Supports HSK 1Text HSK 3+
Deceive the Heavens to Cross the Ocean
瞒天过海
A clever general hides the sea from his king so the army can cross. This is the first of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: 瞒天过海.
4 min30 wordsNot started
Read storyReading practice
Thirty-Six Stratagems — Graded Chinese Reading
Read classic Chinese strategy stories (三十六计) with pinyin, English translation, vocabulary, and quizzes. Each story separates the HSK level it supports from the difficulty of its complete text.
36 stratagems across 6 learner support bands
Story collections
Choose a reading theme
Winning Stratagems (胜战计)
Six guided culture readings for learners supported at HSK 1. The complete story text is HSK 3+, with pinyin, English, pre-teaching, and quizzes.
6 stories
Enemy-Confronting Stratagems (敌战计)
Six guided readings for learners in the HSK 2 support band, with pinyin, English, vocabulary help, and quizzes.
6 stories
Attacking Stratagems (攻战计)
Six guided readings in the HSK 3 support band, with audio-ready pinyin and English scaffolding.
6 stories
Chaos Stratagems (混战计)
Six guided readings in the HSK 4 support band for confusing situations and many-sided conflict.
6 stories
Proximate Stratagems (并战计)
Six guided readings in the HSK 5 support band about close-quarters advantage and influence.
6 stories
Desperate Stratagems (败战计)
Six guided readings in the HSK 6 support band for when you are losing or cornered, including Empty City.
6 stories
Supports HSK 1Text HSK 3+
Besiege Wei to Rescue Zhao
围魏救赵
Instead of rushing to help, Sun Bin attacks the enemy's home, forcing them to leave. This is stratagem two: 围魏救赵.
4 min25 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 1Text HSK 3+
Kill with a Borrowed Knife
借刀杀人
Cao Cao wants to silence a rude scholar but fears blame, so he sends the man to a hot-tempered warlord, who kills him. This is stratagem three: 借刀杀人.
3 min29 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 1Text HSK 3+
Wait at Ease for the Exhausted Enemy
以逸待劳
General Wang Jian lets his army rest while the enemy grows tired, then attacks. Stratagem four is 以逸待劳.
5 min26 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 1Text HSK 3+
Loot a Burning House
趁火打劫
When Yuan Shao's sons turn on each other, Cao Cao takes the chance to attack and wins the north. Stratagem five, 趁火打劫, shows how chaos can be an opportunity.
4 min25 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 1Text HSK 3+
Make a Sound in the East, Strike in the West
声东击西
Han Xin is loud in the east so enemies look there, then crosses the river in the west. Stratagem six is 声东击西.
5 min24 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 2Text HSK 2+
Create Something from Nothing
无中生有
Tang general Zhang Xun defends Yongqiu by tricking the besiegers into shooting arrows at straw men, then suddenly sends real soldiers over the wall. This is the seventh of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: 无中生有.
4 min33 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 2Text HSK 2+
Secretly Cross at Chencang
暗度陈仓
Han Xin pretends to fix one road while his army secretly takes another. This is the eighth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: 暗度陈仓.
5 min44 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 2Text HSK 2+
Watch the Fire from Across the River
隔岸观火
Cao Cao watches his enemies fight each other from across the river, then wins easily. This is the ninth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: 隔岸观火.
4 min32 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 2Text HSK 2+
Hide a Knife Behind a Smile
笑里藏刀
Tang chief minister Li Linfu smiles warmly and speaks sweetly while secretly ruining rivals — the origin of the idiom 口蜜腹剑 (honey on the lips, a sword in the belly). This is the tenth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: 笑里藏刀.
4 min37 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 2Text HSK 2+
Sacrifice the Plum for the Peach
李代桃僵
An old poem tells how a plum tree takes hurt to save a peach tree beside it. This is the eleventh of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: 李代桃僵.
4 min33 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 2Text HSK 2+
Lead Away a Goat in Passing
顺手牵羊
Soldiers walking to their task see a small goat by the road and take it along. This is the twelfth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems: 顺手牵羊.
4 min49 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 3Text HSK 3+
Beat the Grass to Startle the Snake
打草惊蛇
Read how a greedy official gave his name to this idiom, and learn 打草惊蛇 for acting too soon and warning the other side.
4 min35 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 3Text HSK 3+
Raise a Corpse and Bring Back the Soul
借尸还魂
Discover how Xiang Liang revived the name of Chu to rally the people against Qin, and learn 借尸还魂 for giving new life to old names.
5 min35 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 3Text HSK 3+
Lure the Tiger off the Mountain
调虎离山
Find out why you should not fight a strong enemy in their own place, and learn 调虎离山 for luring someone out of their strong position.
4 min32 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 3Text HSK 3+
Let the Enemy Go to Capture Him Later
欲擒故纵
Read how Zhuge Liang caught and freed Meng Huo seven times, and learn 欲擒故纵 for giving space before you reach your goal.
5 min31 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 3Text HSK 3+
Toss a Brick to Attract Jade
抛砖引玉
Read how a poet used a few humble lines to invite better ones, and learn 抛砖引玉 for offering a small idea to get a better one.
4 min34 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 3Text HSK 3+
Capture the Leader to Defeat the Band
擒贼擒王
Discover how the Tang general Zhang Xu shot the rebel leader at Suiyang, and learn 擒贼擒王 for solving the main problem first.
5 min34 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 4Text HSK 4+
Pull the Firewood from Under the Cauldron
釜底抽薪
Read how Cao Cao won a hard war by attacking the enemy's source of strength, and learn the idiom 釜底抽薪 for solving problems at the root.
5 min12 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 4Text HSK 4+
Fish in Troubled Waters
混水摸鱼
Discover the idiom 混水摸鱼 and how people use confusion to gain an advantage, with a short story and modern examples.
4 min12 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 4Text HSK 4+
The Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell
金蝉脱壳
Read the story behind 金蝉脱壳, a stratagem about leaving a false appearance while you escape, with examples learners can use today.
5 min11 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 4Text HSK 4+
Close the Door to Catch the Thief
关门捉贼
Learn 关门捉贼, a stratagem about cutting off escape routes, through a clear graded story and everyday examples.
4 min12 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 4Text HSK 4+
Befriend the Distant, Attack the Near
远交近攻
See how the state of Qin used 远交近攻 to grow its power, and how the idea still appears in business and life today.
6 min12 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 4Text HSK 4+
Borrow a Passage to Attack Guo
假途伐虢
Read the classic story of 假途伐虢, where one state used a neighbor's road and then took both neighbors, with modern lessons.
6 min12 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 5Text HSK 5+
Steal the Beams, Replace the Pillars
偷梁换柱
Read the stratagem 偷梁换柱 and learn how secretly swapping the most important part can change everything, with the classic story of the forged imperial edict and a modern example.
5 min16 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 5Text HSK 5+
Point at the Mulberry, Curse the Locust
指桑骂槐
Discover the idiom 指桑骂槐 and how people criticize one person to warn another, with the classic story of Yan Ying's indirect remonstrance and everyday examples for Mandarin learners.
4 min15 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 5Text HSK 5+
Feign Madness Without Being Mad
假痴不癫
Read the story behind 假痴不癫, a stratagem about hiding your true ability by pretending to be foolish, with the classic tale of Sima Yi feigning illness to overthrow Cao Shuang and modern uses.
5 min19 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 5Text HSK 5+
Pull Away the Ladder After Climbing Up
上屋抽梯
Study the stratagem 上屋抽梯 and how cutting off someone's retreat gives you control, with the classic story of Liu Qi and the strategist Zhuge Liang, plus a modern cautionary example.
4 min20 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 5Text HSK 5+
Make a Dead Tree Bloom
树上开花
Discover the idiom 树上开花 and how decoration can make a weak side look strong, with Zhang Fei's famous dust trick at Changban Bridge and a modern business example.
5 min22 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 5Text HSK 5+
Turn the Guest into the Host
反客为主
Read the story behind 反客为主, a stratagem about a guest who gradually takes control and becomes the master, with the classic tale of Yuan Shao seizing Ji Province and a workplace example.
5 min25 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 6Text HSK 6+
The Beauty Trap
美人计
A minister uses a beautiful woman to break the bond between a cruel tyrant and his strongest warrior. This is the thirty-first stratagem: 美人计.
5 min59 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 6Text HSK 6+
The Empty City Stratagem
空城计
With almost no soldiers left, a calm general opens the city gates and plays music on the wall. This is stratagem thirty-two: 空城计.
5 min47 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 6Text HSK 6+
Sow Discord Among the Enemy
反间计
A general turns the enemy's own men against each other with a fake letter. This is stratagem thirty-three: 反间计.
5 min43 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 6Text HSK 6+
The Self-Injury Trick
苦肉计
A general lets himself be beaten so the enemy will trust him and his fire attack can succeed. This is stratagem thirty-four: 苦肉计.
5 min50 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 6Text HSK 6+
The Chain Stratagem
连环计
Two linked traps work together: first chain the enemy's ships, then burn them all. This is stratagem thirty-five: 连环计.
6 min44 wordsNot started
Read storySupports HSK 6Text HSK 6+
Running Away Is the Best Stratagem
走为上计
When you cannot win, a clever retreat keeps your strength alive for another day. This is the final stratagem: 走为上计.
5 min45 wordsNot started
Read story