This article illustrates Sun Tzu’s rule “evade strong foes” via Chu’s invasion of Sui. Wise Ji Liang advised striking Chu’s weak right flank, yet the vain Sui lord fought their elite left wing head-on, suffering a crushing defeat due to blind pride over rational tactics.
This article takes Jingzhou’s fall as a deception case for Sun Tzu’s rule. Eastern Wu used Lü Meng’s feigned illness and Lu Xun’s flattering letters to lull arrogant Guan Yu, bribed his discontented subordinates, and seized Jingzhou stealthily, costing Guan Yu his life.
This article illustrates Sun Tzu’s tactic “feign inaction when ready to strike” via the Baideng Siege. Modu hid elite troops and showed weaklings, trapping Emperor Gaozu for seven days, a warning against mistaking feigned vulnerability for true weakness.
This article analyzes Sun Bin’s classic deception at the Battle of Maling. He reduced cooking stoves daily to feign desertion, luring arrogant Pang Juan into an ambush. It perfectly embodies Sun Tzu’s maxim of hiding strength to manipulate foes psychologically.
This article rejects the folk tale that Fuchai spared Goujian out of lust or folly. Bound by Spring-Autumn norms and geopolitics, Fuchai spared him to avoid rebel uprisings and allied retaliation, yet Goujian later conquered Wu after enduring hardships.
In the long river of history, it is not an isolated incident for wise and talented individuals to fall victim to jealousy. The stories of Ziyu and Confucius, and Li Si and Han Fei, serve as two poignant examples of this tragic dynamic.