Sun Ce listened to Qiao Jingjing's long speech.
If he were Qiao Er or Qiao San, having such an understanding older sister who points out his shortcomings in every word, and who is always thinking of his best interests and looking for a better place for him.
It is my great fortune.
“You are the eldest in your family, and so am I. How can the eldest not think about their younger siblings? Da Qiao, don’t try to persuade me about your two younger brothers anymore. I know what I’m doing.”
The next day, Sun Ce sent Lü Meng to invite Qiao Er and Qiao San, and gave them two tasks to choose from.
One option was to lead 500 soldiers, starting as centurions. The other was not to lead troops, but to perform civil service duties within the army, such as recording, and to be under Zhang Zhao's management.
Qiao Er and Qiao San had been hearing a lot about Zhang Zhao these days.
Many of the Sun family's brothers invited Qiao Er and Qiao San to go drinking. They all praised Madam Qiao highly and gave Qiao Er and Qiao San wine, gifts, swords, and fine horses.
Some people said, "This Zhang Zhao is a terrible person! He insists on making trouble with Lord Wu, and insists that Lord Wu favors Lady Qiao too much and neglects Lady Gu."
Why would Qiao Er and Qiao San work under Zhang Zhao?
Isn't this just handing yourself over to someone else, letting Zhang Zhao find all sorts of ways to torment you?
Qiao Er and Qiao San both chose five hundred soldiers; they also wanted to fight.
“Brother-in-law, don’t worry. We may not have much experience in fighting, but we are well-versed in military strategy. My sister loved reading Sun Tzu’s Art of War and Thirty Stratagems back then, and my brother and I often read them too. We have memorized these military strategies perfectly, just as well as my sister.”
At that time, Sun Ce also knew that Qiao Jingjing liked to read Sun Tzu's Art of War.
Actually, Qiao Jingjing wasn't good at these seal characters, but she wanted to read Sun Tzu's Art of War and the Thirty-Six Stratagems, so she always had Qiao Er and Qiao San read them to her.
She read the book herself and even did her younger brothers' homework along with it.
What a great idea!
That night, Sun Ce asked Qiao Jingjing what books she had been reading lately.
Qiao Jingjing looked at the antique-style bedroom, on the other side of which was a huge embroidery frame.
It was recently custom-made for her by her mother-in-law, Madam Wu.
Madam Wu's meaning was probably that Qiao Jingjing had recently become a celebrity in everyone's eyes, and many people were trying to curry favor with her, which was not a good thing for her reputation.
Why not stay home and do some needlework?
Her mother-in-law, Madam Wu, gave Qiao Jingjing a landscape painting and asked her to draw the flower pattern and embroider it.
Qiao Jingjing felt a pang of heartache for most of the day after receiving this task.
She works in agriculture, not in clothing design or textile trade.
But Qiao Jingjing smiled and told her mother-in-law, Madam Wu, that she would definitely study hard and keep her mother-in-law's teachings in mind.
What books does my husband like to read?
Qiao Jingjing asked Sun Ce.
Sun Ce said that he recently read the "Nine Variations" chapter of Sun Tzu's Art of War:
"The general principles of warfare are: when a general receives orders from the army, he must unite the troops and gather the masses, leaving no place undefended. He must devise strategies based on the terrain, and fight only when faced with a desperate situation. There are things one should not do, things one should not attack, things one should not besiege, and things one should not contend for. There are also things one should not obey the emperor's orders."
It turns out that Sun Ce wanted to discuss military strategy with her tonight.
While Sun Tzu's Art of War may seem to focus solely on military operations and warfare, it also contains a wealth of philosophical principles.
The first ancient military treatise contains profound and extensive content, representing the essence of military thought.
It can be used not only for military campaigns, but also for broadening one's horizons and interpersonal relationships.
Therefore, it can continue to influence future generations.
"How much do I know about military campaigns? I only know about mulberry orchards and chicken and duck ponds."
Qiao Jingjing smiled modestly.
“Your two younger brothers said that after reading this book, they often reason with it. Tell your husband one tonight too, so I can hear your teachings, Da Qiao.”
Sun Ce clung to Qiao Jingjing in a sticky manner.
Qiao Jingjing laughed and dodged away.
"What are you hiding from? What do you have to hide from your husband?"
Sun Ce forced Qiao Jingjing to explain a profound principle of military strategy to him.
Qiao Jingjing was eventually forced into a corner.
It is said that it is easy to dodge a spear in the open, but difficult to guard against an arrow in the dark.
Sun Ce asked Qiao Jingjing to give an example.
Qiao Jingjing was speechless.
Sun Ce was a man with such rich practical experience. He and his brothers had read a lot of military books in their spare time, but it was just a matter of their individual personalities.
Sun Ce was bold and domineering, Sun Quan was strategic and balanced, and Sun Yi was even more bold than Sun Ce, but not as domineering as Sun Ce, nor as strategic as Sun Quan.
"I told you, don't laugh at me."
"Why would I laugh at you? When have I ever made fun of you?"
Sun Ce recalled the first time he met Qiao Jingjing. One moment she was flattering him, praising him to the skies and leaping across rooftops, and the next she was shamelessly clinging to his leg, crying and begging him with tears streaming down her face.
He never laughed at her back then.
"Everyone knows that it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark. Tell me, how do you dodge it, and how do you defend against it?"
Sun Ce asked Qiao Jingjing to tell him.
Sun Ce could sense that the current prosperity and bustling atmosphere around him actually concealed a great deal of instability and unseen threats aimed at him.
Qiao Jingjing also discovered Sun Ce's analytical abilities.
The changes he has undergone along the way have been truly remarkable.
He went from killing people at the drop of a hat to being tolerant and discerning, gathering talented people to work for him, and now he is reflecting on his own weaknesses and predicaments.
This is what is meant by the unity of knowledge and action.
We cannot just have theoretical knowledge and talk about things on paper.
We can't just blindly run around doing the work without summarizing our experiences.
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