Make a Dead Tree Bloom

Sānguó shíqī, Cáo Cāo qīn shuài dàjūn nánxià zhuījī Liú Bèi, Liú Bèi dāizhe bǎixìng yílù bàituì.

During the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Cao personally led a great army south in pursuit of Liu Bei, who retreated step by step with the common people in tow.

Xíng zhì Chángbǎnpō shí, Liú Bèi de bīngmǎ bèi chōngsàn, xíngshì wànfēn wēijí.

By the time they reached Changban Slope, Liu Bei's troops had been scattered, and the situation was desperate.

Cáojūn jīngruì qíbīng jǐn zhuī bù shě, yǎnkàn jiù yào zhuī shàng, Liú Bèi shēnbiān jīhū yǐ wú kě zhàn zhī bīng.

Cao Cao's elite cavalry pressed the chase and were about to catch up, while Liu Bei had almost no soldiers left who could fight.

Dàjiàng Zhāng Fēi zìgào-fènyǒng duànhòu, kě tā shǒuxià zhǐ shèngxià èrshí duō míng qíbīng, gēnběn wúfǎ yǔ Cáojūn zhèngmiàn jiāofēng.

The great general Zhang Fei volunteered to hold the rear, but he had only twenty-odd cavalrymen left—nowhere near enough to meet Cao Cao's army head-on.

Zhāng Fēi língjī-yídòng, juédìng yòng “shù-shàng-kāi-huā” zhī jì —— yǐ xū chōng shí, yǐ shǎo chōng duō.

A flash of inspiration came to Zhang Fei: he would use the stratagem of “making a tree bloom”—using the false to fill out the real, the few to pass for many.

Tā xiàlìng ràng qíbīngmen bǎ shùzhī shuān zài mǎwěi shàng, ràozhe shēnhòu de shùlín láihuí bēnchí.

He ordered his riders to tie branches to the horses' tails and gallop back and forth through the woods behind him.

Yìshíjiān chéntǔ fēiyáng、zhētiān-bìrì, yuǎnyuǎn wàng qù, fǎngfú lín hòu máifúzhe qiānjūn-wànmǎ.

At once the dust swirled up and blotted out the sky, so that from a distance it looked as though a vast army lay in ambush behind the trees.

Zhāng Fēi zìjǐ zé gūshēn yì rén héngmáo-lìmǎ, lì yú Chángbǎnqiáo shàng, nùmù-yuánzhēng, lián hè sān shēng.

Zhang Fei himself stood alone on Changban Bridge, his spear held across his horse, eyes glaring, and roared three times.

Cáojūn zhuī dào qiáotóu, jiàn chényān gǔngǔn yòu tīng hǒushēng rú léi, huáiyí lín zhōng yǒu fúbīng, jìng wú rén gǎn shàng qián yí bù.

When Cao Cao's men reached the bridgehead and saw the rolling dust and heard his thunderous roar, they suspected an ambush in the woods, and not a man dared step forward.

Jiù zhèyàng, Zhāng Fēi píng èrshí yú qí hé yí piàn fēichén, jìng xiàtuìle Cáojiā dàjūn —— zhè biàn shì “shù-shàng-kāi-huā”, jiè shì zào shì, ruò yì néng shè qiáng.

And so, with just twenty-odd riders and a cloud of dust, Zhang Fei frightened off Cao Cao's mighty host—this is “making a tree bloom”: borrow momentum, make a show, and even the weak can overawe the strong.

Bǐrú yì jiā gāng kāizhāng de xiǎo gōngsī, yòng jīngměi de guānwǎng、qìpài de bàngōngshì hé zhuānyè de bāozhuāng, ràng zìjǐ kàn qǐlái shílì xiónghòu.

For example, a newly opened small company can use a polished website, an impressive office, and professional packaging to make itself look well-established and strong.

Tā de zhìhuì zàiyú: dāng shílì bùzú shí, qiǎomiào de bāozhuāng kěyǐ yíngdé bǎoguì de jīhuì; dàn zhēnzhèng de chénggōng, réng yào kào bǎ jiǎxiàng yì diǎndiǎn zuò chéng zhēn běnshi.

Its wisdom lies here: when real strength falls short, a clever display can win precious opportunities; but lasting success still comes from turning the illusion, little by little, into genuine ability.