Tian Dan was about to attack the Di stronghold, and went to see Master Luzhong. Master Luzhong said, "General, if you attack Di, you will not take it." Tian Dan said, "With an inner city of five li and an outer city of seven li, I led the remnants of a defeated army, crushed Yan with its ten thousand chariots, and recovered the territory of Qi. Now you say I cannot take Di—why?" With that, he mounted his carriage and left without taking his leave. He then attacked Di, but after three months, it still had not fallen. The children of Qi sang a nursery rhyme: "A great cap like a winnowing basket, a long sword propping the chin—attacking Di, we cannot take it, and bleached bones pile into little hills." Only then did Tian Dan grow afraid, and he went to ask Master Luzhong, saying, "Sir, you said I could not take Di—please let me hear your reasoning." Master Luzhong replied, "When you were at Jimo, General, you sat and wove grass baskets, and when you stood, you took up the spade. You said to your soldiers: 'There is nowhere left to go! Our ancestral temples are destroyed! Our very souls are scattered! Where else can we return to?' At that time, you had the resolve to die, and your soldiers had no thought of survival. When they heard your words, there was not one who did not wipe away tears and roll up sleeves, eager to fight—that is why you could defeat Yan. But now, General, to the east you have the fief of Yi for your pleasure, and to the west the beauties of the Zi River for your amusement. You wear a belt of gold and gallop between the Zi and Mian rivers, knowing only the joy of living, without the resolve to face death—this is why you cannot prevail." Tian Dan said, "I have such resolve—remember it, sir." The next day, he roused his spirit, personally inspected the city walls, stood where arrows and stones fell thick, seized the drumstick and beat the advance, and only then was Di taken.
💡 商战启示录
Tian Dan's campaign against Di—first a defeat, then a victory—reveals the profound impact of a leader's shifting mindset at different stages on organizational performance. In modern business, this case mirrors the distinct challenges of the entrepreneurial phase versus the consolidation phase of a company. During the entrepreneurial phase, leaders like Tian Dan at Jimo, constrained by scarce resources and existential stakes, often ignite in their teams a fighting spirit of "crossing the Rubicon." This echoes how Huawei, in its early days facing global giants, drove its teams through adversity with a "wolf culture" and a heightened sense of crisis. However, when an enterprise enters its mature phase, leaders may become complacent, indulging in past achievements and comfort zones—much like Tian Dan, who reveled in the "rewards of Yiye and the pleasures of Zishang"—leading to internal friction and dwindling innovation. Nokia, at the zenith of its mobile phone dominance, overlooked shifting trends and was ultimately disrupted by competitors. Lu Zhonglian's admonition awakened Tian Dan, serving as a timely reminder to modern entrepreneurs to perpetually maintain a sense of urgency, the "heart that fears no death," and to avoid being numbed by short-term gains and安逸 environments. Concretely, leaders should regularly engage in self-reflection, asking whether success has dulled their sensitivity to market changes or eroded their commitment to the spirit of endeavor. Simultaneously, they should design mechanisms—such as internal entrepreneurship platforms or innovation incubation programs—to reimmerse their teams in the urgency of "building from zero to one." Tencent, despite its immense scale, encourages internal competition, which gave birth to innovative products like WeChat. Tian Dan's eventual "rousing his spirit to approach the city walls, personally facing arrows and stones" proves that leaders leading by example and returning to the front lines is the key to revitalizing morale. Business leaders, too, should regularly venture to the operational forefront to understand the true state of customers and employees, avoiding bureaucratization. The modern value of this ancient military case lies in this: success is not a permanent insurance policy. Only by sustaining the enterprising drive of "attacking Di" and the crisis awareness of "Jimo" can one remain undefeated in the arena of commerce.