Records of Foreign Nations, Volume 17

Page 8

From Kaesong the former capital of the Goryeo dynasty, for a distance of one thousand four hundred li approximately 460 miles or 740 kilometers, the enemy established guards at every point, occupying half of the strategic territory of Korea. They trained the soldiers of that country for battle, utilized the mountains to mine and mint currency, and established military colonies Tuntian (屯田): a system where soldiers farm the land to provide their own food supplies based on the local terrain. These were intended as long-term facilities for a permanent occupation.

Not long after, Sun Kuang the Ming Minister of War also departed, and Xing Jie replaced him as the overall commander, while Yang Hao served as the Military Superintendent Jingli (經理): a high-level official responsible for coordinating logistics and military administration. Shen Weijing the Ming negotiator who had previously attempted to forge a peace treaty through deception realized he could no longer gain anything from Hideyoshi Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the Japanese leader. He begged a Korean monk to use every possible scheme to persuade Kato Kiyomasa one of the primary Japanese generals, but in the end, he was unsuccessful.

Fearing that he would be punished for his crimes, Shen Weijing prepared to flee and join the surrendered Japanese forces. However, Xing Jie secretly ordered Yang Yuan, the commander defending Namwon, to capture him. Embittered by Yang Yuan’s actions, Shen Weijing reported the Ming army's true and false strategic positions to Konishi Yukinaga the commander of the Japanese First Division. Consequently, the Japanese attacked and broke the defenses of Namwon. They gained control of the vital road at Zhelin, and their forces entered Jeonju by both land and water. The defending general, Chen Yuzhong, was defeated and fled.

At this time, the majority of Gyeongsang Province had already fallen. In the south of Jeolla Province, the rebels the Japanese invaders moved unchecked in every direction, pressing toward the Royal Capital Hanseong, modern-day Seoul. Xing Jie had not yet departed through Shanhaiguan the strategic pass where the Great Wall meets the sea. Korea relied entirely on the Military Superintendent, Yang Hao, but Yang Hao remained stationed in Pyongyang and did not immediately advance the army.