Republic of Korea in Yeokcheon - Chapter 28



Only Krnovel

#28. A day of great luck

Before noon, major government offices in Gyeongseong were occupied by the expeditionary force, and surprisingly, this was largely due to the obedient cooperation of Ikutaro Danke, the head of the police department, with the expeditionary force.

“What kind of soldiers are police officers? And I saw with my own eyes that it was useless to resist your army. “Rather than have my men die for no reason, it is better to obediently follow instructions and plan for the future.”

These were the words of Inspector General Danke.

Seodaemun Prison and Gyeongseong Prison in Gongdeok-ri, Yonggang-myeon, Goyang-gun (currently Gongdeok-dong, Mapo-gu) were also taken over, and after ordering the prisoners to be treated as best as possible, detention was continued.

Many independence activists were imprisoned, but there was concern that real criminals would also be released if the country was just opened, and since liberation had not been officially announced, it was planned to only select independence activists and then release them.

However, troops and military doctors were sent to both prisons to control them, triage them in advance, and take care of their health.

In addition, troops were sent to Incheon to take over the armory in Bupyeong, and the port and nearby facilities in Incheon were also occupied, preventing any ships from entering or exiting.

He also sent troops to Yangju and Siheung, taking over training centers to control Korean trainees.

Because this is the real Wang Geon.

In the afternoon, citizens who had been unable to leave their homes due to fear due to the battle that took place in Yongsan began to come out one by one.

and···.

“Tae, Taegeukgi!”

“It’s true! The Korean flag is waving at the Government General!”

“How on earth did this happen?”

“Look at that tank! Those soldiers too! Everyone is wearing Taegeukgi!”

“The atmosphere has been unusual for some time now. Hasn’t the world changed?”

“Is that possible? “How strong is the Japanese army?”

“Then what is that Taegeukgi?”

“Well, well?”

“And what are the gunshots that have been heard all morning in Yongsan?”

“…”

Still, no one approached the expeditionary force, whose faces were still painted with camouflage cream.

They’re just gathered in groups of threes and threes, muttering.

They seemed accustomed to coercive control.

Moreover, the expeditionary force headquarters was not doing any publicity.

“Shouldn’t we at least do a radio broadcast? “They say you can control broadcasting only in the Gyeongseong area?”

“A little later. If citizens suddenly flock in, complete control of Gyeongseong will be delayed. And the control over the Incheon and Gyeonggi-do regions is not over yet.”

“Hmm, that’s true, but…”

“It won’t be a big deal if you experience the thrill of liberation a day or two late. The immediate priority is to safely restore the entire Korean Peninsula. We also tell our troops not to make unnecessary contact with people. “Officially, I plan to remain quiet until the 3rd Brigade operation in the northeast is completed.”

“All right. So what will the Korean police officers do? For now, we are following the instructions of Police Director Danke for control. Are you going to treat me like a prisoner of war like Ganggyegun?”

“They are basically collaborators. Since they betrayed their own people, they are worse than the Japanese police and should be punished accordingly. In Ganggye-gun, the purpose was to incarcerate them separately, so they were treated as prisoners together with the Japanese police, but not now. You will be treated differently from the Japanese police. “For many of them, it will be difficult to save their lives depending on the trial.”

“yes”

“Send it to other brigades as well. “I was planning to issue guidelines after the restoration of the Korean Peninsula, but I need to know this in order to manage it specially from now on.”

“All right.”

July 9th at 4:30 PM.

There was a report from 2nd Brigade Commander Choi Chung-heon.

– I would like to report that our 2nd Brigade is in control of the entire North and South Pyongan Provinces.

“Okay, good job. What about the Yalu River railway bridge and the riverside?”

– First of all, the deployment of the K55A1 battery has been completed in the direction of the Yalu River Estuary and the railroad bridge, but the deployment of the Cheongsu and Supung Dams on our side is scheduled to be completed within tomorrow. It will probably take some time to get there.

“Pay attention to the troops across the Supung Dam. “As of now, we are the only force that has crossed the river.”

– That is what I instructed. And if something happens, you don’t have to worry because you’ll know in advance.

“I get it. “Keep working hard.”

When I finished the video call and put down the headset, Lieutenant Colonel Hong Jin-taek, who was next to me, opened his mouth.

“As expected, the 2nd Brigade is the fastest.”

“of course. We took over a significant portion of North and South Pyongan Provinces. Moreover, although people came down and went up, transportation also developed.”

“That’s right, but the Kwantung Army is the key.”

“You know that even the wires were cut and a battle broke out on the other side of the Yalu River railroad bridge, so it is only a matter of time before the Kwantung Army is mobilized. That’s why we took a lot of self-propelled guns and ammunition.”

“But since we have a sufficient number of self-propelled guns, there will be no problem.”

“To put it bluntly, if we had an unlimited supply of ammunition, even if 10 million people came, they wouldn’t even be able to see our troops.”

“Hehehe! you’re right.”

The 2nd Brigade brought many self-propelled guns in preparation for the Kwantung Army invasion.

This is because with only self-propelled guns, the probability that the Kwantung Army could cross the Yalu River is close to zero.

Albatross will notify you of their approach in real time from the sky, and if you give a command based on the coordinates accordingly, the K9A1 and K55A1 self-propelled howitzers will simply hit the received coordinates and that’s it.

Ultimately, this is possible because of the overwhelming range of our self-propelled guns.

The Japanese army had no field artillery or self-propelled artillery that could come close to the maximum range of 32km, the maximum range of the K55A1 self-propelled howitzer, let alone the K9 self-propelled howitzer.

The Type 96 150mm howitzer was only 12km, and the longest range field artillery, the Type 92 10cm (actually 105mm) cannon, had a range of 18km.

So, for us, all we had to do was watch it from afar as an albatross and then just hit it.

In some ways, it was no exaggeration to say that it was close to fraud.

At 6 p.m., a report also came from the 3rd Brigade that had gone east, saying that they had occupied Wonsan City and were moving north to occupy Hamheung City and Heungnam City.

“What do the civilian engineers we brought to Wonsan say?”

– The facility itself is said to be much better than expected since it is a new facility that was only completed in 1938.

“oh! okay? ha ha ha!”

There was a reason why Lee Kang-cheol was so happy.

This is because Wonsan was home to Chosun Petroleum Co., Ltd., the only oil refinery on the Korean Peninsula.

Although there were large-scale oil storage facilities in various places near ports on the Korean Peninsula, the meaning of oil refineries to the expeditionary force was different.

It was possible to secure high-quality diesel oil needed for the armored equipment and vehicles operated by the expeditionary force, and most importantly, it was possible to produce proper aviation fuel.

All of the aircraft currently owned by the Expeditionary Force are gas turbine engines.

The helicopter’s engine is also a turboshaft engine, the propeller model KA-1 and the C-27J Spartan transport aircraft purchased from Australia are turboprop jet engines, and the FA-50 is of course a turbojet engine.

Even the twin-engine light aircraft brought in to be used for liaison or light transportation after the restoration of the Korean Peninsula are turboprops.

In other words, it was truly great news that high-quality aviation fuel could be produced because basically all gas turbines were used.

– In addition, a large oil tanker arrived from the south recently, so crude oil is in good condition. ha ha ha!

“ha ha ha! That’s awesome! So, when will we be able to produce proper diesel oil and aviation fuel?”

– It is said that it is possible within two months.

“done. That’s it then. Good work.”

– Then I will continue to head north.

“Okay, be careful.”

Finally, Lee Kang-cheol was able to go to bed in a good mood after his discomfort was resolved.

One way or another, it was a very lucky day.

July 10, 1944, 11 a.m.

There was a report that Cheonan was secured from the 5th Brigade and some troops were sent to Taean and then occupied Daejeon.

In Taean, air defense, anti-ship missiles, and K9 self-propelled artillery batteries, the second largest in scale in the West Sea after Cape Jangsan, are scheduled to be installed, but since the Chungnam Line (Janghang Line) is not connected to the end of the Taean Peninsula, it will take quite some time.

July 10th at 4pm.

The entire region, including Gyeongseong, Gyeonggi-do, and Incheon, was completely under the control of the expeditionary force.

In particular, thousands of Korean trainees were secured at the training centers in Yangju and Siheung, as in Pyongyang, making Lee Kang-cheol happy.

“It is dizzying to think that those troops went out as a cannon fodder for the Japanese army.”

“The timing was really good. “If it had gone to August, those trainees could have fought us.”

“It’s terrible.”

Before evening, there was a request for a meeting with Director-General of Political Affairs Takeo Tanaka.

“Is there a problem? Director Tanaka?”

“Your Excellency Commander, it is none other than…”

“Now, let’s talk without your Excellency for now.”

He said “gakka” at the end of every word, but I couldn’t get used to it.

At that time, in Japan, it seemed that the Emperor was also admiring high-ranking officials and generals who were in office.

“No, but since you are the Commander-in-Chief, is it okay? And I understand that Your Excellency is an honorific title that was also used in Joseon, right?”

“We are not Joseon. In Korea, we do not use the title “Your Excellency.” “I appreciate your intention to exalt me, but please do not use it against us.”

“Then what about Sima?”

“…”

It’s not some kind of hero.

“Please just call me Commander. “That’s all.”

“All right.”

“Then why did you ask to see me?”

“I hope that general civil servants under the Government General, Gyeongseongbu, and Gyeonggi Provincial Office will be able to do their jobs.”

“yes? “Work?”

“That’s right. The same goes for other regions, but the Government-General, Gyeongseong-bu, and Gyeonggi Provincial Office are so important that if they are not returned even for a day, the entire Korean Peninsula will tremble. If this suspension of work continues, Your Excellency… No, it won’t be good for your Republic of Korea either.”

“Hmm…”

Lee Kang-cheol looked at Director-General of Political Affairs Tanaka with a strange expression.

Unlike Governor Koiso, who was a former army captain, he is an orthodox bureaucrat who passed the High Civil Service Examination.

He is also a person who has worked in Korea for 25 years.

“Why do you want to do that?”

“It’s our job, so it’s natural.”

“Even though we restored it?”

“What does it matter? “We are just public servants.”

“Huh! Director Tanaka, let me make one thing clear. I understand that the Inspector-General worked as a police officer for a significant portion of his early career. This means that you may be investigated and punished later. Do you understand?”

“I am prepared. As a subject of the Japanese Empire, I believe that I did my best in my assigned duties, but it may be viewed differently by the people of Joseon who were ruled by me. No, of course I would have done something bad. But, that’s something to think about then, the time is now.”

“Then I understand. “If you work hard, you will be able to take into account even if you are punished later.”

“I didn’t say that because I hoped for that.”

“Does Governor Koiso know?”

“Your Excellency the Governor-General is out of his mind right now. “I would appreciate it if you would just leave me alone.”

“All right. Oh, we will keep an eye on you, and anyone who thinks of something bad will be severely punished. Please don’t forget that this is an exhibition.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

As soon as Lee Kang-cheol finished speaking, Director-General of Political Affairs Tanaka bowed deeply as if he were the governor and walked out.

“Are you saying that is the tenacity of the Japanese people? “Isn’t this really amazing?”

“It’s absurd to me too. “Anyway, it’s something we welcome, right?”

“That is correct.”

“Surveillance is thorough.”

“All right.”

On the afternoon of July 12th.

A report was posted that the 5th and 6th Brigades had recovered the entire Jeolla-do and Gyeongsang-do.

Now only the 3rd Brigade remains.