A few days after the storm of the purge had passed, a deceptive calm settled over the Forbidden City. The halls were cleaner, the officials who remained moved with a new, nervous efficiency, and the air itself seemed charged with the unspoken understanding that a new and far more demanding era had begun. In the Emperor's study—now a dedicated war room—the scent of old books had been replaced by the sharp smell of fresh ink on new maps.
Prince Gong stood by the great map of Asia, a silent pillar of the new order. Before him and the Emperor, a man in the simple, unassuming robes of a court scholar prostrated himself, his forehead touching the plush Tibetan carpet. This was Shen Ke, a man whose name was unknown to the wider court, but whose quiet work had provided the informational bedrock for the recent purge. He was a master of whispers, a librarian of secrets, and Qin Shi Huang's chosen spymaster.
"Rise, Master Shen," QSH said, his voice echoing slightly in the high-ceilinged room. He sat behind his large desk, a small figure dwarfed by the furniture, yet his presence dominated the space. "Your work in compiling the dossiers on the traitors was… satisfactory. Now, a more delicate and far more important task awaits."
Shen Ke rose to his feet, but kept his head bowed and his eyes fixed on the floor. "This humble servant exists only to serve Your Majesty's will. My mind and my network are your instruments."
"Excellent," QSH said. "Then I will play them. Report on the current state of the Korean court. Be precise. I have read your written briefs, but I want to hear your assessment directly. I want to know the texture of the situation, not just the facts."
Shen Ke's mind, a meticulously organized archive of intelligence, opened for his Emperor. His voice was soft, methodical, the voice of a man who deals in certainties, not speculation. "As you know, Majesty, the court in Hanseong is a fractured, rotten thing. Power rests with three primary groups. The first is the Min clan, led by the ambitious Queen Min. They are ostensibly pro-Qing, but it would be more accurate to call them pro-Min. They seek our protection only as a shield to maintain their own power against their domestic rivals. They are a tool, but a brittle one."
He paused, gathering his thoughts. "The second force is the Heungseon Daewongun, the King's father and former regent. He is a bitter, ferocious traditionalist who despises all foreign influence, Japanese and ours included. He sees us all as barbarians poisoning his nation. His power is diminished, but he commands respect among the old guard. He is not a tool, but a boulder that can be dislodged to start an avalanche if chaos reigns."
"And the third?" QSH prompted, his fingers steepled before him.
"The third," Shen Ke continued, "is the Enlightenment Party, a group of Western-style reformers led by men like Kim Ok-gyun and Pak Yung-hio. They are idealistic, impatient, and utterly convinced that Japan is the model for Korea's future. They are, for all intents and purposes, Japan's primary vector of influence within the government. They are watched closely by our agents."
"A court of fools, opportunists, and puppets," QSH summarized coldly. "And the people? The ones who actually bleed and starve?"
"They suffer, Majesty," Shen Ke said, a flicker of genuine sympathy in his voice. "The harvests in the southern provinces have been poor for two years running. The taxes levied by the corrupt aristocracy in the capital are crushing them. Against this backdrop, the Donghak movement grows stronger every day. It is a potent mix of religious fervor and nationalist rebellion, preaching salvation through a new faith and the violent expulsion of all foreigners—especially the Japanese merchants and moneylenders who have become so prevalent in the port cities. Their leaders are sincere men, charismatic preachers. And at present, they are poorly armed and poorly organized."
"Sincerity is a weapon we cannot forge, so we must make use of it when we find it," QSH stated. He leaned forward, his dark eyes locking onto his spymaster. "Here are your instructions, Master Shen. Listen carefully. You will not arm the Donghak leaders directly. That is a crude and easily traceable method that lesser powers would employ. We are the Celestial Empire; our hand must remain unseen."
Prince Gong shifted his weight, a silent question in his posture.
QSH continued. "You will use our assets within the Qing garrison near the Yalu River. You will arrange for an accounting error. A clerical mistake. Several crates of our new Hanyang rifles and ten thousand rounds of ammunition are to be 'lost' during a routine transfer. These crates will be left in a dilapidated storehouse on a known Donghak patrol route. You will ensure they are 'stumbled upon' by a patrol of true believers. Let them think it is a gift from Heaven, a sign that their cause is just."
Prince Gong finally spoke, his voice low and concerned. "Your Majesty, if I may… arming rebels, even indirectly, is a dangerous game. They are anti-foreign. That anger could easily be turned on us."
"It will not be," QSH said with absolute certainty. "Their doctrine may be anti-foreign, but their immediate enemy is the local magistrate who seizes their grain and the Japanese merchant who holds the deed to their land. We will ensure their anger remains properly channeled. Master Shen, your agents embedded within the movement are not to lead them. They are to advise, to whisper. Guide their attacks toward provincial government offices, toward the homes of corrupt officials. Urge them to seize local armories. Their goal is to create chaos on a provincial level, not to march on the capital. We want the Korean King to feel the fire at his feet, not the knife at his throat. He must be panicked enough to call for our aid, not so terrified that he abdicates or flees."
Shen Ke bowed his head in understanding. The sheer precision of the plan was breathtaking. It was a surgeon's approach to fomenting rebellion.
QSH then reached into a drawer in his desk and produced a small, sealed scroll tied with a simple silk cord. He slid it across the polished wood surface. "This is the most critical component of the entire operation."
Shen Ke took the scroll. It felt mundane in his hands.
"That," the Emperor said, "is a letter. It is written in a flawless imitation of the hand of the Japanese radical, Inoue Kakugoro, a known agitator who has advocated for Japanese intervention in Korea. The letter is addressed to the Korean reformer, Kim Ok-gyun. It speaks of a 'glorious uprising' to coincide with the coming peasant rebellion, a plan to 'cleanse' the court of Qing loyalists and install a truly pro-Japanese regime. It promises that the full might of the Imperial Japanese Army is ready to sail at a moment's notice to support their coup."
Shen Ke's eyes widened almost imperceptibly. He did not need to ask. "It is a forgery, Majesty."
"It is a masterpiece," QSH corrected him. "And you will guard it with your life. You will hold this letter. At the absolute peak of the Donghak Rebellion, when the Korean court is in a state of full panic and their army is in disarray, one of your agents inside the palace guard—the man known as 'The Owl'—will 'discover' this letter. It will not be found on Kim Ok-gyun himself; that would be too convenient. It will be found during a frantic search of a minor official's quarters, a low-level scribe known to associate with the Enlightenment Party. The Owl will deliver it directly, and only, to the captain of Queen Min's personal guard. The fuse will then be lit."
The full, diabolical scope of the plan settled over the room. Shen Ke could now see the entire sequence, a chain reaction of cause and effect forged by his Emperor. He dropped to his knees again, this time not out of mere deference, but out of genuine, overwhelming awe.
"Japan will be implicated in a plot to overthrow the Korean government at the very moment we are being invited in to restore order," he whispered, his mind reeling. "It is… it is brilliant, Your Majesty."
QSH looked down at his spymaster, his expression unreadable. "Brilliance is irrelevant. Results are all that matter. It is merely a matter of providing your enemy with a situation where they have no choice but to act according to their arrogant and predictable nature. Go now, Master Shen. I expect to hear of significant peasant troubles in Jeolla province within two months."