Preface
In ancient history, Zhu Yuanzhang was the founder of the Ming Dynasty, and his reign ushered in a new era. However, in the process of seizing and consolidating power, he set up an amazing secret police force, the Jinyiwei.
This organization was not only one of the most mysterious and powerful institutions in China at the time, but also the beginning of a wonderful history that held the lifeblood of the dynasty at its disposal. And the core of this mystery precisely contains an eye-catching figure - the first commander of Jinyiwei. Who is this person, and what kind of changes did his appearance bring to the pattern of the Ming Dynasty?
The origin of Jinyiwei
In the thirteenth year of Hongwu, the outbreak of Hu Weiyong's case pushed Zhu Yuanzhang's suspicion and murderous intent to the top. In this context of everyone's own danger, Zhu Yuanzhang set up a special institution - Jinyiwei.
Jinyiwei was not the first of Zhu Yuanzhang's initiative, and all dynasties had similar secret agencies. But its birth is closely related to Zhu Yuanzhang's need to eliminate the dissidents of meritorious heroes.
As early as a few years ago, many founding heroes no longer obeyed Zhu Yuanzhang's orders as before. They rely on merit, act arbitrarily, and do not abide by the law. Zhu Yuanzhang tried to admonish in a gentle way, but with little success.
As Liao Yongzhong, Wang Guangyang and other heroes were reprimanded one after another, Zhu Yuanzhang's attitude towards heroes changed. He needs a force of agents who are directly under his own command to purge dissidents. The predecessor of the Jinyi Guard was the Gong Guard Division, who was in charge of the honor guard and guard.
Zhu Yuanzhang gave it a makeover, gave it a new function of interrogation and detective, and renamed it "Jinyiwei". Unlike other judicial institutions, Jin Yiwei reports directly to Zhu Yuanzhang and has special judicial powers.
This privilege gives Jinyiwei great flexibility in law enforcement, and he can arrest suspects and convict at will, which has become a sharp weapon in Zhu Yuanzhang's hands to get rid of dissidents. However, this unfettered power also gave the Jinyi Guard the capital to abuse their private power.
In that dark era, Jinyiwei became a terrifying spy force, and its appearance marked that Zhu Yuanzhang's distrust of heroes had reached the extreme.
The first commander made Mao Xiang arrogant
Zhu Yuanzhang personally selected Mao Xiang, an old man who fought the world, to serve as the first commander of Jinyiwei. Mao Xiang soon showed his "talent". He found an omnipotent reason to clear the way for Zhu Yuanzhang to exclude dissidents - to plot rebellion.
As long as he is accused of being related to Hu Weiyong's case, whether there is substantial evidence or not, Jin Yiwei can frame him in prison. In Jinyiwei's prison, any confession can be forced to come out. Whoever Zhu Yuanzhang wants to clean up, Mao Xiang can accuse him of "Hu Weiyong's fellow party".
In just a few years, tens of thousands of people have been implicated by Jinyiwei. In the court, everyone was frightened, for fear of falling into the clutches of Jinyiwei. Mao Xiang's arrogance can be said to have reached the point of reaching the peak. He completely forgot his duty and regarded the Jinyi Guard as a private weapon that could do whatever he wanted.
Under his leadership, the Brocade Guard became a tyrannical and violent machine, its iron hooves ruthlessly trampling on the lives of innocents. Even the smallest things can be enough to put people in prison and suffer inhuman torture.
However, it was this unbridled arrogance that eventually led to the downfall of Mao Xiang. When Zhu Yuanzhang felt that everything that should be done was almost done, he listed Mao Xiang as "Hu Weiyong's fellow party" to calm the anger of the public. Mao Xiang trembled and finally became a thief. Ironically, he has framed countless people with this crime, but now he cannot escape the fate of being framed.
Jiang Xuan's madness
After Mao Xiang's death, Zhu Yuanzhang did not give up Jinyiwei. He promoted a man named Jiang Zhen to serve as the new commander. Jiang Xuan's "performance" is also amazing, and the blue jade case he handled also implicated tens of thousands of people. With his help, Zhu Yuanzhang took advantage of this case to successfully clear the obstacles for his grandson's throne.
Jiang Zheng seems to carry forward Mao Xiang's methods, and his methods are more ruthless than those of his predecessors. Under his iron-fisted rule, the government and the opposition were once again shrouded in a shadow of terror. As long as someone is targeted by Jinyiwei, no matter what their status is, they will inevitably die.
Jiang Xuan's thirst for power had reached the point of madness, and he completely equated himself with Jinyiwei, and regarded Jinyiwei as his private domain. Under his leadership, the atrocities of the Jinyi Guards intensified, and the entire capital was shrouded in white terror. Even trivial things can be enough to put people in prison and tortured.
However, Jiang Zheng's fate was not much better than that of Mao Xiang. Zhu Yuanzhang once again personally took action and dragged him down from the pinnacle of power. For Zhu Yuanzhang, Jinyiwei is just a sharp weapon that can be discarded at any time. When it has fulfilled its mission of purging dissidents, it is doomed to be abandoned.
The illusion of burning the torture instruments
After experiencing the frenzy of abuse of power by the two commanders, Zhu Yuanzhang seems to have realized the danger of Jinyiwei. He inspected the horrific torture instruments in Jinyiwei's prison, burned them in public, and handed the prisoners over to the penal department for disposal. Jinyiwei's law enforcement powers were also abolished, and the government returned to normal for a time. However, this is just an illusion after Zhu Yuanzhang threw away the "white gloves".
In fact, Zhu Yuanzhang's practice of burning the torture instruments was just to appease the discontent of the government and the opposition. In his opinion, Jinyiwei has completed its historical mission and can now be abandoned. But he didn't really realize that the very existence of Jinyiwei was a dangerous lesson from the past.
The people he wanted to get rid of had already been ruined. Jinyiwei, who was in power for a while, was banned by Zhu Yuanzhang in this way. If it weren't for Zhu Di's rebellion, it might have become a short-lived horror legend, like the Tang Dynasty's magistrate's court.
However, Zhu Yuanzhang did not draw enough vigilance from Jinyiwei's lesson. He seems to ignore the fact that once this violent machine is set up, it breeds endless greed and ambition that will eventually become difficult to control. It is this naïve idea that laid the foundation for the re-emergence of Jinyiwei in the future.
Ji Gang's ruthlessness
However, the world is unpredictable. After Zhu Di rebelled and seized the throne, in order to consolidate his rule, he reorganized the Jinyi Guard, with Ji Gang as the commander. Ji Gang, like his two predecessors, is a ruthless and ruthless person.
He removed all obstacles to Zhu Di's rule, and naturally he could not escape the fate of being purged. After Ji Gang took office, he quickly showed his ruthless nature. He reshaped the Jinyi Guard into a violent machine, and swept away all opponents.
Under his iron fist, anyone with dissent will will not escape their doom. Even trivial things can be enough to put people in prison and tortured.
Ji Gang's thirst for power seems to have reached the point of madness, and he completely equates himself with Jinyiwei, and regards Jinyiwei as his private domain. Under his leadership, the atrocities of the Jinyi Guard intensified, and the entire capital was once again shrouded in a white terror.
However, Ji Gang could not escape the fate of being purged in the end. Although Zhu Di reused him, he never really trusted this cunning and suspicious person. Once Ji Gang completed his historical mission, he was also destined to be abandoned.
The existence of Jin Yiwei not only reflected the turbulence of the political situation in the early Ming Dynasty, but also brought a warning to the later commanders: abuse of private power will eventually lead to death. Its story, like a dim mirror, reflects the dark side of authoritarian rule.
epilogue
Today, when we look back on the history of Jinyiwei, we can't help but feel a lot of emotion. It was born out of the selfish desires of an emperor, but it was also an important force in maintaining the rule of the dynasty. Although its commanders were ruthless and ruthless, it was their "dedication" that allowed Jinyiwei to survive in that turbulent era.
We should draw wisdom from history and avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. Let us work together to defuse hatred with reason and conscience, eliminate prejudice with tolerance and tolerance, and maintain social order with the rule of law and justice. Only in this way can we truly avoid a repeat of tragedies like those of Jinyiwei.