352 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o
bringing an official letter from the Chief Military Commission of the Left
Army, and through the letter I received your sacred instruction. This is a
summary of what was stated: ‘How come Yi [Sŏnggye] of Koryŏ never stops
causing trouble on the border every year? It is because he believes that his
country is safely surrounded by the sea and range upon range of rugged
mountains. So he often dared to provoke us, mistaking our military capa-
bility as something similar to that of Han or Tang China. The generals of
Han and Tang were only good at horsemanship and archery but poor at nav-
igating the sea, so they had difficulties in crossing the sea and transporting
their troops. I fought both on land and sea to conquer the whole of China and
suppress barbarians. How can my navy commanders be compared to their
counterparts in the days of the Han and Tang? If you want to prevent our
armies from reaching your shore, you must return to us all the Jurchens you
have lured so far as well as your battalion commander on the border who
lured them. From this day forward, you should stop causing trouble on the
border and make the lives of your people comfortable. Then you will be able
to rule your country with no problems, and your descendants will prosper.’
“I respectfully believe that our small kingdom has served the Heavenly
Kingdom [China] with the utmost sincerity of heart. How dare I cause
trouble on the border? In a narrow land with a small population, which
mountains and seas can I rely on? And how can I recklessly provoke you? I
have never lured any Jurchens as far as I know, but you said that I did. I am
so afraid and do not know what to do.
“My ancestors were originally Koreans. Yi Han, my twenty- second-
generation ancestor, served as minister of works in the kingdom of Silla. As
Silla collapsed, Kŭnghyu, a sixth- generation descendant of Han, served in
the court of Koryŏ. Ansa, a thirteenth- generation descendant of Kŭnghyu,
served in the Yuan government during the Koryŏ period, and he is my great-
great- grandfather. Thereafter, no one in my family served in the Koryŏ gov-
ernment for years. At the end of the Yuan dynasty, however, disturbances
broke out, and my father, Chach’un, took refuge in the eastern part of our
country, leading his family, including myself. It so happened that Japanese
marauders, as well as Mao Yuanshuai, Guan Xiansheng, and Nahachu,^25- Mao Yuanshuai and Guan Xiansheng were the commanders of the Red Turban bandits
who invaded Koryŏ in 1361. Nahachu was the Yuan general who invaded Ssangsŏng in the
Northeast Region in 1362, leading an army of thirty thousand or so but defeated badly by the
forces led by T’aejo.