ence led the
Chinese officials to see that if they wished to help the Koreans at all
they must despatch a stronger force. This they set to work at once to do.
They endeavored to gain some time by pretending to enter upon negotiations
for an armistice. During the autumn months of A.D. 1592 the Japanese
troops were almost idle. And they were very much taken by surprise when
near the end of the year the Chinese army, forty thousand strong, besides
Koreans, made its appearance on the scene. The Japanese commander had no
time to call for help, and before he realized the imminency of the danger
Pingshang was attacked. Being far outnumbered Konishi deemed it prudent to
make his escape from the beleaguered town, and to save his army by a
retreat, which was a painful and inglorious one.

The other division of the Japanese army under Kato, who had occupied the
west coast, found its position untenable with a superior Chinese army
threatening it. It also was compelled to retreat towards the south. But
the veteran army of Kato was not content to yield all that it had gained
without a struggle. A bloody engagement followed near Pachiung, in which
the Chinese and Korean army suffered a significant defeat. The Chinese
army then retired to Pingshang, and Kato was not in a condition to follow
it over the impassable winter roads and with deficient supplies. The
Japanese troops had suffered an experience such as never befell them under
the redoubtable leadership of Hideyoshi. And the Chinese had had enough of
the terrible two-handed swords which the Japanese soldier could wield so
effectively.(182)

The chief obstacle to peace was the mutual distrust with which each of the
three parties regarded the others. Korea hated the Japanese with a perfect
and justifiable hatred; she also feared and despised the pompous and
pretentious pride of China. But in the negotiations which ensued the
country which had suffered most had least to say. It remained for the two
greater powers to come to some agreement which should be satisfactory to
them; and whether Korea were satisfied or not was of secondary moment.

The Japanese envoy proceeded to Peking and is said to have negotiated
peace on these conditions: That the emperor of China should grant to
Hideyoshi the honor of investiture, that the Japanese troops should all
leave Korea, and that Japan should engage never to invade Korea again.
There was some jangling about the withdrawal of the Japanese soldi