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

The State of Qi finally dispatched its troops. Warhorses neighed, chariots rumbled, and the army stretched out in a vast, winding line. The Qi army entered Wei via the Maling Pass, located on Qi's border. The same Maling Pass had been used by the Qi army during the siege of Wei to relieve Zhao. Sun Bin had once said that this place could ambush thousands of troops, and that a battle must be fought there. Sun Bin sensed that this time, it was highly likely…

Upon learning that Sun Bin and Tian Ji had led an army of 300,000 to invade Wei and were advancing directly towards Daliang, Pang Juan ordered Crown Prince Shen to lead 100,000 troops, lightly armed, and to travel day and night to return to Daliang as quickly as possible. Pang Juan instructed Crown Prince Shen: "Sun Bin is cunning and treacherous. After you return to Daliang, regardless of whether Sun Bin advances or retreats, you must hold the city and not engage the Qi army in battle. We will fight them when I return with the main force."

When the Crown Prince of Han saw that the Wei army had begun to retreat, he deduced that the Qi army had already set out. He wanted to take the opportunity to leave the city and attack the Wei army, but the King of Han disagreed. He wanted the Wei army to leave smoothly and as quickly as possible.

Crown Prince Han asked, "Does Father mean that we should wait until the Wei army has fought against the Qi army before sending troops to join forces with Qi to defeat Wei?"

King Han smiled slightly and said, "I intend to sit back and watch the tigers fight, letting Qi and Wei fight to the death. If Wei is defeated, it will no longer be able to threaten my country."

"Sun Bin has penetrated deep into Wei territory and is in a disadvantageous position. If we do not send troops to help him, Pang Juan may win."

Even if Sun Bin is defeated, Pang Juan will be severely weakened and will be unable to threaten me for several years.

"But Sun Bin sent troops to Wei to save Han. If we don't send troops, the people of Qi will accuse us of being ungrateful."

The King of Han laughed dismissively, "There is no such thing as righteousness between states. Everyone is acting in their own self-interest. As long as I can ensure that my state is invincible, even if I am ungrateful, the people of the world will have no reason to criticize me."

When the Qi army arrived outside Daliang, Tian Ji led 100,000 troops to set up camp west of Daliang, pretending to intercept Pang Juan. Sun Bin commanded the remaining 200,000 troops to attack Daliang.

The siege was fierce; many Qi soldiers died beneath the walls of Daliang, yet not a single one scaled the city walls. The Wei soldiers' morale soared, a morale that also infected Crown Prince Shen. He requested King Hui of Wei's permission to send a surprise attack on Sun Bin's supply lines, arguing that without supplies, Sun Bin would be unable to continue fighting. King Hui refused, believing that it would be a great achievement for Crown Prince Shen to hold Daliang until Pang Juan returned.

Crown Prince Shen was at an age where he was competitive and ambitious. He went to the city wall and found Pang Cong, who was patrolling the city. Although the city wall had quieted down, traces of the fierce battle could still be seen everywhere.

Crown Prince Shen said to Pang Cong, "General Pang, do you dare to lead troops to attack Sun Bin's supplies?"

Pang Cong replied, "The marshal forbids us from leaving the city."

"I'm asking you if you dare."

"As long as I have the Marshal's order, I'm willing to go through fire and water."

"If the marshal were here, he would certainly have given this order."

"The Marshal would never give such an order. The enemy is strong and we are weak. If we leave our fortified city to attack Sun Bin, it would be like throwing an egg against a rock."

Crown Prince Shen said confidently, "It is precisely because the enemy is strong and we are weak that Sun Bin did not expect us to dare to go out of the city to attack his supplies. If we send troops, we will surely win by surprise."

"Your Highness's words are not without reason, but Sun Bin's camp and formation are flawless. If the attack fails, we will suffer heavy losses. Our military strength is already far inferior to Sun Bin's. If we suffer further losses, it will be extremely detrimental to the defense of Daliang." Pang Cong still held reservations.

Crown Prince Shen said with a stern face, "So, General Pang is unwilling to go?"

"Your Highness, I did this to protect the Great Liang."

Crown Prince Shen looked at Pang Cong and said, "General Pang, how about this, I will entrust the military power of Daliang to you, and I will lead five thousand men to secretly leave the city to attack Sun Bin. Even if the five thousand men are wiped out, it will not affect the defense of Daliang."

Pang Cong advised, "Your Highness, you must not take this risk. If you are unable to return, I will not be able to explain it to the King."

"I can leave you a handwritten letter explaining that this matter is none of your concern."

"Your Highness, it's not that I'm afraid of taking responsibility; I'm thinking of you. After the King enters the ancestral temple, the throne of Wei will belong to Your Highness. If you were to die on the battlefield at this time, wouldn't that be handing the throne over to someone else?"

"Marshal Pang once told me that as the crown prince, if I do not contribute to the state of Wei, I will not be able to make the princes and officials submit to me after my father enters the ancestral temple. Therefore, even if it means risking my life, I will strive to make contributions to the state of Wei."

"His Highness the Crown Prince has already rendered meritorious service to Wei by being held hostage in Han. There is no need for him to take this risk again."

"Any prince in the position of crown prince can be a hostage, but not every prince can achieve great things on the battlefield. Only by doing what the other princes cannot do can they submit to me."

"His Highness the Crown Prince's defense of Daliang is also a meritorious achievement on the battlefield."

Crown Prince Shen said disdainfully, "With strong cities and more than 100,000 brave and skilled soldiers, any prince could defend Daliang. But none of them dare to achieve a surprise victory against a powerful enemy, especially when Marshal Pang is not around. What I want to do is what they cannot do, and what I want to achieve is a feat they cannot accomplish."

Pang Cong pondered for a moment and said, "Since Your Highness has such ambition, then I have no choice but to go out of the city to fight on your behalf. However, Your Highness must agree to one condition."

"Speak."

"No matter what danger I encounter, even if my entire army is wiped out, Your Highness must not send troops to rescue me."

Crown Prince Shen hesitated and said, "This..."

Pang Cong said, "If Your Highness cannot agree, I will not attack, nor will I allow Your Highness to attack."

The Crown Prince said, "Alright, I agree... However, if there is no opportunity, General Pang must not act rashly."

Pang Cong said, "Your Highness, rest assured, I will never fight a losing battle."

That evening, Sun Bin sat alone in his tent, pondering how to minimize casualties while making the siege appear more intense. At that moment, two generals entered the tent, saying they had important matters to discuss with Sun Bin.

General A said, "Strategist, I remember you said that the best strategy is to attack the enemy's plans, the next best is to disrupt their alliances, the next best is to attack their army, and the worst is to besiege their cities."

Sun Bin said, "This is what is said in 'The Art of War'."

General B said, "The strategist also said that victory is the most important thing in war, not protracted battles."

"This is also mentioned in 'The Art of War'," Sun Bin glanced at them and said, "Are you saying this to persuade me to stop the siege?"

General A nodded and said, "That's right, strategist. We can't keep attacking like this; we're suffering too many casualties."

Sun Bin asked, "Then what do you suggest we do?"

General B said, "Withdraw from Daliang, lure the enemy out of the city, and annihilate them outside the city."

Sun Bin asked, "With Pang Juan not yet returned, would the Wei army dare to come out?"

General A said, "Even if the Wei army dares not leave the city, we cannot continue to attack it. If we fail to capture the city and become exhausted, we will be unable to defeat Pang Juan's army, which is about to return."

Sun Bin asked, "You mean to conserve your strength and wait for Pang Juan's return?"

General B said, "Yes."

Sun Bin laughed and said, "Your idea is good, but it will be difficult to defeat Pang Juan that way. We can only defeat Pang Juan if we fail to conquer the city and are exhausted."

The two generals exchanged puzzled glances. General A asked, "Strategist, can you explain this to us clearly?"

Sun Bin said, "Not now."

General B asked, "When can we do that?"

Sun Bin said, "After Pang Juan returns..."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Tian Guo hurriedly entered, his face filled with shame, and said to Sun Bin, "Strategist, due to my negligence, the Wei army attacked our grain storage camp, resulting in heavy losses of grain. I beg you to punish me."

Sun Bin's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed excitedly, "Good, well done!"

Tian Guo was taken aback, thinking he had misheard, and asked, "Strategist, what did you say?"

Sun Bin said, "I said it was good that the grain supplies were burned. The Wei people burned our grain supplies, so we don't have to attack the city, and by not attacking the city, we can avoid more casualties."

Everyone looked at Sun Bin with puzzlement.

After calming down, Tian Guo said, "Strategist, are you... trying to comfort me?"

"No." Sun Bin simply smiled mysteriously, offering no further explanation.

Pang Cong's raid on the Qi army's supplies was a resounding success. King Hui of Wei hosted a banquet in the palace to entertain Pang Cong and the generals who had participated in the battle, including Crown Prince Shen, the commander of the city's defenses. King Hui praised Pang Cong for his wisdom, resourcefulness, and extraordinary courage, saying that he had rendered Sun Bin unable to attack the city by setting it ablaze. Pang Cong humbly replied, "This is all due to Your Highness's wisdom. I was merely carrying out Your Highness's orders; therefore, the credit should go to Your Highness."

"Hey, the Crown Prince only said a few words. It was General Pang who made great contributions to our Wei Kingdom!" Crown Prince Shen felt very uncomfortable after hearing his father say this.

King Hui of Wei, hearing that the Qi army was looting grain outside the city to make up for their losses, discussed with Pang Cong whether they could launch another attack to stop the Qi army from seizing the grain. Pang Cong pondered for a moment and said, "My attack on Sun Bin's grain supply was successful because Sun Bin did not anticipate it. Now Sun Bin is prepared. If I attack again, not only will I find it difficult to win, but I am also likely to be completely annihilated. It is not that I am afraid of death, but Marshal Pang's main force has not returned. If the attacking army is wiped out, it will affect the morale of the defending troops."

Crown Prince Shen would not give up the opportunity to make a name for himself again. He said to King Hui of Wei, "Father, with Marshal Pang away, Sun Bin does not take us seriously. He would never expect us to dare to attack again, so we can still achieve a surprise victory. Please give the order, Father, I am willing to lead the army to attack."

King Hui of Wei pondered for a moment and said, "In matters of military strategy, I am not as capable as General Pang. You should discuss it with General Pang."

As dawn broke, morning mist drifted across the city walls. Prince Shen and Pang Cong once again ascended the walls of Daliang. Prince Shen gazed at the distant Qi army camps and pleaded with Pang Cong to allow him to leave the city and launch a surprise attack on the Qi forces.

Pang Cong said, "Your Highness, there is no need for you to take this risk."

Crown Prince Shen said with a stern face, "Is it necessary? Didn't you hear what my father said? I only used words, which means I haven't taken any action yet."

The young and impetuous crown prince was actually troubled by this matter. Pang Cong understood and comforted the crown prince, saying, "Your Majesty does not mean that. Your Majesty does not want to praise your son in front of others."

The crown prince declared, "Even if Your Majesty doesn't see it that way, others will. To win over the people, I must personally take action."

"Your Highness," Pang Cong said patiently, "winning the admiration of the people is not about one moment or one event. As the commander of the 100,000-strong army defending the city, Your Highness's ability to hold Daliang before Marshal Pang's army returns will already be remarkable."

Crown Prince Shen said dismissively, "This is nothing special. I've said it before, any prince could do it. But I want to do what they can't."

Seeing the Crown Prince's stubbornness, Pang Cong sighed helplessly and said, "Your Highness, you are too strong-willed. A general who is too strong-willed is easily manipulated by the enemy."

Prince Shen smiled confidently, "I'm not being stubborn, I'm confident. Sun Bin would never expect us to dare to attack again." Seeing that Pang Cong was about to speak, Prince Shen interrupted him directly, "Don't say any more. My mind is made up, and no one can change it... General Pang, I entrust the entire city defense army to you. If I encounter any danger, please do not come out of the city to rescue me."

Despite Pang Cong's objections, Crown Prince Shen led 5,000 men to attack the Qi army. Inside Sun Bin's tent, an attendant reported the Wei army's movements and asked if Sun Bin should stop them outside the city and annihilate them. Sun Bin replied, "Tell General Tian Guo to lead troops to intercept them, but pretend that you cannot stop them." As a result, the Wei army won once again. Watching the Qi soldiers scatter, Crown Prince Shen's face revealed a contemptuous and triumphant smile.

Afterwards, Tian Guo said to Sun Bin, "Strategist, the Wei people have returned to the city."

"Hmm." Sun Bin nodded. "Immediately order the army to attack the city."

"Didn't the strategist say we wouldn't attack the city?" Tian Guo asked, puzzled.

"The attack on the city at this time is to demonstrate our anger and humiliation."

The siege lasted from sunrise to sunset, and many more Qi soldiers fell beneath the walls of Daliang.

Upon hearing this, Pang Juan exclaimed with delight, "The mighty Sun Bin is utterly helpless against these two young upstarts, Pang Cong and Prince Shen!" Pang Juan ordered his 200,000-strong army, which had been resting and waiting for orders, to return home immediately. The reason he hadn't returned home with Prince Shen was precisely to wait for this day, to wait until Sun Bin's army was exhausted before engaging in a decisive battle.

Pang Juan's army was finally heading back to Daliang. Seeing that their goal had been achieved, Sun Bin and Tian Ji feigned fear and led their troops to withdraw from Daliang. Pang Juan, worried that Sun Bin was playing a trick, ordered someone to tell Crown Prince Shen of Daliang and Pang Cong that they must not pursue Sun Bin, but wait until Pang Juan arrived in Daliang before making a decision.

The Qi army retreated to Qi without hesitation. Tian Ji felt that Pang Juan, who had repeatedly fallen for traps, would not be fooled again this time. Sun Bin, however, confidently said that Pang Juan had repeatedly fallen for traps because he always overestimated himself, and that he would be no exception this time.

Upon arriving in Daliang, Pang Juan immediately ordered Pang Cong to inspect the Qi army's cooking stoves. Pang Cong quickly ascertained that the Qi army had a total of 100,000 cooking stoves across several camps. Pang Juan then reported to the Crown Prince, "100,000 cooking stoves can feed hundreds of thousands of soldiers. This indicates that Sun Bin has not suffered many losses. We must not underestimate the enemy."

Prince Shen said, "What if Sun Bin intentionally dug up more cooking stoves to mislead us?"

Pang Juan smiled and said, "He never expected that I would use the military mess hall to inspect his army."

Pang Cong asked, "Uncle, should we continue the pursuit?"

Pang Juan said, "Of course we must pursue him. Sun Bin has penetrated deep into Wei territory, which is the best opportunity for us to defeat him... Pang Cong, order the entire army to follow the Qi army closely, neither advancing rashly nor letting Sun Bin escape. In addition, send out small, elite troops to raid the Qi army's camps along the way, keeping them constantly on edge."

The Qi army, with their horses galloping swiftly, continued their retreat towards Qi. Tian Ji worried that Pang Juan wouldn't notice Sun Bin reducing the number of cooking fires every day, but Sun Bin laughed and said, "If he didn't notice, he wouldn't be Pang Juan."

Pang Juan indeed kept a close eye on the cooking stoves the Qi army had dug for their meals. When the Qi army still had 50,000 cooking stoves left, Crown Prince Shen believed that the Qi army's food supplies were rapidly dwindling, and that morale would inevitably waver. He thought the Wei army was ready to fight Sun Bin. Pang Juan, however, believed it was not the right time. He ordered the entire army to continue advancing according to the original plan.

Sun Bin's strategy of retreating without engaging in combat, coupled with the constant harassment from small groups of Wei troops, inevitably caused some impatience within the Qi army. Tian Guo said to Sun Bin, "Strategist, the soldiers are all asking me if we can stop retreating and fight the Wei people, to have a good, decisive battle."

Sun Bin responded, "We are leaving in order to fight. If we don't leave, we can't win this battle."

"How long are we going to go?"

"Until Pang Juan believed we were no match for us."

The Qi army was only one day's journey away from retreating into Qi territory. Pang Juan once again ordered Pang Cong to inspect the Qi army's cooking stoves. Crown Prince Shen could no longer contain himself and said to Pang Juan, "Sun Bin is about to enter Qi. If he does, it will be difficult for the Marshal to defeat him."

"He can't escape," Pang Juan remained confident.

Pang Cong returned excitedly and told Pang Juan that the Qi army still had 30,000 cooking stoves.

Upon hearing this, Pang Juan clapped his hands excitedly and exclaimed, "This is truly heaven's help!" He then asked Pang Cong, "Pang Cong, do you know why I had you check the military kitchens left behind by the Qi army wherever you went?"

Pang Cong thought for a moment and said, "Let's see how much grain the Qi army has left."

Pang Juan shook his head and said, "No, there is no food. Even cooking wild vegetables and animal meat requires a military kitchen."

"Why is that?"

"The decreasing number of military cooking stoves indicates that more and more soldiers are deserting. Now he still has 30,000 military cooking stoves left, which means that Sun Bin's soldiers number less than 100,000."

"I see," Pang Cong suddenly realized. "Uncle, I understand now."

Prince Shen said from the side, "Since Sun Bin's army is less than 100,000 men, they will surely hasten their retreat. Marshal, you must not let him escape."

Pang Juan sneered, "I told you, he can't escape." He ordered, "Your Highness, Pang Cong, I will lead 30,000 elite troops, lightly armed, to pursue Sun Bin. You will lead the main army to follow behind. This time, I will make sure Sun Bin suffers a crushing defeat and avenges his previous humiliation!"

Pang Juan led the vanguard of Wei troops relentlessly, chasing after Sun Bin until the sun was about to set. He had no intention of setting up camp or resting; he had only one belief: he must catch up with Sun Bin today.

As darkness fell, only a sliver of light remained on the distant western horizon, and the trees in the valley began to blur. Pang Juan's army entered the Maling Pass, never imagining that a vast net had already been laid out on the surrounding hillsides.

Several felled trees lay across the road, blocking the Wei army's path, each with a bloodstained longsword embedded in it. The army at the front halted, the soldiers looking uneasily at the blood-stained swords on the trees.

The general in the vanguard reported this to Pang Juan, who sneered, "Sun Bin is trying to scare us; he's afraid we'll catch up with him." He ordered the soldiers in front to immediately move the large tree and continue advancing.

The Wei soldiers carefully pulled the bloodstained sword from the tree and were about to move the tree when a shout came from the roadside: "Look, there are words here, words left by the Qi people."

A large piece of bark had been scraped off a big tree by the roadside, revealing writing on the white trunk.

Several soldiers stopped moving the tree, surrounded it, and examined it, but they couldn't make out the words on the trunk.

The general at the front walked over and shouted to the soldiers, "What are you looking at? Quickly clear the trees from the road!"

The soldier said, "General, there are words here, written by people from the State of Qi."

The general leaned forward and looked at it for a moment.

"What does it say?" a soldier asked.

The general squinted, still unable to see clearly, and said, "It's pitch black, I can't see anything... Let's go, let's go, we don't want to look anymore!"

At this moment, Pang Juan walked over and said to the general, "I want to see what the people of Qi have written."

The general ordered the soldiers to light several torches. The soldiers carried the torches to the tree, and the torchlight illuminated the words on the tree:

Pang Juan died under this tree; his strategist Sun Bin

Pang Juan's expression changed drastically after reading it.

The general ordered the soldiers beside him, "Quickly, scrape off the words on the tree!"

Before he finished speaking, countless arrows flew down from the hill, and a wave of soldiers fell, struck by arrows.

Pang Juan was also struck by several arrows. Gazing at the hills rising into the night, he sighed and cried out, "I've fallen for Sun Bin's trick again!"

Another volley of arrows flew down from the hill, several of them striking Pang Juan. He swayed, drew his sword, and braced himself. A general and several soldiers with shields rushed to Pang Juan, shielding him between them.

The general said, "Marshal, we'll protect you and get you out of here."

Pang Juan broke off the arrow that had struck his chest and said, "We can't get out..."

The general said, "Marshal, we can get out of here. The people of Qi are no match for us; they have never defeated us in a face-to-face battle."

Pang Juan sighed again, muttering, "That's the past... From now on, the State of Wei is finished..." He then threw his head back and burst into wild laughter: "Sun Bin, you brat, today, because of me, you've finally become famous throughout the land!"

After laughing, Pang Juan suddenly swung his sword and stabbed it into his abdomen... His body slowly fell to the ground, the sound of it hitting the ground was heavy, like a mountain falling.

……

The sun rose, illuminating the valley, which was littered with the scattered corpses of Wei soldiers. Sun Bin silently knelt before Pang Juan, gently wiping the blood from his face, doing so carefully and meticulously. Tian Ji stood silently by, waiting for him. At this moment, a Qi general approached and said to Sun Bin, "Strategist, the Wei army has been utterly defeated by us. Pang Cong and Crown Prince Shen have been captured by General Tian."

Sun Bin simply grunted in response and continued carefully wiping the blood from Pang Juan's face until the last trace was gone. He then straightened Pang Juan's clothes and tied up his marshal's cloak. Tian Ji, standing nearby, asked, "Can we carry him away now?" Sun Bin slowly stood up and nodded. Tian Ji gestured, and several soldiers came over, lifted Pang Juan's body, and carefully placed him on a carriage, which then drove along the valley.

Sun Bin gazed at the departing carriage for a long time...

After the Battle of Maling, the State of Wei gave Pang Juan a grand funeral, and King Hui of Wei promised to maintain eternal peace with the State of Qi.

Sun Bin was leaving, and Master Guigu asked him to resign from his official post and leave Linzi. He left behind his transcribed copy of "The Art of War" in the State of Qi, as Master Guigu had instructed him to do so. In addition, he also left behind his insights and reflections compiled during his years of campaigns, which were later edited by scholars into a military treatise, which is today's "Sun Bin's Art of War".

Zhongli Chun was also leaving. She asked the King of Qi for a fiefdom, intending to raise Xiao Chunqiu together with her younger sister Zhongli Qiu on her fiefdom.

On the day Sun Bin left, Zhong Lichun, Zhong Liqiu, and Xiao Chunqiu went to see him off. They watched as Sun Bin's carriage slowly disappeared into the horizon, until all that remained in their sight was the earth, the sun, and the sky.

Note: "Retreat is the best policy" is the last of the Thirty-Six Stratagems. It means to retreat in a planned and proactive manner, using retreat as a means of advance to find an opportunity to annihilate the enemy. This strategy is considered the best in warfare. Sun Bin used this strategy of retreating while engaging in battle, luring Pang Juan to the Maling Pass and annihilating him in one fell swoop, writing a brilliant chapter in the history of ancient Chinese warfare.

Note 1: When *The Art of War* was all the rage, a claim circulated that it was written by Sun Bin. This claim was finally corrected when a batch of bamboo slips, including both *The Art of War* and *Sun Bin's Art of War*, were unearthed from the No. 1 Western Han Dynasty tomb at Yinqueshan, Linyi County, Shandong Province in 1972. Strictly speaking, there were two military strategists named "Sun Tzu" and their representative works in the pre-Qin period. The *Book of Han, Treatise on Literature* lists *The Art of War of Wu* and *The Art of War of Qi* to distinguish them, although there is an inherent connection between the two in their thought and theory. But that's a story for another time.

Note 2: The Thirty-Six Stratagems was compiled by later generations based on the strategic battles between Sun Bin and Pang Juan, as well as many famous battles in ancient China. Most of the stories in this book are based on the essence of the strategies in the Thirty-Six Stratagems and are not the original historical accounts. This is hereby stated.