In 354 BC, the powerful state of Wei attacked Zhao, and Pang Juan, the general of Wei, commanded the army to surround the capital of Zhao. The next year, Zhao asked Qi for help. Qi appointed Tian Ji as the general and Sun Bin as the strategist, and led 80,000 troops to come to the rescue.
Tian Ji had intended to directly lead the army to attack Wei Jun of Zhao. Sun Bin thought that the elite soldiers of Wei were attacking Zhao, and the country was empty. He advocated adopting flexible tactics, avoiding reality and avoiding emptiness, and marching straight into the girder of Wei's capital (now Kaifeng, Henan). As a result, Enemy at the Gates was under great pressure. Tian Ji adopted Sun Bin's strategy and led an army to attack Wei.
Pang Juan was very worried when he learned the news. He lost his food and came home from Zhao on a starry night. Sun Bin laid an ambush in Gualing (now northwest of Henan placanticline), the only place where Wei Jun returned home. When Pang misused Wei Jun who had led a long journey and was exhausted, the Qi army suddenly attacked and defeated Wei Jun. This battle was also called "The Battle of Guiling". In the history of war, this tactic is called "encircling Wei to save Zhao". From then on, Sun Bin became famous all over the world, and the world scrambled to tell his art of war.
An old hand is a good guide
An old horse knows the way.
Buy the box, but return the pearls.
During the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a merchant specializing in jewelry in the State of Chu. Once, he took a batch of jewels to sell in Zheng. In order to attract customers to buy, he thought of a way to attract customers.
He chose some excellent blue wood, made many exquisite small boxes, carved exquisite rose patterns on the outside of the boxes, and inlaid many colorful feathers around them. He thought that if these jewels were put in such a beautiful little box with a strange smell, the people of Zheng would be attracted to buy them.
So the jeweler brought these goods to Zheng hopefully. After arriving in Zheng, he came to the most bustling market to show his jewelry. As expected, many people immediately gathered around and stopped to watch and appreciate. There is also a man from Zheng who saw such a beautifully decorated box and bought one without hesitation. After opening the box, he returned the jewels to the jeweler and left happily.
Endure hardships to achieve some ambition.
"Low salary and daring" is a well-known allusion in China. According to legend, Gou Jian, the King of Yue in the Spring and Autumn Period, encouraged himself by hanging a gallbladder in the house to try it while sitting and lying down, so as not to forget the pain of humiliation. Sleep on firewood instead of bed and bedding to avoid forgetting the pain of national subjugation. After so many years of tempering, Yue finally became strong and defeated Wu.
However, when did the allusion of "sleeping on a laurel tree" begin? According to books about wuyue's historical materials, there are detailed records about Gou Jian, the king of Yue, and Fu Cha, the king of Hao, in Zuo Zhuan during the Warring States Period, but there is no record of Gou Jian's employment. Another book written during the Warring States period, Mandarin, did not have Gou Jian's hard work.
Fire fighting prince
In the Zhou Dynasty, there was a Zhou Youwang, a very cruel and corrupt monarch. He has a lovely princess named Bao Si, who is very beautiful. There is a passage in the Chronicle of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty that describes praise: "Eyes are bright, lips are red and teeth are white, clouds are drawn, jade is carved, flowers are like the moon, and the country is beautiful." Although the princess is beautiful, she "never smiles." To this end, Zhou Youwang made a reward: "Whoever can make the empress laugh will be rewarded with one thousand Jin of gold" (copper was called gold at that time). So someone came up with a way to light a bonfire, hoping to get a smile from the queen. One night, Zhou Youwang boarded the tower with a lovely princess and ordered bonfires to be lit everywhere. When the neighboring governors saw the bonfire, they thought that Xirong (a tribe in the west at that time) was attacking, so they led the troops to the city gate to rescue them, but they saw bright lights and loud drums. I found it foolish of Zhou Youwang to amuse the queen. The vassals were sweating like a pig, flustered and afraid to make any noise, so they had to retreat angrily and return to camp. He saw it and smiled indifferently. But not long after, Xirong really attacked. Although the bonfire was lit, no reinforcements arrived. It turned out that the governors thought that Zhou Youwang was doing the same thing again. As a result, Xirong occupied the capital and Zhou Youwang was killed. Since then, the Western Zhou Dynasty has perished.