Page:History of Corea, ancient and modern; with description of manners and customs, language and geography (1879).djvu/83

Chapter UL YEN WANG. Whang was now as much feared, as strong, and in the east more powerful than his father had ever been. His success in crushing all internal strife, and defeating all external attack, had been complete; and, as yet^ he had the full approbation of the CSiinese emperor, which freed him from anxiety as to the attitude towards him of the higher authorities in the northern provinces of China, bordering his own territory. His dependence on the Chinese court of Tsin was, however, a very slight one ; and he revived for himself the ancient title of Yen Wang. Indeed, by this time the court of Tsin was real master of only a fourth of China» and the new Yen Wang simply added a fifdi to the number of virtually independent kingdoms into which China was divided. His southern neighbour was Shu Hoo (Stone Tiger), Prince Wang of the ancient kingdom of Jao (Chao). King Liao of Dwan was unceasingly sending armed bands into Whang's borders to plunder ; and in order to put an end to the nuisance. Whang sent Qeneral Soong Whi to his southern neighbours to ask their assistance in chastising the common robber: for we have seen that Whang had established laws, and, doubtless, urged the cultivation of the land ; so that he differed less from the Chinese than from the original Hienbi, who were still, for the most part^ apparently nomadic, as are their descendants to this day. Stone Tiger" responded to the summons with an army of 30,000 men to march by land, and 10,000 more to emlnrk at Piaoyiljin, which is apparently the mouth of the Tfing ho in Shantung, the Whang ho, then flowing east The oommander-in-chief of the combined army would thus have 70,000 men under him. The " Tiger," as we shall see, had his own reasons for assisting Whang.