There's a bunch of interesting stuff on there, but I thought this was the most fun... almost fairy-tale like.
The song of Chu, Battle of Gaixia, 202 bc.
Perhaps the first recorded use of music as a psychological weapon, the Song of Chu was sung by Liu Bang's army to demoralize the Chu army. Liu Bang crushed the Chu and went on to found the Han Dynasty.
Empty Fort Strategy
An interesting psychological tactic used by various commanders including Tokugawa Ieyasu. When besieged by superior forces, the defending force would throw open their gates and act as if nothing was amiss. Zhuge Liang, a commander highly regarded for his wiles, instructed his soldiers to sweep the entry road as he played music atop the city gates.
The enemy would suspect a trap, halt, and fail to press their advantage.
The strategy of beautiful women
Liu Bang again, this time as Emperor Gaozu of Han. When besieged at PingCheng by 300,000 Xiongnu horsemen, Gaozu sent a painting of a Chinese princess to the Xiongnu commander's wife, with a message that he intends surrender and present the exquisitely beautiful Chinese princess as tribute to her husband.
He awoke the next day to find that the Xiongnu had decamped.
The strategy of sowing disorder
Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei led an army of 100,000 and besieged a Song army led by general Zhang Zhi. As the city was well fortified, the emperor planned to starve the city into a surrender. He sent an envoy to Zhang for the traditional exchange of wine before commencing the siege. Knowing that his only chance was to provoke a quick battle, Zhang sent urine in a wine jar instead.
Suffering loss of face, the Emperor ordered an immediate assault on the city, and lost half his army.
The strategy of harming oneself
Kaei Juzo was a Tokugawa era ninja earmarked for assassination by the Shogunate. The Shogun unknowingly sent Juzo's old friend, Tonbe, to do the deed. Unwilling to kill each other, they hatched a plot.
Tonbe presented Juzo to his masters as a prisoner. Juzo requested that he be allowed to commit seppuku instead. His wish granted, Juzo slit his belly and spilled his intestines on the ground, whereupon his body was thrown over the walls into the moat.
He had strapped a dead fox under his tunic.
Openly Repair The Walkway, Secretly March to Chenchang
At the Battle of Okehazama, Oda Nobunaga was outnumbered 10 to one by the Imagawa. He erected banners at a temple in front of the Imagawa to give the impression that he was there, and secretly marched his army to the enemy's rear.
The Imagawa were routed.
Sacrifice the plum tree to preserve the peach tree
During the three Kingdoms period, Cao Cao's army was running short of supplies. Cao Cao ordered his quartermaster to use a smaller ration cup.
When Cao Cao's soldiers complained and neared mutiny, he had the quartermaster beheaded and displayed his head to the troops with the message:
"caught cheating with supplies".
Managers, take note.
Tossing out a brick to attract a Jade
During the Warring States period, the Earl of Zhi sent a large tribute to the King of Wei. The King of Wei was extremely pleased and his ministers offered their praises. All that is, but one. To paraphrase the suspicious minister:
One must examine the motivation behind a gift given with no merit, and when no force has been applied.
In other words, the bastards are up to something. The King of Wei ordered his army to the border, where they encountered the Earl of Zhi at the head of a large invasion force.
His bluff called, the Earl of Zhi employed the most famous and oft-used strategy throughout all 3000 years of continuously recorded Chinese history: if all else fails, retreat.
Note:
The colorful names came from the book of Thirty-Six Stratagems.
Note:
East Asian history was written by court historians. Although these historians were traditionally impartial observers and have on occasion been executed, castrated, and otherwise punished for their refusal to whitewash, it's exceedingly difficult to separate fact from fiction. So treat the above as an entertaining read and make of it what you will.
