Feign Madness Without Being Mad

Sānguó mòqī, Wèiguó dàquán jiànjiàn luòrù dàjiāngjūn Cáo Shuǎng zhī shǒu, tā dúlǎn cháozhèng, páijǐ gōngxūn lǎochén.

In the late Three Kingdoms period, power in Wei gradually fell into the hands of General-in-Chief Cao Shuang, who monopolized court affairs and pushed aside meritorious old ministers.

Tàifù Sīmǎ Yì shì sān cháo yuánlǎo, wēiwàng jí gāo, zìrán chéngle Cáo Shuǎng zuì dà de yǎnzhōng-dīng.

The Grand Tutor Sima Yi, a veteran of three reigns, enjoyed immense prestige and naturally became Cao Shuang's greatest thorn in the side.

Cáo Shuǎng bùduàn kuòchōng shìlì, hái pài rén sìchù shìtàn Sīmǎ Yì, xiǎng zhǎochū jièkǒu bǎ tā chèdǐ chǎnchú.

Cao Shuang steadily expanded his power and sent men to probe Sima Yi, hoping to find a pretext to wipe him out entirely.

Sīmǎ Yì kānchuān yíqiè, juédìng yǐ “jiǎ-chī-bù-diān” yìngduì —— zhuāng chū yí fù lǎobìng hūnkuì, xíngjiāng-jiùmù de yàngzi.

Sima Yi saw through it all and chose to answer with “feigning madness without being mad”: he would play the part of a doddering, dying old man.

Tā cóngcǐ chēngbìng bù chū, zhěngrì wòchuáng, hē zhōu shí tāngzhī shùnzhe zuǐjiǎo wǎng xià tǎng, huà yě hánhu bù qīng.

From then on he pleaded illness and stayed in bed all day; when he drank porridge the broth would dribble down his chin, and his speech was a mumbled blur.

Cáo Shuǎng pài qīnxīn Lǐ Shèng qián qù tànwàng, Sīmǎ Yì gùyì zhuāng de lián rénmíng dōu tīng cuò, yīfu dōu ná bù wěn.

Cao Shuang sent his trusted aide Li Sheng to call on him; Sima Yi deliberately acted so confused that he misheard even names and could hardly hold on to his clothes.

Lǐ Shèng huíqù bǐngbào shuō, Sīmǎ Yì yǐ shì fēngzhú-cánnián、shénzhì bù qīng, gēnběn bùzú wéi lǜ.

Li Sheng returned and reported that Sima Yi was in his dotage, his mind gone, and not the least cause for worry.

Cáo Shuǎng guǒrán fàngxià jièxīn, cóngcǐ bù zài fángbèi Sīmǎ Yì, hái fàngxīn de dàizhe qīnxīn chū chéng jìsǎo Gāopínglíng.

Cao Shuang duly let down his guard and stopped watching Sima Yi, confidently leaving the city with his cronies to perform rites at the Gaoping Tombs.

Méi xiǎngdào Sīmǎ Yì de “bìng” jìng zài yí yè zhī jiān hǎo le —— tā chèn jīngchéng kōngxū, yìjǔ fādòng zhèngbiàn, kòngzhìle Cáo Shuǎng yì dǎng.

To everyone's surprise, Sima Yi's “illness” vanished overnight: with the capital undefended he launched a coup in one stroke and seized control of Cao Shuang's whole faction.

Zhè biàn shì “jiǎ-chī-bù-diān” —— biǎomiàn zhuāng hútu, gǔzi lǐ què qīngxǐng de hěn, zhǐ dài shíjī yí dào biàn yì jī zhìshèng.

This is “feigning madness without being mad”: outwardly playing the fool while inwardly crystal clear, waiting for the moment to strike and win.

Bǐrú zài xiàqí huò bǐsài shí, gāoshǒu chángcháng gùyì lòuchū pòzhàn, yòushǐ duìshǒu qīngdí màojìn.

For instance, in chess or in sports, masters often deliberately show a flaw to lure their opponent into underestimating them and rushing in.

Tā de zhìhuì tíxǐng wǒmen: zài zìjǐ shílì shàng ruò shí, cángzhuō shìruò bìngfēi tuìsuō, ér shì zài wèi guānjiàn yì jī jīxù lìliang.

Its wisdom reminds us: when your own strength is still weak, hiding your edge and showing weakness is not retreating but storing up power for the decisive blow.