Sun Tzu's Art of War and the Thirty-Six Stratagems

The army of Tian Kingdom approached the walls of Maling City, where the rebels prepared for a desperate battle. Tian Kingdom told General Gao on the city walls that he had not come to attack the city, but to meet the so-called Prince Jiao Shi. General Gao made Tian Kingdom swear an oath that he would not use this opportunity to harm Prince Jiao Shi. Tian Kingdom swore an oath to Heaven.

Despite the fervent calls from below the city walls, the fake Prince Jiao Shi still did not appear. He had never witnessed such a scene and was deeply frightened. Tian Guo, growing impatient, shouted to General Gao, "General Gao, why hasn't Prince Jiao Shi shown himself? Is he afraid, or is there simply no such person in Ma Ling?"

General Gao replied, "General Tian, ​​don't worry, the young master will definitely come."

Tian Guo laughed and said, "I'm not in a hurry. It's you, General Gao, who's in a hurry. If you can't get Young Master Jiao to come, you won't be able to handle the situation."

General Gao cursed the fake prince in his heart for being cowardly, and he ordered his soldiers to urge their "king" again.

The fake prince finally arrived, approaching General Gao under the protection of several shield bearers. Trembling with fear, the fake prince said to General Gao, "General Gao, you must guarantee my safety..."

General Gao said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, they dare not do anything."

General Gao pulled Gongzi Jiaoshi to the side of the wall, then called out loudly to those below, "General Tian, ​​open your eyes and see who is standing next to me?"

Tian Guo stared in disbelief at the fake prince on the city wall.

The soldiers under Tian Guo's command were also stunned.

"Young Master Jiao Tuo, truly Young Master Jiao Tuo!"

"This is really strange. We clearly killed him, so how did he come back to life?"

……

When Tian Guo withdrew his troops and returned to his camp, he was still puzzled. He said to Sun Bin, "Strategist, perhaps what we killed was really a substitute for Prince Jiaoshi."

Sun Bin, knowing the situation, said, "This one is the substitute."

"Strategist, didn't you see him? He really is Young Master Jiao Shi..."

Sun Bin smiled and said, "If he were truly the Preceptor of the Suburbs, he wouldn't have waited so long to appear; he would have stood proudly atop the city wall of Maling long ago. That would be more in line with the Preceptor of the Suburbs' character."

Tian Guo suddenly realized and said, "That's right! Prince Jiao Shi wouldn't be so timid and cautious... Strategist, since he's not Prince Jiao Shi, can we attack Maling now?"

Qin Hua chimed in, "No, as long as the Empress Dowager still regards him as Prince Jiao's tutor, the King will not agree to our attack on the city."

Sun Bin nodded in agreement and said to Qin Hua, "Mr. Qin, you must return to Linzi immediately and find a way to invite the Empress Dowager here. We must expose the fake Prince Jiao Shi in front of the Empress Dowager and the rebels. This way, not only will the Empress Dowager have no reason to stop us from quelling the rebellion, but the rebels at Maling will also lose heart and have no intention of defending the city."

Sun Bin then said to Zhongli Chun, "Zhongli Gu... Your Majesty, I would like to trouble you to go to the State of Wei and find Zhongli Qiu. Please ask her to help us find out the true identity of the fake Prince Jiao Shi. After the Empress Dowager arrives at Maling, we will have something to tell her."

Zhongli Chun was worried about Sun Bin and said, "After I'm gone, who will deal with the Wei brothers?"

Sun Bin said, "I have two purposes in bringing my troops to the walls of Maling this time. First, I want to see what that fake Prince Jiao Shi is like. Second, I want to make a feint and then retreat a short distance to confuse the Maling rebels. I want them to think that I am luring them into the open wilderness where there is no city to defend, so that they will not dare to make any rash moves. If the rebels do not send troops, the Wei brothers will not act alone."

Zhongli Chun rode swiftly to Daliang in the Wei Kingdom and, under cover of night, quietly sneaked to Zhongli Qiu's house. The two sisters were so excited to see each other that they embraced tightly and remained together for a long time before finally separating.

Zhongli Qiu asked, "Sister, you've come all this way, there must be something important on your mind?"

Zhongli Chun said, "Pang Juan somehow got hold of a man who looks remarkably like Prince Jiao Shi. That man lives in Maling, a border town of Qi, and insists that he is Prince Jiao Shi. He has even declared himself king. Mr. Sun wants you to help him find out the man's true identity."

"I can't help him." Upon hearing this, Zhong Liqiu immediately became very cold.

Zhong Lichun said earnestly, "Qiu, if we can't figure out the fake young master's true identity, Mr. Sun won't be able to quell this rebellion in Maling."

Zhongli Qiu coldly replied, "Sun Bin is a man of great wisdom and strategy; he has no need for a weak woman like me to help him."

Zhong Lichun pleaded, "Then please, even if it's just to help me, please help my sister?"

Zhong Liqiu remained silent for a moment before speaking, "Sister... please forgive me, I can't help you either..."

"You still hold a grudge against your sister?"

"No. As the wife of Gongsun Yue of Wei, I would never help Wei's enemies."

"But you are, after all, a person from the State of Qi."

"I am now married to the State of Wei."

"So, you never plan to return to Qi?"

"Yes, I have no intention of ever returning to Qi."

"If I were to marry Sun Bin, would you return to the State of Qi...?"

"Sister, I am no longer the Zhong Liqiu I used to be. Don't try to fool me with words like that." Zhong Liqiu's face darkened.

"How could your sister deceive you? Your sister is sincere, Qiu."

"Sister, I remember you once told me something like this: 'Forced love is never sweet.'"

"I think he'll do it willingly this time."

"No, he willingly wants to marry my sister."

Zhong Lichun couldn't help but smile bitterly, saying, "That's impossible now. The King and my sister are already husband and wife..."

Zhong Liqiu was taken aback and said, "Why would you do this, sister... You didn't have to do it this way..."

Zhong Lichun gently stroked her younger sister's hair and said, "Qiu, I do love Sun Bin, I love him from the bottom of my heart, but it's impossible for me now. I know how you feel about Sun Bin, you love him even more than I do. You've suffered so much for him, and it makes me so sad whenever I think about it. I don't know what to say to you... Can you help him one more time?"

Zhong Lichun hugged her sister again: "Sister, you don't need to say anything more, I understand everything..."

Zhong Liqiu quietly asked many people, but no one knew about the fake young master. Her sister was in a hurry to go back, so she had no choice but to invite Pang Cong, the person she least wanted to see, to her home. She set out dishes and served wine for Pang Cong, who was flattered and kept looking Zhong Liqiu up and down with his eyes.

Zhong Liqiu poured him a full glass of wine and said, "General Pang, you have come to my house several times these days, and the neighbors have been talking about it. I hope that after you drink this wine, you will not come to see me again."

Pang Cong quickly looked away and said, "But I... didn't do anything to you..."

"Even so, I am a widow, and I am easily the subject of gossip."

"If you marry me, no one will gossip about you anymore."

"I am Gongsun Yue's woman, and I will never marry another man."

"Miss Zhongli, you are still young. There is no need for you to remain a widow for Gongsun Yue for the rest of your life."

"When Gongsun Yue was alive, he treated me with all his heart, and I cannot let him down."

Pang Cong said disdainfully, "Gongsun Yue is not devoted to you; he has other women outside."

Zhongli Qiu said sternly, "You are not allowed to slander Gongsun Yue. He is a gentleman who remains unmoved even with a woman in his lap and never gets involved with other women."

Pang Cong smiled and asked, "Do you know the beautiful princess that Gongsun Yue gave to the King of Qi?"

Zhong Liqiu said, "I've heard of him, but I don't know him."

"She was Gongsun Yue's woman before she entered the palace."

"No, she was the woman of Prince Jiao Shi of Qi before she entered the palace. Her name was Meiyu."

"After Gongzi Jiaoshi escaped from Linzi, she followed Gongsun Yue."

"You're lying. Meiyu didn't go with Gongsun Yue. She's been with Gongzi Jiaoshi the whole time."

Pang Cong said in a serious tone, "I'm not lying. When Gongsun Yue came to Wei to select beauties for the King of Qi, he told me in person that he didn't want to give the jade to the King of Qi. It was only because Wei had no woman who could surpass the jade that he had to reluctantly give it up for the sake of Wei."

Zhong Liqiu bit her lip tightly and said angrily, "That despicable woman... she deserves to die!"

Pang Cong stared intently at Zhong Liqiu and said, "Zhong Liqiu, the one who can truly be devoted to you is me... Marry me..."

Zhongli Qiu remained silent.

Pang Cong grabbed Zhong Liqiu's hand: "Zhong Liqiu..."

"What do you want to do?" Zhong Liqiu quickly withdrew his hand.

"I...I want you to marry me..." Pang Cong couldn't control himself. As he spoke, he reached out and dragged the table in front of him aside, leaning closer to Zhong Liqiu.

"Don't come any closer, don't come any closer..." Zhong Liqiu cried out in panic.

Pang Cong continued to move forward, her eyes, burning with lust, fixed on Zhong Liqiu.

Zhong Liqiu had already retreated to the base of the wall, unable to retreat any further. She looked at Pang Cong in terror and threatened, "If you dare touch me... I'll call for help..."

Pang Cong stopped in front of Zhong Liqiu and said sullenly, "Miss Zhongli, do you dislike me very much?"

Zhong Liqiu didn't know how to answer.

Pang Cong said magnanimously, "If you hate me, I'll leave immediately and never see you again..." He stood up and turned to leave.

Zhong Liqiu hurriedly said, "No, don't go..."

Pang Cong turned around and looked at her, saying, "You don't dislike me, right...?"

Zhong Liqiu was extremely unwilling, but she still said, "Yes..."

Pang Cong knelt down in front of Zhong Liqiu with a thud: "Miss Zhong Li, please marry me, I beg you..."

Zhong Liqiu composed herself and said, "General Pang, please take two steps back... let's talk calmly, okay?"

"Speak..." Pang Cong shifted her body back slightly.

"General Pang, this is the first time I've heard about Meiyu and Gongsun Yue... I find it hard to believe it's true..."

"Miss Zhongli, believe me, it's true..."

"General Pang, it's not that I don't trust you, but this matter concerns Gongsun Yue's reputation... I want to ask Prince Jiao Shi myself whether Meiyu was with Gongsun Yue when he left Linzi..."

Pang Cong sighed: "You can't ask Master Jiao anymore, he's already dead."

"You're lying to me again. Prince Jiaoshi is clearly still alive. He's in Maling, a border town of Qi."

"I'm not lying to you, he is indeed dead. The Prince Jiao Shi of Maling is an imposter. He was a minor official in the Qin army named Feng Cuo. He was captured by me during the Qin-Wei war. My uncle saw that he looked very much like Prince Jiao Shi and had him impersonate Prince Jiao Shi to oppose the King of Qi."

"Are you telling the truth?"

"I, Pang Cong, swear to the heavens: if I have uttered even half a lie, may I die without a burial place."

Zhong Liqiu looked at Pang Cong's serious expression and said, "Okay, I believe you."

"Miss Zhongli, will you agree to marry me now?"

"No. Marriage is a major life decision I can't make myself. I need to ask my sister."

"Your sister is far away in the State of Qi, how can you ask her?"

"I can send someone to deliver a message to her."

"Your sister hates my uncle, she won't approve of our marriage."

"Whether she agrees or not, as long as I've told her, that's enough."

Pang Cong was speechless for a moment, his burning eyes fixed on Zhong Liqiu's face, and said, "Miss Zhong Li, I don't want to wait even a day longer..."

"If you really want to marry me, you'd better wait. Otherwise, what you'll get is a dead body!" Zhong Liqiu's attitude was resolute, allowing no room for negotiation.

Pang Cong stared silently at Zhong Liqiu, finally letting out a long breath, and said, "Alright, I'll wait for you." He then stood up, "Miss Zhongli, farewell..."

Pang Cong left. Zhong Lichun came out of the inner room and went to Zhong Liqiu's side. Zhong Liqiu leaned her limp body against Zhong Lichun and said, "Sister, I'm so scared..."

When Zhong Lichun rushed back to Maling, the Empress Dowager had already arrived. Qin Hua had gone to great lengths to persuade her to come to Maling. Zhong Lichun reported the whole story of the fake prince to the Empress Dowager, who became furious before she even finished listening. She trembled with anger and shouted, "Shut up! Don't spout nonsense! There's absolutely no such thing!"

Zhong Lichun said, "Your Majesty, this is what Pang Cong said himself. Prince Jiao Shi of Maling is indeed not Your Majesty's biological son..."

"If you dare to talk nonsense again, I'll beat you to death!" the Empress Dowager said, raising her cane.

Qin Hua hurriedly stepped in front of the Empress Dowager to smooth things over, saying, "Empress Dowager, please don't be angry. The Queen is doing this for your own good. If you really take the fake prince for the real one, not only will the late king in the ancestral temple not forgive you, but you yourself will also regret it."

The Empress Dowager said matter-of-factly, "This old woman has no regrets."

"You don't regret having a fake son?" Zhong Lichun asked.

The Empress Dowager said, "That's impossible! There's no one in the world who looks so much like Jiao Shi!"

Qin Hua said, "Your Majesty, I remember you saying that the person General Tian killed was a bodyguard who looked exactly like Prince Jiao Shi. Wasn't that so-called bodyguard just someone who looked like Prince Jiao Shi?"

The Empress Dowager was speechless.

Sun Bin said, "Your Majesty, when the late King was on the throne, you assisted him, worked diligently to strengthen the state of Qi, and made Qi a powerful force among the feudal lords. But now Qi's strength has declined, and internal strife continues. We have failed the late King, and we have also failed the efforts you have made over the decades... Don't you feel any pain?"

The Empress Dowager said calmly, "This is not my fault; it is only because Pijiang is incompetent in governing the country."

"Governing a country cannot rely on just one monarch; it requires the collective effort of all of us, including Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."

The Empress Dowager remained silent.

Sun Bin said earnestly, "Your Majesty, Qi cannot continue to be in chaos. If it continues, not only will we fail to restore our national prestige, but we will also be destroyed by other countries... At that time, how will we face our ancestors..." Sun Bin looked at the Empress Dowager who was bowing her head and remaining silent, and continued, "Your Majesty, please forgive my bluntness, but if it were not for Your Majesty's intervention, Prince Jiaoshi's rebellion would not have continued to this day."

The Empress Dowager murmured, "But... this old woman cannot live without her son..."

"Your Majesty, he is not your son. He is just using your son's name. If he were truly your son, we would never kill him."

"He really is the old woman's son; he went to Linzi to see her..."

"Did the Empress Dowager meet with him in a dimly lit room?"

The Empress Dowager was taken aback and asked, "How did you know?"

Sun Bin said, "He did not leave that room when you parted ways."

"Who told you that?" The Empress Dowager was even more puzzled, as if Sun Bin were right there in the room.

"This is my speculation," Sun Bin said. "Empress Dowager, he is definitely not your biological son. He chose to meet you in a dimly lit place because he was afraid that you would see through his disguise."

"This is impossible..." the Empress Dowager mused.

Sun Bin said, "Your Majesty, I will arrange for you to meet again. Then you can take a closer look."

The Empress Dowager and the fake prince met again at the foot of Maling City. The fake prince stood on the high city wall, while the Empress Dowager sat in a carriage below, gazing at each other from afar. The Empress Dowager's old eyesight was failing, and she couldn't see the fake prince clearly from the city wall. Sun Bin had arranged things before she came, telling her not to look, but simply to ask the prince about his childhood. If he was real, he would know; if he didn't, then he was fake.

Tian Guo stood beside the Empress Dowager, holding a shield. He asked her, "Empress Dowager, what should we ask him first?"

The Empress Dowager thought for a moment and said, "Ask him at what age he stopped wetting the bed?"

Tian Guo shouted to the fake young master on the city wall, "Young Master Jiao Shi, listen up! The Empress Dowager is asking you how old you are before you wet the bed!"

The fake young master didn't know how to answer.

General Gao whispered from the side, "Just say that it's embarrassing to bring up this kind of thing in public, and ask her to ask something else instead."

The fake prince understood and called out to the people below the city, "Mother, how could I possibly say such a thing in public? Please ask something else."

"Your Majesty, he doesn't know," Tian Guo whispered to the Empress Dowager.

The Empress Dowager refused to believe that the young master Jiao Shi on the city wall truly didn't know. She muttered to herself, "Perhaps he's genuinely too embarrassed to ask..." After a moment's thought, she said to Tian Guo, "General Tian, ​​ask him again, 'At what age did you stop sleeping with an old woman?'"

Tian Guo shouted, "Young Master Jiao Shi, listen up! The Empress Dowager is asking you how old you are and why you don't sleep with her anymore!"

The fake instructor looked at General Gao beside him, bewildered, and asked, "How old are you?"

General Gao pondered deeply and said, "It seems to be after they grow up..."

"How old is she exactly?"

"I can't explain it either... just tell me..."

"Your Majesty, you saw it, didn't you?" Tian Guo said to the Empress Dowager, "He knows nothing and keeps asking General Gao."

The Empress Dowager's face gradually darkened.

The fake prince on the city wall repeated his old trick, loudly proclaiming, "Mother, why are you asking such a question again? It's laughable. Please ask something else."

"Your Majesty, what else do you want to ask him?" Tian Guo asked.

The Empress Dowager said with a gloomy face, "Ask him whether the old woman has a mole on her left or right arm."

Tian Guo shouted, "Young Master Jiao Shi, listen! The Empress Dowager is asking you whether the mole on her arm is on her left or right arm."

The fake young master then asked General Gao, "Is it the left arm or the right arm?"

General Gao shook his head and said, "I don't know either."

The fake young master was sweating profusely with anxiety and said, "What should we do?"

General Gao thought he had no choice but to take a gamble and said, "Let's leave it to fate. Just say it's the left arm."

The fake prince said loudly, "Mother, if I remember correctly, it was on your left arm."

The Empress Dowager gazed at the fake prince on the city wall and remained silent for a long time.

Tian Guo cautiously asked the Empress Dowager, "Empress Dowager, could it be that he guessed correctly?"

Tears streamed down the Empress Dowager's face as she murmured sadly, "He is not my son. My son is dead..."

Tian Guo shouted to the city wall, "The Empress Dowager said that you are not her son; her son is already dead."

A commotion broke out on and around the city wall.

General Gao hurriedly said to the fake young master, "Tell me quickly, I was wrong just now, this mole is on the right arm."

The fake prince hurriedly said loudly, "Mother, I misremembered. Your mole is on your right arm."

The Empress Dowager murmured, "This old woman doesn't have any moles on her arm at all..."

Tian Guo shouted, "The Empress Dowager said she doesn't have a mole on her arm at all!"

The fake young master panicked and asked General Gao, "General Gao, what should we do?"

General Gao steeled his resolve and ordered the soldiers around him, "Tell Wei Zhong to prepare to strike."

The imposter's true colors had been exposed, and Tian Guo dared not linger. He ordered his troops to retreat to their camp. The Empress Dowager tried to stop him, but Tian Guo said, "Empress Dowager, the truth has come to light. If we don't leave in time, they will resort to violence..."

The Empress Dowager said, "They dare not... General Tian, ​​you should tell that fake prince that if he can open the city gates and surrender, I can recognize him as my real son, and he can continue to be a prince."

Tian Guodao said, "Empress Dowager, he wouldn't..."

"Just say it like that."

Left with no other option, Tian Guo shouted loudly to the city wall, "Feng Cuo, listen up..."

The fake young master panicked and said, "General Gao, they even know my real name! What should we do?"

General Gao said, "Don't panic, let him continue."

Tian Guo continued speaking to those on the city wall: "The Empress Dowager said that although you are an imposter, as long as you surrender the city, she will still recognize you as her true son and allow you to continue being a prince. The Empress Dowager also promised to pardon everyone in Maling City..."

Wei Zhong hid behind a battlement, holding a stone in his hand, staring at the Empress Dowager below the city. Suddenly, he waved his hand, and the stone flew out with a whoosh.

Tian Guo, unable to use his shield in time, quickly pulled the Empress Dowager into his arms. The Empress Dowager, however, couldn't dodge the flying stone; it struck her arm. She cried out and fell onto the carriage…

The Empress Dowager's injuries were not too serious; she had only fainted from the pain. When she regained consciousness, it was already evening. She lay in her tent, slowly opened her eyes, and looked at Sun Bin and the others in front of her.

Sun Bin bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I am incompetent and failed to protect you. My sins are unforgivable!"

Tian Guo bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, it is this humble general who has committed an unforgivable crime..."

The Empress Dowager shook her head with difficulty and sighed, "You are all innocent. The one who is guilty is this old woman. I shouldn't have been unable to distinguish right from wrong and mistook the enemy for my son..." As she spoke, the Empress Dowager couldn't help but cry, "I didn't mean it. I was thinking of my son..." The Empress Dowager couldn't continue and wept bitterly.

Sun Bin, filled with remorse, said, "Your Majesty, I am deeply sorry. It was I who plotted to kill your own son..."

Tian Guo stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, it is I who have wronged you. Your own son was killed by me..."

The Empress Dowager shook her head again and said, "No, Jiao Shi wasn't killed by you; he killed himself..."

Tian Guo said, "Your Majesty, are you out of your mind? It is true that Prince Jiao Shi was killed by this humble general. This humble general is sorry for what happened to you..."

The Empress Dowager coughed a few times and said, "This old woman is not confused. Jiao Shi was killed by his own ambition... He... deserved to die..." When she finished saying the last few words, the Empress Dowager felt a deep sense of powerlessness.

A moment of silence fell over everyone.

At this moment, a general entered the tent and reported to Sun Bin that the morale of the army in Maling City was wavering, and many soldiers defending the city had abandoned it and fled.

The Empress Dowager wiped away her tears and said to Sun Bin, "Sun Bin, you must not let that fake prince go. We cannot allow him to continue impersonating my son's tutor and tarnishing my reputation!"

Sun Bin bowed and said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, this humble subject will never let him go!"

Note: "Removing the firewood from under the cauldron" is the nineteenth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems. This stratagem means solving a problem at its root, just as removing the burning firewood from under the cauldron is the only way to stop the water from boiling. Sun Bin publicly exposed the fake prince, causing the Empress Dowager to stop obstructing the suppression of the rebellion. This also caused the rebels' morale to waver, leading to their flight. The waters of rebellion in Qi were thus unable to boil any further. To find out what happens next, please read the next chapter: "Taking Advantage of the Situation."