SuaveG – The Gentle Path

Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature

diplomatic strategy

  • Ban Chao

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    Juan

    Ban Chao (32–102 CE) was a distinguished statesman, general, and diplomat of the Eastern Han dynasty. His courtesy name was Zhongsheng, and he was a native of Anling, Fufeng Commandery (in present-day northeastern Xianyang, Shaanxi). He is widely recognized as one of the key figures in reopening and securing the Silk Road during the…

  • Three burrows for a cunning hare: Mengchang Jun and Feng Xuan [Warring States]

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    Rob

    Brief: This article retells the strategic masterpiece of Feng Xuan, a retainer of Mengchang Jun, one of the “Four Lords of the Warring States.” It details how Feng Xuan secured three “burrows” for his lord’s survival: First, he burned the debt bonds in Xue to buy the people’s hearts; second, he engineered Mengchang Jun’s…

  • Su Qin vs. Zhang Yi: Alliances vs. Division [Warring States]

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    Rob

    Brief: This article explores the intense rivalry between the Vertical Alliance (Hezong) of Su Qin and the Horizontal Alliance (Lianheng) of Zhang Yi during the Warring States period. It details how Su Qin’s coalition of six states threatened Qin, only to be countered by Zhang Yi’s diplomatic stratagems that divided them. The narrative follows…

  • The rise of the orator: Su Qin [Warring States]

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    Rob

    Brief: This article chronicles the rise of Su Qin, the architect of the “Vertical Alliance” (Hezong) during the Warring States period. It details his transformation from a penniless outcast—mocked by family and rejected by Qin—into a master strategist through the legendary discipline of “Suspension Beam, Pricking Thigh.” The narrative follows his diplomatic triumph as…