Wanyan Agutai wasn't bragging.
When it came to mountain warfare, the Solon Battalion could make the Korean army shit itself. If they didn't, then the Koreans were simply very clean. In actual history, the main reason Fuk'anggan marched to conquer the Gurkhas in the Himalayas was due to the fighting prowess of the Solon Battalion.
Later, due to a series of disastrous decisions by the Great Qing, the Solon tribe was forced to maintain their traditional hunting and fishing lifestyle, which effectively prevented troop replenishment. Consequently, the Solon Battalion was disbanded.
After the Solon Battalion's disbandment, the Great Qing entered into a treaty with the Gurkhas, known in history as the "Ten Articles of Tsang-Gurkha Treaty" (substitute the place names as you see fit). This treaty stipulated that Tsang would pay an annual "gift" of ten thousand Nepalese currency to Nepal, Nepalis would enjoy extraterritorial rights in Tibet, and Nepali merchants would be exempt from commercial, transit, and all other taxes. It also stated that the Gurkhas could station a high-ranking official in Lhasa in the future, and any disputes between the people of Tsang and Gurkhas would be judged by officials from both sides. Nepali merchants or citizens of Kathmandu with disputes in Lhasa would not be subject to the jurisdiction of Tsang officials.
The official who signed this treaty was the Minister of Tibet, Herthe, in the sixth year of Xianfeng.
This is what the Great Qing and its bondservants have always boasted about as the Great Qing's contribution to its territory.
The current Solon tribe is not the same Solon tribe that was disbanded during the Jiaqing era. Although the Solon tribe has now begun to engage in agriculture and animal husbandry, and the entire tribe has started to assimilate into Han culture, their fierce and warlike spirit has not changed in the slightest.
Before entering the mountains, Wanyan Agutai did not forget to give a pre-battle mobilization speech to the soldiers of the Solon Battalion.
“Confucius said: ‘If a benevolent ruler educates the people for seven years, they can also be led into battle.’”
“This means that we, the Solon tribe, have recuperated and trained for seven years under the protection of the Great Ming Emperor, and are now ready to fight for His Majesty!”
“Dong Zi also said: ‘To attack the disorderly with the righteous, this is the will of Heaven.’”
“It is clear that the Great Ming Emperor is a benevolent and enlightened ruler, the sovereign of all under Heaven, while Li Can is a rebellious traitor. Our fighting for the Great Ming Emperor against the Koreans is to attack the disorderly with the righteous, which is in accordance with the will of Heaven!”
“Move out!”
As Agutai’s voice fell, a group of Solon Battalion soldiers scrambled into the forest with laughter. However, upon entering the forest, these Solon Battalion soldiers transformed. Their cheerful expressions vanished, replaced by a practiced battlefield demeanor. They moved with mutual cover, with someone in each squad always ready with a bow and arrow.
"Swish!"
"Swish!"
With barely audible whistling sounds, the scouts and sentries arranged by the Korean General Gu Shanfu met their demise. By the time the Solon Battalion reached Li Can's location, these Koreans had not even realized that their outposts had been compromised.
Just as Wanyan Agutai had said, in mountain warfare, the Solon Battalion could make the Koreans shit themselves!
Upon reaching the vicinity of the Korean camp, these Solon Battalion soldiers, who had been fighting with bows and arrows, introduced a new tactic.
A portion of the soldiers in the rear put away their bows and arrows and set up the six sets of Shenjijian they always carried.
Each set of Shenjijian was equivalent to sixty-four large skyrocket launching tubes. These long tubes, fitted with tail fins, were filled not only with gunpowder but also with numerous rusty iron nails, making them truly formidable weapons.
After witnessing the power of the Shenjijian, Wanyan Agutai had repeatedly admired his own father, believing that his father's most wise decision in his life was to form a marriage alliance with the Great Ming Emperor.
If they had stubbornly followed the Great Qing to the end, wouldn't the Solon tribe have been the ones bombarded?
Fortunately, it was now the Solon tribe using these weapons to bombard the Koreans.
The Koreans were completely stunned by the barrage.
The Ming army was supposed to be the least adept at mountain warfare, and they had deployed numerous scouts and sentries. How could they have been crept up on, and then have their camp bombarded?
Li Can, upon receiving the news, was utterly bewildered. He grabbed Park Jun-won’s sleeve and pleaded, “Imperial Son-in-law, you must find a way to save this prince!”
Park Jun-won grit his teeth and stomped his foot, saying, “Your Highness, we must flee! If we disperse and break out, there may be an opportunity to rally again in the future. If we don’t run now, it will be too late!”
Park Jun-won’s words only served to further bewilder the already bewildered Li Can.
When Kim Sang-cheol and Gu Shanfu had tried to persuade him to surrender earlier, what had Park Jun-won said?
The Ming army was not skilled in mountain warfare? We are familiar with every mountain and inch of land in Korea. As long as we hide in the deep mountains and forests and maneuver, we can wear down the Ming forces until they retreat?
The thought of being betrayed by his Imperial Son-in-law like this made Li Can wish he were dead!
In his desperation, Li Can could only turn his gaze to Kim Sang-cheol and Gu Shanfu: “My esteemed ministers, the situation has reached this point. Do either of you have any suggestions?”
Kim Sang-cheol shook his head and was about to speak when Gu Shan-de let out a cold laugh and said, “I advised Your Highness to surrender early, but Your Highness did not listen. What can be done now? However, Gu, having received the nation’s grace, will now lead his personal guards to charge out and draw the Ming army’s attention. Your Highness should change your robes quickly and flee for your life!”
After saying this, Gu Shanfu led his personal guards out of the “temporary royal court.” Kim Sang-cheol, however, shook his head once more and bowed to Li Can, saying, “As the saying goes, ‘When the ruler is troubled, the minister is disgraced.’ Since Your Highness is troubled now, and I cannot share Your Highness’s worries, how can I dare claim to be Your Highness’s minister in the future?”
Li Can was deeply moved by this. Just as he was about to step forward and grasp Kim Sang-cheol’s hand to offer comfort, Kim Sang-cheol suddenly drew a dagger. Under Li Can’s shocked and worried gaze, he cut off a corner of his robe and said sternly, “As the saying goes, ‘When ruler and minister are united in righteousness, they stay together; if not, they part.’ Today, as a minister, I cannot share Your Highness’s burdens, and thus, I will sever my relationship as minister with Your Highness from this day forward!”
After saying this, Kim Sang-cheol also directly led his trusted subordinates and fled, leaving Li Can and Park Jun-won staring blankly at each other in the “temporary royal court.”
After a long moment of stunned silence, Li Can finally looked at Park Jun-won foolishly and asked, “He ran away?”
Park Jun-won nodded with feigned grief, saying, “Yes, the traitor Kim is unrighteous and has abandoned Your Highness!”
Looking at Park Jun-won’s appearance of feigned grief, Li Can suddenly felt a sense of foreboding. He asked tremblingly, “Imperial Son-in-law, Imperial Son-in-law, are you also going to abandon me? You are the Imperial Son-in-law of our Korea!”
Park Jun-won shook his head and suddenly pointed at Li Can, shouting, “Traitor Li! You forcibly took my daughter to be your Korean puppet consort! I wish I could eat your flesh and sleep on your skin. How could I abandon you so easily! Today, I will rebel! Guards, arrest this traitor Li and present him to the Great Ming Emperor! All of you will be rewarded!”
The Koreans descended into complete chaos.
Gu Shanfu, with the few personal guards he had left, began to desperately attack the position of the Solon Battalion, attempting to draw the Solon Battalion’s firepower away from Li Can.
However, Gu Shanfu alone had a negligible impact on the overall battle. Especially with Kim Sang-cheol, the chief minister of Li Can’s puppet court, leading the charge to flee, and Li Can’s own father-in-law arresting Li Can to surrender, the Koreans became even more disordered.
Already dazed by the bombardment, and now lacking any effective command, the Koreans spontaneously tried to break out individually, in short, to flee in all directions. However, the Solon Battalion soldiers picked up their breech-loading rifles and began to pour bullets into the Korean camp using three-stage firing.
Escape, some Koreans undoubtedly managed to get away. After all, they were hiding in deep mountains and forests, with one mountain connected to another, and the Great Ming army could not completely seal them off. The Solon Battalion was also not interested in these insignificant gnats.
But those Koreans who did not escape were truly unlucky.
The Solon Battalion never had a concept of surrender. There was only rebirth, either sending the enemy to rebirth, or going to rebirth themselves, unless the target was designated to be captured alive by the Emperor.
When Li Can was brought before Wanyan Agutai by Park Jun-won, Wanyan Agutai asked with a laugh, “Are you Li Can? Look at you, you scrawny brat, you look like a head of garlic. And you want to rebel against the Great Ming Emperor?”
After mocking Li Can, Wanyan Agutai turned his gaze to Park Jun-won with a smile and asked, “You captured Li Can, are you planning to surrender?”
Park Jun-won immediately began to cry with snot and tears, “General Ming, please see clearly! This scoundrel forcibly took my daughter to be a puppet consort in your Korean puppet court. It was not my wish, and I have an irreconcilable hatred for this traitor! By taking this opportunity to capture the traitor Li, it is all thanks to the Great Ming Emperor’s good fortune. I dare not claim credit, I only ask that the Great General rescue my daughter as well. I am willing to take my daughter and live in seclusion from now on, praying for the Great Ming Emperor at all times!”
Wanyan Agutai laughed heartily and said, “Your name is Park Jun-won? Then this general has a question for you, alright?”
Park Jun-won, inwardly delighted, nodded like a pecking chicken, “Yes, yes, yes, I am Park Jun-won. Please ask whatever you wish, General. I will tell you everything I know, without holding anything back!”
Wanyan Agutai nodded with a smile and asked, “Then this general asks you, do you think I look like an idiot?”
Park Jun-won hurriedly shook his head and said with a flattering smile, “Great General, you are clearly a dragon among men, extraordinary in your intelligence, of course not. Ahem, of course not.”
Wanyan Agutai grunted and nodded, then drew his saber and swung it at the unsuspecting, even inwardly pleased, Park Jun-won.
Only after Park Jun-won’s head rolled to the ground did Wanyan Agutai look at Park Jun-won’s unresigned eyes and say, “This commander hates it the most when others treat me like an idiot!”
Park Jun-won, the current Imperial Son-in-law of Korea, whose daughter was Consort Sui, Park Shi, was greatly favored by Li Can. Originally the Prefect of Tongning Prefecture, Park Jun-won also rose to prominence through his daughter, wielding considerable power.
With such a status, he claimed an irreconcilable hatred for Li Can? Was he treating this commander like an idiot, or had the Embroidered Uniform Guard provided false intelligence?
After spitting in frustration, Wanyan Agutai turned his gaze back to Li Can: “Gu Shanfu is already dead. What about Kim Sang-cheol? Why isn’t he by your side?”
Li Can burst into laughter and said, “Traitor Park died well! I should thank you for avenging me! As for traitor Kim, he has already disappeared to who knows where. He will continue my unfinished business and stir up trouble for you…”
Before he could finish speaking, Li Can looked with shock, joy, and anger at a head held by a soldier of the Solon Battalion, as if his throat had been choked like a chicken.
The Solon Battalion soldier came before Wanyan Agutai and bowed, “Reporting to the Commander, Kim Sang-cheol has been executed!”
After being stunned for a long while, Li Can burst into laughter again, tears welling up in his eyes. “My Joseon is now destroyed by your hands, but do not be too smug!”
“Our Korean kingdom has always revered Confucianism and Taoism, and has never lacked courtesy towards your Ming country. We are a virtuous kingdom to the east of the sea. Your Ming country disrespects the sages, disrespects the ancestral laws, and has wantonly initiated hostilities. You are a country of iniquity.”
“Your Ming country invading our Korea is like attacking the righteous with the unrighteous, and will be mocked by everyone in the world!”
Wanyan Agutai looked at Li Can in bewilderment, “You? Righteous? You have no righteousness at all! Great Ming is the father of your Korea. If Great Ming attacks you, then it is attacking the unrighteous with the righteous, understand?”
“No matter how much you say, it’s useless. Your Korea is finished now. Centuries later, people will know that you, Li Can, were the king who lost his kingdom, but no one will mock the Great Ming Emperor!”