NIS Agents Tearing Up the Japanese Empire - Chapter 151



Only Krnovel

RISE(2)

The ghost of Gyeongseong is dead!

This news was transmitted through the Chosun Ilbo to Korea, Japan, across the border to Manchuria and Gando, and even across the sea to Shanghai.

People’s reactions to this news were as varied as the languages ​​they spoke.

Those who lived in Joseon, regardless of whether they were Korean, Japanese, or Chinese, were greatly shocked and saddened by the death of the ghost.

The Korean people were saddened by the news that the person who had been giving the unlucky Governor-General a hard time had disappeared, and it was no different for the Japanese.

Where did the Japanese Government-General of Korea learn all about the oppression of Koreans over the years?

Naturally, the traditional ruling method of the mainland was followed as is.

The Government-General exercised harsh rule over the Korean people, but it did not provide carrots or other benefits to the Japanese.

When the Japanese in the mainland fell for the sweet talk of the Oriental Development Company and crossed the Korea Strait to Busan or Jemulpo in Incheon, their heads were filled with the ‘Joseon Dream’ of great success in Joseon, but it did not take long for them to realize that they had been scammed.

The Japanese, who had nothing but their bodies, were taken straight to the labor market and worked for meager wages or were reduced to tenant farmers, paying high rents set by the Oriental Development Company.

Of course, it is true that there were many benefits for the Japanese who came over to Joseon from the mainland, but this was only for those who had some money in their pockets, not for those who had nothing but their bare hands.

And people with money in their pockets were treated well wherever they went, whether they were Korean or Japanese.

When this was combined with the desperate financial situation of the Government-General of Korea, which had never been in the red since it colonized Korea, discontent among Japanese living in Korea began to grow.

From the Japanese people’s point of view, they had come to Joseon on the promise that they would be well-fed and live well, but there was no actual improvement in their lives. In fact, their living conditions were worse than when they lived in Japan, and their wages were so low that they could not even afford the return ferry fare.

The Japanese, who had fallen for the large-scale state-sponsored employment scam, eventually had no choice but to settle down in Joseon, crying and eating mustard.

Of course, rather than taking good care of the Japanese who had been forced to stay in this way by offering them carrots, the Government-General was busy brandishing the whip and exploiting them, just like the Japanese lords of the Warring States period had done.

As a result, the majority of Japanese living in Korea were dissatisfied with the Government-General, but they had no means to resolve this, so they were groaning inwardly. In this situation, the appearance of the Ghost of Gyeongseong, although unintentional, captured their hearts.

At first, the Japanese also thought of him as one of the many ghosts they could see, but the sight of a ghost who only thoroughly punished the Governor-General or those associated with it while harming as few civilians as possible was enough to capture their attention.

The story of a man who fought alone against the great Japanese Empire without wavering in his beliefs to avenge and rebuild Joseon, which had already fallen into ruin, was also a story that the Japanese loved the most.

Ironically, Koreans were unable to express their sorrow or say anything about the death of the ghost, but the Japanese openly lamented and mourned the death of the ghost.

“Now it’s the world of the Governor-General.”

“Whew… … I felt so relieved when he beat up those Governor-General’s bastards.”

“What a pity, what a pity… … . A life that blooms like a flower and then scatters in the wind.”

“Tsk tsk, stop talking nonsense and get down to business! What if the police hear you babbling like that?”

“Listen if you want to, when did they ever worry about us?”

“That’s right! How many thugs and gangsters are there on the streets these days? I’m telling you, just the body.”

“And yet, I wonder why they take so much in taxes… … .”

“But we’re better off than those Joseon guys. Those tenant farmers are ripped off by half of their rent, and they even take money for pesticides and fertilizer from the farmers under the pretext of some kind of agricultural development fund.”

“Oh my… … What is the landlord doing?”

“I don’t know!”

“Those damn guys.”

The Government-General, whose expenditures had skyrocketed due to the terrorism committed by the Ghost of Gyeongseong over the past six months, was passing the burden on to the citizens living in Korea, and so all those living in this land, both Korean and Japanese, were quite dissatisfied with the Government-General.

In the provinces, farmers took collective action over rent.

Of course, the farmers’ cries were quickly suppressed by the Governor-General.

No, it should have been suppressed originally.

But as we all know, the Government-General was too busy blocking the southward advance of the Joseon Army (Japanese Army) to afford to worry about such trivial(?) matters.

Then what happens?

It becomes like this.

* * *

An unnamed mountain valley in Hamgyeong Province, so dark that even a tiger smoking a cigarette in its cave would not be noticed.

A group of soldiers appeared in this place that seemed impassable due to the snow that had been falling for several days.

It was not a small force of a simple squad or platoon, but a battalion-level force of hundreds of soldiers.

The faces of the soldiers marching along the mountain path with no proper path were clearly exhausted, but the faces of the guides who paved the way for them at the front were full of smiles.

“Whew… … . Whoosh… … . If we just get over this steep hill, we’ll be at Nanam right away, so everyone, please work harder!”

“Whew… … I didn’t know there was a path in a place like this.”

“This is not a path made for people to walk on, but a path that was naturally created by large animals like tigers and bears walking on it.”

“A tiger and a bear? Isn’t that dangerous?”

“Hehehe, with so many people, even the mountain lords and bear priests don’t dare look this way.”

“Hmm… … . But if any soldiers fall behind, it would be a big problem.”

The main force of the Korean Independence Army, which led almost the entire army and crossed the Tuman River after hastily changing its operational plan at the request of General Kim Gyeong-cheon, received enthusiastic support and cheers from the local residents instead of fierce resistance from the local Japanese army.

“Wow! Long live the independence army!”

“Long live Korean independence!”

“Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah!”

“The Liberation Army has come! The Independence Army has come! Village people!!! The Independence Army has come!!!”

Whenever the independence army passed through the village, people would flock to the village and cheer them on.

“Why did you come here to drive out those bastards?”

“Those guys are in Nanam, so go there quickly and beat them up!”

“Aren’t you accepting new recruits?”

“I know a quick way to get from here to Nanam! Take me!”

They went beyond simply welcoming the independence fighters and actively responded to them.

“Everyone is so proactive.”

“I wonder why they are like this… … .”

“General Kim crossed the Tuman River first, so wouldn’t he have done something about it?”

“Huh, when General Kim suddenly sent a messenger telling me to lead the entire main force of the Korean Independence Army and cross the Duman River, I wondered what he meant… … But now that I have set foot on Joseon soil again, I understand what he meant.”

“Yes. Where would General Kim be talking nonsense?”

“Yes.”

The enthusiastic welcome of the Hamgyeong Province residents began to gradually rekindle the will for independence that had been dormant in the hearts of the Korean Independence Army.

“The guard posts along the border were half empty, and the other half were not even properly supplied with ammunition, so I think I have some idea of ​​the situation of the Japanese 19th Division in Nanam.”

An empty border and an enemy that has no idea what is happening.

There was even enthusiastic support and help from local residents.

“This operation. I already have a feeling it will be a success.”

General Kim Dong-sam surprised everyone by saying something that was contrary to his usually cautious personality.

“Comrade Commander, we have just crossed the border, and you say we have already succeeded?”

“Haha, it’s a little scary that someone who is usually so careful is giving such a definite answer.”

“Isn’t it a bit too early to be certain of success?”

Everyone laughed at Kim Dong-sam’s unusually confident success, but they also seemed to agree to some extent.

The most dangerous part of this operation was the main force of the Korean Independence Army crossing the Tumen River.

What kind of river is the Tuman River?

Even though it was winter and the river was frozen, it was still quite wide and difficult to cross.

If the independence army had been attacked by the Japanese army while crossing the river, they would have suffered great losses.

But the Japanese army didn’t do that.

To be exact, I couldn’t do that.

why?

“That’s because they didn’t know we were going to cross the river.”

“According to the information sent by Mr. Lee from Gyeongseong, the Japanese military headquarters in Joseon seems to know that we are still stationed on the Liaodong Peninsula.”

“Our enemies don’t know anything about us, but we know everything about them… … .”

In the Art of War written by Sun Tzu, an ancient Chinese strategist, it is said that if you adapt and know yourself, you will not be in danger even in a hundred battles.

The current situation is similar to that.

The Japanese army did not know where the independence army was and what it was doing, but on the other hand, the independence army knew where the Japanese army was and what it was doing, how many soldiers were in the unit, how many weapons and ammunition were in the warehouse, and even the number of spoons in the kitchen.

In this situation, isn’t thinking about defeat truly defeatism?

“Comrades, please listen for a moment. I will now issue new orders to each unit.”

General Kim Dong-sam, commander of the Korean Independence Army, did not want to miss this momentum and planned to attack the Japanese army right away.

His plan was this.

Rather than moving as one unit and being discovered by the Japanese, they actively took advantage of the attacker’s advantage of being able to ‘choose the time and place as they wish’ and planned to immediately surround and destroy the Japanese military bases, including Nanam.

“Now that General Kim has taken over Hamheung, they don’t know, but the Japanese troops in Hamgyeong Province are isolated and cut off from supplies. So we hired local guides and divided the troops into platoons and headed south all at once to this place.”

General Kim Dong-sam pointed to the part marked Nanam on the crookedly drawn map.

“Following the guides, we will ride down the various paths in the mountain to the south, surround the enemy, and then attack them like a storm to sweep away the enemy’s main force in one fell swoop. Next, we will wipe out the remnants of the Japanese army remaining in Hamgyeong Province.”

The Korean Independence Army Command, including Kim Dong-sam, was planning to actively utilize the geographical characteristics of Hamgyeong-do as a mountainous region in the current situation, with the enthusiastic support of the residents of Hamgyeong-do behind them.

“Any objections?”

“doesn’t exist.”

That’s how the independence army began to advance south.

The Koreans they encountered here and there actively helped the independence fighters by giving them food or clearing their path whenever they saw them, and the Japanese they encountered occasionally waved to the independence fighters.

If not, there were also cases where they pretended not to see it at all.

Among those who encountered the independence army, whether Korean or Japanese, there was no one who went straight to the military and reported it.

This meant that both groups hated the military and the Government-General terribly.

When the Japanese 19th Division headquarters stationed in Nanam realized that the independence army was advancing south, they had already blocked all roads leading to Nanam.

“What?! A group of armed rebels blocked the road and prevented traffic?”

“yes.”

“These damn bandits are causing trouble.”

“Shall we send troops?”

“Of course we should send them out! We should use this opportunity to really fix their arrogance… … .”

-Pewpewp… … .

A single firework fired from the mountain rose into the sky, forming a thin tail.

“What is that?”

“well…….”

“Is it over if I don’t know? I’ll have to go and find out… … .”

-pop!

The fireworks rose high into the sky, flashed and exploded in the air, creating beautiful fireworks.

“Firecrackers? Who sets off firecrackers in the middle of the night?”

“Aren’t these children playing?”

“The kids climbed the mountain in the middle of winter, and in the middle of the night?”

“… … ?”

As soon as he finished speaking, shells began to fly into the 19th Division camp located on the outskirts of Nanam City.

NIS Agent Tears the Japanese Empire Episode 152