NOVPUB
Chapter 72: Invasion of Indochina (2)
“Your Excellency. A telegram has arrived from the Ministry of the Army. A beachhead has been secured in Indochina, and a division has successfully landed.”
Well, that’s a given.
Considering the overwhelming might of the Korean Navy, there was no chance from the start that France could succeed in stopping the landing.
Our allied fleet boasts the world’s third-largest tonnage, so how could those French bastards, beaten to a pulp by the Nazis, even stand a chance against us?
Not a snowball’s chance in hell.
I immediately picked up the phone.
“Connect me to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Your Excellency, the Foreign Minister. Please contact Paris right now. I think it would be good to propose ending the conflict at this point.”
Having shown the French forces that they couldn’t stop us, it was right to give Paris a chance to bow down.
If we beat up the French too much and instill a deep anti-Korean sentiment, it wouldn’t be good for the nation.
“General Baek, also proposes a temporary ceasefire. About 6 hours should do.”
I gave the French a 6-hour grace period, but Paris responded with silence.
Pétain, is this old fogey going to refuse our mercy?
There’s no other choice then.
We’ll have to shed some more blood.
I sent a telegram to the Expeditionary Force Commander, Colonel Baek Dong-seok.
“Don’t show any mercy until those French bastards surrender. When the pale-faces get on their high horse, you need to come down hard on them.”
“As you command.”
The French army suffered continuous defeats.
Wherever the influence of the Korean Navy reached, the French forces couldn’t handle the Korean troops.
No matter how strong their fortresses were, they were no different than straw houses before the battleship guns of the Allied fleet.
After a week like this, most of the major cities on the Vietnamese coast fell into the hands of the Korean Army and Marines.
Considering that not even a single regiment of armored forces was deployed, it was a tremendous achievement.
“I guess the snails must realize the reality now.”
I had them send another telegram to France.
The response relayed by the Foreign Ministry made my irritation surge.
“Prime Minister. Paris says there will absolutely be no surrender.”
Why are these snails being so stubborn?
Then, we’ll have no choice but to uncomfortably borrow the hands of the Reds.
I issued an order to hand over the weapons captured by the French forces to Ho Chi Minh.
Anyway, since blood has been spilled like this, our relationship with France after the war is half-screwed.
But I wasn’t intimidated.
Being at odds with Korea meant being excluded from the vast East Asian market.
Ah, we’ve reached quite a level now, so to speak.
Looking at it this way, the Dagakdoe that Park Han-jin pushed for wasn’t a complete failure.
Park Han-jin’s ambition to eat up China, grasp East Asia, and rise to prominence was if you just look at the picture itself, not bad.
An economic bloc uniting Korea, China, and Japan would be second to none even when compared to the top-tier powers of the West.
Come to think of it, I felt I should raise His Excellency Park Han-jin’s score a bit.
But that’s it.
Dagakdoe was a path destined for a Hitler-style ending.
“Your Excellency. A telegram has arrived from the Ministry of the Army.”
What, there’s more news again?
Could it be that the French army has surrendered?
“Bring it to me.”
I read the telegram without much thought.
“Ah, that bastard.”
Come to think of it, I had forgotten about that guy.
Joseph Stilwell, the commander of the volunteer corps sent by the US.
My head suddenly started to ache.
Colonel Baek Dong-seok, the Expeditionary Force Commander, explained the guy’s misdeeds in detail and said he didn’t know how to conduct joint operations with such a person.
To give a representative example of his misdeeds:
“This is an unofficial joint US-Korean operation. Therefore, I must observe all operations.”
I could understand that.
“I also want to exercise equal authority in operations as Korea.”
What?
You bring a measly 1,000-man expeditionary force and want to be on par with 58,000 men?
Has this bastard gone mad?
This was just a small fraction of Stilwell’s list of unruly behavior.
Behind his back, he called Baek Dong-seok a peanut.
The reason was simply racial discrimination.
If you really had to nitpick, it was probably to express dissatisfaction with his orders not being followed, but does it make sense for someone who came as the commander of a nation to engage in this kind of behavior?
He also caused trouble with supplies.
We were short on supply ships, so we informally borrowed the transport capacity of US supply ships, but Stilwell claimed he had a share in the materials transported this way.
It may seem absurd, but that’s what Stilwell was doing.
He was truly a creature beyond imagination.
The patience of Chiang Kai-shek, who endured such a guy for 2 years, suddenly felt terrifying.
Anyway, with Stilwell behaving like this, the “friendly” cooperation with the US volunteer corps envisioned before the war went down the drain.
That bastard Stilwell sent all sorts of complaints to Washington from the field.
“The Koreans are scheming to swallow Indochina.”
“The Korean military government authorities are clearly moving to exert influence.”
The Wheelchair Man took it at face value and protested to us.
“Is Korea coveting Indochina?”
I couldn’t tolerate his unruly behavior any longer.
“If I leave this bastard alone, I’m not the Prime Minister of the Korean Empire.”
I immediately sent a telegram to the Wheelchair Man.
The national power of Korea was not so pathetic as to endure for 2 years like Chiang Kai-shek.
President Roosevelt, the man named Joseph Stilwell is going crazy trying to ruin the US-Korean cooperation. Frankly, it’s suspicious enough to wonder if a Nazi spy has come to Indochina. If Your Excellency continues to entrust important tasks to this man, we Koreans will also have to rethink our friendship with the United States. I express my hope that Your Excellency will make a magnanimous decision for the sake of the relationship between the two countries.
I directly told him, do you want to return Stilwell? Or do you want to strain relations with us without returning him?
Normally, I wouldn’t make such dangerous remarks, but Stilwell was not someone who could be tolerated to that extent.
Before long, the US government responded.
We will dismiss General Stilwell.
Hugh Drum was appointed as the successor to the volunteer corps commander.
Drum.
Just hearing the name made my heart feel refreshed.
Not because it sounded like a drumbeat, but because he was an icon of recognition and trust.
At least Drum was not a ruffian like Stilwell among the Asia experts.
“I got rid of that nuisance, you can be at ease now.”
“Is that true, Your Excellency?”
“When have I ever lied to you?”
“Thank you, Your Excellency.”
After Stilwell was fired, the creaking US-Korean cooperation returned to normal like magic.
“Please just share information related to the military government. We will delegate operational authority to the Korean side.”
How gentlemanly an attitude this was.
This was what we hoped for when we asked the US volunteer corps to come in the first place.
After another week, the French Army stationed in Indochina also raised the white flag.
Major General Gabriel Sabatier, the French Army Commander-in-Chief, came to Saigon and signed the surrender document.
“Please, I request lenient treatment for the surrendered troops.”
“Don’t worry. Our military abides by international law.”
It may not sound convincing, but I meant it sincerely.
“You, you thieves of the world! You think we’ll recognize the occupation of Indochina just because you say so!”
Paris ranted and cursed at us, but frankly, I didn’t even care.
I gave only three instructions to Colonel Baek Dong-seok.
[Always consult with the US side on military governance.
Crackdown on the Vietnam-China smuggling route.
Do not touch the French colonial governing apparatus.]
It’s best not to lay hands on Indochina if possible, but if we did, it was right to stop at just this level.
“Um, Your Excellency. Since we’ve already occupied Indochina, how about exerting the Empire’s influence?”
Before more of this crazy talk comes out, that is.
Ha, how did I end up surrounded by these militarists?
When I was young, I never thought I would live in such a gloomy world.
Even after becoming a powerful figure who could shoot my uncle-in-law to death with a howitzer, I wasn’t happy day by day. 𝘯𝘰𝑣𝘱𝑢𝘣.𝑐𝑜𝑚
Rather, my forehead only wrinkled more in the tough daily life.
Perhaps it was because I didn’t know how to enjoy life.
The only joy in my life was the occasional cigar I smoked.
It was truly a desolate life.
I occasionally see young girls, but they’re the kind who sing a song at drinking gatherings, so I’ve never had any human interaction with them.
When I confided this concern to Jong-gil, this reply came back.
“It’s because you don’t have a woman by your side. How about considering marriage at this opportunity?”
A family.
It was an unintended topic.
Starting a family in this world.
Thinking about it again, it was a slightly appealing idea.
“As you say, marriage wouldn’t be bad either.”
I didn’t say anything more.
When a dictator makes an offhand remark, his close aides take care of it without a hitch.
And in just three days, photos of young women were placed on my desk.
They were photos of the daughters or younger sisters of our National Salvation Military Committee’s high-ranking officers.
At a glance, they were all beautiful girls in their late teens to early twenties.
“... is this really okay?”
“What’s wrong with it? They’re girls of marriageable age.”
They weren’t ugly, and they all looked decent.
But, why these girls?
“The generals around Your Excellency all got married like this too.”
I see.
This wasn’t the 21st century filled with romantic sentiments, but the ruthless 20th century where political marriages were rampant.
Considering the fact that generals in the 20th century had first or second marriages with young maidens, the recommendation wasn’t strange.
Even so, who do these bastards think they’re fooling?
I, Lee Sung Joon, am a person with a 21st-century mindset, not the 20th century!
I scanned the photos with the most honest gaze and accidentally picked one that my hand reached for.
It was an honest choice, without any ulterior motives.
There could be no ulterior motives for His Excellency Lee Sung Joon who works tirelessly day and night for the nation and the people.
No sire!
“She’s General Baek’s youngest daughter. I will set a date.”
And so, I got married at the same time as acquiring the Indochina Peninsula.
It was a natural reward for a leader who worked selflessly for the motherland.
Footnotes
1. Hugh Aloysius Drum was a career United States Army officer who served in World War I and World War II and attained the rank of lieutenant general. He was notable for his service as chief of staff of the First United States Army during World War I, and commander of First Army during the initial days of World War II.
