The state of Qin attacked Zhao, and the King of Zhao sent Zhao Kuo to lead the army. Zhao Kuo's forces were defeated, and he was buried alive by the Qin soldiers, along with the surrendered Zhao troops who were all interred in pits. Zhao Kuo's mother had previously pleaded, saying: "When I first served his father, he, as a general, personally offered food to over a dozen attendants and befriended a hundred companions; the gifts bestowed by the king and the royal clan were all distributed among the officers and gentry; from the day he received his commission, he never concerned himself with household affairs. Now, once Zhao Kuo assumes command, he sits facing east to receive homage, and no officer dares to look up at him; the gold and silk granted by the king, he takes home and hoards entirely, and daily seeks to purchase cheap fields and houses. Does Your Majesty think he resembles his father? Father and son are unlike in heart and conduct. I beg that Your Majesty not dispatch him." The King of Zhao said, "Mother, say no more; my decision is made." Zhao Kuo's mother then said, "If Your Majesty ultimately sends him, and he proves unworthy, may I be spared from punishment by association?" The King of Zhao consented. After Zhao Kuo replaced Lian Po, he completely altered the military regulations and dismissed many officers. When the Qin general Bai Qi heard of this, he sent elite troops in a feigned retreat, then cut off the Zhao army's supply routes, dividing the forces into two, and the soldiers' morale wavered. After over forty days, the army starved, and Zhao Kuo personally led his crack troops into battle, where Qin arrows struck him dead. The Zhao army suffered a great defeat, and hundreds of thousands of soldiers surrendered to Qin, who buried them all alive. Zhao lost a total of four hundred fifty thousand men. The following year, Qin forces besieged Handan for over a year, and the city barely escaped ruin. Only with the aid of the feudal lords of Chu and Wei was the siege of Handan lifted. The King of Zhao, because Zhao Kuo's mother had spoken beforehand, ultimately did not execute her.
💡 商战启示录
Zhao Kuo's defeat on the battlefield stemmed from the separation of knowledge and action. He had mastered the art of war from texts, yet lacked practical combat experience. More fatally, he was obstinate and self-opinionated, refusing to heed the seasoned general Lian Po's prudent strategies. Upon assuming command, he wholesale rejected his predecessor's approach, recklessly altering battle plans, which led to the complete annihilation of his army. In modern business, "Zhao Kuo-style" leaders are not uncommon: parachuted executives or young founders, armed with theoretical models or the prestige of elite universities, rush to prove themselves by overturning established systems, embarking on blind expansion or radical transformation. For instance, the founder of a bike-sharing brand copied internet playbooks while neglecting offline operations and cost control, ultimately breaking the capital chain. Similarly, a once-dominant mobile phone giant, whose leadership clung to a "barrage of models" strategy while ignoring core user needs, was defeated by rivals offering极致 single products. The wisdom of business warfare lies in: first, respecting experience—Lian Po's steadfast defense was a defensive strategy, akin to cash flow management during a company's downturn, which should not be lightly discarded; second, testing with small steps—had Zhao Kuo piloted his strategies locally before full implementation, disaster might have been averted; third, listening to the grassroots—the objections raised by Zhao Kuo's mother and his officers were "internal organizational warnings," and leaders should establish multi-channel feedback mechanisms to prevent information silos. True strategy is not a perfect deduction from books but adaptation and iteration within a dynamic environment. As Huawei puts it, "Let those who hear the cannon fire call for the artillery"—frontline experience must be integrated with top-level design to avoid repeating the folly of "armchair strategy."