The General's Concern
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The king of Qin decided to invade Chu. He asked a young general named Li Xin, “If I appoint you as commander-in-chief, how many men do you need?”
“Two hundred thousand should be sufficient.”
The king then asked General Wang Jian, a veteran army commander, how many men he would need.
“I can’t do with fewer than six hundred thousand.”
“You are too timid,” the king said. “I’ll let General Li Xin lead the expedition.”
General Li Xin’s army was defeated by the overwhelming force of Chu. When he came back, the king fired him. Then the king called on General Wang Jian.
“I should have listened to you,” he said apologetically. “Now Chu’s army is on the border. Please help me.”
Wang Jian declined. “I’m too old. I can’t live up to your expectations. Please find somebody else.”
The king apologized again. Wang Jian agreed to come out. “But I must have six hundred thousand men.”
“Whatever you say, my general,” said the king.
Wang Jian was appointed commander-in-chief of the Qin army. On the day of his departure for the front, the king saw him off to the outskirts of the capital.
“I have a request,” said Wang Jian. “Could Your Majesty give me some good estate?”
“Of course,” said the king. “You won’t be poor.”
“Well, many meritorious officers did not get their due. I thought I should take this opportunity to ask some favor for the sake of my children.”
The king laughed and reassured him.
On his way to the battle front, General Wang Jian wrote to the king repeating his request.
“Aren’t you overdoing it?” asked his deputy.
“Not at all,” said General Wang Jian. “The king is a suspicious man. He put me in charge of the entire army. If I don’t ask him for farmland and houses, if I don’t let him know I’m thinking of these things, he may suspect me of having my own agenda. I want to put his mind at ease so that he will trust me and give me a free hand in the battlefield.”
“You are very thoughtful.”
At the front, General Wang Jian fortified his defense but refused to engage the enemy despite repeated challenges. He fed his troops with good food and let them spend time training and playing sports.
For nearly a year, all was quiet on the front. The commander of the Chu army concluded that Qin’s army was to strengthen its defense, not to attack Chu. So he decided to pull back his troops.
While his men were withdrawing, General Wang Jian launched a surprise offensive. The Qin army dealt a crushing blow to Chu’s forces, capturing a lot of Chu’s territory and taking the king of Chu prisoner.
Upon his return, General Wang Jian was awarded a huge amount of gold. Then he retired.
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Wise Proverbs
- Plan strategies within a command tent, and ensure victory on the battlefront a thousand li away.
- 运筹帷幄之中那个，决胜千里之外。
- If you know the enemy and know yourself, you can fight a hundred battles without a single defeat.
- 知己知彼，百战不殆。
- Caution is the parent of safety.
- 小心驶得万年船。
Editor Says:
Wang Jian understood his king and knew how to communicate with him. Thus he gained his confidence. He understood his enemy and was well-versed in the art of war. With a massive force at his command, it was not surprising that he won victory.