Stories of the Japanese 01310 [Muromachi/Yoshimochi Period] The Reason for Severing Ties
The situation is such that "Tsushima is in danger." From here, the four parties—the Ming Dynasty, King Taejong of Joseon, So Sadamori of Tsushima, and the Muromachi Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimochi—get into a chaotic dispute.
On July 17, 1419 (the 26th year of Oei), the month following the Oei Invasion, King Taejong urged the Tsushima Shugo, So Sadamori, to submit, stating,
"Either relocate the residents of Tsushima Island to Joseon, or have them withdraw to Japan to make it an uninhabited island, and I will place it under direct control."
Taejong's anger toward the Wokou was considerable, and his demand was as if to say that all residents of Tsushima were criminals. Well, in reality, many people who profited from the Wokou likely lived on Tsushima at the time. However, for So Sadamori, who had been appointed as Tsushima Shugo by the Shogunate, this was a troublesome notification to deal with.
In the same month of July, the Ming envoy Lu Yuan happened to have arrived at Hyogo Port again. Neither the Shogunate nor Lu Yuan knew yet that the Oei Invasion had occurred. The state letter held by Lu Yuan stated,
"We expect Yoshimochi to carry on the will of his father (Yoshimitsu). Japan must have many wise officials who understand reason. Suppressing the Wokou will be a great achievement that will carve Yoshimochi's name into history. Repent for your mistakes and strive for tribute and the suppression of the Wokou."
That is what was written.
Yoshimochi's reply to Lu Yuan, dated July 27, is quite interesting, so I will quote it at length.
"We also desire to establish friendly relations with neighboring countries, have merchants travel back and forth, keep the borders peaceful, and enrich the people. However, there is a reason why I dare not meet with the envoy.
When my late father (Yoshimitsu) fell ill, we had a divination performed to determine the cause, and the result was that it was due to a curse from the gods. When prayers were offered, the oracle delivered by the gods stated, 'Our country has never, since ancient times, performed the rites of a subject toward a foreign country. Recently, this policy was changed, and by accepting a gold seal from the Ming Emperor, we have submitted. This is the cause of Yoshimitsu's illness.' Therefore, my late father passed away leaving a will to sever ties with Ming.
Because of these circumstances, I did not want to meet with the Ming envoy Zhou Quan who came last year, but since I had not yet conveyed these circumstances and he had come to Japan to mourn my late father, I had no choice but to welcome him, contrary to the will."
If this is true, Yoshimochi severed ties for a rather unscientific reason. However, although Yoshimochi refused to pay tribute, he firmly promised to suppress the Wokou.
In August, Lu Yuan returned home empty-handed without being able to meet with Yoshimochi.
August 7. A letter informing the Shogunate of the Oei Invasion arrived from Shoni Mitsusada (1394–1433) of Kyushu. The events of June 20 were only just being made known, which is far too late. Perhaps he waited until Lu Yuan had returned home before reporting it to the Shogunate so as not to affect relations with Ming. In fact, upon hearing the news, Yoshimochi was furious, mistakenly believing that Joseon had acted on orders from Ming. It was later revealed to be a misunderstanding, but if he had dealt with Lu Yuan while still under that misunderstanding, it would have caused a great deal of trouble.
I feel that Shoni's "strategic delay" was successful. Although they say "report bad news early," there are cases where it is better not to report it for a while, depending on the character of the boss.