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Ep. 37Tears at Daeya Fortress
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Episode 37

Tears at Daeya Fortress

Kim Chun-chu · 642
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Previously

Last time, in 645, Emperor Taizong of Tang personally led a great army into Goguryeo. Liaodong Fortress and Baegam Fortress fell one after the other, but Ansi Fortress, defended by a lord whose name has not come down to us, held out to the end, and the Tang army withdrew in the ninth month of that year. This story goes back three years earlier, to 642, and to the land where Silla and Baekje faced each other.

Characters

Kim Chun-chuAn Ichan of Silla.
Gotaso’s father
GotasoKim Chun-chu’s daughter.
Wife of the governor of Daeya Fortress
JukjukA Saji at Daeya Fortress.
Governor Pum-seok’s officer
King UijaThe new king of Baekje.
He presses hard on Silla
Kim Yu-sinKim Chun-chu’s brother-in-law.
A Silla general
Seon Do-haeThe Goguryeo king’s
favorite courtier

In 641, Uija, the eldest son of King Mu, became king of Baekje. The Samguk Sagi records that he served his parents with filial piety and was devoted to his brothers, so that people called him the “Zengzi of the East.”

King UijaEldest son of King Mu · New king of Baekje
King UijaUnless their crimes deserve death,
set them all free.
PrisonerYour grace…
is boundless!
King UijaWe strike western Silla!
I shall lead the way myself!

In the seventh month of 642, King Uija personally led his army into Silla.

King Uija seized more than 40 fortresses in western Silla, Mihu Fortress among them. In the eighth month, he gave General Yunchung 10,000 troops and sent him to attack Daeya Fortress.

GoguryeoBaekjeSillaYellow SeaEast SeaThe Han RiverNakdong RiverGeum RiverJungnyeong PassMamokhyeon PassPyongyangThe Goguryeo capitalSabiThe Baekje capitalSeorabeolSilla capital (Gyeongju)Danghang FortressOver 40 fortresses7th month · W. Silla (approx.)Daeya FortressToday’s Hapcheon · 8th month

Daeya Fortress, a great fortress in western Silla. Gotaso, the wife of its governor Kim Pum-seok, was the daughter of Kim Chun-chu.

GotasoKim Chun-chu’s daughterKim Pum-seokGovernor of Daeya Fortress
GotasoBeyond those mountains…
that must be Seorabeol.
Kim Pum-seok…What are
those lights?

The Baekje general Yunchung arrived with 10,000 troops and surrounded the fortress.

YunchungBaekje general

Just then, flames shot up from a storehouse inside the fortress. The fire had been set by Geomil, one of Governor Pum-seok’s own men, who bore a grudge because Pum-seok had taken his wife, and who had secretly joined hands with Baekje.

As the storehouse burned, fear gripped the fortress. Seocheon, an Achan who assisted Pum-seok, called out from the walls.

SeocheonIf you will spare our lives, General,
we will surrender the fortress!
SeocheonAchan, aide to Pum-seok
YunchungDo that, and we shall be friends.
I swear it by the bright sun!

Seocheon urged Pum-seok and the commanders to leave the fortress.

JukjukSaji (rank) · Governor Pum-seok’s officer
JukjukBaekje is a land that breaks its word.
Yunchung’s sweet talk is bait!
Rather than hide and seek a way to live,
I’ll fight like a tiger and die!

Pum-seok ignored Jukjuk’s words and opened the gates. His soldiers left the fortress first.

The Baekje troops lying in wait fell upon them, and all the soldiers who had gone out first were killed.

Pum-seok was about to follow them out when he heard that all the soldiers who had gone ahead were dead.

That day at Daeya Fortress, Pum-seok and his wife Gotaso lost their lives.

Jukjuk gathered the remaining soldiers, barred the gates and held out.

YongseokSaji (rank)
YongseokAs things stand, we can’t come through this.
Let’s surrender alive and plan for another day.
JukjukYou are right.
But when my father named me
“Jukjuk,”
he meant that I should not wither even in the cold of winter,
and should break rather than bend.
How could I fear death
and surrender to save my life!

Jukjuk fought until the fortress fell, and died together with Yongseok.

JukjukHe meant that I should break rather than bend.

Daeya Fortress fell. The Baekje army captured more than 1,000 men and women inside it and moved them to the western districts of Baekje.

The news raced east,
to Seorabeol.

Kim Chun-chuGotaso’s father
MessengerDaeya Fortress…
has fallen!
Governor Pum-seok…
and the young mistress, too…

Into Kim Chun-chu’s mind came the day his daughter left with her husband for Daeya Fortress.

GotasoFather,
I’ll be going now.
Kim Chun-chuIt’s a great fortress at the western edge.
…Take good care of yourself.

The Samguk Sagi records that when Kim Chun-chu heard this news, he stood leaning against a pillar all day without even blinking.

Even when people passed in front of him, he did not notice them.

GotasoFather,
I’ll be going now.
Kim Chun-chuAh…
How could a true man
fail to swallow up Baekje!

Kim Chun-chu soon went before Queen Seondeok and said he would go to Goguryeo, ask for troops and take revenge on Baekje. The queen gave her permission.

Kim Yu-sinKim Chun-chu’s brother-in-law · Silla general
Kim Chun-chuYou and I are one body,
the arms and legs of this kingdom.
If I go and come to harm,
could you stand by unmoved?
Kim Yu-sinIf you do not come back,
my horse’s hooves
will trample the courts
of the kings of Goguryeo and Baekje!

The two men bit their fingers to draw blood and swore an oath.

Kim Chun-chuI will be back in sixty days.
If I am not back by then,
we will never meet again.

That winter, Kim Chun-chu set out for Goguryeo with Hunsin, a Sagan.

Holding the sixty-day promise
close to his heart.

At Daemae County, where he stopped on the way, a local man named Dusaji gave him 300 bo of blue cloth.

DusajiSagan of Daemae County
DusajiPut this to good use
on your long journey.
Kim Chun-chuThank you.

In Pyongyang, the king of Goguryeo had the Taedaedaero Gaegeum (Yeon Gaesomun) lodge him in the guesthouse, and held a great banquet for him.

Yeon GaesomunGoguryeo’s real ruler · MangnijiKing BojangKing of Goguryeo
A courtier (to the king)This Silla envoy is no ordinary man.
He has come to spy out our situation…
Yeon GaesomunYou’ve come a long way.
Eat and drink your fill!

When Kim Chun-chu asked for troops to attack Baekje, the king tried to humiliate him by asking something he could hardly answer.

King BojangMamokhyeon and Jungnyeong
were our land to begin with.
Unless you return them,
you shall not return home.
Kim Chun-chuA subject cannot dispose of
his kingdom’s land as he pleases. I dare not
obey this command.

Enraged, the king imprisoned Kim Chun-chu. He wanted to kill him, but it did not come to that.

Kim Chun-chu secretly sent the 300 bo of blue cloth he had brought to Seon Do-hae, the king’s favorite courtier.

One day, Seon Do-hae came to see him, bringing food and wine.

Seon Do-haeThe Goguryeo king’s favorite courtier
Seon Do-haeCome, have a drink.
Have you ever heard the tale
of the turtle and the rabbit?

When the wine had warmed him up, Seon Do-hae brought up an old tale, as if in jest.

The Turtle and the Rabbit

The old tale Seon Do-hae told · Samguk Sagi, Biography of Kim Yu-sin

Long ago, the daughter of the Dragon King of the East Sea fell ill with a heart ailment.

PhysicianMix a rabbit’s liver into her medicine,
and she will recover.
Dragon KingBut where in the sea
is there a rabbit…
TurtleI will go
and get one!
TurtleOn an island out at sea there are clear springs and white stones,
thick woods and tasty fruit.
It’s never too cold or too hot, and no hawk can get there!
RabbitReally?

The turtle carried the rabbit on its back and swam out to sea.

When they had swum two or three li, the turtle turned its head.

TurtleTruth is, the Dragon King’s daughter needs
a rabbit’s liver for her medicine. That’s why I brought you.
RabbitOh dear! I took my liver out to wash it
and left it under a rock.
Let’s go back, and I’ll fetch it for you.
I can live without my liver, you see.

The turtle believed it and turned back. The moment they reached land, the rabbit leapt into the grass.

RabbitYou fool!
Nobody lives without a liver!

The turtle could say nothing, and went away.

Kim Chun-chu caught the meaning and sent a letter to the king of Goguryeo.

Kim Chun-chuLeft his liver behind…
I see.
Kim Chun-chu’s letterThe two passes were your great kingdom’s land to begin with.
When I return home, I will ask my sovereign
to give them back to you.
If you cannot believe me,
I swear it by the bright sun above.

The king of Goguryeo was pleased when he received the letter.

Sixty days passed, and still Kim Chun-chu did not return. Kim Yu-sin picked out 3,000 brave warriors from across the kingdom.

Kim Yu-sinOne man ready to die can match a hundred,
a hundred can match a thousand,
and a thousand can match ten thousand!
Our kingdom’s worthy minister is held captive in a foreign land.
How could we shrink from danger!
WarriorsEven if it means ten thousand deaths,
we will follow your command, General!

Kim Yu-sin petitioned the queen and fixed a day to march out with his troops.

Deokchang, a monk who was a spy for Goguryeo, reported this to the king of Goguryeo.

DeokchangGoguryeo spy · Monk

Having heard Kim Chun-chu’s oath, and now the spy’s report as well, the king of Goguryeo could hold him no longer, and sent him home with generous hospitality.

Once he was across the border, Kim Chun-chu spoke to the Goguryeo men who had escorted him.

Kim Chun-chuYour great king gave me no troops
and demanded land instead.
Land is not something a subject
can give away as he pleases.
The letter I sent your king
was only to escape death.
RabbitNobody lives
without a liver!

Kim Chun-chu made it back to Seorabeol alive. But the road to an alliance with Goguryeo was closed.

GotasoFather,
I’ll be going now.

Now the father who lost his daughter looks farther still.

Across the sea,
to Tang.

End of Episode 37

History Notes

The scenes in this story are based on these records and sites.

  1. Wall of Daeya Fortress, Hapcheon
    View photo →
    Old walls of Daeya Fortress, Hapcheon

    Where Was Daeya Fortress?

    Daeya Fortress is thought to have been a mountain fortress around Mount Chwijeoksan in what is now Hapcheon-eup, South Gyeongsang Province. On the west, steep cliffs along the Hwang River served as its wall, and the rest was built along the ridgeline. After Daegaya fell in 562, Silla set up Daeya Province here in 565, and Daeya Fortress became a great stronghold guarding the route from the west to Seorabeol. The Baekje Annals record that after Yunchung took the fortress, he captured more than 1,000 men and women, moved them to the western districts of Baekje, and left troops behind to hold it.

    Samguk Sagi, Silla Annals, King Jinheung and Queen Seondeok · Baekje Annals, King Uija
  2. Jukjuk Stele Pavilion, Hapcheon
    View photo →
    Jukjuk Stele Pavilion, Hapcheon · Shelter for a stele raised in Jukjuk’s memory

    Jukjuk, the Bamboo That Breaks but Never Bends

    According to the Biographies in the Samguk Sagi, Jukjuk was a man of Daeya Province, and his father (named “Hakyeol” or “Hakse,” depending on the edition) held the rank of Chan-gan, which was given to people from the provinces. Serving Governor Pum-seok as a Saji, Jukjuk opposed surrender and fought until the fortress fell, dying together with his fellow Saji, Yongseok. Queen Seondeok granted Jukjuk the rank of Geupchan and Yongseok the rank of Daenama, and moved their wives and children to Seorabeol to live. The “Jukjuk Stele,” erected in 1644 (some say 1645), in the reign of King Injo of Joseon, by Jo Hui-in, the magistrate of Hapcheon, still stands in Hapcheon today.

    Samguk Sagi, Biographies, Jukjuk · Encyclopedia of Korean Culture

  3. Different Records, Different Endings

    The records differ on how Pum-seok and his wife died. The Silla Annals say “Pum-seok’s wife also died,” and the Biography of Kim Yu-sin says Gotaso “died following her husband Pum-seok.” The Biography of Jukjuk says Pum-seok first killed his wife and children and then took his own life, while the Baekje Annals say Pum-seok came out with his wife and children to surrender and Yunchung killed them all; so this episode does not show their final moments. According to the Biography of Kim Yu-sin, the bones of the couple lay buried in a prison in Baekje territory until they were later brought home in exchange for eight Baekje commanders whom Kim Yu-sin had captured.

    Samguk Sagi, Silla Annals, Queen Seondeok · Samguk Sagi, Baekje Annals, King Uija · Biographies, Kim Yu-sin, Part 1, and Jukjuk
  4. Jungnyeong Pass
    View photo →
    Jungnyeong Pass · Between Danyang, North Chungcheong, and Yeongju, North Gyeongsang

    Kim Chun-chu’s Journey to Goguryeo: Two Accounts

    The Silla Annals say that the king of Goguryeo demanded back “the land northwest of Jungnyeong Pass,” and that Kim Chun-chu, who stood his ground, saying “I can only die; I know nothing else,” was locked in a detached lodge and set free when Kim Yu-sin led 10,000 men sworn to die across the Han River into Goguryeo’s southern lands. The Biography of Kim Yu-sin tells in detail of “Mamokhyeon Pass and Jungnyeong Pass,” the sixty-day promise, the blue cloth and Seon Do-hae, the letter with its false promise, the 3,000 warriors and the spy Deokchang; this episode follows the biography. The compilers of the Samguk Sagi themselves noted that the two accounts are “of one event but slightly different,” and said they kept both because both were handed down in old records. Jungnyeong Pass lies between today’s Yeongju and Danyang, and Mamokhyeon Pass is thought to be either Gyerimnyeong Pass (Haneuljae) in Mungyeong or Joryeong Pass (Saejae).

    Samguk Sagi, Silla Annals, Queen Seondeok · Samguk Sagi, Biographies, Kim Yu-sin, Part 1

  5. The Rabbit and the Turtle, and “The Tale of the Rabbit”

    The “tale of the turtle and the rabbit” (Gutojiseol) that Seon Do-hae told is the earliest form of this story preserved in Korean writings. Its roots are thought to lie in an Indian Buddhist tale (a Jataka tale) about a monkey and a crocodile (a soft-shelled turtle or a dragon in Buddhist scriptures translated into Classical Chinese). In Korea it later grew into the novel “The Tale of the Rabbit” (“Tokkijeon,” also called “Byeoljubujeon”) and the pansori “Sugungga,” which are still widely loved today.

    Samguk Sagi, Biographies, Kim Yu-sin, Part 1 · Encyclopedia of Korean Culture, “Tokkijeon”

  6. King Uija in His Early Years

    King Uija, the eldest son of King Mu, became crown prince in 632 and took the throne in 641. The Samguk Sagi describes him as brave, bold and decisive, and says that because he served his parents with filial piety and was devoted to his brothers, he was called the “Zengzi of the East” (Haedong Jeungja, the Zengzi of the land east of the sea; Zengzi was a disciple of Confucius famed for his filial piety). In the second month of 642 he toured the districts and freed all prisoners except those guilty of capital crimes, and in the seventh month he personally took more than 40 Silla fortresses. The Nihon Shoki also records that in the same year, after the king’s mother died, he banished Gyogi and other members of the royal family, along with more than 40 people of high standing, to an island, so some see this as the moment he firmly consolidated royal power.

    Samguk Sagi, Baekje Annals, King Uija · Nihon Shoki, Annals of Empress Kōgyoku

  7. 642, and What This Episode Imagines

    In 642, Baekje seized a large part of western Silla, and in Goguryeo, Yeon Gaesomun staged a coup in the tenth month and put King Bojang on the throne. Kim Chun-chu visited Pyongyang that winter, right after the coup. The Biography of Kim Yu-sin names the man who received him as “the Taedaedaero Gaegeum,” while the Biography of Gaesomun says he made himself “Mangniji” during the coup (the Goguryeo Annals call him Mangniji from the entries for 644 onward). The Silla Annals record that in the eighth month of the same year, Baekje, plotting with Goguryeo, tried to take Danghang Fortress (today’s Hwaseong) and cut off the route to Tang, but the Baekje Annals place this in the following year. The scene of Gotaso’s farewell to her father and her words, how the people look and some of their lines, the marks on the prison wall counting the days, the send-off at the border and the final scene on the hill in Seorabeol are imagined (what he said at the border is in the biography), and King Uija’s purple robe and white sash follow the attire of the Baekje king recorded in Tang histories.

    Samguk Sagi, Silla Annals, Queen Seondeok · Samguk Sagi, Baekje Annals, King Uija · Samguk Sagi, Biographies, Kim Yu-sin, Part 1 · Samguk Sagi, Goguryeo Annals, King Bojang; Biographies, Gaesomun

Key Words of This Episode

Next episode

Episode 38 · Across the Sea to Tang

In 648, Kim Chun-chu crosses the sea to Tang with his son Mun-wang. What will he ask of Emperor Taizong? And what awaits him on the voyage home?

Read Episode 38 →← Episode 36Back to the list

Photo credits

All illustrations in this webtoon are original. Character names and dialogue are imaginative reconstructions based on historical facts and research. Dates and interpretations follow mainstream scholarship; where scholars disagree, the History Notes say so.