I Will Stage A Coup D'état-Chapter 64: The Great Purge (1)

Chapter 64: The Great Purge (1)

In late August, three months after the outbreak of the German-Soviet War, the German army reached the Dnieper River1, the lifeline of the Eastern European plains, in a half-exhausted state and was able to capture Kyiv2, the capital of the Ukrainian SSR.

It was an achievement made possible by sophisticated joint operations tactics, organic support from the Navy and Air Force, and the outstanding capabilities of the Army officer corps.

However, there was no way that this level of damage would force the Soviet Union to surrender.

Over the past three months, the German army had inflicted 1.5 million casualties on the Soviet army, but Moscow made up for the losses by reinforcing 8 field armies prepared as strategic reserves.

“You took out about 100 of our divisions? Then we’ll just reinforce with about 150 divisions.”

In contrast, the 400,000 casualties suffered by the German army were not losses that could be easily replenished.

In the face of the overwhelming weight class of the Soviet army, which endlessly regenerated even when its head was cut off, the sharp blade that Germany had prepared was gradually becoming dull.

Perhaps the German offensive would be frustrated before even reaching the threshold of Moscow.

Maybe that would be better for the Nazis.

After all, Operation Typhoon, aimed at Moscow, was also a disaster for Germany.

I dismissed the daily war situation report.

As long as Stalin did not order a reckless counterattack, it seemed unlikely that the war situation on the European front would turn significantly unfavorable.

The Soviet coin was showing signs of skyrocketing.

Heh…This Lee Sung Joon bought the Soviet Coin when it was at the bottom.

The Sino-Korean War we were directly engaged in was also proceeding smoothly.

Wang Jingwei, the new Premier of the Republic of China, was very cooperative in selling out the country, and the Chinese Communist Party was also diligently expanding the liberated areas.

The only thing Chiang Kai-shek could trust was the mediation of the great powers, but we blocked that too.

We had untangled the complexly intertwined threads quite well.

The problem is not the war situation or anything like that.

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I received a report from the DSC that there were suspicious parts hidden in the process of the outbreak of this war.

At the end of the report, the DSC added a speculation that the Operations Bureau of the Ministry of Army might have been involved.

What would that mean?

The troublemakers in the military played with fire.

Nine times out of ten, it was the work of the idiot military officers.

These bastards.

“If the Provost Marshal is there, tell him to come to the residence immediately.”

I had no intention of leaving them alone.

If they had played with the fate of the Empire, their heads had to be cut off.

An hour later, Lee Jeong-ju appeared before me with a very tense expression.

I threw the DSC’s report at Lee Jeong-ju and said,

“You. Did you really not know that these guys were messing around?”

“I’m… I’m sorry, Your Excellency.”

I tapped the desk nervously.

“I’ll give you exactly 24 hours from now. Within that time, dig up all those involved, those responsible, all of them. Find out thoroughly how this could have happened.”

“Yes, Sir!”

Lee Jeong-ju saluted and left the residence.

Since I had all the available agencies, including the Army Crime Investigation Unit, the Office of the Provost Marshal, the DSC, and the Central Intelligence Agency, work together, they would strip them down to their underwear.

A day later, Lee Jeong-ju returned to the office with a haggard face.

“Your Excellency. The investigation is complete.”

“The accomplices?”

“As reported by the DSC, the Operations Bureau of the Ministry of Army was heavily involved. The main culprits were the 3rd Department, and the masterminds who ordered the operation planning were the Director of the Military Affairs Bureau and the Deputy Director of the Operations Bureau.”

Military Affairs Bureau?

That guy has nothing to do with the Operations Bureau.

The only thing they have in common is the fact that they are “military officers”.

Military officers.

Just hearing it made me sick and disgusted.

Ha. These damn bastards.

The biggest cancerous mass left behind by the Korean Empire.

I strengthened my resolve to excise the cancerous mass called military officers on this occasion.

“For now, you take care of those guys. Don’t leave anyone who needs to be stripped of their uniforms.”

“I will obey.”

“You may go.”

After sending Lee Jeong-ju away, I thought about how I could fuck the military officers.

The answer was simple.

Land reform is the only way.

If I fuck with the land, the military officers who rely on land documents for most of their economic power will collapse at once.

You’re the ones who made me do this.

Until now, I tried not to provoke the military officers as much as possible, considering the stability of the Empire.

Now, some might call me a hypocrite for saying this after conducting numerous purges, but I always kept the line to some extent.

But now, there’s no need to go easy on them anymore.

How could I go easy on those treacherous rebels who not only attempted a counter-coup but also provoked a war?

I have to fuck them up.

“You.”

I called Jong-Gil.

“Yes, Prime Minister.”

“Right now, tell the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry to come in the order I call.”

“I will obey.”

Soon, the cabinet members came into the office one by one at my summons.

I issued large-scale reform measures to them from where I was sitting.

In particular, the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, who received the order for a high-intensity land reform, had a dumbfounded face.

“Yo-Your Excellency. Land is the foundation of the nation’s thousand-year plan. If you mess with it carelessly, there will be social unrest.”

Is this gentleman siding with the Bastards now?

My words didn’t come out nicely.

“Why do you think Germany failed to conquer the world despite having such a strong national power during World War I? It’s because those idiots with no productivity held onto the land and hindered the country’s development. How can I leave them alone when I see it clearly? The military officers are the evils of this Empire!”

The Junkers of Prussia operated the land in a pre-modern way, blocking the development of Eastern Germany for hundreds of years.

Considering that Eastern Germany had abundant industrial resources such as coal and iron, no less than the Rhine River basin, the Junkers had practically turned Germany into a half-assed cripple.

The military officers of Korea were no different from the Junkers of Germany.

“But Your Excellency. The military officers are the backbone of the Empire.”

“The backbone of the Empire is not them, it’s me, Lee Sung Joon!”

I could say that firmly.

The warmongers who are desperate to make the Empire commit suicide and His Excellency Lee Sung Joon who is struggling to save the nation.

Which side has been helpful to the Empire?

There was no need to even say it.

“I, I apologize.”

The furious Minister of Agriculture and Forestry bowed his head.

“Then I would like to know Your Excellency’s intentions.”

“How can productivity come out if you just distribute the land?”

“Th-That’s right. The land needs to have a certain scale to be mechanized and easily managed.”

“So, wouldn’t it work if we hand over the entire farms to the peasants and have them run it as cooperative units?”

Cooperatives.

It’s the only way for farmers to survive in Korea, which inevitably consists mainly of small farmers.

“Aren’t cooperatives something they did in places like Denmark?”

“You know it too. That’s correct.”

“However, I know that cooperatives are a method adopted by almost no one except the Reds.”

“Who cares if it’s the Reds or the Blues as long as it helps the Empire? It doesn’t matter if it’s a white cat or a black cat as long as it catches mice well.”

“Th-That’s true. Then, what about the land confiscation?”

“Paid confiscation, paid distribution. Give it back in 50-year installments.”

It says 50-year installments, but considering the inflation rate, it’s the same as telling the military officers to sit down and die.

The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry understood my words and showed a shocked expression.

It’s not my job to see the military officers die.

These bastards are trying to mess with me…Coff…I mean the Empire!

So why would I go easy on them?

“Start the procedure right away based on the land registers identified nationwide.”

Unlike the Joseon Dynasty, there was no such thing as hidden land that was not registered in the registers in Korea.

Thanks to surveying all the land using modern surveying techniques.

Therefore, there was not a single person who could escape from the nationwide land policy.

Of course, there will be side effects to this outrageous policy.

Not only the military officers but also the large landowners will all bleed.

They are all the privileged class.

Since I touched all of that, there could be a very strong backlash.

There could even be a coup.

If they don’t budge after being driven into a corner to this extent, that would be even stranger.

However, I’ve had enough patience.

After the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, it was the Minister of Finance.

“From now on, conduct a special tax investigation on the individuals on the list handed over by the Military Police.”

The Minister of Finance was perplexed by the tailored attack targeting specific figures.

“Wouldn’t that be legally problematic?”

Is the law a problem?

“Submit a report on the problematic parts. Then, I’ll legislate and take care of it.”

Then we can change the law.

With the legislature under my feet, such trivial issues are not a problem at all.

“I will obey.”

I initiated a merciless retaliation against the military officers and the main instigators of this incident in this way.

And from the next day, the sound of crying began to echo throughout the country.

“Oh no. You bastards, that land is not allowed.”

Chaos unfolded everywhere.

Letters poured in like a flood, pleading with me to withdraw this policy.

There were many pitiful circumstances and stories that could evoke human compassion.

But it’s not allowed.

If I started making exceptions, I couldn’t fuck the military officers.

Even if I had to cut out some decent flesh, it was right to excise the cancerous mass as a whole.

At least by the day I finish my term, the word military officer should not exist.

The greatest legacy I would leave to the Korean Empire was a country without military officers.

Footnotes

1. The Dnieper, also called Dnepr or Dnipro, is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea.

2. Kyiv is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2,952,301, making Kyiv the seventh-most populous city in Europe. Kyiv is an important industrial, scientific, educational, and cultural center in Eastern Europe.