The Old Horse Knows the Way: During the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Huan of Qi, at the request of Yan, led an army to defeat the invasion of Shanrong; the king of Shanrong, Milu, fled to the state of Liaozhu to ask for help, and Guanzhong followed Duke Huan of Qi to defeat the reinforcements from the state of Liaozhu. On the way back to his country, the Qi army was stranded when a false guide led them into a lost valley. Guan Zhong suggested to use an old horse to lead the way, but the danger was solved.
Bearing a Bramble: During the Warring States period, there were two important ministers in the state of Zhao, Lian Po and Lin Xiangru. Because Lin Xiangru had made many meritorious achievements, the king of Zhao appointed him as a minister of the state of Zhao, and Lian Po was not convinced that his own martial arts skills overshadowed his mouth. Lin Xiangru for the sake of the country, to Lian Po many times to avoid, Lian Po learned of his good intentions after shame, then carrying thorns, to the door of the house of Lin Xiangru to ask for forgiveness, from then on the two reconciled, become the same life **** death friendship.
Paper: During the Warring States period, Zhao She, the son of the famous general of the Warring States, Zhao Kuo, was well read in military books, and could talk about the way of war, even his father could not defeat him, and he thought he was invincible. Zhao Xie thought he was just talking on paper and didn't know the transportation. Later, Zhao She died, Zhao Kuo replaced Lian Po to lead the army, Lin Xiangru and others strongly opposed, the king of Zhao insisted, Zhao Kuo lost 400,000 soldiers in the battle of Changping.
The Three Orders: Sun Wu was living in exile in Wu. The king of Wu wanted to test Sun Wu's military skills, so he gave 180 young courtesans to Sun Wu for training. Sun Wu divided the courtesans into two teams and made the king's favorite concubine the captain. After Sun Wu explained the orders to the courtesans, he beat the drum and passed the order to the courtesans, who laughed and the team was in chaos. Sun Wu gave the order again, but the court ladies just thought it was funny and did not listen to the order. Sun Wu said that since the order had been understood and disobeyed, this was the crime of the leader, and ordered the two captains to be executed. The king of Wu hurriedly called for an order not to kill the princesses, but Sun Wu still killed the two princesses. Then, Sun Wu re-drilled the court ladies, and this time no one dared disobey the order.
Surrounding Wei to Save Zhao: During the Warring States period, Wei army besieged Handan, the capital of Zhao. Zhao asked for help from Qi, and King Wei of Qi ordered Tian Ji to be the general and Sun Bin to be the military counselor to send troops to save Zhao. Tian Ji wanted to lead his troops to save Zhao's Handan, Sun Bin advocated to lead his troops to besiege Wei's capital city, Daliang, and Wei would return to save themselves, so that not only the Zhao's siege could be lifted, but also the Wei army could be fatigued. Tian Ji adopted Sun Bin's strategy and led his troops straight to Daliang. Upon hearing the news, Wei army hurriedly withdrew their troops from the siege of Handan and returned to rescue Daliang by night and day. When they arrived at Guiling, Qi army was waiting to attack Wei army. The Qi army was defeated and almost wiped out.
Hu Cavalry: During the Warring States period, King Wuling, the king of Zhao, was determined to make changes. Seeing that the Hu people (a minority group) wore short, narrow-sleeved uniforms and rode warhorses, shooting arrows while running, moving swiftly and flexibly, King Wuling decided to learn from the Hu people, reformed the soldiers' clothing, and developed the cavalry. In less than a year, Zhao had a strong cavalry, and after fighting in the north and the south, Zhao became one of the most powerful states at that time.
Theft of Talisman to Save Zhao: During the Warring States period, Qin sent troops to besiege Handan, the capital of Zhao. Zhao asked Wei for help, and Wei sent troops to rescue Zhao. When Qin heard about Wei's sending troops to save Zhao, it sent people to Wei to threaten the king of Wei, who succumbed to Qin and ordered the Wei soldiers who went to save Zhao to stay put. The king of Zhao wrote to Prince Xinling of Wei for help. Having avenged his father's death for Ru Ji, the king of Wei's favorite concubine, Xin Ling Jun requested Ru Ji to steal the military talisman from the king of Wei, thus seizing the military power and leading tens of thousands of elite troops to Handan, defeating the Qin army and relieving the siege of Handan.
Not forgetting the past, one can learn from the future: According to the "Strategies of the Warring States - Zhao Ce I", at the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, the power of the state of Jin fell into the hands of the four ministers of Zhi, Zhao, Wei, and Han, and the Duke of Jin Ding actually became a puppet (kuǐ lěi). In 458 B.C. (already in the Warring States period), Duke Ding of Jin sent a messenger to ask Qi and Lu to send troops to crush the four ministers. When the four ministers got the news, they jointly attacked Duke Ding of Jin. Duke Ding was powerless to resist and was forced to flee, only to fall ill and die on the way.
After the death of Duke Ding, Ji Jiao, a member of the royal family, was installed as the king of the state, which was called Duke Ai of Jin. Zhi Bo (智伯), the Minister of Zhi (智卿), assumed sole control of the imperial government and became the largest minister of Jin. The other three ministers, Zhao Xiangzi, Wei Huanzi and Han Kangzi, did not dare to fight against him. Zhi Bo asked Wei Huanzi and Han Kangzi for land respectively. When he asked Zhao Xiangzi to cede the land, he was harshly refused. Zhi Bo was so infuriated that he immediately sent orders to Wei Huanzi and Han Kangzi to send troops to join him in attacking Zhao Xiangzi.
Thinking that Zhi Bo would attack him, Zhao Xiangzi sought advice from his strategist Zhang Mengtan. Zhang Mengtan suggested to go to Jinyang (present-day southwest of Taiyuan, Shanxi) to resist. When he arrived at Jinyang, Zhao Xiangzi realized that he had few weapons capable of fighting. Zhang Mengtan advised, "The enclosing walls here are made of utensil (hù) wood more than ten feet high, and the pillars of the hall are cast in bronze, which are good materials for making weapons." Zhi Bo led Wei and Han to attack Jinyang, and because Wei and Han were unwilling to sell their lives for Zhi Bo, Zhi Bo could not win.
Jinyang was flooded and besieged by Zhi Bo for three whole years. As the ground was waterlogged, the common people built huts on the trees to live in, and the city was running out of food, so many people became sick from freezing and starvation, and the heart of the army began to waver. One day, Zhang Mengtan met with Zhao Xiangzi and said, "Wei and Han are forced to do this, I am going to go and explain the advantages and disadvantages to them, and mobilize them to turn against Zhao and *** with them to destroy Zhi Bo." Zhao Xiangzi was very happy to hear this, and expressed his thanks by arching his hand again and again.
That night, Zhang Mengtan sneaked into the camps of Wei and Han, and persuaded Wei Huanzi and Han Kangzi to decide that the three families would unite to destroy Zhi Bo, and then divide Zhi's territory equally after the accomplishment. On the appointed day, Zhao, Wei and Han jointly attacked and killed Zhi's army, and Zhi Bo was captured. From then on, the state of Jin was dominated by the three families of Zhao, Wei and Han.
One day, Zhang Mengtan bid farewell to Zhao Xiangzi. Zhao Xiangzi hastened to stay. Zhang Mengtan said, "You are thinking of repaying my merits, I am thinking of ruling the country. It is precisely because my merits are great and my reputation will even surpass yours that I am determined to leave. In history there has never been a ruler and minister of the same power who have always lived together in peace. If you don't forget the past, you will be the master of the future. Please let me go." Zhao Xiangzi had to agree with regret. Zhang Mengtan resigned from his official position, returned his fiefdom, and retired to the Negative Kindred Mound, where he spent his old age in peace.
Subsequent generations have changed the idiom of "If you do not forget what happened in the past, you can guide us in the future" to "If you do not forget what happened in the past, you can guide us in the future" as a reminder of the lessons of the past, so that we can learn from them in the future.
During the Warring States period, the state of Wei was always invaded by the state of Qin. After King Anli of Wei became the king, Qin intensified its attacks and Wei was defeated in successive battles. In the first year of King Anli's reign, Qin attacked Wei and Wei lost two towns; in the next year, Wei lost three more towns; not only that, Qin's army was then pushing into Wei's capital city, and the situation was very critical. The situation was very critical. Korea sent troops to rescue Wei, but they were also defeated by the Qin army. Wei had no choice but to cede land to end the war, but in the third year, Qin attacked again, taking two of Wei's towns and killing tens of thousands of people. In the fourth year, Qin defeated the armies of Wei, Han, and Zhao, killing 150,000 of their soldiers and causing the disappearance of Wei's general Mangmao.
The successive defeats of Wei's army made King Anli restless. At that time, Duan Ganzi, another general of the Wei army, was also very afraid, so in order to have peace, he suggested to King Anli to cede Nanyang to the Qin state, and asked for a cease-fire to make peace. King Anli was already very afraid of the attack of the Qin army, and thought that by ceding the land, he could seek for peace, so he did according to Duan Ganzi's words.
There was a man named Su Dai, brother of Su Qin, who had always been an advocate of "combining the vertical and vertical to resist the Qin," who also strongly advocated that all the vassal states should unite to resist the Qin. When Su Dai learned that Wei had ceded land to seek peace, he said to King Anli: "The aggressor is insatiable, and you can't exchange territory and sovereignty for peace, as long as your land is still there, you can't satisfy the aggressor's desire. This is like holding firewood to put out a fire. How can the fire be extinguished when the firewood is thrown into the fire by the handful? The fire will not be extinguished until the firewood is burned out." However, King Anli refused to listen to Su Dai's words and still bent his knee to seek peace, and after not many years in this way, Wei was finally destroyed by Qin.
Mao Sui Zi Zi: During the Warring States period, the rich and powerful liked to provide for some talented people to strengthen their own power, and when there was something wrong and they needed someone's advice, they would let them plan and strategize to solve the problem for them. Such people were called diners, also called under the door.
The prime minister of the state of Zhao, Prince Ping Yuan, was so powerful that he kept thousands of diners in his house. One of them, Mao Sui, stayed for three years without contributing anything else. Although he found it strange, he did not complain and allowed him to eat and live in his house.
Later, Handan, the capital of Zhao, was surrounded by the Qin army, and the situation was very critical. So the king of Zhao sent Prince Ping Yuan to the state of Chu to persuade the king of Chu to cooperate with the state of Zhao and ****send troops together to fight against the state of Qin. When Lord Ping Yuan returned home, he was ready to choose twenty men from among the diners who were good at literature and martial arts to go with him, but only nineteen of them were qualified for the trip, and there was still one more person missing. However, only nineteen of them were qualified to go with him, and there was still one person missing. When Prince Ping Yuan was worried about this, Mao Sui suddenly came up to him and said, "I am the most suitable person, and I am willing to go with you, Your Excellency." Prince Ping Yuan said, "A talented person in a crowd is like a sharp awl placed in a bag, which immediately pierces through the bag and reveals its sharpness. You, on the other hand, have not distinguished yourself in the three years you have been with me, so I think you'd better stay!" Mao Sui replied, "It is only now that I am about to enter the bag, or else this awl of mine would have long ago pierced through the bag, revealing its sharpness, and would have gone through the bag even to the handle." Thinking that he would not be able to find a suitable candidate for the job for a while anyway, Prince Ping Yuan rushed to Chu with Mao Sui and twenty others.
When he met the king of Chu, Jun Ping Yuan explained the situation and the advantages and disadvantages, and tried his best to persuade the king of Chu, and the nineteen diners with him could not think of any good ideas either. Just when everyone was at a loss as to what to do, Mao Sui, with his sword in his hand, walked up to the king of Chu and said, "The king's life is now in my hands! Chu has millions of elite soldiers, yet in the last battle it was defeated by Qin's army of tens of thousands of men, taking away many cities and lands, and even we, the State of Zhao, feel ashamed for you. By proposing that the two countries unite against Qin, Zhao is avenging your Chu." Hearing this, the king of Chu felt that Mao Sui had a point, and with Mao Sui threatening with his sword, he agreed to the alliance and made a peace treaty. And he immediately sent troops to support Zhao, and lifted the siege of Handan.
From then on, Prince Ping Yuan did not dare to underestimate Mao Sui any more, but held him as his guest.
Buy a box and return the pearls
In the Spring and Autumn Period, there was a merchant in Chu who specialized in selling jewels. Once he went to Qi to sell jewels, and for the sake of business
good, the jewels sold well, he made a lot of small boxes with valuable wood, carved and decorated the boxes very delicately and beautifully
and made the boxes emit a kind of scent, and then put the jewels inside the boxes. The jewels were then put inside the boxes.
A man from the state of Zheng, seeing the exquisite and beautiful boxes of jewels, asked for the price and bought one, opened the box
and took out the treasures inside and returned it to the jeweler.
One Shot
During the Warring States period, there was a man named Chunyu Kun in the state of Qi. He was very eloquent and good at talking. He often used some
interesting cryptic phrases to advise the monarch, so that the king was not only not angry, but also happy to accept them.
Then King Wei of Qi was originally a very talented monarch, but after his accession to the throne, he was obsessed with wine and sex,
did not care about state affairs, and only knew how to drink and have fun every day, and left all the important matters to the ministers, and he himself did not pay attention to them.
The state of Qi was on the verge of extinction because of the lack of political control and the corruption of the officials, as well as the aggression of the lords of other countries.
Though some patriotic people in Qi were worried, they were all afraid of the King of Qi, so no one rushed out to advise
advise him.
In fact, King Wei of Qi was a very clever man he liked to say some cryptic words to show his wisdom, although he did not like to listen to
other people's advice, but if the advice was right, he would still accept it. Knowing this, Chunyu Kun thought of a plan
to find an opportunity to advise King Qi Wei.
One day, Chun Yu Kun met King Wei of Qi, and said to him, "My lord, for Chen there is a riddle that I would like you to guess: there is a big juicy bird in his country that has been living in the court of the king for three whole years, but he does not fly with his wings up, nor does he have a name,
he just curls up without any purpose, and you can guess what kind of bird it is, my lord. What kind of bird is it?"
King Wei of Qi was a wise man, and he knew that Chunyu Kun was being sarcastic, and that he, like that big bird, was the king of a country
but he did nothing but enjoy himself. And he was no longer a mediocre king, so after a moment of silence
then he resolutely decided to change his ways, to pull himself together, to do something sensational, so he said to Chunyi Kun:
"Well, this big bird, you do not know, it does not fly, but also non-will be rushed to the sky, it does not sing, but a song
will startle the crowd, you slowly, you will not know, it is not flying. It will startle the crowd, you wait and see!"
From then on, King Wei of Qi stopped drinking and enjoying himself, and began to reorganize his country. First, he summoned all the officials of the country, and those who were loyal and responsible were rewarded, while those who were corrupt and incompetent were punished. As a result, the whole country was soon revitalized, and everywhere was
full of vigor and vitality.
On the other hand, he also set about reorganizing the military, strengthening the force, and laying down the prestige of the state. After hearing this news, all the vassals were shocked, and not only did they not dare to invade Qi again, but also returned the land they had previously occupied to Qi.
What King Wei of Qi did in this way could be described as "a brilliant act"!
So later people used the idiom of "A Sharp Shock" to describe a person who has extraordinary talent, and if he can
put it to good use, then once it is brought into full play, he will often have amazing deeds.
The Fox Fakes Tiger's Might
During the Warring States period, when the state of Chu was at its strongest, King Xuan of Chu was surprised by the fact that all the countries in the north were afraid of his general, Zhaoyu
Xi Shih, and he asked the ministers in the court to tell him what they thought of him. So he asked the ministers of the court why this was so.
A minister named Jiang Yi told him the following story:
"Once upon a time, there was a tiger in a certain cave, and because he was hungry, he ran outside to look for food. When he came to a
thick forest, he suddenly saw a fox walking in front of him. He thought this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and
so he leapt at him and tackled him with no trouble at all.
But as he opened his mouth and was about to eat the fox in his stomach, the wily fox suddenly spoke:
'Hmph! Don't think that you are the king of all beasts, so you dare to devour me; you must know that heaven and earth have ordered me to be the
king of kings, and whoever eats me will be subjected to the extremely severe sanctions and punishments of heaven and earth.' The tiger listened to the fox's words, half believing,
But when it tilted its head and saw the fox's haughty and calm appearance, its heart did not feel a shock. The original arrogance
and overbearing posture, but I do not know when has disappeared half. Despite this, he still thought in his heart: I am the king of the hundred
beasts, so any beast under the sky will be afraid to see me. And he, surprisingly, came to rule over us by order of the Heavenly Emperor!
At this point, the fox saw that the tiger was hesitant to eat it, and knew that he had already believed a few things about that speech of his, so
it puffed up its chest even more divinely, and then pointed at the tiger's nose and said: 'What, don't you believe what I said
? Then you come with me now, walk behind me, and see if all the wild beasts are scared to death when they see me, holding
their heads and scurrying away.' The tiger thought this was a good idea and did as he was told.
So the fox made a great show of driving ahead, while the tiger followed carefully behind.
They didn't go very far, but they could see deep into the forest, where many small animals were scrambling for food, but when they realized that the tiger was walking behind the fox, they were shocked, and ran wildly in all directions.
Then the fox turned his head to look at the tiger in triumph.
When the tiger witnessed this, he could not help but feel a little frightened,
but he did not realize that the beasts were afraid of themselves, and thought that they were really afraid of the fox!
The fox's plan was successful, but his power was entirely due to the tiger, so that he was able to level a favorable situation to coerce the beasts
and the poor tiger was fooled, but he did not know it!
Thus, the reason why the people in the north are afraid of Zhaoshi Shixian is that the king's army is in his hands, which means
that it is the king's power that they are afraid of."
From the above story, we can learn that anyone who uses the power of authority to oppress others, or who uses the power of his position to
make a fool of himself
can be described as a "fox pretending to be a tiger".
Handing people up and down
In the twenty-sixth year of King Xiang of Chu in the Spring and Autumn period, Chu invaded the state of Zheng. Chu sent troops to invade Zheng. At that time, Chu was so powerful, weak Zheng, really did not
have the ability to resist, as a result, Zheng suffered a defeat, even Zheng Wangjie was Chu generals wear Fengxu captured.
After the end of the battle, the king's younger brother, Gongzi Wei, wanted to claim credit for the capture of Zheng Jie, saying that Zheng Jie had been captured by him, so Wearing Fengxu
and Gongzi Wei quarreled and refused to give way to each other, and there was no way to solve the problem. Then they asked Bo Li (伯犁)
to be the judge to decide whose work it was.
Bozhou Li's solution to the dispute would have been fair, and he argued that the best way to find out whose work it was would be to ask the captive king of Zheng
. So he ordered his men to bring King Jie of Zheng, and Bozhou Li explained to him what had happened, and then he stretched out his hand with two fingers, using the upper finger to represent the younger brother of the King of Chu
Duke Ziwei, and the lower finger to represent the general of Chu, Duanfengxu, and then he asked him by whom he had been captured. Zheng Wangjie, who hated Wearing Fengxu because he had been captured by him,
hated him so much that he pointed to his upper finger, indicating that he had been captured by Gongzi Wei. Then Bozhou Li judged it to be the work of Gongzi Wei.
The idiom of "up and down his hand" is derived from this story; it means to cheat in a game and to reverse right and wrong.
In today's society, this kind of situation often occurs: for example, if someone has done something illegal, and knows that he deserves
to be punished, he will bribe secretly, or ask his friends and relatives to beg for leniency, and ask for protection, and as a result, the big matter
dissolves into a small one, and the small matter becomes nothing, and he can still get away from the law. The first time I saw this was when I was a student at the University of California, Berkeley, and the second time I was a student at the University of California, Berkeley, and the third time I was a student at the University of California, Berkeley.
Worrying about the sky
Once upon a time, in the country of Qi, there was a man who was very bold and a bit neurotic, who would often think of some strange problems, and
make people feel puzzled.
One day, after he had eaten his dinner, he took a big bushel fan, sat down in front of the door to measure it, and said to himself:
"If one day the sky falls, what should we do? Wouldn't we have no way to escape, and be crushed alive
to death, and wouldn't that be too much of an injustice?"
Since then, he worried and fretted about this problem almost every day, and his friends, seeing him in a trance all day long and his face haggard, were all
very worried for him, but when they knew the reason for this, they all came running to him and advised him, saying,
"O man! Why do you trouble yourself about this? How could the sky fall? Even if it does,
that's not something you can solve by worrying about it alone.
But no matter what people said, he didn't believe them and still worried about this unnecessary problem from time to time.
Later, according to the above story, the idiom of "worrying about the sky without reason" was developed, and its main meaning is to remind people
not to worry about some impractical things. It has the same meaning as "mediocre people worrying about themselves".
Mending the Prison after Losing Sheep
This story is from the "Strategies of the Warring States". During the Warring States period, there was a minister of the state of Chu named Zhuang Xin, who said to King Xiang of Chu one day:
"When you are in the palace, there is a state marquis on your left, and a Xiahou marquis on your right; and when you go out, the king of Yanling and the king of Shouxiang are always following you around.
These four people are very particular about extravagance, and you have a lot to do with them. You and these four people specialize in luxury and pleasure, regardless of state affairs, Ying (the capital of Chu, in the present-day Jiangling County, Hubei Province, north of) a
definitely going to be in danger!"
When King Xiang heard this, he was very upset and scolded, "Are you senile? Are you deliberately saying these dangerous words to confuse the people?"
Zhuang Xin replied unhurriedly, "I really feel that things must come to this point, and do not dare to deliberately say that Chu has
what misfortune. If you keep on favoring this man, Chu will surely perish. Since you don't believe me, please allow me to go to Zhao
to hide for a while and see how things will really turn out."
Zhuang Xin had only lived in Zhao for five months when Qin really sent troops to invade Chu, and the king was forced to go into exile in Yangcheng (west of Xixian County in present-day Henan Province
north of the city). He thought Zhuang Xin's words were good, and hurriedly sent someone to get him back, asking him what he could do; Zhuang Xin said sincerely:
"I have heard that it is not too late to think of hounds when you see a rabbit's teeth, and that it is not too late to make up for a sheep's pen when the sheep has run away. ......"
This is a very meaningful story, only know enjoyment, do not know how to do things, the result is bound to be met with tragic loss
Undoubtedly.
The idiom of "mending the prison after a sheep is lost" is based on the above two sentences, which expresses the meaning that it is not too late to save something after a mistake has been made in handling it.
The idiom of "mending the prison after a sheep is lost" is based on the above two sentences, which expresses the meaning that it is not too late to save something after a mistake has been made in handling it. For example, an entrepreneur made a mistake in estimating the course of events and took a rash step
and fell into a state of failure. But he was not discouraged, but patiently thought things over again, and learned from this mistake
that it was not too late to "mend the fold" and start from scratch!
One storm, one day's sun
Warring States era, a hundred schools of thought, the wind of lobbying, very prevalent. In general, the lobbyists not only had profound knowledge and rich knowledge, but also had profound and vivid metaphors to satirize and persuade the rulers, which was the most prominent.
Meng Zi, who was also a famous scholar of the time, wrote in the first chapter of the book of "Meng Zi":
Meng Zi, who was dissatisfied with the king's fainting, his lack of perseverance, and his gullibility in believing the treacherous slanders of the sycophants, nonchalantly said to him: "The king is also too unwise, although there are creatures in the world with strong vitality, but you put it in the sunshine for a day, but put it in a cold place to freeze it for ten days, it is still alive there into it! My time with the king is very short, even if the king has a little determination to do good, but as soon as I leave you, those treacherous ministers will come to coax you again, and you will listen to their words again, so what can I do?" Pressing, he made a vivid analogy: "Playing chess seems to be a small thing, but if you do not concentrate on it, but also the same learning is not good, do not win, Yiqiu is the country's best chess player, he taught two disciples, one of them concentrate on it, listening to Yiqiu's guidance; the other is always afraid of a big swan flying, ready to shoot geese with arrows. The two disciples were taught by the same master and learned together, yet the latter's accomplishments were far inferior. It was not that there was any difference in their intelligence, but that the degree of concentration was not the same;" This is a very instructive story, and it is a matter of concentration and painstaking work that we have to do to learn a thing and to do it well. If we do something today, leave it behind, and do it again the next day or so, how can we do it well? This is also one of the determining factors for the success of study and work, so later people streamlined what Mencius said, "one day of violence, ten days of cold" into "one day of violence, ten days of cold" as an idiom to describe the lack of perseverance in study and work, and an expression of capriciousness in making and withdrawing. The idiom of "one day's sun, ten days' cold" was streamlined into the idiom of "one day's sun, ten days' cold". For example, if a student is very casual about his studies, and spends less time studying and more time wasting, we would say, "What can he learn from this kind of one day's sunshine?
Three men make a tiger
During the Warring States period, when people were attacking and attacking each other, it was common for states to give their crown princes to each other as hostages in order to make sure that everyone could really keep their word. "
Pang Onion, a minister of Wei, was going to accompany the crown prince of Wei to Zhao as a hostage, and said to the king of Wei before his departure:
"Now there is a man who comes to say There is a man who says that a tiger has appeared in the market, can you believe him?"
The king of Wei said, "I do not believe it."
Pang Onion said, "If there is a second man who says that a tiger has appeared in the market, can the great king believe it?"
The King of Wei said, "I am somewhat skeptical."
Pang Onion added: "If a third person says that a tiger has appeared in the market, can the great king believe it?"
The King of Wei said, "Of course I would believe it."
Pang Onion then said, "It is obvious that there will not be a tiger in the marketplace, but after three people said so, it seems that there really is a tiger. Now Handan, the capital of Zhao, is much farther away from Daliang, the capital of Wei, than the market here, and there are more than three people talking about me. I hope the Great King will be clear about this."
The King of Wei said, "I know everything myself."
Pang Onion accompanied the crown prince back to his country, and the king of Wei really did not summon also again.
The city was a place where the population was concentrated, so of course there would be no tigers. To say that there is a tiger in the city is obviously a rumor and a deception, but many people have said so, and if they do not look at things from the truth, they tend to believe it.
This story was originally a satire on King Hui of Wei's ignorance, but later generations have extended this story to become the idiom of "three people make a tiger", which is a metaphor for how rumors can sometimes cover up the truth. For example, to judge the truth of a matter, one must carefully examine and think about it, rather than listen to hearsay. Otherwise, "three people become a tiger", and sometimes rumors can be mistaken for the truth.
Handan Learning to Walk:
Handan, Hebei Province, during the Warring States period, there were some young people in the state of Yan who envied the people of Zhao for walking
and went to Handan to learn how to do so, but they didn't learn how to do so, and even forgot how to walk, so they had to crawl back to their home country
Metaphor for hard imitation
Retreating Three Shelters: During the Spring and Autumn period, there was internal strife in the state of Jin, and the son of the duke of Jin, Chong Er, fled to the state of Chu. King Cheng of Chu took him in and offered him hospitality, promising that if there was a war between Jin and Chu, the Jin army would retreat to three sheds (one shed is thirty miles). Later, with the help of Duke Mu of Qin, Chong Er returned to rule in Jin. When Jin supported Song and Chu, the two armies met at Cheng Pu, where Chong Er retreated and lured the enemy into a deeper retreat and won a great victory.
One Shot: According to a legend, King Zhuang of Chu (also known as King Wei of Qi) was in power for three years and spent his time making music and ignoring the government. A minister said to King Zhuang: "I heard that there is a big bird in the country that doesn't fly for three years and doesn't make a sound for three years, what's wrong with it?" King Zhuang said, "This bird does not fly, but it flies to the sky; it does not sing, but it is amazing." Then he reorganized the government, enriched the country and strengthened the army, forming a situation of great governance in just a few years.
Laying down on firewood and tasting gall: During the Spring and Autumn Period, King Fu-chai of Wu defeated and captured King Goujian of Yue. After feeding his horse for three years and suffering a lot, Goujian returned to his country, determined to take revenge and restore his country. He asked Fan Li to help him train his army, appointed capable people, personally participated in the labor and insisted on sleeping on the firewood, and tasted a bitter bile before each meal, and then finally destroyed Wu.
The Old Horse Knows the Way: During the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Huan of Qi, at the request of Yan, led an army to defeat the invasion of Shanrong; the king of Shanrong, Milu, fled to the state of Liaozhu to ask for help, and Guanzhong followed Duke Huan of Qi to defeat the reinforcements from the state of Liaozhu. On the way back to his country, the Qi army was stranded when a false guide led them into a lost valley. Guan Zhong suggested to use an old horse to lead the way, but the danger was solved.
Bearing a Bramble: During the Warring States period, there were two important ministers in the state of Zhao, Lian Po and Lin Xiangru. Because Lin Xiangru had made many meritorious achievements, the king of Zhao appointed him as a minister of the state of Zhao, and Lian Po was not convinced that his own martial arts skills overshadowed his mouth. Lin Xiangru for the sake of the country, to Lian Po many times to avoid, Lian Po learned of his good intentions after shame, then carrying thorns, to the door of the house of Lin Xiangru to ask for forgiveness, from then on the two reconciled, become the same life **** death friendship.
Paper: During the Warring States period, Zhao She, the son of the famous general of the Warring States, Zhao Kuo, was well read in military books, and could talk about the way of war, even his father could not defeat him, and he thought he was invincible. Zhao Xie thought he was just talking on paper and didn't know the transportation. Later, Zhao She died, Zhao Kuo replaced Lian Po to lead the army, Lin Xiangru and others strongly opposed, the king of Zhao insisted, Zhao Kuo lost 400,000 soldiers in the battle of Changping.
The Three Orders: Sun Wu was living in exile in Wu. The king of Wu wanted to test Sun Wu's military skills, so he gave 180 young courtesans to Sun Wu for training. Sun Wu divided the courtesans into two teams and made the king's favorite concubine the captain. After Sun Wu explained the orders to the courtesans, he beat the drum and passed the order to the courtesans, who laughed and the team was in chaos. Sun Wu gave the order again, but the court ladies just thought it was funny and did not listen to the order. Sun Wu said that since the order had been understood and disobeyed, this was the crime of the leader, and ordered the two captains to be executed. The king of Wu hurriedly called for an order not to kill the princesses, but Sun Wu still killed the two princesses. Then, Sun Wu re-drilled the court ladies, and this time no one dared disobey the order.
The Siege of Wei to Save Zhao: During the Warring States period, the Wei army besieged Handan, the capital of Zhao. Zhao asked for help from Qi, and King Wei of Qi ordered Tian Ji to be the general and Sun Bin to be the military counselor to send troops to save Zhao. Tian Ji wanted to lead his troops to save Zhao's Handan, Sun Bin advocated to lead his troops to besiege Wei's capital city, Daliang, and Wei would return to save themselves, so that not only the Zhao's siege could be lifted, but also the Wei army could be fatigued. Tian Ji adopted Sun Bin's strategy and led his troops straight to Daliang. Upon hearing the news, Wei army hurriedly withdrew their troops from the siege of Handan and returned to rescue Daliang by night and day. When they arrived at Guiling, Qi army was waiting to attack Wei army. The Qi army was defeated and almost wiped out.
Hu Cavalry: During the Warring States period, King Wuling, the king of Zhao, was determined to make changes. Seeing that the Hu people (a minority group) wore short, narrow-sleeved uniforms and rode warhorses, shooting arrows while running, moving swiftly and flexibly, King Wuling decided to learn from the Hu people, reformed the soldiers' clothing, and developed the cavalry. In less than a year, Zhao had a strong cavalry, and after fighting in the north and the south, Zhao became one of the most powerful countries at that time.
Theft of Talisman to Save Zhao: During the Warring States period, Qin sent troops to besiege Handan, the capital of Zhao. Zhao asked Wei for help, and Wei sent troops to rescue Zhao. When Qin heard about Wei's sending troops to save Zhao, it sent people to Wei to threaten the king of Wei, who succumbed to Qin and ordered the Wei soldiers who went to save Zhao to stay put. The king of Zhao wrote to Prince Xinling of Wei for help. Having avenged his father's death for Ru Ji, the king of Wei's favorite concubine, Xin Ling Jun requested Ru Ji to steal the military talisman from the king of Wei, thus seizing the military power and leading tens of thousands of elite troops to Handan, defeating the Qin army and lifting the siege of Handan.
Freezing
Ji Jianzi was an expert in training cockfighters during the Spring and Autumn Period, and because his reputation was so great, the King of Qi also brought him in to train cockfighters.
After ten days, the king of Qi asked him, "How is the cockfighting training going? Ji Jianzi replied, "The chickens are arrogant in nature, and the time is not yet right." Ten days later, the king of Qi came to ask him again, "How is the training of the cockfighting? Ji Jian Zi replied, "No, it is not ready yet, it can't calm down yet". A month later, the king of Qi was getting tired of waiting, but Ji Jian Zi still shook his head and said "No". After another ten days, Ji Jian Zi told the King of Qi that the cockfighting was well trained, and that the cockfighting was so powerful that other chickens froze in fear like logs when they saw it, so it was really an invincible cockfighting!
Taking the best from the bad: When Teng Wengong was still a prince, he was going to Chu, and when he passed through the country of Jia, he paid a visit to Meng Zi. Meng Zi told him that kindness is the nature of man, and the topic of conversation was not far from Yao and Shun. When the prince returned from Chu, he came to visit Mencius again. Mencius said, "Doesn't the Prince believe my words? The truth is the same. Chengtuo said to Duke Jing of Qi, 'He is a man, and so am I. Why am I afraid of him? Yen Yuan said, 'I am what Shun is, and I am what I am, and a man of honor will be like him.' Gong Ming Yi said, 'King Wen was my teacher; would the Duke of Zhou deceive me? The present state of Teng, if we were to 'cut off the length and make up for the shortness' of its territory, would be about fifty miles in circumference. It could still be a good country. The Book of Shang says 'If medicine cannot make a man dizzy, the disease will not be cured."