Reduce the stove to deceive the enemy(減灶之計)
During the Warring States Period of China,
there was a famous military strategist whose name was (Sun Bin).
There is a story about him in the history
books.
In 342 BC, the combined armies of the
Kingdom of Wei and the Kingdom of Zhao attacked the Kingdom of Han.
The Kingdom of Han sent envoys to the
Kingdom of Qi to request military support.
The king of Qi sent an army to assist the
kingdom of Han. The commander of this army is Tian Ji, and the military advisor
is Sun Bin.
Tian Ji wanted to lead the Qi Kingdom's
army to surround the Wei Kingdom's capital, thereby forcing the Wei Kingdom's
army to return to defense.
However, the Wei Kingdom's army returned to
the defense very quickly. According to information, the Wei Kingdom's army
could catch up with the Qi Kingdom's army in just four days.
At that time, the Qi Kingdom's army will
face the crisis of being pinched by the Wei Kingdom's army left in the capital
and the returning army.
At this critical moment, (Sun Bin) came up
with a bold strategy.
He gathered all the soldiers in the army
and said to all the soldiers.
Our army is organized in groups of 25
soldiers.
These 25 people have to dig four stoves to
cook after camping every evening.
After camping tomorrow evening, these 25
people can only dig two stoves to cook.
After camping in the evening the day after
tomorrow, these 25 people can only dig a stove to cook.
This is a military order that everyone must
actually obey.
Although the soldiers of Qi Kingdom did not
know why they did this, they still obeyed his orders.
His strategy really succeeded in deceiving
the generals of the Wei Kingdom.
The general of the Kingdom of Wei is a
person with a keen eye for observation. He saw that in the camp where the
Kingdom of Qi was stationed, the number of stoves used for cooking became less
and less every day, and he made a judgment.
He judged that the soldiers of the Qi
Kingdom were afraid of being defeated, so many people secretly fled the army
every day.
He believed in his own judgment, and his
mood was very excited. He ordered his staff to lead the infantry to continue to
the capital of Wei Kingdom.
He moved forward quickly with the most
elite cavalry in the army. He thought he could lead this elite force to capture
Tian Ji, the commander of the Qi Kingdom, and Sun Bin, the military advisor of
the Qi Kingdom.
This idiom means that a person hides his
strength in order to deceive his enemies.
Dear friends, what inspiration or thoughts
do you have after listening to this story?
When you think something is going well, do
you remind yourself to be prepared for failure? When you encounter
difficulties, how do you find new solutions?
I hope this story will give you something
new to gain.
減灶之計(Reduce the stove to deceive the enemy)
中國的戰國時代，有一個著名的軍事家，他的名字叫做(孫臏)。
歷史書上記載了一個關於他的故事。
西元前342年，魏王國與趙王國的聯合軍隊攻打韓王國。
韓王國派出使者向齊王國請求軍事支援。
齊國的國王派出一支軍隊去協助韓王國。這支軍隊的主帥是田忌，軍師是孫臏。
田忌想要帶領這支齊王國的軍隊包圍魏王國的首都，藉此迫使魏王國的軍隊回防。
但魏王國的軍隊的回防速度非常快，根據情報顯示，魏王國的軍隊只要在四天就可追上齊王國的軍隊。
屆時齊王國的軍隊將面臨到被魏王國留在首都中的軍隊與回防的軍隊兩邊夾擊的危機。
在這個危急的時刻，(孫臏)想出了一個大膽的計謀。
他集合軍隊中的所有士兵並對所有士兵說。
我們這支的軍隊中的編組方式是以每25個士兵編為一組。
這25個人每天傍晚紮營後要挖四個灶煮飯。
明天傍晚紮營後，這25個人只可以挖兩個灶煮飯。
後天傍晚紮營後，這25個人只可以挖一個灶煮飯。
這是軍事命令，所有人都必須確實遵守。
齊王國的士兵雖然不知道為何要這樣做，但士兵們仍舊服從他的命令。
他的這個計謀果然成功的欺騙了魏王國的將軍。
魏王國的將軍是一個觀察力很敏銳的人，他看見齊王國駐紮過的營地中，每天煮飯所用的灶的數量一天比一天更少，他做出了一個判斷。
他研判齊王國的士兵們因為害怕會戰敗，所以每天都有很多人偷偷逃離軍隊。
他相信自己的判斷，他的心情非常的興奮，他命令他的參謀帶領著步兵繼續前往魏王國的首都。
他帶著軍隊中最精銳的騎兵隊快速的前行，他認為他可以率領這支精銳部隊活抓到齊王國的主帥田忌與齊王國的軍師孫臏。
這句成語的意思指一個人隱藏自己的實力以欺騙自已的敵人。
親愛的朋友，你聽完這個故事有怎樣的啟發或有怎樣的想法呢。
你在覺得一件事情很順利的時候，你是否會提醒自已要防備這件事情的失敗呢?你在遇到困境的時候，你會怎樣找出新的解決方式呢?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為史記-孫子吳起列傳