Viewing the crisis in Joseon, the Ming Dynasty Wanli emperor and his court were initially filled with confusion and skepticism as to how their tributary could have been overrun so quickly.

The Korean Court was at first hesitant to call for help from the Ming Dynasty, and began a withdrawal to Pyongyang. After repeated requests by King Seonjo and after the Japanese army had already reached Korea's border with China, China finally came to the aid of Korea. China was also somewhat obligated to come to the assistance of Korea because Korea was a vassal state of China, and the Ming Dynasty did not tolerate the possibility of a Japanese invasion of China. The local governor at Liaodong eventually acted upon King Seonjo's request for aid following the capture of Pyongyang by sending a small force of 5,000 soldiers led by Zu Chengxun. Zu, a general who had fought successfully against the Mongols and the Jurchens, was over-confident, holding the Japanese in contempt.

The combined army of Zhu Chengxun and Shi Ru arrived at Pyeongyang on 23 August 1592 in a pouring rain at night. The Japanese were caught completely off guard and the Ming army was able to take the undefended Chilsongmun ("Seven Stars Gate") in the north wall and entered the city. However the Japanese soon realized just how tiny the Ming army actually was, so they spread out, causing the enemy army to stretch out and disperse. The Japanese then took advantage of the situation and counterattacked with gunfire. Small groups of isolated Ming soldiers were picked off until the signal to retreat was sounded. The Ming army had been turned around, driven out of the city, its stragglers cut down. By the end of the day, Shi Ru was killed while Zhu Chengxun escaped back to Uiju. Some 3,000 Ming soldiers were killed. Zhu Chengxun attempted to downplay the defeat, advising King Seonjo that he had only made a "tactical retreat" due to the weather, and would return from China after raising more troops. However, upon his return to Liaodong, he wrote an official report blaming the Koreans for the defeat. Ming envoys sent to Korea found this accusation groundless.