I Will Stage A Coup D’état - Chapter 64



Only Krnovel

EP.64 The Great Hall (1)

In late August, three months after the start of the German-Soviet War, the German army, half-exhausted, reached the Dnieper River, the lifeline of the Eastern European plain, and was able to capture Kiev, the capital of the Ukrainian SSR.

It was an achievement made possible by sophisticated joint public announcement tactics, organic support from the Navy and Air Force, and the outstanding capabilities of the Army officer corps.

But it was impossible to bring the Soviet Union to its knees with a blow of this magnitude.

In the past three months, the Germans had inflicted 1.5 million casualties on the Soviets, but Moscow had reduced the losses to nothing by reinforcing eight field armies prepared as strategic reserves.

“We lost about 100 of our divisions? Then let’s reinforce them by about 150 divisions.”

In contrast, the 400,000 casualties suffered by the German army were not losses that could be easily replaced.

The sharp swords prepared by Germany were gradually becoming dull in the face of the overwhelming weight of the Soviet army, which could regenerate heads without end even after cutting them off.

Perhaps the German offensive would have been frustrated before reaching the threshold of Moscow.

‘That might be better for the Nazis.’

Operation Typhoon, which was launched with the aim of targeting Moscow, was also a disaster for Germany.

I made him submit a daily situation report.

The situation on the European front seemed unlikely to change significantly unless Stalin ordered a reckless counteroffensive.

Soviet coins were showing signs of soaring.

‘It was a success to buy the coin at the bottom.’

The Sino-Korean war that we were directly fighting was also going smoothly.

The new Premier of the Republic of China, Wang Jingwei, was very cooperative in selling out the country, and the Chinese Communist Party was also diligently expanding the liberated areas.

Chiang Kai-shek could only rely on the mediation of the great powers, but he blocked that too.

It seems like I’ve managed to untangle the complicated tangled threads quite well.

‘The problem isn’t the situation.’

I received a report from the Security Command that there were some suspicious aspects to the outbreak of this war.

The Security Command added at the end of the report that the Army’s Operations Directorate may have been involved.

What does that mean?

The military’s troublemakers were playing with fire.

Nine times out of ten, this is the work of a bunch of worthless bastards.

These kids.

“If there is a military police officer, tell him to come to the embassy immediately.”

I had no intention of just leaving them alone.

Anyone who toyed with the fate of the empire deserved to be beheaded.

An hour later, Lee Jeong appeared in front of me with a very nervous expression.

I said to Lee Jeong, throwing the Security Service report at him.

“Master. Really, you didn’t know these guys were messing around?”

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty.”

I pounded the desk nervously.

“I’ll give you exactly 24 hours from now. Within that time, find out everyone involved, everyone responsible. Find out everything. Find out thoroughly how this could have happened.”

“I will accept it.”

After Lee Jeong saluted, he left the official residence.

The Army Criminal Investigation Division, the Military Police Office, the Security Command, the Central Intelligence Agency, and any other agency that can be mobilized have all been cooperating, so we will get rid of every last one of those bastards’ underwear.

A day later, Lee Jeong returned to the office with a very haggard face.

“Your Majesty, the investigation has been completed.”

“Who is involved?”

“As reported by the Security Command, the Army Operations Bureau was heavily involved. The main culprit is Section 3, and the people who ordered the planning of the operation were the Director of the Military Affairs Bureau and the Deputy Director of the Operations Bureau.”

Military Affairs Bureau?

That guy has nothing to do with the Operations Department.

The only thing they have in common is that they are all ‘non-combatants’.

No ban.

Just hearing it made me sick and tired.

Ha. These X-like pseudo-Junker bastards.

The biggest cancer left behind by the Korean Empire.

I decided that I had to take this opportunity to remove the cancerous lump called Muban.

“First of all, you take care of dealing with those guys. Don’t leave behind any of the guys whose clothes you want to strip.”

“I will accept it.”

“Go ahead.”

I sent a message and thought about how I could tame the mob.

The answer was simple.

‘It’s just land reform.’

If the land is seized, the military class, which relies most of its economic power on land documents, will fall into ruin all at once.

‘You are the ones who made me like this.’

Up until now, I have tried not to provoke the military as much as possible, thinking of the stability of the empire as a good thing.

You may wonder what I’m talking about after going through a purge, but it means that I’ve maintained a certain level of integrity.

But now there is no need to look after it.

How can we continue to tolerate a group of traitors who not only stage a coup, but also go so far as to provoke a war?

It needs to be taken care of.

“owner.”

I called Jeong Gil.

“Yes, Prime Minister.”

“I want the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry to come in the order I call their names right now.”

“I will accept it.”

Soon, the cabinet members came into my office one after another, responding to my call.

I gave them massive reform measures from the comfort of their own homes.

The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, who had been given a particularly strong order to carry out land reform, looked devastated.

“Your Majesty. Land is the foundation of a nation’s thousand-year plan. If you touch it carelessly, it will cause unrest in society.”

Is this guy supporting the Korean Junkers now?

The words did not come out smoothly.

“Why didn’t Germany conquer the world despite its great national power during World War I? It was because those unproductive people just grabbed all the land and prevented the country from developing. How could we leave them alone when we saw that so clearly? The military is the evil of this empire!”

The Prussian Junkers managed the land in a pre-modern way, holding back the development of eastern Germany for hundreds of years.

Considering that eastern Germany was as rich in industrial resources as the Rhine River basin, including coal and iron, the Junkers had effectively reduced Germany to a half-crippled state.

The Koreans were no different from the Junkers of Germany.

“But Your Majesty, the Muban are the foundation of the empire.”

“The foundation of the empire is not them, it’s me, Lee Seong-jun!”

That much could be said with certainty.

The war maniacs who are anxious to prevent the empire from committing suicide, and His Excellency Lee Seong-jun who is struggling to save the country.

Which one helped the empire?

There was no need to even say it.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs bowed his head in anger.

“In that case, I would like to know Your Majesty’s intentions.”

“How can productivity be achieved by simply distributing land?”

“Yes, that’s right. The land needs to be of a certain size to be mechanized and easy to manage.”

“So, wouldn’t it be okay to hand over the farm to the farmers and then run it as a cooperative?”

Cooperative.

In a country like Korea where small farmers are the majority anyway, this is the only way for farmers to survive.

“If it’s a cooperative, isn’t it something that was done in places like Denmark?”

“You know that too, Master. That’s right.”

“But I know that cooperatives are rarely adopted by anyone other than the communists.”

“What does it matter if it’s red or blue, as long as it helps the empire? It doesn’t matter if the cat is white or black, as long as it catches mice.”

“That, that’s right. Then, what about land confiscation?”

“Confiscate for a fee, distribute for a fee. Return it after a 50-year grace period.”

If you consider the inflation rate over the past 50 years, it’s like telling the military to sit down and die.

The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry heard what I said and looked astonished.

It’s not my job to search for the missing people.

They are my enemies, no, the enemies of the Empire.

You say you’ll help out the corrupt bastards, but what’s all that talk about?

“Start the operation immediately based on the land register identified nationwide.”

Unlike the Joseon Dynasty, there was no such thing as an unregistered secret in the Korean register.

This is thanks to the fact that all land was surveyed using modern surveying techniques.

Therefore, no one was able to escape the national land policy.

Of course, such an outrageous policy will not be without its side effects.

‘Not only the Muban, but all the large landowners will see blood.’

They are all vested interests.

Since I touched on all that, the backlash could have been very strong.

A coup could have occurred.

If you’ve been pushed to this point, it would be stranger if you didn’t budge.

But, I have endured as much as I could.

After the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, the next one was the Minister of Finance.

“From now on, conduct a special tax investigation on the people on the list handed over by the military police.”

The Treasury secretary was embarrassed by the targeted attacks on specific individuals.

“Wouldn’t that be a legal problem?”

Is the law the problem?

“Please submit a report on the problematic parts. Then, we will handle it through legislation.”

Then just change the law.

With the legislature at my feet, such trivial matters are of no concern to me.

“I will accept it.”

In this way, I began a merciless revenge against the Mooban and the instigators of this incident.

And from the next day onwards, cries began to resonate throughout the country.

“Oh my. You guys, that land is no good.”

Panic broke out everywhere.

Letters poured in begging me to withdraw this policy.

There were many difficult circumstances, and there were also stories that made us feel compassionate towards them as human beings.

But that won’t work.

Once you start allowing exceptions, you won’t be able to control the mob.

It was right to remove the cancerous mass in its entirety, even if it meant removing some healthy flesh.

‘At least when I finish my term in office, the word ‘Muban’ should no longer exist.’

The greatest legacy I could leave to the Korean Empire was a country without military officials.