韓策一

After the Three Jin have destroyed the Zhi clan, they are about to divide its territory. Duan Gui says to the King of Han: "In dividing the land, you must take Chenggao."

The King of Han says: "Chenggao is nothing but rocky, eroded terrain. I have no use for it."

Duan Gui says: "Not so. I have heard that a position one li deep that commands leverage over a thousand li — that is strategic advantage. A smaller force that shatters three armies — that is the element of surprise. If Your Majesty follows my advice, Han will certainly take Zheng."

The king says: "Very well." He does take Chenggao. And when Han eventually conquers Zheng, the campaign does indeed begin from Chenggao.

Dacheng Wu comes from Zhao and says to Shen Buhai in Han: "If you use Han's influence to raise my standing in Zhao, I will use Zhao's influence to raise your standing in Han. That way you will have two Han's worth of support, and I will have two Zhao's worth."

When Wei besieges Handan, Shen Buhai has just entered the service of the King of Han but does not yet know what the king wants. He is afraid that if he speaks, he may not hit the mark.

The king consults Shen Buhai: "Whom should I side with?"

Shen Buhai replies: "This is a matter of survival and ruin — a great affair of state. Allow me to think it through deeply and deliberate on it."

He then privately says to Zhao Zhuo and Han Chao: "You are both the state's finest debaters. For a minister, the whole point is to speak so that one's words are adopted — to exhaust one's loyalty, nothing more."

The two men each go before the king and present their arguments. Shen Buhai quietly observes which proposal pleases the king, then speaks to the king accordingly. The king is greatly pleased.

Shen Buhai requests that his cousin be given an official post. Marquis Zhao refuses. Shen Buhai shows resentment on his face.

Marquis Zhao says: "This is not what I learned from you. Should I grant your private request and thereby discard your own doctrine? Or should I follow your method and reject this request? You yourself taught me to promote officials based on merit and performance, and to follow the order of precedence. Now you come with a personal favor to ask — whom am I supposed to listen to?"

Shen Buhai withdraws from his residence and begs forgiveness, saying: "You are truly the right man for this!"

Su Qin, on behalf of Chu, persuades the King of Han to join the north-south coalition. He says:

"Han has the fortifications of Gong, Luo, and Chenggao to the north; the passes of Yiyang and Changban to the west; Wan, Rang, and the Wei River to the east; and Mount Xing to the south. Its territory extends a thousand li, and it has hundreds of thousands of armored troops.

All the strongest bows and most powerful crossbows in All-Under-Heaven come from Han. The Xiezi, the Shaofu Shili, and the Julai models all shoot over six hundred paces. Han soldiers fire while leaping, loosing arrow after arrow without pause — at long range the shafts strike the chest, at close range they pierce the heart.

Han soldiers' swords and halberds all come from Mount Ming, Tangxi, Moyang, and Hebo. The Dengshi, Wanfeng, Longyuan, and Da'e blades can cleave horses and oxen on land and strike down swans and geese on water; in battle they cut through any armor.

Shields, helmets, iron curtains, leather thumb-guards, arm-pieces — Han has them all in full supply. With Han soldiers' courage, clad in strong armor, wielding powerful crossbows, bearing sharp swords, one man is worth a hundred — and even that understates it.

Yet with Han's might and Your Majesty's wisdom, you intend to face west and serve Qin, call yourself Qin's eastern vassal, build a palace for Qin's emperor, accept Qin's cap and sash, offer sacrifices in spring and autumn on Qin's behalf, and fold your arms in submission. To bring such shame upon the state and become the laughingstock of All-Under-Heaven — nothing could be worse.

I urge Your Majesty to consider this carefully. If you serve Qin, Qin will demand Yiyang and Chenggao. Yield them this year, and next year Qin will demand still more territory. Give it, and you will run out of land to give; refuse, and you will have sacrificed your earlier concessions for nothing and face even worse consequences.

Your Majesty's territory has a limit; Qin's demands have none. To meet limitless demands with limited territory — this is what is called 'buying enmity and purchasing disaster.' Your land will be carved away without a single battle being fought.

I have heard a common saying: 'Better to be the beak of a chicken than the rear end of an ox.' If Your Majesty faces west, folds his arms, and serves Qin as a subject, how is that different from being the rear end of an ox? With Your Majesty's virtue and the strength of Han's army, to bear the name 'rear end of an ox' — I am privately ashamed on Your Majesty's behalf."

The King of Han flushes with anger, bares his arm, grips his sword, looks up to heaven, and sighs deeply: "Even if I die, I will never serve Qin. Since you have come with Chu's king's instructions, I respectfully pledge the state to the coalition."

Zhang Yi, on behalf of Qin, persuades the King of Han to join the east-west alignment. He says:

"Han's terrain is rugged and barren, a land of mountains. Its crops are not wheat but beans; its people subsist on bean-rice and bean-leaf broth. One bad harvest and the people cannot fill themselves even on chaff and husks. The territory does not extend nine hundred li and holds no more than two years' food supply.

I estimate that if Your Majesty mobilizes every last soldier, it comes to no more than three hundred thousand — and that includes the cooks, porters, and supply carriers. Subtract the garrison troops for your frontier posts and border walls, and the field army is no more than two hundred thousand.

Qin has over a million armored troops, a thousand war chariots, ten thousand cavalry horses. Its fierce warriors — bareheaded, bare-chested, biting through their chin-straps to seize their halberds — are beyond counting. Qin's horses are so fine, its war-beasts so numerous, that those with three fathoms between their hoof-strikes cannot be tallied.

When the soldiers east of the mountains go to battle, they wear armor and helmets. Qin's men throw off their armor and charge naked at the enemy, a severed head in the left hand and a live prisoner under the right arm. Qin's soldiers compared to eastern soldiers are like Meng Ben against a coward; in sheer weight of force, like Wu Huo against an infant.

To send warriors like Meng Ben and Wu Huo against weak, recalcitrant states is no different from dropping a thousand-jun weight onto a bird's egg — there will be no survivors.

The feudal lords do not reckon the weakness of their armies or the scarcity of their food. Instead they listen to the sweet words and fine rhetoric of the coalition advocates, who band together to put a nice face on things, all saying: 'Follow my plan and you can dominate All-Under-Heaven.' To ignore the long-term interests of the state and heed momentary persuasion — there is no greater way to mislead a ruler.

If Your Majesty does not serve Qin, Qin will send its armored troops to seize Yiyang and cut off Han's upper territories. Moving east to take Chenggao and Yiyang, the Hong Terrace palace and the Sanglin park will no longer be yours. Block Chenggao and sever the upper territories, and your state is split in two.

Serve Qin first and you will be safe; refuse to serve Qin and you face ruin. To court disaster while hoping for good fortune, to plan shallowly while wishing deeply, to defy Qin and follow Chu — even if you wished to avoid destruction, you could not.

Therefore, my counsel for Your Majesty is: nothing is better than serving Qin. What Qin most desires is to weaken Chu. And no state can weaken Chu better than Han — not because Han is stronger than Chu, but because of its geographic position. If Your Majesty faces west, serves Qin, and attacks Chu on Qin's behalf, the King of Qin will certainly be pleased. Attack Chu and keep its territory for yourself while deflecting disaster onto others and pleasing Qin — no plan is more advantageous.

Therefore, the King of Qin has sent me, his envoy, to present this letter to Your Majesty's scribes. We await your decision."

The King of Han says: "You have graciously instructed me. I request to be ranked as a commandery, to build an imperial palace, to offer sacrifices in spring and autumn, to be called Qin's eastern vassal, and to present Yiyang as tribute."

King Xuan says to Jiu Liu: "I wish to employ both Gongzhong and Gongshu simultaneously. Is that acceptable?"

Jiu Liu replies: "It is not. Jin employed six chief ministers and the state was partitioned. Duke Jian of Qi employed both Tian Cheng and Jian Zhi and was assassinated. Wei employed both Xi Shou and Zhang Yi and lost everything west of the Yellow River.

If Your Majesty employs both men, the one with greater influence will build a faction inside the court, and the weaker one will seek leverage from foreign powers. If your ministers are building internal factions to dominate their ruler, or forging external alliances to carve up your territory, then Your Majesty's state will certainly be in danger."

Zhang Yi says to the King of Qi: "Your Majesty would do well to back Han Peng and help him drive Zhang Yi out of Wei. Wei will then appoint Xishou as its chancellor. Then use the combined influence of Qi and Wei to remove Han Peng and install Gongshu as chancellor, and have him attack Qin. When Gongzhong hears of this, he will certainly not go to Qi. This secures your position in Wei, and you will face no threat."

Chu's Zhao Xian serves as chancellor of Han. When Qin prepares to attack Han, Han dismisses Zhao Xian. Zhao Xian sends someone to tell Gongshu: "It would be better to keep Zhao Xian in an honored position to solidify the alliance with Chu. Qin will surely conclude that Chu and Han are united."

Qin attacks Xing. Han sends an envoy offering to cede the territory of Nanyang. After Qin has accepted the offer, Qin attacks Xing again. Han then formally cedes Nanyang. Qin takes the land and attacks Xing yet again.

Chen Zhen says to the King of Qin: "Han offered territory because its strategic position was disadvantageous; it ceded land because the alliance was not yet firm. Now it has ceded land but the alliance is no firmer, and offered territory but the attacks have not stopped. I fear that the states east of the mountains will have nothing left to offer or cede in Your Majesty's service.

Moreover, when you seek a hundred pieces of gold from the Three Rivers region you cannot obtain them, but when you demand a thousand from Han, it is delivered overnight. If Your Majesty attacks poor, obscure targets, you are cutting off your best tributary relationship to fill your private treasury. I humbly advise against this."

Five states agree to attack Qin, with the King of Chu as coalition leader. They fail to inflict any damage on Qin. The army, having accomplished nothing, remains encamped at Chenggao.

Wei Shun says to the Lord of Shiqiu: "When the five states withdraw, they will certainly attack Shiqiu to recoup their campaign expenses. Fund me, and I will negotiate to prevent All-Under-Heaven from attacking Shiqiu."

The Lord of Shiqiu says: "Very well." He dispatches him.

Zheng Qiang brings eight hundred pieces of gold into Qin to request that Qin attack Han. Leng Xiang says to Zheng Qiang: "If you offer eight hundred gold to have Qin attack its own ally, Qin will certainly refuse. You would do better to make the King of Qin suspect Gongshu."

Zheng Qiang asks: "How?"

Leng Xiang says: "Gongshu's attack on Chu was motivated by Ji Se's presence there, which is why he argued for striking Chu first. Now the King of Chu has already sent Ji Se with a hundred chariots to reside at Yangdi, and Zhao Xian has gone to stay with him — it has been over ten days, and the matter is settled. Ji Se is Gongshu's enemy, but Zhao Xian is Gongshu's man. When the King of Qin hears about this, he will surely suspect that Gongshu is secretly working for Chu."

Zheng Qiang plots to drive Zhang Yi from Qin. He says that Zhang Yi's envoy will surely go to Chu. So he tells the Grand Steward: "Detain Zhang Yi's envoy. I will go west and move against Zhang Yi in Qin."

He then petitions the King of Qin, saying: "Zhang Yi has sent someone to hand over the territory of Shangyong. His envoy has come to bow twice and pay respects to the King of Qin."

The King of Qin is furious. Zhang Yi flees.

During the campaign of Yiyang, Yang Da says to Gongsun Xian: "Allow me to lead fifty thousand troops against West Zhou on your behalf. If we take it, the Nine Cauldrons will seal Gan Mao's achievement. If not, then Qin's attack on West Zhou will earn the hatred of All-Under-Heaven, and the states will rush to rescue Han — and Gan Mao's enterprise will collapse."

Qin besieges Yiyang. You Teng says to Gongzhong: "Why not offer Zhao the cities of Lin, Lishi, and Qi as a pledge for promised territory? Then Lou Huan will surely fail. Combine Han and Zhao's forces to threaten Wei, and Lou Bi will surely fail. If Han is unified, Wei will certainly betray Qin, and Gan Mao will surely fail. Use Chengyang to support Di Qiang's position in Qi, and Chu will surely be defeated.

Wait for Qin's inevitable failure. Once Qin loses Wei's support, Yiyang will certainly not fall."

Gongzhong holds a grudge against Gan Mao because of Yiyang. Later, Qin returns Wusui to Han. But the King of Qin already suspects that Gan Mao used Wusui to reconcile with Gongzhong.

Du He, speaking on Gongzhong's behalf, tells the King of Qin: "Gongzhong Ming wishes to serve Your Majesty through Gan Mao." The King of Qin is furious at Gan Mao, and so Chuli Ji is greatly pleased with Du Liao.

Qin and Han fight at Zhuoze, and Han is in dire straits. Gongzhong Ming says to the King of Han: "Allied states cannot be relied upon. Qin's real desire is to attack Chu. Your Majesty would do well to use Zhang Yi to make peace with Qin, bribe them with one major city, and join them in attacking Chu. This is a plan to trade one for two."

The King of Han says: "Very well." He orders Gongzhong to prepare for the journey west to negotiate with Qin.

The King of Chu hears of this and is greatly alarmed. He summons Chen Zhen and tells him. Chen Zhen says: "Qin has wanted to attack us for a long time. Now it has obtained one of Han's major cities and a fully armed ally. Qin and Han marching south together — this is what Qin has been praying for in its ancestral temples. Now they have it. Chu will certainly be attacked.

"If Your Majesty listens to me: mobilize the army within our four borders and announce that you are going to rescue Han. Fill the roads with war chariots. Send trusted envoys with many carriages and rich gifts, so that Han believes Your Majesty is truly coming to save them.

"Even if Han cannot bring itself to follow us, it will be grateful and will certainly not march against us in formation alongside Qin. If Qin and Han are not united, then even if their forces arrive, Chu will not be seriously harmed.

"If Han does listen to us and breaks off its peace with Qin, Qin will be furious and bitterly resentful toward Han. Having received Chu's rescue, Han will take Qin lightly. Taking Qin lightly, it will respond to Qin disrespectfully. Thus we will have pinned down the forces of both Qin and Han while freeing Chu from danger."

The King of Chu is greatly pleased. He mobilizes the army, announces he will rescue Han, sends trusted envoys with many carriages and rich gifts, and tells the King of Han: "Our humble city is small, but we have called up every last soldier. We beg Your Majesty to stand firm against Qin — our humble city will sacrifice Chu for Han's sake."

The King of Han is greatly pleased and halts Gongzhong's mission. Gongzhong says: "This is a mistake. What Qin has told us is real; what Chu offers is an empty promise. To rely on Chu's empty promise and rashly break off relations with mighty Qin — we will become the laughingstock of All-Under-Heaven.

"Chu and Han are not brother states, nor have they ever had a standing agreement to attack Qin together. Qin wants to attack Chu, and Chu raises an army claiming to rescue Han — this is surely a scheme of Chen Zhen's.

"Moreover, Your Majesty has already sent word to Qin. To reverse course now is to deceive Qin. To take lightly the wrath of mighty Qin and trust in Chu's strategist — Your Majesty will regret it."

The King of Han does not listen and breaks off the peace with Qin. Qin is indeed furious, raises an army, and fights Han at Anmen. Chu's rescue does not come. Han is badly defeated.

Han's army was not weak, and its people were not stupid. Its soldiers were captured by Qin and its strategy mocked by Chu — because it heeded Chen Zhen's words and rejected Gongzhong Ming's counsel.

Yan Shuai calls on Gongzhong, but Gongzhong refuses to see him. Yan Shuai says to Gongzhong's gatekeeper: "Gongzhong must think I am a flatterer — that is why he refuses to see me. Gongzhong is lecherous, but I have been saying he loves talented men. He is stingy with money, but I have been saying he is generous. He has no integrity, but I have been saying he loves righteousness. From now on, I will simply tell the truth."

The gatekeeper reports this to Gongzhong. Gongzhong leaps up and receives him at once.

Han's Gongzhong says to Xiang Shou: "A cornered beast will overturn a cart. You have crushed Han and humiliated Gongzhong. Gongzhong reassembled the state and resumed serving Qin, believing he would certainly be rewarded with a fief. Now you have made peace with Chu and received the title of Minor Chief Minister along with Guiyang as your fief. If Qin and Chu unite and attack Han again, Han will certainly be destroyed. Gongzhong will personally lead his private retainers to fight Qin to the death. I urge you to think carefully."

Xiang Shou says: "My alliance with Chu is not aimed at Han. Speak to Gongzhong on my behalf."

Gongzhong says: "The Qin-Han relationship can be restored."

The reply comes: "Gan Mao promised Gongzhong the city of Wusui and the return of Yiyang's population. Now you simply order their recovery — that is very difficult."

Xiang Shou says: "Then what? Is Wusui truly beyond reach?"

The reply: "Why not have Qin demand Yingchuan from Chu on Han's behalf? This is territory Han has deposited with Chu. If you obtain it, your authority extends over Chu and you earn Han's gratitude. If you fail, then the enmity between Han and Chu remains unresolved, and both will rush to serve Qin. If Qin and Chu compete for dominance while you pressure Chu on behalf of Han — this benefits Qin."

Xiang Shou says: "How should this be done?"

The reply: "This is straightforward. Gan Mao wants to use Wei to gain Qi. Gongsun Hao wants to use Han to gain Qi. Now if you take credit for Yiyang, rally Chu and Han to stability, and punish Qi and Wei — you render both Gongsun Hao and Gan Mao irrelevant."

Someone says to Gongzhong: "Those who listen should listen to what benefits the state, not necessarily to what is literally true. Even a wise man listens to proverbs in the marketplace. I hope you will hear my words.

"You sought neutral status from Qin and could not obtain it. You cultivated Gongsun Hao to obstruct Gan Mao, seized Qi's troops to stop Wei — but Chu and Zhao are both your enemies. I fear the state will suffer from this. I urge you to seek neutral status from Qin once more."

Gongzhong says: "How?"

The advisor replies: "The King of Qin considers Gongsun Hao your partisan and does not listen to him. Gan Mao is on bad terms with you and will not speak on your behalf. Why not use Xing Yuan to communicate with the King of Qin? Xing Yuan is a loyal minister of the Qin king.

"Allow me to say to the King of Qin on your behalf: 'Is it more advantageous for Qin that Qi and Wei be united or separated? Is Qin stronger when Qi and Wei are divided or combined?'

The King of Qin will certainly say: 'When Qi and Wei are divided, Qin's weight increases; when united, it decreases. When Qi and Wei are separated, Qin is strong; when combined, Qin is weak.'

Then I will say: 'If Your Majesty listens to Gongsun Hao and uses Han and Qin's troops to join Qi in attacking Wei, Wei will not dare fight, will cede territory and unite with Qi — and Qin's weight decreases. I consider Gongsun Hao disloyal.

'If Your Majesty listens to Gan Mao and uses Han and Qin's troops to hold Wei while attacking Qi, Qi will not dare fight, will seek no territory but unite with Wei — and Qin's weight decreases. I consider Gan Mao disloyal.

'Therefore, Your Majesty should order Han to remain neutral and pressure Qi. The King of Qi will claim to rescue Wei to strengthen it, but Qi and Wei cannot cooperate — eventually they will fight each other.

'If Your Majesty wishes, trust Gongsun Hao's position in Qi and recover Nanyang for Han — this was King Hui's wish. If Your Majesty wishes, trust Gan Mao's position in Wei and use Han-Qin forces to drive a wedge between Wei and Qi — this was King Wu's wish.

'I believe that ordering Han to remain neutral to pressure Qi is Qin's most urgent priority. Gongsun Hao is partial to Qi and will not say this; Gan Mao has too little influence and dares not present it. These two men are Your Majesty's greatest problems. I urge Your Majesty to consider carefully.'"

Gongzhong serves as chancellor of Han. The relationship between Qi and Chu is good. Qin and Wei hold a summit, intending to court Qi and separate it from Chu. The King of Chu sends Jing Li to Qin. Jing Li participates in the Qin-Wei summit. The King of Chu is angry at Jing Li, fearing that Qi will interpret Chu's presence at the summit as evidence of a secret understanding with Qin and Wei, and prepares to punish Jing Li.

Someone tells the King of Chu: "I congratulate Jing Li on participating in the summit. The purpose of the Qin-Wei meeting was to unite Qi with Qin and sever Qi from Chu. Now that Jing Li participated, Qi has no reason to believe Wei is allying it with Qin against Chu. Moreover, Qi will fear that Chu has a secret understanding with Qin and Wei, and will therefore value Chu more highly.

Jing Li's participation at the summit is Your Majesty's greatest asset. Had Jing Li not participated, Wei's intention to separate Qi from Chu would have been obvious. Once Qi and Chu believe it, they will take Your Majesty lightly.

Therefore, do not punish Jing Li. Use his presence to signal to Qi that you have ties with Qin and Wei. Qi will value Chu more, and will also become suspicious of Qin and Wei's relationship with Qi."

The king says: "Agreed." He does not punish Jing Li and even promotes him.

The king says: "Earlier you said 'All-Under-Heaven lacks the Way.' Now you say 'We should attack Yan.' Why the contradiction?"

The reply: "If someone says a horse has great strength — yes, that is so. But if they say the horse can carry a thousand jun — that is not so. Why? Because a thousand jun is not within a horse's capacity.

Similarly, if someone says Chu is powerful — yes, that is so. But can Chu leap over Zhao and Wei to fight Yan? That is surely not within Chu's capacity. If something is beyond Chu's capacity and Chu does it anyway, it exhausts Chu. A strong Chu or an exhausted Chu — which is more convenient for Your Majesty?"

Someone tells the King of Wei: "Mobilize within your four borders. All who follow your orders — within eleven days, anyone whose dikes are not completed shall be executed. Then seize their pleasure boats to strike from the river. I will go to Chu on Your Majesty's behalf. Wait for my return before marching."

The Lord of Chunshen hears of this and tells the envoy: "Go back for me. Do not see the king. Within ten days, tens of thousands of troops will be crossing into Wei's territory."

A Qin envoy hears of this and reports it to the King of Qin. The King of Qin tells the King of Wei: "If the great state has such intentions, this demonstration alone is sufficient."

Guan Yang says to the Lord of Chunshen: "Everyone considers Chu strong, yet under your leadership it grows weak. In my view, this need not be so. Under the former ruler, Chu was not attacked for over twenty years. Qin wanted to march through the narrow pass of Mianchi but could not; it tried to borrow passage through the two Zhou states and cross Han's territory to attack Chu, but that too was impossible.

Now things are different. Wei is on the verge of collapse any day now. Unable to hold Xu, Yanling, and Wu, it cedes them to Qin — one hundred and sixty li closer. What I foresee is the day when Qin and Chu must fight."

Gongzhong has repeatedly broken faith with the feudal lords, and they have all cut him off. He entrusts the state southward to Chu, but the King of Chu refuses to listen.

Su Dai tells the King of Chu: "You would do better to accept his submission while preparing for his betrayal. In the past, Gongzhong Ming relied on Zhao to betray Chu, and relied on Qi to betray Qin. Now all four states have shut him out and he has nowhere to turn — even I worry about him. This is his 'Wei Sheng moment' — the one time he actually has to keep his word."