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

General Fei only acted on his own initiative twice in his battles against Sun Bin. The first time was at Chenggao in Han, where he fell for Sun Bin's "Empty City Stratagem." The second time was this recapture of Chui Du. According to his calculations, this time should be foolproof. As long as Zhongli Chun was surrounded, even if he lost Maling and the Qi rebels, it would still be a victory. But he was wrong again. He received Pang Juan's order when he was almost at Chui Du. It was too late to turn the tide, so he could only continue his blunder and try to recapture Chui Du before Pang Juan arrived, hoping to make amends for his mistake.

As dawn broke, General Fei's army arrived at Chui Du. The Qi army had just left, and his general asked him whether to pursue the Qi people. General Fei looked at the morning mist ahead and realized he no longer had the courage to fight Sun Bin. He decided to let the Qi people leave.

The Wei army soon arrived at Chui Du. General Fei apologized to Pang Juan, who said to him with a gloomy face, "General Fei, do you know why I cannot forgive you this time?"

General Fei said guiltily, "I know, I left Maling without permission and ruined the Marshal's grand plan."

Pang Juan said, "No, you didn't chase after Zhong Lichun."

General Fei lowered his head and said, "I'm afraid of falling into Sun Bin's trap again..."

Pang Juan said in a deep voice, "It is not terrible to be defeated by Sun Bin, but to develop a fear of him in our hearts. Once this fear spreads throughout the army, we will never be able to defeat Sun Bin."

General Fei realized his mistake, but it was too late; Pang Juan executed him on the spot.

Pang Cong said to Pang Juan, "Uncle, we cannot give up now. We should march on Maling and fight Sun Bin to the death!"

Pang Juan shook his head and said, "This is not the time for a decisive battle. The Qi army has already rested and regrouped. If we fight within Qi territory, it will be very difficult to win."

"Then...when and where can we finally have a decisive battle with Sun Bin?"

"Lure Sun Bin away from Qi and engage him in a decisive battle within Wei territory."

"How does Uncle plan to get Sun Bin to leave the State of Qi?"

"Invade South Korea."

The Wei envoy, Zhao Dafu, arrived in the capital of Han with valuable gifts to pay respects to the King of Han. He first conveyed the King of Wei's greetings and expressed the friendship between the two countries. Then, he proposed to bring back Crown Prince Shen of Wei to visit the ailing King of Wei. The King of Han was reluctant to let Crown Prince Shen return. He knew that if the prince returned, Wei would surely invade Han. However, the bond between mother and son was strong, and he did not want to offend Wei again. Therefore, he summoned his court officials to discuss a solution. The Left Grand Master told the King of Han that he had a plan that would both avoid offending Wei and allow Crown Prince Shen to remain in Han.

The Left Physician selected several alluring beauties and specially invited Prince Shen to drink and watch a dance. The beauties wore short clothes and were bare-chested and bare-legged, dancing gracefully with provocative movements, but Prince Shen was not paying attention.

The physician thought that Crown Prince Shen was not satisfied with these beauties. Crown Prince Shen shook his head, sighed and said, "Physician Zuo, to tell you the truth, my mother is seriously ill. As her son, I cannot return to the country to visit her. Instead, I am drunk and singing a thousand miles away. People will say that I am disloyal and unfilial."

The Grand Physician Zuo comforted him, saying, "His Highness the Crown Prince came to Han as a hostage, which enabled Wei and Han to become friends. This is the greatest loyalty. The Crown Prince is unable to return to visit his mother for the sake of the country. This is the greatest filial piety. How can you say he is disloyal or unfilial?"

Crown Prince Shen said emotionally, "A man can have many wives in his life, but he only has one mother. If Mother falls ill and never recovers, how can I repay her for raising me?" Crown Prince Shen's eyes were a little moist. "Grand Physician Zuo, please put in a good word for me with the King of Han and let me go back, so that I can fulfill my filial duty as a son, okay?"

Seeing his condition, the Left Physician could say nothing more and promised to report to the King of Han.

After the Left Physician left, the Zhao Physician from Daliang advised Crown Prince Shen to accept the beautiful woman, saying that Marshal Pang had a clever plan. Crown Prince Shen said he couldn't force a smile and enjoy a banquet with the woman. The Zhao Physician said he had to pretend, not only for himself but also for the sake of Wei.

Doctor Zuo then selected several more alluring and seductive Korean beauties, whose dance moves were even more provocative. Prince Shen, forcing himself to remain focused, watched the beauties dance with great interest and kept them at the guesthouse.

That evening, the music ended and the audience dispersed. The lead dancer remained. She knelt on Prince Shen's bed, spread out the quilt, then removed her outer garment and lay down on her side. Prince Shen entered, saw the beauty on the bed, and his anger flared. He glared at her and shouted, "Get out!"

The beautiful woman lay motionless on the couch, her face alluring as she giggled, "Your Highness, my humble body has a hundred advantages. After you've enjoyed it, you won't send me away..."

"If you don't leave, I'll kill you." Prince Shen drew his sword, his face filled with murderous intent.

The beautiful woman's expression changed instantly; she quickly put on her coat and went outside.

Doctor Zhao walked in and exclaimed to Prince Shen, "Oh dear, why did you chase away such a beautiful woman?"

"I can't stand it," Prince Shen said, his brow furrowed in disgust. "I can't stand the Koreans' dirty tricks!"

Doctor Zhao advised, "You have to endure it whether you can or not; this is a case of turning the tables on them."

Crown Prince Shen, agitated, sternly questioned Doctor Zhao: "How would you feel if you couldn't go home to see your seriously ill mother? If you had any humanity left, how could you force a smile and be with a beautiful woman? Besides, the person who sent the woman was clearly up to no good... You've come up with this scheme against me!"

Doctor Zhao smiled and said, "Your Highness, please don't get agitated..."

The crown prince angrily retorted, "How can I not be agitated? You can ask me to feign a smile, drink wine, and watch dances in public, but can the intimacy between a man and a woman be faked? I can't fake it!"

Doctor Zhao turned and walked to the door, closed it, and returned to Crown Prince Shen. He whispered, "Your Highness, the Queen is not ill at all. I did this so that you would leave Han."

Crown Prince Shen was taken aback, but quickly understood and complained, "You should have told me sooner; you shouldn't have made me so anxious."

Doctor Zhao laughed and said, "If the Crown Prince is not in a hurry, the Koreans will suspect that the Queen's illness is fake, and the Marshal's next plan will not be able to convince the Koreans."

"I can pretend to be anxious..."

"The Crown Prince is honest and straightforward, and has never been good at pretending. The Marshal is worried that you won't be able to pull it off." Doctor Zhao smiled. "I think the Marshal's worries are not unfounded. I had the Crown Prince force a smile when he was with the beautiful women, and he didn't do it well."

"Who says he doesn't look like one? If he can't even sleep with a woman properly, is he even a man?" Crown Prince Shen's expression immediately changed, and he clapped his hands. A servant pushed open the door and entered, saying, "Your Highness, what are your orders?"

"Go, immediately call that beautiful woman who just left and have her spend the night with me."

From then on, Crown Prince Shen spent his days and nights with beautiful women, never mentioning returning home again. The Wei envoy feigned great anger and prepared to leave Han. The Left Minister specially presented him with a pile of extremely valuable jewels. The Zhao Minister greatly admired the jewels and said to the Left Minister, "Left Minister, isn't this gift too heavy?"

Doctor Zuo laughed and said, "It depends on how you put it. If Doctor Zhao returns to his country and doesn't mention that King Han refused to release the Crown Prince, but only says that the Crown Prince is infatuated with beautiful women, then this gift will not only be insignificant, but rather trivial."

Doctor Zhao gladly accepted the pearl, and Doctor Zuo thought his mission was accomplished.

Days passed, and the Koreans had forgotten about Prince Shen's return. On this day, as Prince Shen was frolicking with his Korean beauties in the guesthouse, Pang Cong, who had traveled a long way, barged in with several guards.

Pang Cong said to Crown Prince Shen, "Your Highness is indulging in beauty and refusing to return to the country to visit the ailing Queen. This is a great act of treason. His Majesty is furious and has specially ordered me to come and urge Your Highness to return to the country. If Your Highness still refuses to return, I will have no choice but to take Your Highness's head back with me." He took out three bamboo slips and presented them to Crown Prince Shen. "Your Highness, these are His Majesty's decrees. Please take a look."

When Pang Cong entered, the Left Physician was also in the guesthouse, observing Pang Cong and Crown Prince Shen discreetly.

Crown Prince Shen reached out a trembling hand to take the edict, glanced at it, and said to Pang Cong, "General Pang, you can't kill me..."

Pang Cong snorted coldly and said, "I can spare your life, but you must return to the country with me."

Crown Prince Shen turned around and said to the Left Grand Physician standing behind him, "Left Grand Physician, please help me. I don't want to die. Please beg King Han to let me go back."

The physician remained calm and slowly said, "Your Highness, it is your own fault that you do not wish to leave..."

Prince Shen said anxiously, "I want to leave now..." He knelt before the Left Physician, tears streaming down his face, "Please help me, Left Physician... I don't want to die, I can't die..."

The Left Physician said, "Your Highness, it's not that I don't want to help, but the opportunity has already passed. If you bring up the matter of returning to the country now, I'm afraid my lord will not agree."

Pang Cong sternly addressed the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, a true man is courageous and responsible. There is no need to grovel before the people of Han." He drew his sword. "Your Highness, stand up and show these people of Han that the people of Wei are true men."

Prince Shen did not stand up. He looked at the Left Physician with pleading eyes and said, "Left Physician, are you really unwilling to help?"

The Left Physician said, "Your Highness, I am truly powerless to help."

Crown Prince Shen sighed deeply, stood up, and said bitterly to the Left Physician, "Left Physician, from the very beginning you used beautiful women to bewitch me, making me bear the reputation of disloyalty and filial impiety. Now that the King wants to execute me, you are abandoning me. Are you deliberately trying to kill me?"

Dr. Zuo looked at him without saying a word.

Pang Cong said, "Your Highness, don't blame others for misleading you; blame yourself for forgetting filial piety." He then said to the Left Physician, "Left Physician, please step back a few steps so that the blood doesn't splatter on you."

Doctor Zuo took a few steps back, his eyes fixed on Pang Cong.

Pang Cong slowly raised his sword and said to the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, I have been impolite."

Just as Pang Cong was about to strike with his sword, the Left Grand Physician rushed forward and grabbed Pang Cong's sword-wielding hand, saying, "General Pang, you can't kill him! I will definitely persuade the Emperor to let His Highness the Crown Prince return."

The Left Grand Physician reported to King Han that Pang Cong intended to kill Crown Prince Shen. King Han was unsure how to proceed. The Senior Physician Shen advised King Han to ignore Pang Cong, saying that Pang Cong was merely bluffing and that Crown Prince Shen was King Wei's most favored son, whom King Wei would not actually kill. The Grand Physician Sima suggested that King Han outwardly ignore the matter but secretly send people to monitor Pang Cong. If Pang Cong did indeed kill Crown Prince Shen, he could be arrested on the spot on charges of assassination. King Han adopted the Grand Physician Sima's advice.

Two days later, Pang Cong and his guards returned to the guesthouse, urging Crown Prince Shen to return to the country with him. Crown Prince Shen said that the Left Grand Master had failed to persuade the King of Han, and he asked Pang Cong to wait a few more days.

Pang Cong drew his sword and threatened Crown Prince Shen, saying, "I can wait, but the King will not allow me to wait. If you don't leave, I will have no choice but to kill you!"

The door to the guesthouse was suddenly pushed open, and South Korean soldiers swarmed in, surrounding Pang Cong and his guards.

Pang Cong glanced at the South Korean soldiers and said, "This is none of your business, South Koreans. Get out!"

The Grand Physician Zuo walked in slowly and said, "General Pang, you are wrong. His Highness the Crown Prince is a hostage of our Han state. If you want to kill a hostage, we cannot stand idly by."

Pang Cong sneered, "Doctor Zuo, I didn't kill a hostage, but a disloyal and unfilial traitor."

Dr. Zuo smiled slightly and said, "It's all the same... General Pang, in order to protect the hostages, I have to apologize to you..." He then ordered the surrounding South Korean soldiers, "Arrest them."

Just as the South Korean soldiers were about to step forward, Pang Cong suddenly grabbed Prince Shen, placed a sword against his neck, and said to the South Korean soldiers, "If you dare to arrest me, I will kill him right now."

The South Korean soldiers stopped in their tracks.

Crown Prince Shen looked at Pang Cong in terror and pleaded with the Left Grand Physician, "Left Grand Physician, please save me..."

The Grand Physician Zuo remained calm and said, "Your Highness, do not panic. He would not dare to kill you."

Pang Cong sneered, "With the King's order, there's nothing I wouldn't dare to do!"

He pressed down hard on the sword in his hand, and blood slowly flowed from Prince Shen's neck.

Crown Prince Shen cried out in agony, "Grand Physician Zuo, tell him to stop! Tell him to stop..."

The Left Physician feigned composure and said, "General Pang, you killed Crown Prince Shen, so you won't live either... Release the Crown Prince."

Pang Cong coldly laughed and said, "If I release the Crown Prince, I will be disobeying the king's orders, and I will surely die upon returning. Rather than be executed by the king upon returning, I would rather die a glorious death here. Dying at your hands will not only make me famous throughout the world, but it will also provide my uncle with an excuse to attack Han. He will make all of Han pay for my death!"

Dr. Zuo was speechless.

Crown Prince Shen pleaded again, "Grand Physician Zuo, we've been friends, you can't let him kill me, you must save me..."

After a moment of silence, Doctor Zuo had no choice but to order the soldiers, "You may leave."

The soldiers withdrew one after another.

Doctor Zuo said to Pang Cong, "Tell me your conditions."

Pang Cong said, "I already told you last time to take him back."

"I need time to persuade the king."

"I've already given you two days."

Give me two more days.

Pang Cong gave no room for negotiation, saying, "One day."

Doctor Zuo glanced at the sword in Pang Cong's hand and said, "Alright, one day it is."

Pang Cong said, "Furthermore, I will stay with His Highness the Crown Prince. My guards will be stationed at the guesthouse, and Korean soldiers will not be allowed to enter again."

"You don't trust us."

"First be a petty person, then a gentleman."

"Okay, I promise."

Pang Cong released the crown prince, who collapsed to the ground as if paralyzed.

The Left Grand Master's attempt backfired, infuriating the King of Han, who berated him as being even dumber than a pig. The King of Han then summoned the court's key officials again to discuss how to handle the matter.

Doctor Shen said, "Doctor Zuo shouldn't have been so clever as to use a honey trap. If he had directly rejected Wei's request, we wouldn't be in this mess now."

The King of Han was unwilling to discuss the matter of the beautiful woman again, even though he had previously strongly supported the honey trap. He said to Doctor Shen, "Let's not dwell on the past. What do you suggest we do now?"

Doctor Shen said, "I still hold the same idea: ignore them."

The physician said, "We can't ignore it. Pang Cong has already struck Prince Shen on the neck. Didn't you see? Blood is flowing freely, and Prince Shen fainted on the spot."

"Isn't he still alive?"

"He didn't die this time, but Pang Cong will definitely kill him next time."

"Pang Cong wouldn't do that, he's threatening us..."

King Han interrupted Minister Shen, saying, "What if Pang Cong really kills Crown Prince Shen? I summoned you here to find a way to prevent Crown Prince Shen from dying, but also to prevent him from leaving."

Doctor Shen said, "Your Majesty, if we ignore them, Prince Shen will neither die nor be able to escape."

The King of Han asked, "What if he dies?"

Doctor Shen said, "This humble servant will die with him."

The King of Han's face darkened. "That's nonsense," he said. "Do you think you can bring him back to life just by dying?" He then asked the Grand Master Sima, "Grand Master Sima, what good idea do you have?"

Sima Dafu said, "Your Majesty can send troops to surround the guesthouse and force Pang Cong to release the people."

The physician said, "Pang Cong is not afraid of death; forcing him won't work."

Sima Dafu smiled slightly and said, "My goal is not really to get him to release the person. If I force him like this, he will definitely do it if he really wants to kill Crown Prince Shen; if it's a lie, the truth will come out."

The King of Han asked, "What if Pang Cong really kills Crown Prince Shen?"

Sima Dafu glanced at Zuo Dafu and Shen Dafu, then said to King Han, "Your Majesty, I wish to speak to you privately."

Following Sima Dafu's plan, General Wu led the Han soldiers to surround Crown Prince Shen's guesthouse. Crown Prince Shen was understandably panicked and asked Pang Cong, "General Pang, what should we do?"

Pang Cong remained calm and said, "Your Highness, there is no need to panic. I have a plan."

General Wu barged in with more than ten soldiers and said to Pang Cong without any politeness, "General Pang, please hand over Crown Prince Shen."

Pang Cong smiled and said, "So, the King of Han doesn't agree to let His Highness the Crown Prince return with me?"

"Yes."

"Do you know that if he cannot return to his country, I will kill him?"

"I know, Dr. Zuo told me everything."

Pang Cong drew his sword.

General Wu's soldiers also drew their swords.

Pang Cong's guards drew their swords almost simultaneously.

General Wu said to his soldiers: "We are here to demand people, not to fight. Put your swords away."

General Wu's soldiers sheathed their swords.

Pang Cong said to his guards, "You should also put away your swords. I don't want to see you fighting each other."

Pang Cong's guards also sheathed their swords.

General Wu said, "General Pang, it's time to put your sword away."

Pang Cong smiled and said, "My sword is different from theirs; it is used to carry out the orders of my lord." As he spoke, he suddenly turned around and thrust at Crown Prince Shen.

Pang Cong's sword pierced deeply into Prince Shen's abdomen, blood splattering everywhere. Prince Shen cried out, clutching his stomach, glaring at Pang Cong with resentment and anger, gasping, "General Pang, you..."

Pang Cong drew his sword, wiped the blood off it, and said, "Your Highness, please don't blame me. It was the Koreans who forced me to kill you."

Crown Prince Shen raised his blood-stained hand and pointed tremblingly at Pang Cong: "I...I won't let him go..." Before he could finish speaking, he collapsed to the ground.

Pang Cong sheathed his sword and said to General Wu, "General Wu, you may take His Highness the Crown Prince away now."

General Wu, who was still in a daze, came to his senses and was about to step forward when Pang Cong blocked his way again, saying, "Wait."

Pang Cong walked to Prince Shen's side, reached out and tested his nose, then turned to General Wu: "General Wu, he is not dead yet, I cannot give it to you..." As he spoke, he drew his sword again.

Just then, someone outside shouted, "General Pang, spare his life!"

Pang Cong looked up and saw Doctor Sima and a Korean imperial physician quickly enter the room.

Sima Dafu glared angrily at General Wu and his men, asking, "Who sent you?"

General Wu replied, "Grand Master Zuo."

"Dr. Zuo has no authority to mobilize the army!"

"He said it was the king's order..."

"He's falsely conveying the king's order." The Grand Master Sima drew his edict and said sternly, "The king's order is here; get out!"

General Wu glanced at the order in Sima Dafu's hand, said "Yes," and led his soldiers away.

Sima bowed to Pang Cong and said with a smile, "General Pang, His Majesty has agreed to let His Highness the Crown Prince return to the country." He turned to the imperial physician and said, "Imperial Physician, quickly treat His Highness the Crown Prince's injuries."

Pang Cong blocked the imperial physician with his sword and said to the Grand Physician Sima, "You can't fool me. The King of Han won't change his mind so quickly."

Sima Dafu said, "General Pang, it's not that His Majesty is quick-witted, it's just that..." He looked around at the people and said, "Save the Crown Prince first, I'll explain to you later."

Pang Cong hesitated.

Sima Dafu said anxiously, "General Pang, I will not deceive you. If Crown Prince Shen dies, it will not be of any benefit to our Han state."

Pang Cong sheathed his sword and said, "Fine, I'll believe you this time. If you lie to me again, I can kill him again."

The imperial physician came before Crown Prince Shen, examined his eyes, and said to the Grand Physician Sima, "Grand Physician Sima, it's not too late."

Sima Dafu breathed a sigh of relief, then pulled Pang Cong aside and whispered, "General Pang, to be honest, Zuo Dafu is a spy planted in Han by Sun Bin."

Pang Cong was taken aback and asked, "Do you have any evidence?"

Sima Dafu nodded: "Sun Bin bribed him when he was in Han. Later, Sun Bin sent a spy from Qi with a secret letter to him, promising to recommend him to the King of Qi as prime minister. Zuo Dafu had been eyeing the position of prime minister of Han for a long time, but my lord never agreed. He was resentful about this, so he went to Sun Bin."

"Seeking refuge with Sun Bin did not end well."

"General Pang is right," said Sima Dafu. "Regarding the matter of Crown Prince Shen returning to the country, Zuo Dafu has been interfering. He said that Queen Wei was not sick at all, and that Marshal Pang was using the excuse of taking back the hostages to invade Han."

"He's lying," Pang Cong said angrily.

"General Pang, please calm down. I know he is lying... His aim is to sow discord between the states of Han and Wei, causing us to fight each other so that Sun Bin can reap the benefits."

"Then why didn't you discover his plot sooner?"

"None of us expected that Dr. Zuo would betray the interests of Korea for fame and fortune. It is thanks to General Pang that we have seen his true colors."

Pang Cong was taken aback and said, "I didn't do anything."

Sima Dafu said, "General Pang was ordered to kill Crown Prince Shen. The king sensed something was amiss and ordered me to investigate secretly. I finally found evidence that Zuo Dafu had sided with Sun Bin. When Zuo Dafu saw that things were about to be exposed, he used the king's orders to mobilize troops to force Crown Prince Shen to be killed... Fortunately, I arrived in time, otherwise, we would have had no way to defend ourselves against General Pang."

"So, what does the King of Han intend to do with the Left Grand Physician?"

"Execute the Left Grand Master, and send someone with his body to accompany the General to the State of Wei to plead guilty to the King of Wei."

Although Pang Cong found it amusing, he remained expressionless and said, "If that's the case, I can trust you."

The Left Grand Master was executed by the King of Han. Pang Cong finally returned to Wei with the injured Crown Prince Shen. Pang Juan mocked the Han people for being too clever for their own good. He then mobilized his army to prepare to attack Han. In order to lull the King of Han into a false sense of security, he had Pang Cong send someone to tell the King of Han that the King of Wei was very angry about Sun Bin's bribing of spies to sow discord between Han and Wei, and was determined to use Wei's elite troops to attack Qi.

Upon hearing the news that Wei was about to attack Qi, the King of Han believed his plan had succeeded and that Han could now rest easy. The Grand Master Sima, standing nearby, laughed and said, "Your Majesty can not only rest easy, but also watch from the sidelines and reap the benefits."

Note: The "Self-Sacrifice Stratagem" is the thirty-fourth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems. It involves using a seemingly "unnatural" self-sacrifice to deceive the enemy. Pang Juan used this stratagem to fool the king and his ministers of Han, allowing Crown Prince Shen to leave the country. To find out what happens next, please read the next chapter: "Watching the Fire from Across the River."