The Joseon Prince Went To America And Didn’t Return – 117



< Aftershock (2) >

“your majesty.”

“….”

“your majesty!”

Yi Cheok the emperor of Joseon looked at Yi Wan-yong who looked like a weasel with an extremely annoyed expression on his face.

“Why are you doing that?”

“Is there anything that feels uncomfortable?”

“Not at all. The luggage is fine.”

“But….”

After exchanging glances with Ito who was standing next to Sunjong Lee Wan-yong continued speaking.

“Why is your expression so dark?”

“….”

“Please smile brightly as usual.”

At this Lee Cheok could only sigh deeply.

Is Lee Wan-yong feeling suffocated?

He looked at the citizens who had been recruited in advance and explained to Lee Cheok why he had to smile.

“Countless people have waited here at the central station for hours to see Your Majesty’s countenance. Shouldn’t Your Majesty show a bright face to the people if only to console them for their hard work?”

Lee Cheok raised his voice slightly and wiggled one eyebrow.

“Jim is smiling.”

“yes?”

“Jim is smiling.”

“What is that…..”

Before leaving on his tour King Gojong ordered Yi Cheok to do one thing.

I advised him never to laugh.

“Chuck you must keep this in mind. If you are smiling next to Ito the people will mistakenly think that Ito is helping you and me and helping Joseon.”

Although he was incompetent perhaps because he had been in Gyeongbokgung Palace for 40 years Gojong’s political power had developed considerably since the beginning of his reign.

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He knew exactly what Ito wanted from this tour.

Moreover he also knew very well how to shatter it terribly.

“You must maintain an angry expression throughout this entire tour. That way you and your father can survive.”

“Ah Abama.”

『You have to keep this in mind. If this father is to live… Chuck what should you do?』

“He said I should make a sad face. That’s the face my mother had when she passed away.”

“Yeah yeah. Think about a time when you were sad. Or a time when you were angry. That might help. Okay I thought about it very well.”

Lee Cheok was a very filial man.

That is why he followed his father King Gojong’s orders very faithfully.

His actions that we see now can be said to be proof of his strong filial piety.

“your majesty!”

“It’s noisy. Stop it.”

Since leaving the palace Lee Cheok has never smiled in front of the public.

Rather he had an angry expression on his face as if he was very angry which made the pro-Japanese cabinet members including Yi Wan-yong very restless.

This is because things are going in the exact opposite direction of Ito’s original intention.

“Tsk tsk. How much trouble must the Japanese and traitors have caused?”

“The Emperor’s Majesty’s countenance is very dark.”

“You weren’t tortured in the palace were you?”

“That’s right. Your face looks badly injured.”

Look.

Aren’t the people of Hanyang already gossiping?

The citizens of Hanyang all felt sorry for the emperor who had not smiled for even a single moment and had a sad expression on his face thinking about how cruel Ito had been.

Hanyang is a place where information circulates better than other regions so the incident that broke out today will be talked about for several days.

However in regions where transportation and communication are not developed once something happens the story is talked about by local residents for months.

If the tour continued like this the local residents might become very agitated.

Then Lee Wan-yong recruited Lee Cheok again.

“Your Majesty all those who stand before Your Majesty are Your Majesty’s children.”

“I know Jim.”

“If we only show those people a frowning face the people will surely be greatly disappointed.”

“If you keep talking about Jim’s expression he might just end up lying on the floor.”

“Your Majesty.”

“Kyung-eun keep your mouth shut during this tour. It is the Emperor’s order.”

Lee Cheok didn’t usually make eye contact with Lee Wan-yong.

Because they were afraid of pro-Japanese officials.

But was it because of Emperor Gojong’s earnest request?

He continued to stubbornly insist that he was laughing.

‘Damn.’

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Ito who saw this sight shook his head back and forth.

A purebred man who became half-stupid because of opium.

As expected his intelligence has declined but his strong will does not seem to have completely disappeared.

‘Yesterday when I was leaving the palace the King of the Former State was twitching the corners of his lips… He must have given some instructions to the King of Joseon. How dare he keep interfering with things until the very end.’

It was obvious that Sunjong would continue to have that kind of expression on his face throughout the tour.

This made Ito worry.

If we cancel the already scheduled events more bad news will spread throughout the Korean peninsula.

But it seems dangerous to continue with the schedule like this.

It’s a deadlocked situation where you can’t do anything.

Ugh-

Ito caressed his temples.

The severe migraine that started three months ago still plagued him today.

“Your Majesty you must be very tired. Please get on the train.”

“Huh? What is that Tonggam?…”

Ito approached Yi Wan-yong and whispered to him in English pointing out his rudeness.

“People are watching. It may seem like you are urging His Majesty the Emperor in the square.”

“Oh yes.”

I haven’t completely given up on persuading Lee Cheok.

I plan to try to intimidate Lee Cheok once again on the train away from the public eye.

I don’t know if that desperate measure will work but in any case if I want to gain even a little bit of convenience from this tour I have to change Lee Cheok’s mind.

hereto.

Ito gestured to Yi Wan-yong and other officials and called them over.

He instructed them to discuss countermeasures.

* * *

“Get out you Japanese!”

“Go back to my country!”

Knock knock-

Knock knock-

A train heading south.

Some of the Joseon people were protesting by throwing stones at them.

“Catch those guys!”

“What are you doing?”

It didn’t stop there and the people of the South strongly asserted their own opinions by burning the Japanese flag that was hanging alongside the Taegeukgi.

Of course they were dragged away by the Japanese military police who arrived at the scene in less than a minute.

But like a weed.

Even after being pulled out again and again protest groups like this continued to appear.

“What about the photo?”

“Unfortunately nothing has been salvaged yet.”

The protests of obedience continued.

Pro-Japanese reporters were embarrassed by this.

This was because I had to write a pro-Japanese newspaper article to incite the Korean public but I didn’t have a single usable photo.

Because every time we took a picture Sunjong would frown a lot.

“You are professionals. I am sure His Majesty the Emperor will laugh at least once so wait for the right moment and take a picture of it.”

“yes.”

Even if the local public sentiment is in shambles it can be alleviated to some extent by gently massaging it through the media.

Several influential media outlets have recently joined the pro-Japanese forces in the face of the chilling blows of the Residency-General.

Ito intended to manipulate public opinion in Joseon through this.

hereto.

Since he really needed a photo to use Ito tried to make the emperor laugh by using a cutesy attitude that he couldn’t even muster.

But the emperor still had a sad expression on his face.

“Your Majesty it is time to move to the next port of call.”

Passing through Daejeon.

When we arrived in Daegu another stopover.

What came into Ito’s sight were tens of thousands of leaflets fluttering around Daegu Central Station.

I don’t know who scattered all this stuff but there were a lot of pieces of paper with phrases written in Korean folded into paper airplanes flying around.

Ito pointed to this and gave an order to the attendant who followed him.

“The papers that fell on the floor. Hand me one of them.”

“yes.”

As expected from a Joseon expert Ito could speak a little Korean.

That’s why he could immediately understand what the leaflet meant without having to entrust it to an interpreter.

“When the King returns to Joseon judgment will be carried out in heaven.”

“The necks of traitors will be cut off and the limbs of Japanese people on the Korean Peninsula will be torn to pieces.”

『Traitors to the nation will beg to be killed and suffer a karma in this life that is more painful than death.』

The face of Lee Wan-yong who had been on patrol with Ito and Sunjong began to turn red.

Then his complexion suddenly darkened because the target written on the leaflet was Lee Wan-yong and the rest of the traitors.

“What the fuckin bastard…”

A pair of curses comes out of Lee Wan-yong’s mouth.

Ito also cursed inwardly.

Even if they don’t say it out loud you can guess who’s behind it.

‘Lee Kang.’

Prints were extremely expensive in this day and age.

Wouldn’t it be just the right size if you printed tens of thousands of them and scattered them on the streets of Daegu?

‘You’re using your head.’

He was warning.

It seems that he was speaking especially to the high-ranking officials of Joseon who followed the royal procession.

If we continue to cooperate with Japan we will not have a comfortable retirement.

‘They say they’re forming an assassination squad to retaliate against this attack.’

Aren’t all kinds of information flowing in through various channels?

They say rumors without foundation travel a thousand miles.

News of the military school that Lee Kang had established in Mexico spread widely throughout the western United States as well as mainland Japan and Korea.

News spread that he was forming a bodyguard and assassination squad not to mention mid-level executives.

The assassination squad’s targets were revealed to be high-ranking military officials and traitors active in Japan.

“Those who distributed these leaflets. Track them down.”

“yes.”

“We must arrest them all without exception. We must also arrest all those who support these people.”

“yes.”

Ito responded by cutting down the grass and removing the roots.

If he just sits still the spies and pro-Japanese forces he had painstakingly trained will leave him one by one.

“Haha. Hahaha.”

Lee Cheok burst into laughter for the first time during the tour.

He smiled at the leaflets that fell on the floor but the reporters looked at Ito and Lee Wan-yong and made faces as if asking what to do.

I was worried because when I actually took the picture I realized that I would never use it and that I would never laugh like that again.

Ito looked at Ichik and sighed heavily as if he was displeased.

* * *

The itinerary for the western tour which visited Hwanghae-do and Pyeongan-do north of Hanyang was the complete opposite of the southern tour.

“and!!!”

“Long live His Majesty the Emperor! Long live His Majesty the Emperor!”

The people living in the northwest were very friendly to the expedition unlike those living in the southeast.

Enough to make you tilt your head.

‘what?’

The reaction of the northwestern people was very alien to Ito.

Although not as much as the northeast the northwest region has been a border area that has had a lot of exchanges with foreign countries since ancient times.

There are also many Christians.

It was very famous as a place where many supporters of Lee Kang lived as there were many capitalists with their heads held high.

Obviously.

It wouldn’t be strange if someone was wielding a gun somewhere and screaming that they were going to kill Ito.

“Oh it must have been difficult for you to come from so far away Your Excellency Resident-General Ito. Welcome to Pyongyang.”

The citizens of Kaesong and Pyongyang welcomed not only Sunjong but also Ito.

People waved the Taegeukgi and the flags of the Residency-General all over the streets and cheered three times.

“Bring me one of them who can speak Japanese.”

“yes.”

We brought in a man named Ha Seok-yong who could speak Japanese from the crowd.

Three years ago.

It is said that he is a prominent figure from Pyongyang who returned after studying abroad in Japan.

Ito crossed his arms and asked Ha Seok-yong about the reactions of Pyongyang citizens.

“What is the situation in Pyongyang?”

“Oh the atmosphere is really nice.”

“good night?”

“Yes. Because the benefactor who saved His Majesty the King has visited Pyongyang.”

When Ito tilted his head Ha Seok-yong praised Ito spitting out his saliva.

“Wasn’t it thanks to the advice given to His Majesty by the Governor-General that His Majesty was able to remain unharmed during the attack?”

“….”

“I heard that His Excellency the Resident-General will be returning to Japan after this tour. I came running here to see him off on his final journey.”

When Ito heard this his head felt dizzy.

“Please go to your home country and punish that worthless Katsura. We the citizens of Pyongyang only trust His Excellency Ito.”

Not one or two.

Because I said the same thing to everyone I met.

Everyone praised Ito and said that he would control Japan’s runaway economy.

He always added at the end that he wanted Katsura to be kept in check as if he had kissed her.

‘This dog….’

Ito smiled bitterly and guessed that Lee Kang was involved in this situation.

Japan is currently in a state of complete chaos.

The core railway of the South Manchuria Railway which could be called the jewel of Manchuria was robbed by the Americans including Li Gang.

If the standard gauge railway of the Manchurian Railway is installed like this Japan will have to suck its thumb and just sit by.

Moreover the Beiyang clique had to set up camp in Manchuria to face the Kwantung Army so even the military was left speechless.

In this situation Lee Kang-yi is trying to divert the attention of the hardliners.

“I should learn a thing or two from His Excellency the Resident-General of Japan Ito.”

“….”

“I didn’t know the popularity of the Governor-General because I only lived in the mainland. Who knew he would be this popular among the Joseon people? Haha.”

Look.

Isn’t Major Yamamoto from the mainland already glaring and remembering today’s scene?

Major Yamamoto was a member of the Katsura faction and a political soldier who engaged in politics within the military.

Yamamoto is glaring at Ito with a sarcastic expression.

Surely the story of today will reach Katsura’s ears.

Ito said with a forced smile.

“Haven’t you noticed that this series of events is all part of Lee Kang’s scheme?”

“….”

“Lee Kang has done this to divide us. In the south he has been spreading leaflets and threatening our pro-Japanese ministers. On the other hand in the northwest he has been praising me and causing internal divisions in our Japanese Empire. I think you have noticed Lee Kang’s evil scheme.”

“Oh is that so?”

Although Ito personally explained Lee Kang’s strategy Yamamoto did not hear it at all.

This is because the moderates including Ito were already imprinted in his mind as traitors who betrayed the archipelago.

‘Lee Kang….’

Ito wanted to stay in Joseon longer but it seems he will have to return to Japan as Saionji requested.

Because if we leave Lee Kang alone I think a bigger accident will happen.

It seemed that he would have to deal with Lee Kang who was now the Prime Minister of Japan and was showing off his talents in the United States.

Lee Kang thought that his only rival was himself.

‘It won’t work out the way you want. Absolutely not.’

< Aftershock (2) > End