During the Jiajing Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, some reforms were carried out, so some people in later generations called it "Jiajing Zhongxing". However, facts have proved that the so-called "ZTE" is problematic, and various problems were exposed during the Jiajing period, especially the problem of "Southern Wubei And Northern Raiders". Due to the Jiajing Emperor's implementation of the "sea ban", the Forces of the Wokou resurged and intensified, and more than a dozen Wokou actually pursued and killed thousands of troops of the Ming Dynasty! So what's going on here?
First, the shameful record
In the summer of the thirty-fourth year of Jiajing, the Ming Dynasty received news that thirty-six Wokou had pounced near Nanjing, so they sent zhu xiang and Jiang Qin to lead hundreds of officers and soldiers out of the city. The Ming army came to camp near the cherry orchard outside the south of the city, and they did not send people to reconnoiter, but actually disarmed and gambled. Thirty-six Wokou disguised as beggars and hidden sharp blades launched a surprise attack on the Ming army, resulting in the total destruction of the Ming army, which is the "Battle of cherry orchards" in history.
In the same year, when more than 6,000 Ming troops attacked Zhou Pu Wukou, they actually "went north without a fight and scattered and perished." More than 6,000 Qing and Xu lancers were ambushed by sixteen Wokou, and they actually rioted on their own feet, killing as many as 3,000 people, of course, many of whom were trampled to death by their own people. After the defeated soldiers returned to the city, they could not leave the door. At that time, people commented: "When the thief tramples on it with ten people, the city will be destroyed." Such humiliating achievements appeared repeatedly during the Jiajing period.
2. The good will be killed
In fact, the Ming Dynasty did not have good generals, but these good generals were repeatedly framed, either committing suicide or being killed. In the twenty-sixth year of Jiajing, Zhu Yi served as the military governor of Zhejiang and Fujian, and was responsible for dealing with the Wokou. During his term of office, he actively straightened out coastal defense and sent Dusi Lu Bo to break the Wokou and achieved very remarkable results. However, the Jiajing Emperor was not clear, and listened to the false accusations of the officials and wanted to arrest Zhu Yi and punish him. Zhu Yi was indignant when he heard the news, and took poison to commit suicide.
After Zhu Yi's death, the power of the Wukou became more rampant, so the Jiajing Emperor appointed Zhang Jing as the governor of Jiangnan, Jiangbei, Zhejiang, Shandong, Fujian, and Huguang. Zhang Jing was also a very capable minister, who on the one hand dispatched Guangxi wolf soldiers and actively prepared for war on the other. However, Before Zhang Jing could engage Wu Kou, he was framed by Zhao Wenhua. Shortly thereafter, Zhang Jing commanded an army to achieve a great victory at Wang Jiangjing, annihilating thousands of Wukou. However, the Jiajing Emperor still did not distinguish between right and wrong, and actually put Zhang Jing to death.
Third, the collapse of the military system
The reason why the Ming army could not defeat the Wukou was still a very important reason, that is, the military system of the Ming Dynasty had collapsed! At the beginning of the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang practiced the system of guard posts, and those who served as soldiers belonged to "military households", and these people had to become soldiers for generations. However, with the passage of time, there were problems with the health center system, such as a large number of military households fleeing, and by the Jiajing period, the number of guards in the guard house had decreased by 60 to 70%.
Another problem with the health center system is that the army lacks training and has no combat effectiveness. Although the Ming army was not very large during the war with the Wokou, because it had no training for a long time and had no military experience to speak of, it collapsed in one battle. It was precisely because of the collapse of the sanitation system. Therefore, when Qi Jiguang led the anti-Wu struggle, he adopted a conscription system and recruited and trained a Qi family army that dared to fight and kill and had high morale, which completely solved the Problem of the Wokou.
References: 1. "Legend of the Sea"; 2. "History of Ming"; 3. "The End of the Chronicle of Ming History"