Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Li Wang was still very interested in Jin Zizhong's proposal.

As he already considered himself a citizen of the Ming Dynasty, he naturally hoped that his subordinates could participate in martial arts competitions and imperial examinations.

So he nodded repeatedly and decided to write a memorial to make this request to the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

Then they mentioned what happened in the capital, the most important of which was the treaty between Ming and Japan.

Li Wang was extremely dissatisfied with this treaty, and his curses against Chen Yuanyun and others were an expression of his dissatisfaction.

At this time, he saw that Jin Zizhong was quite talented and learned, so he asked for advice:

"What do you think of the treaty between Ming and Japan, Mr. Jin?"

"Officials from the Lifanyuan want to sign a treaty with Korea. Should we sign it or not?"

Jin Zizhong said firmly:
"sign!"

"Of course we have to sign a treaty!"

"If we don't sign the treaty, won't Japan take over Korea?"

"We must not only sign a treaty with the Ming Dynasty, but also strive for more favorable conditions to show that we are closer to the Ming Dynasty and prevent Japan from coveting us."

This is his thinking, and it is also the view of many North Korean officials.

Li Wang himself thought so too, but he said distressedly:
"There is a clause in the treaty between Ming and Japan, which is mutual benefit. Ming will give Japan treatment no less favorable than that given to any foreign vassal or foreign country."

"We, Korea, are also a vassal state. No matter what conditions we win, Japan will enjoy the same treatment."

"This is really too aggrieved. We, Korea, are so loyal to the Ming Dynasty, how can we enjoy the same treatment as the Japanese thieves?"

"Why can't we treat North Korea more favorably based on the distance of our relationship?"

It is for this reason that the treaty between Ming Dynasty and Korea has not yet been signed.

North Korea wants to get more preferential treatment than Japan, but the most-favored-nation treatment allows Japan to enjoy the same preferential treatment.

Of course they were unwilling to fight for their rights with the Japanese for no reason.

Jin Zizhong listened to his own son's troubles and said tentatively:

"Have you ever thought about seeking internal vassal status for North Korea?"

"In this way, Korea will no longer be a vassal state, and Japan will not enjoy the treatment we have fought for."

This startled Li Wang and the others. A guard shouted:

"Be bold!"

"Are you going to sell...give North Korea away?"

"Where are the ancestral temples and the country?"

Li Wang's eyes also looked somewhat unfriendly. Even though he considered himself a citizen of the Ming Dynasty, he did not want power to be lost.

The Ming Dynasty had to send chief historians to the inner vassal states, and more than half of the officials were sent by the imperial court.

How could he, as the heir to the Joseon throne, tolerate this?
So he looked at Jin Zizhong with an unfriendly look, hoping to hear his explanation.

Jin Zizhong said calmly:
"I am not talking about annexing the country like the Ryukyu Kingdom did, but becoming a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty like the Kings of Shunli and Shunyi."

"I have been communicating with teachers and classmates in the academy and learned that the current Ming emperor wants to re-establish rituals and music and divide the vassal states into inner vassal states and outer vassal states."

"Among them, in addition to the nobles of the Ming Dynasty who went overseas to establish fiefdoms, there were also the remnants of the former Yuan Dynasty outside the Great Wall, who were classified as internal and external vassals."

"Although the treatment they enjoy in the Ming Dynasty is not as good as that of the inner vassal states, their autonomy is greater, almost the same as that of the outer vassal states."

"If Korea becomes a vassal state, there will be no need to worry that the conditions we have fought for will be enjoyed by Japan's vassal state."

This explanation made Li Wang feel better, but he was still a little unhappy. He said:

"No matter how you look at it, both the inner and outer vassal states are still inner territories. How can I give up my country?"

"Don't mention this again. We in Korea have not reached this point yet. We don't need to submit to the Ming Dynasty."

This made Jin Zizhong sigh with regret:
"If we don't become a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, Korea will not be able to have a seat in the Council of Nobles."

"Moreover, the Ming Dynasty's inheritance etiquette will not be enforced in Korea."

"The position of the Crown Prince may still be unstable in the future."

This made Li Wang nervous and he asked:

"What does it mean?"

"Why do you say that the Ming Dynasty's inheritance rituals will not be implemented in Korea?"

"Is there another set of etiquette and laws that can be used by the people of North Korea?"

For him as the crown prince, what he cares most about is of course whether he can inherit the throne.

Naturally, he had heard about the Ming Dynasty's reformulation of rituals and music, and the formulation of succession rites that even the emperor had to abide by.

As the eldest son of the current King of Korea, he wholeheartedly supports the system of primogeniture inheritance, believing that under this inheritance system, his position is extremely stable.

Now, after hearing Jin Zizhong's sigh, he realized that North Korea might not necessarily abide by the inheritance etiquette established by the Ming Dynasty. This made him suddenly nervous, and he said with some doubt:
"I, Korea, have always been a great country and have always upheld the rites and rituals. How can we not follow the rites and music of the Ming Dynasty?"

"Jin Qing, what you said is alarmist!"

Jin Zizhong shook his head and said:
"otherwise!"

"Didn't the Crown Prince read the Treaty of Japan's Enfeoffment? Didn't it include a clause about mutual respect?"

"The current Ming emperor respects rules the most, and therefore he must sort out the Ming etiquette and laws and re-establish the ritual and music system."

"Since he said in the treaty that he respects the Japanese king's right to govern his own country, then he will certainly not interfere in Japan's internal affairs."

"Korea and Japan are both vassal states, so this clause must be included in the treaty."

"The Ming court will not interfere with how the king governs Korea in the future."

This is a good thing, showing the Ming Dynasty's respect for its vassal states.

If Li Wang had already inherited the throne, he would definitely welcome this.

But he is just a prince now, so he has to consider things carefully.

Because this means that even if the King of Korea deposes his crown prince, the Ming court will not interfere.

This made Li Wang, who originally thought that his position was very stable, a little worried about his position as the crown prince, and he asked his left and right:

"I am the crown prince appointed by my father, and I am also recognized by the Ming Dynasty."

"Will this position change?"

No one dared to answer, because in the history of Korea, the throne and the crown prince had changed so much that no one dared to make a guarantee.

Let’s not talk about how King Taejong Yi Bang-won seized the throne in the distant past. There was also the Guihai Rebellion recently.

The current King of Joseon, Yi Jong, seized the throne from Gwanghaegun Yi Hun in the name of rebellion.

For this, Korea sent envoys to Ming several times to explain. It was not until the current emperor ascended the throne that Yi Jong was canonized as the King of Korea.

Jin Zizhong said:
"The current emperor feels that he should not interfere too much in the succession of the vassal state's throne because of the events of Gwanghaegun and the Guihai Rebellion."

"Avoid the recurrence of something like Gwanghaegun, which would affect the relationship between the two countries and even the war."

"This is a good thing for the king, but for me, it's..."

Shaking his head, Jin Zizhong didn't say anything else.

But Li Wang and others understood that if the King of Korea wanted to abolish his position as the Crown Prince, the Ming Dynasty would not interfere. This was to prevent Korea from becoming estranged from the Ming Dynasty again and affecting the war against the Later Jin.

In order to persuade Li Wang, Jin Zizhong even said:

"I heard from my cousin Jin Zidian that the Minister of State, Mr. Hong, had promised the King:"

"If the king wants to make someone else the crown prince, as long as the reason is justified, the Ming Dynasty will agree."

"That's why the king agreed to confer the title of Lord of Dongjiang on Mao Wenlong."

Li Wang had vaguely heard of this matter, but he had never paid attention to it.

Because as the King of Joseon, Lee Jong naturally had the power to depose and enthrone the crown prince.

But when he arrived in Ming Dynasty, he learned that Ming Dynasty was formulating inheritance rites and laws, requiring all officials, nobles, and even the emperor to follow them.

He suddenly felt that his previous ideas were too backward and that Korea should also abide by the newly formulated etiquette and laws of the Ming Dynasty.

Originally, he thought that given Korea's respect for the Ming court, it was natural for it to abide by Ming etiquette and laws.

Now that Jin Zizhong had pointed this out, he finally understood that Korea was, after all, a vassal state and that the Ming Dynasty would not impose any constraints on it or waste its energy on this.

This made him panic:
"What...what should I do?"

"How about we take the initiative to ask the Ming Dynasty to abide by its etiquette and laws when we sign the treaty?"

"This is the rule we are willing to abide by. If Japan wants to follow it, let it follow!"

This proposal was echoed by his entourage and guards.

But Jin Zizhong shook his head and said:
“It is not enough to just sign a treaty, we must also ensure the ability to implement it.”

"The Ming Dynasty does not interfere in the internal affairs of Korea. How can we force Korea to abide by the Ming Dynasty's etiquette and laws?"

"Besides, if the king wants to depose the crown prince, Ming will have to expend energy trying to stop him."

"Why would the Ming Dynasty do this when there is no benefit?"

"If there is another king like Gwanghaegun who is full of resentment, what good will it do to the Ming Dynasty?"

This immediately shattered Li Wang's hopes. He knew that even if he took the initiative to propose to abide by the Ming Dynasty's etiquette and laws, the Ming Dynasty might not agree.

Because if you want to maintain the implementation of etiquette and law, you need to pay a price for the Ming Dynasty. After experiencing the incident of Gwanghaegun, the Ming Dynasty was obviously unwilling to pay this price, otherwise it would not have specifically stated to his father that it would not interfere with the dethronement of the crown prince.

Thinking in this way, it seems that joining the Ming Dynasty would be a very beneficial thing for him, which made him ask Jin Zizhong:

"If we become a vassal state, will the Ming Dynasty uphold the rules of propriety?"

"How will they interfere?"

When Jin Zizhong heard that Li Wang had finally come forward, he immediately stroked his beard and said:
"The inner vassal states and the outer vassal states are special outer vassal states, or they can be said to be special inner vassal states. The treaties signed between the Ming Dynasty and them are different."

"Your Highness can propose to abide by the Ming Dynasty's etiquette and laws in the treaty, and let the minister stationed in the court be responsible for supervising this matter."

"This way, the Crown Prince's succession order will naturally be guaranteed. Even the King cannot easily depose the Crown Prince."

In order to strengthen the persuasiveness of his words, he gave another example:
"The current Shunyi King Bu Shitu had a dispute with Sanniangzi's grandson Sunang Taiji when he ascended the throne."

"The Ming Dynasty intervened and forced Sanniangzi to follow the agreement reached between Altan Khan and the Ming Dynasty before his death: to pass down the throne from generation to generation and bring the tribe back to their hearts."

"As long as the prince agrees with the Ming Dynasty to abide by the etiquette and laws, the Ming Dynasty will certainly help him when he succeeds to the throne in the future."

This made Li Wang nod his head repeatedly, and he was finally tempted to become a vassal of the Ming Dynasty. He said to his left and right:
"Korea has always been loyal to the Ming Dynasty and has a much closer relationship with the Ming Dynasty than Japan."

"Even Japan can be treated as a foreign vassal, so why can't Korea become a foreign vassal?"

"You can ask the Lifanyuan of the Ming Dynasty what rules should be followed to become a vassal state?"

"I, Korea, practice Confucianism and use Chinese characters, and are far more suitable as a vassal state than the tribes of King Sunrye and King Sunui."

This made the left and right sides agree, and they all hoped that Joseon would abide by the succession etiquette and that Li and Wang's positions would be consolidated.

Jin Zizhong also received an order from Li Wang to go to the Lifanyuan and discuss with the Ming court how to become an internal and external vassal.

Huang Liji, the president of the Lifanyuan, never expected that he would receive continuous merits after taking office.

First, Ryukyu surrendered, then Japan paid tribute, and now Korea wants to become a vassal state. This made him feel:
Am I not suitable to be the Prime Minister, but only suitable to be in charge of the Lifanyuan?
With this idea in mind, he cordially received Jin Zizhong, who had brought him credit, and also summoned Kong Zhenyun and other ministers of the Lifanyuan.

Jin Zizhong first expressed Korea's intention to participate in the imperial examinations and martial arts conferences of the Ming Dynasty, and then asked what the requirements were to become a vassal state and whether Korea met the requirements.

Huang Liji expressed his appreciation for his behavior and assured this Korean scholar who was loyal to the Ming Dynasty:

"The Ming Dynasty embraces all rivers and never rejects anyone who is willing to serve the Ming Dynasty."

"I will ask your Majesty to grant special treatment to those who participate in the imperial examinations from the vassal states."

He also asked the Minister of Internal Affairs, Kong Zhenyun, to explain what conditions Korea needed to meet if it wanted to become an internal vassal.

Kong Zhenyun had discussed this with the emperor, and now he said to Jin Zizhong:
"Your Majesty once said that the inner vassal states are somewhere between the inner vassal states and the outer vassal states."

"They are vassal states that voluntarily submitted to the Ming Dynasty and have greater autonomy than ordinary vassal states."

"But compared to ordinary foreign vassals, they are subject to more restrictions and must abide by the conditions of the Ming Dynasty."

Jin Zizhong nodded repeatedly, indicating that he would definitely comply. Then Kong Zhenyun said:
"In addition to tribute, the Ming Dynasty's requirements for foreign vassals are the three peace agreements."

"That is, peaceful coexistence, mutual respect, and mutual benefit. This is the most basic condition."

"Both the vassal states and the vassal states must abide by these three principles and resolve disputes between the two sides in a peaceful manner."

Jin Zizhong said as a matter of course:

"Korea is a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty, so it will naturally abide by these conditions."

"Moreover, Korea has always been respectful and has never had disputes with the Ming Dynasty like Japan did."

Kong Zhenyun nodded slightly, without recounting their previous disputes with him. He continued:

"Beyond the Three Harmonies are the Six Unifications. We must maintain consistency with the Ming Dynasty in six aspects."

"The first is to unify the chronology, including the era, reign title and calendar. We must use the Yellow Emperor era and the Da Nian reign title."

"For example, when you record the history of the Gojoseon and Wiman Joseon dynasties, you should use the Yellow Emperor era in the future."

Jin Zizhong also accepted this point, because at that time, the mainstream thought in Korea was to recognize Jizi Korea. The Dangun Korea fabricated by Buddhists was only regarded as a myth and legend, and was resisted by Confucian scholars.

In addition, the era and reign title represent orthodoxy, and North Korea does not dare to dispute this. They used to use the Daemyong era title, and now they just added the Huangdi era.

Jizi was a descendant of the Shang Dynasty, and Qi, the ancestor of the Shang Dynasty, was the great-great-grandson of Huangdi. They believed in Jizi Joseon and had no psychological pressure to adopt the Huangdi era.

After this, Kong Zhenyun raised the second point:
"The second is to unify thoughts. In addition to studying Confucian classics and participating in the Ming Dynasty imperial examinations, we must also maintain unity with the Ming Dynasty in terms of religious beliefs and other aspects."

"For example, Dangun of your Korea is said to be the illegitimate son of Emperor Sakyamuni. Emperor Sakyamuni is the Buddhist god Indradeon, who was canonized as a god by the Emperor of Ming Dynasty. Dangun can also be canonized and included in the Buddhist and Taoist pantheon."

"Korea must maintain consistency with the Ming Dynasty in terms of Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism and other ideologies."

This made Jin Zizhong a little hesitant, because the current Korean royal family claimed to be the descendants of Dangun, and this required the royal family to make a decision.

Kong Zhenyun did not expect him to make a decision, and continued:
"The third is to unify the camp, that is, to maintain consistency with the Ming Dynasty in terms of foreign relations and foreign wars."

"Korea is under the protection of the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty has the power to recruit Korean troops."

“Whether Ming or Korea goes to war with a third party, the other party has the responsibility to send troops. When one party is at war, the other party should immediately provide military and other assistance to the best of its ability.”

"The troops of both sides formed a coalition and established a joint headquarters, which was commanded by officials appointed by the Ming Emperor."

This made Jin Zizhong overjoyed, knowing that it was a guarantee of the Ming Dynasty's security.

With this clause, which country would dare to invade North Korea? (End of this chapter)