King Chu sent Zhao Ju to negotiate with Qin. Qin dispatched Ren Bi to lead troops against Chu, and the Chu army was defeated at Chongqiu. Zhao Ju said to the King of Chu: "Your Majesty need not worry. I shall request that Qin turn to assist Chu instead." He then met with the King of Qin and said: "When Chu attacked Qin, it was not for gain, but for self-preservation. Now that Qin attacks Chu, Chu is certain to perish. Yet if Chu perishes, it will bring no benefit to Qin. Why? Because once Chu is gone, Qin will lose its southern shield, and Han and Wei will surely seize the opportunity to strike from behind—this would be Qin's calamity. It would be better for Your Majesty to make peace with Chu, allowing Chu to find stability in the south while Qin concentrates its efforts on Han and Wei. This is a strategy of complete security." The King of Qin said: "Well spoken." Thereupon he withdrew his troops.
💡 商战启示录
Zhao Ju's persuasion exemplifies the strategic wisdom of "turning adversaries into allies," the crux of which lies in redefining the stakes of conflict. In modern commercial warfare, when two enterprises become locked in vicious competition, both often suffer mutual ruin while a third party reaps the spoils. For instance, in the 2010s, Didi and Kuaidi engaged in a fierce subsidy war in the ride-hailing market, incurring enormous losses on both sides while external rivals like Uber watched with predatory intent. At that juncture, capital forces drove the two to merge, ceasing internal attrition and uniting against external competitors, ultimately securing market dominance. This precisely embodies Zhao Ju's strategy: transforming immediate confrontation into cooperation grounded in shared interests, persuading the other party through a framework of "mutual benefit." Business leaders should learn to transcend zero-sum games, identify genuine threats, seek strategic partners, and replace "contention" with "coalescence" to achieve long-term stability. Furthermore, Zhao Ju's negotiation techniques merit emulation: he first acknowledges the opponent's strengths, then points out their latent risks, and finally proposes a win-win solution—this "retreat to advance" mode of communication can effectively lower the other party's defenses in commercial negotiations and facilitate collaboration.