"The situation of Japanese invasion is so serious now. Lord Zhu, what do you think about suppressing the Japanese?" Zhang Jing asked again.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Ping'an paused slightly. Zhang Jing's question was a very complex and huge one.
The Japanese invasion in Jingnan has entered the "big Japanese pirate" period since this year. The Japanese pirates who were previously engaged in small-scale operations have become rampant. Their numbers are large, and their attacks on cities and territories have reached the point of shaking the Ming Dynasty's rule in the south of the Yangtze River. The harm they cause is no less than the northern barbarians who have been invading the border for years. The Japanese invasion has also reached the level of "war".
Zhu Ping'an came from the modern era and knew that this "great Japanese pirate" rebellion would last for ten years before being quelled.
Therefore, "suppressing the Japanese pirates" is a complex, huge and systematic proposition. It cannot be explained in a few words, and it will take three to five days to finish. However, since Zhang Jing asked, I have to answer the key points in combination with history.
After all, Zhang Jing will dominate the situation in Jiangnan for a period of time. The quality of his answers is directly related to whether he will have the opportunity to appear on the stage during this period and how important his appearance will be, whether he will be a passerby or a star.
"My lord, our dynasty has the advantage of time, place and people. We will surely win the fight against the Japanese pirates with our vigorous efforts! As for the time required to suppress the Japanese pirates, the shorter the better. The sooner we eliminate the Japanese pirates, the better. However, considering the actual situation, the Japanese pirates have occurred frequently, for a long time, on a large scale, with a large number of people and a wide range of areas. Our dynasty's coastal defense is lax, the coastal garrisons are empty and their combat effectiveness is weak. I personally think that it will take time to eliminate the Japanese pirates. It is difficult to destroy the Japanese pirates in one battle. We need to be cautious, take it step by step, concentrate our forces, deploy troops, and attack from both land and sea..." Zhu Ping'an thought for a moment, then bowed and replied to Zhang Jing.
After hearing Zhu Ping'an's answer, Zhang Jing looked at him with burning eyes, "You mean it's difficult to quickly wipe out the Japanese pirates in a short period of time?"
"Yes." Zhu Ping'an nodded, "I think we will win the war against the Japanese, but it is difficult to defeat them in a hurry, so we have to defeat them gradually."
Zhang Jing looked at Zhu Ping'an with burning eyes, tapped the table with his fingers, and raised his voice, "The Japanese invasion is in Jiangnan, and most of our taxes come from Jiangnan. If Jiangnan is unstable, then the country will be unstable. If Jiangnan is unstable, our purse will be empty. It is urgent to wipe out the Japanese pirates! The Japanese pirates are unjust, and our dynasty is righteous. Moreover, we have the right time, right place, and right people. Even so, why can't we quickly wipe out the Japanese pirates?"
"I also hope to quickly wipe out the Japanese pirates, but judging from the reality, it is difficult." Zhu Ping'an shook his head slightly and insisted.
Although Zhang Jing looked oppressive and questioning, Zhu Ping'an, who came from modern times, knew Zhang Jing's true thoughts.
Urgent suppression was the attitude of Emperor Jiajing and the cabinet, but not Zhang Jing's attitude. Zhang Jing was in Jiangnan, and he understood the actual situation in Jiangnan better than Emperor Jiajing and the cabinet. He knew the situation of the Japanese pirates and was also familiar with the situation of the Ming Dynasty. Zhang Jing was mature and steady in his work. His attitude was to suppress the Japanese pirates gradually when he was fully confident. And Zhang Jing did so in history. Zhang Jing mobilized the wolf soldiers of Guangxi, deployed troops, concentrated superior forces, and began to suppress the Japanese pirates after sufficient preparation... ...
Seeing that Zhu Ping'an insisted on his point of view, an elusive look of appreciation flashed in Zhang Jing's eyes.
Zhang Jing also asked Hu Zongxian these questions when Hu Zongxian came to check the information about the Japanese pirates and visited him.
Hu Zongxian's answer at the time was: mobilize troops and generals. Jiangnan has suffered an extraordinary disaster from the Japanese pirates, so we should break the ordinary rules and mobilize troops from various provinces in the south to support Jiangnan. Concentrate superior forces and vigorously suppress them. This will surely deal a heavy blow to the Japanese pirates and put an end to the idea of foreigners coveting China. This is a way to solve the problem once and for all.
The two men's strategies for destroying the Japanese have overlaps but also differences, and Zhang Jing admires both. Zhu Ping'an tends to be more overall, while Hu Zongxian tends to be more specific. Of course, Zhu Ping'an is more cautious about destroying the Japanese, while Hu Zongxian is much more optimistic.
Zhang Jing had been the Minister of War in Yingtian for some time and had a thorough understanding of the Japanese pirates in the south of the Yangtze River.
This group of Japanese pirates was strong and fierce. They were not unified, but there were countless groups, some with tens of thousands, some with hundreds, and most with thousands. The strongest among them was Wang Zhi, who could command most of the pirates, followed by Xu Hai, who was powerful and had troops second only to Wang Zhi. There were also more than ten other large groups of pirates, including Peng Laosheng. These pirates were scattered in the vast ocean, sometimes gathering and sometimes dispersing, making it difficult to catch them all!
Several Japanese pirates gathered together, with a large number of people and strong fighting power, making them difficult to fight; small groups of Japanese pirates are flexible and mobile, and are also difficult to fight. For example, the Japanese pirates who landed in Shangyu, who have been committing crimes crazily and arrogantly recently, have only more than 100 people, but their fighting power is extremely strong and flexible. They roam around and commit crimes, and their whereabouts are difficult to find, making various places anxious... ...
Therefore, although these Japanese pirates may seem like a mob, they are actually powerful enemies that are difficult to deal with!
As for the fighting capacity of the Ming army in Jiangnan, Zhang Jing, as the Minister of War of Yingtian, knew it very well: it was insufficient, very insufficient...
Under such circumstances, it is almost impossible to quickly wipe out the Japanese pirates, and Zhang Jing's attitude is to gradually suppress them.
If they wanted to wipe out the Japanese pirates, they could not rely on the Ming army in Jiangnan alone. The garrison troops in Jiangnan were weak, and to put it bluntly, they were almost vulnerable, and had long lost the courage they had when the country was founded. If they wanted to destroy the Japanese pirates, they had to transfer troops from other places as Hu Zongxian said. As for the target of the troops, Zhang Jing already had an ideal target in mind. Unlike Hu Zongxian's transfer of troops from various provinces in the south, Zhang Jing preferred to transfer the wolf soldiers from Guangxi.
That’s right, it’s the Guangxi Wolf Soldiers!
Zhang Jing served as the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, and he knew how powerful the Guangxi wolf soldiers were. In the 16th year of Jiajing, there was a rebellion in Duantengxia, Guangxi. The Yao people in Guangxi attacked the city and killed officials, which then attracted many ethnic minorities such as Miao, Yao, and Zhuang to participate in the rebellion. The situation was so serious that Emperor Jiajing saw the seriousness of the situation and ordered Zhang Jing to be the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi. After Zhang Jing took office, he finally put down the rebellion after a hard battle. In the process of suppressing the rebellion, he discovered the Guangxi wolf soldiers, a terrible combat force. The Guangxi wolf soldiers had little education and could not read, but they were brave and fierce, and they caused a lot of trouble for Zhang Jing on his way to suppressing the rebellion, which left a deep impression on Zhang Jing.
Are the Japanese pirates more powerful or the wolf soldiers more powerful? Zhang Jing thinks it is the latter.
If there were as many wolf soldiers in Guangxi as there were Japanese pirates, Zhang Jingjue might still be on his way to quell the rebellion in Guangxi.
There is a small incident that shows the fierceness of Guangxi wolf soldiers. After Zhang Jing, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, put down the rebellion, he wanted to visit the grassroots in disguise to see whether the local areas were obedient to the king. However, he was worried about the safety on the road, so he hired several Zhuang wolf soldiers from a Zhuang village to accompany him. On the road, a deer happened to jump out. These wolf soldiers chased barefoot on foot, walked briskly, caught the deer with bare hands, cut the meat and roasted it; on the road, they encountered an eagle circling in the sky, and a wolf soldier shot it down with an arrow and roasted it. One night, staying in a small store, they happened to encounter a group of robbers. Everyone in the store was afraid, but a few Zhuang wolf soldiers were at ease. The thieves did not dare to step forward and fled.
In short, Zhang Jing had long planned to transfer the wolf soldiers from Guangxi to the north and south of the Yangtze River to participate in the suppression of the Japanese pirates, but he was troubled by the fact that he did not have the power to do so. Although he was the Minister of War in Yingtian, compared with the Minister of War in the capital, his position as the Minister of War was not as powerful as that in the capital. Of course, even if he had the power of the Minister of War in the capital, he did not have the power to transfer troops. The Minister of War seemed to be the highest military command official, but in fact, the Minister of War could manage the promotion of military officers, but could not do the transfer of troops. The Ministry of War did not have this power at all. In the Ming Dynasty, the transfer of troops was a very serious and sensitive matter, which required many procedures. In fact, it was decided by the cabinet. If the wolf soldiers from Guangxi were to be transferred, the consent of the cabinet must be obtained. The consent of the cabinet alone was not enough, and the eunuchs of the Silijian must also agree. The Ministry of War was only the specific executor.