INTRIGUE
Psychological warfare-on both sides of the city's walls-.
played a decisive role in a Chinese siege in 285 Be.
By Tang Long
months, the Yen army captured
more than 70 cities; only the
cities ofGhu and]ihmoh continued the resistance.
(Sun Tzu, The Art of War,
Tien Dan, a kinsman of Min,
circa 500 BC)
commanded the defenses of
[ihmoh. He had been a minor
n285 BC, while Rome strugofficial in charge of the public
gled in its infancy, China enmarket at Lin Tse. While fleetered the final phase of its Era of
ing from the Yen army,Tlen Dan
the Warring Nations (circa 475had cut the protruding axle
221 BC), in which seven warlord
ends from his carriages and restates-Chin,
Chi, Chu, Han,
inforced the spokes with metal
Tsao, Wei and Yen-vied for
plates, preventing them from
control of the land. The king of
becoming entangled with those
Chou, titular ruler of all things
of adjacent vehicles. When the
under Heaven, survived only at
previous commander of [ihmoh
the whim of his powerful, condied, its people remembered
tentious vassals.
Tien Dan's foresight with the
King Tso,ruler of the Yenstate,
wheel axles and elected him as
sent General Leh Yito attack the
the city's leader.
Chi nation. An astute strategist,
For three years the two Chi
Leh Yi persuaded Tso to form
cities withstood furious assaults
an alliance with the Chin, Tsao,
by the Yen army.Frustrated, Leh
Wei and Han nations before
Yiwithdrew his army 9/i (about
launching the attack. The alliance fieldedfivepowerfularmies
3 miles) and decreed free passagefor Chi civilians crossingthe
and, more important, isolated
battle lines. The Yen soldiersbeChi from its three neighborsfriendedthe Chi people,fed them
Tsao, Wei and Han.
and, if necessary, clothed them.
The Chi army, commanded
by King Min, suffereda disastrous
The temporary cessation of
o
hostilities, combined with Leh
defeat at Gi-Ho, on the west
Yis pacification measures, posed
bank of the Yellow River. Min In the Era of the Warring Nations, the kingdom of Chi stood alone
escaped to Lin Tse, capital of against a total of six hostile states. In 285 BC, however, Tien Dan's
a problem for Tien Dan. He had
difficultymaintaining strong belthe Chi nation. The Chin, Wei, defense of ]ihmoh led to a surprising reversal of fortune.
ligerent spirits among [ihmoh's
Tsao and Han armies plundered
the Chi border cities, then marched home,
Before Nao Tsi could hand the city over defenders against the Yen army.At that bleak
while Leh Yipursued Min to Lin Tse. At the to Leh Yr, the people of Ghu killed Nao Tsi moment, Tien Dan's spies brought vital inapproach of the Yen army, Min fled southand his entourage, then secured the city formation. Qi Chieh, an arrogant and selfagainst the Chu and the Yen armies. Prince centered official in the Yen court, fancied
east to Ghu. With no effective leadership,
Fa Tsang, son ofMin, ascended to the throne
Lin Tse fell without a struggle.
himself to be an expert strategist. Envious
The king of Chi then sought aid from and continued the resistance against the
ofLeh Yis success,Qi Chieh aspired to comChu, the sole power uninvolved in the con- Yen invaders. The leaderless Chu army fell mand the army and had persuaded the Yen
flict thus far. In return for all the land north
apart; half of its soldiers fled for home and crown prince to petition for the removal of
of the Huai River, King Hsian-Hsiang, ruler the rest were absorbed into the Yen army. Leh Yi from his post. King Tso did not apTo gain the hearts of the people, Leh Yi preciate his son's foolish meddling in miliof Chu, dispatched General Nao Tsi with
200,000 men to rescue Chi.
ordered humane treatment of the contary affairs. Angry at the crown prince for
The Chu commander, however, secretly quered people, reduced taxes, forbade the
questioning the competence of his favorite
arranged a treacherous pact with Leh Yi to conscription of forced laborers in captured
general, Tso had the crown prince caned for
territories and took special care to safeguard his impertinence.
divide the Chi territory. Nao Tsi lured Min
to the Chu encampment to inspect the Chu
the Nine Ceremonial Ums of the Chi clan
Within one year Tso died, and the crown
at Lin Tse. He also provided food and succor prince became King Hui of the Yen nation.
army, but upon his arrival, Nao Tsi executed
the royal entourage, then hung Min by his to a populace devastated by warfare. Those
Immediately, Tien Dan sent agents to plant
heels from a beam. Min suffered for three
humanitarian measures brought many
a rumor in the Yen court: "Leh Yi had capChi people into the Yen camp. Within six tured over 70 Chi cities in six months, but
days before dying.
"The best victory is one achieved
without combat and the best way
into a city is without a siege. "
I
30 MILITARY HISTORY
DECEMBER 1997
failed to take two cities in four years. He
wants to sit on the Chi throne, but out of respect and allegiance to King Tso, Leh Yihad
kept his own ambition in check. His benevolent policy has won the hearts of the Chi
people, and it is only a matter of time before
Leh Yideclares himself king. The Chi people
are worried that if a new Yen commander
replaces Leh Yi, it would spell the end of the
two cities and the Chi as a nation."
That misinformation fueled Hui's doubt
about Leh Yi'sloyalty, and memories of the
caning rekindled Huis hatred for the Yen
general. The king dispatched Qi Chieh to
replace Leh Yi. Fearing for his life, Leh Yi
fled to the Tsao nation. Three days after Qi
Chieh assumed command, the Yen army
resumed assaults on [ihmoh.
With Leh Yiout of the way,Tien Dan set
out to rebuild the morale of his army and
erode that of his enemy. Tien Dan announced to the people of [ihmoh: "Last
night, in my dream, I encountered the] ade
Emperor of Heaven. He told me the Yen
army will soon be defeated and the Chi
nation shall recover its lost territories. The
]ade Emperor promised to send us a Seer to
guide us to victory."
A very astute soldier whispered in Tien
Dan's ear, "Could I be the Seer sent by the
gods?" Tien Dan quickly draped the soldier
in a fine robe, seated him in the place of
honor at every public gathering in] ihmoh
and treated him with the respect due a
deity. Henceforth, Tien Dan issued his
orders in the name of the Seer.
The next day, Tien Dan decreed to the
people of] ihmoh, "The Seer said everyone
should make offerings to their ancestors
before each meal, to gain the protection of
the gods in the coming battles." Food offerings to ancestors appeared in the courtyards and balconies of every household.
The massive outdoor display of food attracted flocks of birds, which circled the sky
over [ihmoh. Yen soldiers saw the strange
sight, and soon gossip spread around campfires that the gods were protecting the city.
Subsequently, assaults against ]ihmoh
slacked off.
Tien Dan sent provocateurs to plant another rumor in the Yen encampment: "General Leh Yiwas too humane. He never killed
or mistreated his captives, therefore the Chi
people were not afraid of fighting against
him. By cutting off the noses of the Chi
prisoners, the Yen army will strike fear into
the hearts of the Chi defenders." Qi Chieh
fell for Tien Dan's ruse. Before long, a parade
of nose less Chi captives appeared in front
of] ihrnoh's defenders. Seeing the fate of
their comrades only stiffened their resolve
ro light ro the death, rather than suffer the
shame of meeting their ancestors disfigured.
another rumor surfaced around the
.en campfires: "The graves of the Chi
~le
ancestors are outside of the city. If
the Yen army desecrated them, it would
shame and demoralize the Chi defenders."
Within days, Yen soldiersexcavated the Chi
cemeteries, burned the corpses and scattered
the bones to carrion. That only enraged the
Chi, who petitioned Tien Dan to attack the
hated enemy.
Tien Dan now prepared to go on the offensive. First, he scattered the old, the weak
and the women among the defenders on the
battlements. A few days later, Tien Dan requested a truce and dispatched an envoy to
the Yen camp. The emissary professed that
the people of jihmoh were starving and demoralized and thus would like to arrange
for an honorable surrender.Qi Chieh proudly
announced the news to his army, resulting
in cheers and celebrations throughout the
Yen encampment. That night, at Tien Dan's
direction, the elite of [ihmoh city sent
representatives into the Yen camp. They
brought gold and jewelry for Qi Chieh's
senior officers, to ensure that they would
remain safewhen the city surrendered to the
conquering army.
The truce gave Tien Dan time to execute
the final phase of his scheme. He dug large
tunnels into the city wall, leaving a thin
layer of the outer wall undamaged. He then
collected more than 1,000 cattle from the
city's populace and draped them with sheets
of cloth painted with bright multicolored
dragons. Sharp knives adorned their homs,
while oil- and wax-soaked reeds were tied
like giant brooms to their tails.
On the night before the scheduled surrender of] ihmoh, Tien Dan assembled 5,000
elite soldiers. He painted their faces in the
same pattern as that adorning the cattle.
Each soldier held a walnut in his mouth to
remind him to keep quiet. At midnight, laborers broke through the outer wall at each
previously cut tunnel. Soldiers led cattle
through the tunnels, then lit the reeds tied
to their tails. Surprised and panicked by the
fire, the cattle charged toward the Yen encampment, followed by the Chi soldiers.
Thousands of thundering hoofs and
bovine bellows awakened the bleary-eyed
Yen soldiers, who had been sleeping off
their celebrations. It appeared as if an army
of fire-breathing dragons had descended
upon the Yen encampment. Anyone in the
path of the cattle was gored or trampled.
The blazing brooms set the landscape and
the encampment afire, while 5,000 silent,
painted devil-warriors emerged from the
night wielding big knives and battle axes.
The Yen soldiershad heard about the Seer
sent by the gods to help the Chi people. The
sight of flaming dragons and devil-warriors
confirmed the rumor, and the Yen soldiers
fled in terror.Behind the 5,000 devil-warriors,
Tien Dan led the remainder of his army. Qi
Chieh died while trying to escape.
The victory at] ihmoh incited other Chi
cities to rally behind Tien Dan, who swiftly
reconquered the Chi territories that had been
lost to Leh Yi.Few times in history has so dramatic a reversal of fortune been achieved by
the use of psychological warfare. 0