Letter in Reply to the Marshal of Haseo (河西)答河西元帥書
右啓。今月某日。貴國使介至。奉傳珍緘。備認鈞候起居萬福。兼蒙問訊滋悉。欣感交深。不可勝道。前發遣押船兵使人廻來。稱何每幸値大官人閣下管領。故凡所違失。無不曲加救護。遂使畢事無恙。至於還國矣。聞之深感深感。噫。非仁人君子之恤隣扶弱特地有營救之意。則疇及是哉。又所諭蒙古大官人文字內。高麗攻取海島船隻軍兵。無國王分付官軍名職數目。則其所送人物。乃於沿塞州城。方選揀訖。而時已迫急。無暇告覆朝廷。遂發去。以是不得覼縷名目。其界兵馬。亦以貴國親來押去。故不須具悉名職數目。此皆因時商酌所致然耳。伏惟明鑑照悉。善爲辭焉。夏熱。惟冀順時自愛。益復救護小國。實愚之望也。云云。
I report. On a certain day of this month your country's envoys arrived and respectfully delivered your precious letter. I have learned in full that your esteemed person is in every happiness, and since you asked after us besides, I know of you in still fuller detail; my joy and gratitude are too deep to tell.
The soldiers and men who earlier took the ships out have come back, and they said, "Every time, it was by the favor of being led by the Great Officer, His Excellency, that there was nothing gone amiss which he did not stoop to set right, so that in the end we finished the business and returned to our country without mishap." Hearing it, I was deeply moved. Ah, but for a good gentleman's mind to watch over a neighbor and uphold the weak and go out of his way to rescue them, who would reach to this?
Further, in the letter of the great officer of the Mongols which you mention, it was said that for the ships and soldiers Goryeo sent to attack the islands, the names, posts and numbers of the royal troops the king assigned were missing. The men we sent were picked and chosen from the fortresses of the border districts, and as the moment was already pressing, we sent them off at once with no leisure even to report to the court. For that reason the names and particulars were not set down in detail. The military commissioner of that region too was led away by your country coming in person for him, so there was nothing to be made up by way of names, posts and numbers. All this came about from weighing things as the moment required. I beg you respectfully to look into it clearly and to speak of it kindly.
The summer is hot. I beg only that you care for yourself as the season requires and rescue this small country the more, which is truly the hope of a foolish man like me. And so forth.
Interlinear notes 1
壬辰五月
It is the fifth month of the year imjin.