The King of Han desired an alliance with Qin, and Qin, in turn, sought to win over Han—thus the two kingdoms joined forces. Qin wished to attack Chu, and Han likewise harbored the same ambition, so together they marched against the southern state. When the King of Chu heard of this, he was seized with fear and summoned Zhao Ying, saying: “Han and Qin have united to strike at Chu—our kingdom stands in peril. Devise a plan for me.” Zhao Ying replied: “The alliance of Han and Qin is mighty and formidable, not easily withstood. Yet I have heard that the wise do not defy the tide of opportunity nor cast aside advantage, and the brave do not fear death nor forfeit their renown. Now that Han and Qin are joined, their forces are strong and their schemes profound—Chu is sure to suffer. I beg to go and dissolve this peril for Your Majesty.” Thereupon Zhao Ying journeyed eastward to see the King of Han and said: “This union of Han and Qin bodes ill for Han. Qin’s desire to attack Chu springs not from goodwill toward Han, but from its own ambition to expand its territory. Han and Chu are as brothers. Now if Qin strikes at Chu and Han aids it, Han would be sowing enmity with Chu while enabling Qin’s grand design. Should Han instead ally with Chu, Qin would surely not dare to wage war against the south, and Han would find peace and security. Moreover, Qin is insatiably greedy—once it seizes Chu’s lands, it will inevitably turn to demand more from Han. If Han refuses, all prior efforts would be undone, and Qin would then attack Han; if Han yields, its territory would dwindle day by day until it is wholly devoured by Qin. Thus, allying with Qin is no wise counsel. Far better to befriend Chu—if Han and Chu stand together, Qin cannot inflict harm, and this is the plan of perfect safety.” The King of Han said: “Well spoken.” And so Han formed an alliance with Chu. When Qin learned of this, it withdrew its forces.
💡 商战启示录
This strategy illuminates the wisdom of discerning "false allies" from "true partners" in the game of rivalry. In modern commerce, enterprises often enter "marriages of convenience" with powerful competitors for short-term gains, while overlooking the possibility that the other party may covet their core markets. For instance, a startup technology company once signed an exclusive cooperation agreement with an industry titan to jointly develop a new market. Seizing the opportunity to master key technologies, the titan swiftly launched its own proprietary products, marginalizing the startup. This is a modern reincarnation of "Qin's desire to attack Chu was never for the sake of Han" — the titan's cooperation was not for its partner's benefit, but for its own expansion. Zhao Ying's counsel to "befriend Chu above all" finds its parallel in forging strategic alliances with peers possessing complementary strengths or with upstream and downstream partners, thereby creating an ecosystem of counterbalance. Alibaba and Suning, for example, once allied against JD.com, sharing logistics and data resources to consolidate their respective market shares. The crux of commercial warfare lies in this: before entering cooperation, one must analyze the other party's true intentions, remain vigilant against the trap of "expansion through borrowed passage," and choose partners capable of forming a counterweight, rather than unilaterally relying on the strong. Concurrently, one must adopt a dynamic perspective, foreseeing the distribution of benefits and potential conflicts after cooperation, so as to avoid the outcome of "all prior efforts undone" or "territory shrinking day by day." Ultimately, enterprises should pursue a balanced alliance structure, ensuring their own irreplaceability, to remain invincible in the game.