Book X 6253rd Day (Chŏnghae)
The king appointed Kim Sahyong, right chancellor of the Chancellery, as
supreme commander (tot’ong ch’ŏch’isa) of five provincial armies for the
military campaign against the Japanese; Nam Chae, grand academician of
the Office of Royal Decrees and State Records, as chief regional military
commander; Sin Kŭkkong, deputy director of the Security Council, as pro-
vincial military commander; and Yi Mu, former governor, as chief com-
mander of the Office of the Commander. Then he ordered them to launch a
military expedition to Iki and Tsushima Islands, mobilizing all the battle-
ships from five provinces.
The king went out as far as South Gate to see them off, bestowing Kim
Sahyŏng with a battle axe and a royal decree as well as a saddled horse, an
official headgear (mogwan), a set of armor, bows with arrows, and a medi-
cine box. He also bestowed separately Chae, Mu, and Kŭkkong with formal
caps, sets of armor, and bows with arrows. The royal decree conferred on
Sahyŏng was as follows:
“From antiquity, he who becomes king has always taken the peace and
comfort of his people across the country as his responsibility. When it hap-
pened, unfortunately, that a small band of petty thieves caused trouble like
rats and dogs, he had provincial governors capture them, holding them
responsible for resolving the problems. When the power of those thieves
was too great, however, the king ordered high officials to go out to suppress
them. Thus, Zhao Hu suppressed the Huaiyi barbarians and Yin Jifu subju-
gated the Xianyun [Xiongnu], and they are the best examples.^31
“Since I ascended the throne, I have never recklessly mobilized the mili-
tary, trying to follow the precedents set by the old sages, and the reason was
that I was afraid people might be agitated. These days, despicable barbar-
ians from islands [Japanese marauders] were mad enough to dare invade
our coasts as many as three or four times. I have already sent military com-
manders to stop them, but I am afraid that there will be no peace within our
borders unless we eliminate them in one stroke by attacking them both at
sea and on land.
“You are a descendant of a noble family and a man of great talent in the
royal court. Your personality is austere and awe- inspiring, and your way of
- Zhao Hu and Yi Jifu were officials during the reign of King Xuan (r. 827–782 b c)
of Zhou.