On the Road to Geumseong (金城)* — An Embassy Across the Snow
* Note:Geumseong was a name used for the capital of Silla, for the Jurchen center as well, and by older steppe peoples to denote their own core cities.At the time, it may have functioned as a common noun equivalent to what we now call a "capital."
Baek In-gun reached his decision after three days of careful consideration.During those days, he kept his armor at a distance.The conviction settled that this was the moment for words to step forward before blades.
"Now, we open the road with speech."
He summoned Lee In-jung and spoke in a low voice.
"You will begin negotiations with Naha-chu.The fighting at Liaoyang has been tied off, and the northern resolve has yet to harden.Make it clear that we are not their true enemy, and convey what matters most at this moment.Also, point out where we may stand once the struggle for the Central Plains has run its course."
After a brief pause, he added,
"Leave before the snow softens, before the roads close."
Lee In-jung did not ask questions.Known for his caution, he read at once the danger and the court's calculations contained in those words.
He opened the camp roster.After resting his gaze for a while, he placed his hand on two names.
Park Seong-jin.Oh Jin-cheol.
Both had returned alive from Liaoyang.Men who had faced death head-on and yet had not slowed their steps.Men whose actions moved before their words.
"You two will come with me to Geumseong."
It was a brief order.
"Loyalty!""Loyalty!"
Both bowed at once.And so an embassy of three was formed.
On the day they departed Liaoyang, snow began to fall again.Do-hyeon and Oh Sun-gun raised their hands in silent farewell.In this land, partings rarely promised another meeting.
The sky hung low, and the northern wind brushed their faces.Beyond the walls, the road lay frozen solid, creaking beneath each hoofbeat.Willows along the roadside stood bare, ice clinging to their branches and gleaming silver.
The walls of Liaoyang gradually receded.The land spread out endlessly white.
From horseback, Lee In-jung tightened the strap of his wind-cloak.Beside him, Park Seong-jin spoke carefully.
"You seem remarkably calm, General."
Lee In-jung did not answer at once.
"This road bears the weight of battle, even if no blades are in sight."
From behind, Oh Jin-cheol added,
"We are heading to face the enemy commander himself."
"Do not use the word 'enemy,'"Lee In-jung corrected.
"Now is the time to extend a hand.Even if that hand is wounded, it must be offered.That is the path the country has chosen."
"Until yesterday, we were fighting."
"Negotiation begins from a position of advantage."
The road grew harsher.Snow piled up to their thighs, and the horses' breath bloomed white.
In the middle of the plain, frozen bodies lay half-buried in snow.Soldiers whose names were unknown.Traces left behind by war.
Park Seong-jin dismounted and placed his hand on the snow.Cold seeped up through his palm.
He brushed the snow aside in silence.Beneath it emerged a fragment of metal, scarcely rusted—the broken tip of someone's blade.
"Every road is a road," he said quietly,"whether it leads through living motion or continues on after death."
Lee In-jung turned his head.
"Roads are made by people.The living carry their steps forward along the places left behind by those who fell."
They mounted again.When the snow stopped and the wind died down, the land spread out like a frozen sea.Across it, the tracks of three men ran side by side.
Three days later, they reached a rise from which the ramparts of Geumseong came into view.Through faint mist, the outlines of the walls emerged.Above them flew the blue banner of the Northern Yuan.
The wind was still.Yet the flag moved as if breathing on its own.
Lee In-jung dismounted and took his stance.
"That is where we will stand."
He exhaled slowly, a steady cloud of white.
"From here on, a single word weighs more than a thousand troops.This is the moment when the tip of the tongue, not the edge of the blade, decides a man's life."
Park Seong-jin held the reins and gazed at the ramparts.In the snow, the fortress stood silver.
His eyes lingered on the road.
The wind rose again.Across the snowy plain, three sets of hoofprints moved slowly toward Geumseong.Their shadows stretched long, passing over the pale light of the frozen steppe.