the insurgent troops should go out the West Gate to attack Chang Man’s forces. The latter also sent thousands of slips of paper into the city and had them distributed among the people saying, “Tomorrow, anyone who refuses to stand by Yi Kwal and remains loyal to the king, let him present one of these slips and he shall[shall] receive a reward.”
In the morning Yi Kwal spied a small band of soldiers on the hill outside the gate, for most of the force was concealed behind it, in order to deceive the rebels. Some of Yi Kwal’s followers said, “They are so few we had better go outside the Northwest Gate and so surround them; but the enemy seemed so insignificant that Yi Kwal marched straight at them. All Seoul was on the walls watching the fight with breathless interest. Han Myŭng-yŭn, Yi Kwal’s right hand man, took the Japanese contingent and moved up the steep hillside, and Yi followed with the main body. The strong east wind that was blowing materially aided the attacking force, for it lent speed to their arrows and they had the wind at their backs instead of in their faces. The loyal forces were forced to give way a little and their leaders had to strike[strike] down some in order to prevent a general stampede. At this critical juncture the wind suddenly veered to the west and drove the sand and dust into the eyes of the attacking party. This was the turning point in the battle. Yi Kwal was forced to give ground. Han Myŭng-yŭn himself was wounded by an arrow. Gen. Chang Man fought fiercely for two hours, gaining ground all the time. At this time the standard-bearer of Yi Kwal turned and fled. The cry arose, “Yi Kwal is on the run,” and in less that a minute the whole force was thrown into confusion and every man took to his heels, including Yi Kwal himself, who hastened back toward the West Gate. But the citizens on the wall had not been idle, and he found the gate locked and barred. Turning aside he hastened along under the wall till he reached the South Gate which he entered. Gen. Chang Man said, “Let us not chase him, for his men might turn on us and beat us after all. Let him go; the people will bring his head in soon enough.” So Yi Kwal with a small band of followers fled out the Water Mouth Gate, crossed the Han at Song-p‘a, killed the prefect of Kwang-ju, scaled Yi-bu-jă Pass and fled away eastward. Gen. Chöng Ch‘ung-sin chased him as far as Kyöng-an. By that time the traitor’s band had dwindled to twenty-eight men. He fled by night as far as Muk-pangi in the prefecture of I-ch‘ŭn and there two of his followers, seeing that the game had been played to a finish and hoping to save their own lives, went into his room by night and severed his head from the body. His son was treated in the same way, as were also Han Myŭng-yŭn and six others. They carried the heads to Kongju and laid them before the king. The king’s uncle who had been set up as king fled to Kwang-ju, where he was caught and turned over to Gen. Chang Man, who imprisoned him and waited the orders of the king. But another man, Sim Keui-wŭn, said, “No, he is a traitor,” and slew him with his own hand. When the king returned to Seoul this man Sim was imprisoned for a few days as nominal punishment for having killed a relative of the king.
On the twenty-second of the month the king returned to Seoul. Gen. Chang Man went to the river and escorted him in with a large retinue, but Gen. Chöng Ch‘ung-sin did not go and bow before the king, for he said, “I did not stop the traitor, but let him drive the king from the capital.” So he went up to P’yŭng-yang without seeing the king. When the latter heard of this he sent for him and gave him a present of gold and made him governor of P‘yŭng-an. It is said by some, in extenuation of Yi Kwal’s conduct, that he understood that the king had driven the former king from the throne and was a usurper. This must be false, for Yi Kwal was one of the principal actors in those events and must have known the truth about them. He was simply jealous and, having a strong force, thought to avenge himself. However that may be, the report was spread that it was patriotism that prompted the revolt, and to dispel any such idea the king made proclamation saying, “Kwang-hă, the former ruler, was a wicked and undutiful man. He killed his father and elder brother and imprisoned his mother. The country was on the verge of destruction and so I could not but attempt to drive him out. It was not because I wanted to usurp the royal honors, but it was for the sake of the line. Yi Kwal’s raid was prompted by idle rumors gotten up by certain of Kwang-hă’s men, but let all the people know surely that I have done this for the sole purpose of saving the kingdom.”
In the ninth moon another revolt was attempted, with the object of putting Prince In-sŭng, the king’s younger brother, on the throne. It was discovered in time and the principal movers were killed and the prince was banished to Kan-sŭng in Kang-wŭn Province.
On account of the frequent conflagrations in the city of P’yŭng-yang, the governor petitioned the king to promulgate a law requiring all houses in that town to be tiled instead of thatched. The king not only complied but gave money for the purchase of tiles. That law has not been abrogated to this day.
THE SHIP-YARD.
The year 1625 opened with warlike preparations. Gen. Yi Sö collected a band of strong, stalwart men, the pick of the land, formed them into companies and regiments and drilled them at the Hun-yŭn-wŭn, inside the East Gate, and also at Mo-wha-kwan outside the West Gate. Near the close of the year the king promulgated a most important law, sweeping away the disabilities of sons by concubines and giving them the right to become officials. One must know the prevalence of concubinage in Korea in order to understand how vitally this law must have affected the whole body of the people, of all ranks and classes. This was the more true from the fact that concubines are commonly taken because of the lack of an heir. Eligibility to office on the part of sons of of concubines worked therefore in two directions. It elevated the position of the concubine and at the same time made the position of the barren wife more endurable.
We have already given a sketch of the beginnings of the Manchu convulsion which was about to shake the whole of eastern Asia. During the interval occupied by the events narrated above, the Manchus were quietly preparing for the future. Gen. Kang Hong-rip, the Korean renegade, was still with them. Another Korean went over to the Manchus. It was Han Yun who fled to Kwi-sŭng in northern P‘yŭng-an, from which place he crossed the Ya-lu and found Gen. Kang among the Manchus. To him he said, “My relatives have now all been destroyed by the king and I am an outcast. Let us get an army together and go and be avenged on the Koreans.” Gen. Kang gave his hearty consent and together they sought the throne of the Manchu chief to lay their plan before him.
Sŏ U-sin, the Ming governor of Liao-tung, heard of this plan and despatched a messenger to the King of Korea setting him on his guard against these two men. The king did not believe that Gen. Kang was irrecoverably lost, for he appointed his son to go to the Manchus as envoy. Had this young man succeeded in reaching his destination he might have induced his father to remain faithful to Korea, but just beyond the border he encountered Manchu soldiers who did not understand him and would not let him pass. So he was compelled to return with his mission unaccomplished. It is probable that there would have been an invasion of Korea by the Manchus at that time had it not been for the arrival in Liao-tung of the great Chinese general Wŭn Sung-whan. He was so skillful in the handling of soldiers that superhuman powers were ascribed to him. The Manchus could make no headway against him, and it is said that Norach’i’s chagrin at having failed to storm a town held by this famous general aggravated an illness caused by a carbuncle on his back and brought about his death. Upon his decease his second son Hongt’asi took the reins of government and carried to completion the ambitious plans made by his illustrious father.