In this army that was marching to the annihilation of Kitan there was a contingent of Koryŭ forces under Gen. Kim Ch‘ui-ryo who is described as being a giant in size with a beard that reached his knees. He was a favorite with the Mongol generals and was treated handsomely by them.
The siege of Kang-dong was prosecuted vigorously and soon the greatest distress prevailed within the walls. The leader finally gave up hope and hanged himself, and the 50,000 men came out and surrendered. Gen. T‘ap reviewed them, took off the heads of a hundred of the leaders and released the remainder. The Mongol leader wished to make a visit to Song-do to see the king but he could not leave his army, so he sent an envoy instead. He gave the Koryŭ generals rich presents and released 700 Koryŭ captives that had been previously taken. Many Kitan captives were put into the hands of the Koryŭ generals as a result of the decisive termination of the war against Kitan and many of the heretofore inaccessible parts of the north were opened up, and they were called the “Kitan District.”
Ere long the Mongol envoy approached Song-do and the king sent out a messenger to meet him, but this did not satisfy him, for he exclaimed “Why did not the king come out to meet me?” It took some persuasion to induce him not to turn back. When he had audience with the king he wore the heavy fur clothing of his native country with a fur head-dress, and carried a sword and a bow. Approaching the king he seized his hand and showed him the letter from the Mongol emperor, Genghis Khan. The king turned pale and was exceedingly embarrassed at this familiarity, and the officials asked each other how the presence of this barbarian could be endured. They induced him to retire and assume Koryŭ garments, after which he reappeared and the king presented him with gifts of gold, silver, silk and linen.
Gen. Cho Ch‘ung accompanied the retiring Mongol and Yŭ-jin allies as far as the Yalu where they bade him an affectionate adieu and declared that he was a man of whom Koryŭ should be proud. The Mongol general, Hap Chin, left forty men at Eui-ju to learn the Koryŭ language and told them to stay there till he returned. Gen. Cho then returned to P‘yŭng-yang where he was lionized and fêted. The old man Ch‘oe Chung-heun feared that Gen. Cho would attempt to throw him down from his high position and thought it would be better to have him near by, where he could watch him; so he forged a letter purporting to be from the king, ordering him to come down to the capital. He obeyed.