Chapter 106 Bing Sheng - Sun Wu

Sun Wu, also known as Sun Tzu, was born in about 535 BC, with the word Changqing, and later generations honored as Sun Wuzi.Both great-grandfather and grandfather were famous generals of the state of Qi.Affected by his family, Sun Wu liked the art of war since he was a child, hoping to be useful.However, the disputes and civil strife in Qi made Sun Wu leave Qi and went to Wu when he was 18 years old. At the beginning of the state of Wu, Sun Wu first lived in seclusion on the outskirts of Wudu (now Suzhou, Jiangsu Province) and wrote books, waiting for the opportunity.In 515 BC, King Helu of Wu came to the throne and sought talents everywhere, hoping to achieve hegemony.Minister Wu Zixu recommended Sun Wu to King Wu, and Sun Wu dedicated 13 articles on the Art of War to King Wu.King Wu was amazed after watching it, and he asked Sun Wu to practice it to see the effect.In order to test Sun Wu's ability, King Wu did not give Sun Wu soldiers, but gave him 180 court ladies for him to practice.

Sun Wu didn't care, he divided the maids into two teams, let the two most beloved beauties of King Wu be the captains, and led the maids to practice according to orders.After Sun Wu had finished telling the drill passwords to the court ladies, he ordered people to beat drums to practice.But the maids didn't listen to his password at all, they just thought it was fun, laughed a lot, and the formation became chaotic.Sun Wu immediately ordered the beheading of the two captains of Meiji to abolish military discipline.King Wu was so frightened that he hurriedly sent an order to Sun Wu: "I already know that the general is good at using troops. Without these two beauties, I would not be able to eat well. Please forgive them."

However, Sun Wu beheaded the two beauties of King Wu on the grounds that "the general is in the army, and the king's fate is not accepted", and then appointed them as captains to continue the drill.This time, the maids were quickly trained to advance and retreat in an orderly manner, with a strict formation.Although King Wu lost his two concubines, he still worshiped Sun Wu as his general in the end, because he knew that Sun Wu was a rare general who helped him achieve hegemony. The most fundamental reason why Sun Wu enjoys a high reputation in ancient and modern China and abroad does not lie in the specific battles he commanded.It is because he dedicated a historically significant military classic "Sun Tzu's Art of War" to later generations.This book is a summary and sublimation of frequent, intense, and diverse war experience since ancient times, especially in the Spring and Autumn Period. It is the inheritance and development of the existing achievements in military theory. The wonderful flower bred by Chongzhi's Qi culture is also the crystallization of Sun Wu's personal genius and diligence.Today, "Sun Tzu's Art of War" has not only become the weapon used by military commanders in many countries to compete for victory on the battlefield, but also has entered the highest "temple" of some countries and has become one of the theoretical basis for their strategic decision-making; It is also widely used in non-military fields, among which wisdom can be described as "infinite like heaven and earth, inexhaustible like rivers".