Welcome back, time travelers.
So after meeting the legendary horse expert Bo Le and his literal-minded son, you certainly have acquired some quick expertise on spotting fine horses.
In this episode, we're settling up for two more tales that will twist your thinking.
Before the horses hit the track, we need to meet the legend in this tale, a man named Sun Bin.
He was a brilliant military strategist, a descendant of Sun Zi.
Yes, that Sun Zi, the one who wrote The Art of War.
Sun Bin was just as sharp, He later wrote his own classic, Sun Bin's Art of War.
Strategy was his superpower, and let's see how he used it to help his boss win a horse race.
His boss, Tian Ji, was a high-ranking general in ancient China, and he loved horse racing.
But the problem was, he kept losing.
To help his boss, Sun Bin watched a few races.
And it didn't take long for him to figure something out.
He saw the same pattern every time.
Three horses on each side.
A top tier, a mid tier, and a lower tier one.
The opponent's horses were slightly better in every category.
Race straight up.
Tian Ji would lose every single race.
Game over.
Sun Bin went to his boss.
Forget matching the best with the best, he whispered.
Let's play the game differently.
And his winning strategy involved losing first.
Round one.
Raise Tianji's slowest horse against the competitor's fastest horse.
Result, a deliberate crushing loss.
Race two, raise Tianji's best horse against the competitor's second best.
Result, a solid win.
Round three, raise Tianji's second best horse against the competitor's slowest.
Result, Another wing.
Two wings, one loss.
Same horses.
But a much more desirable outcome.
Of course, this story isn't just about horses.
It's about strategy and resourcefulness.
When you can't be the strongest in every category, you have to be the smartest with what you've got.
It's also about seeing the whole board beyond just the immediate sprint.
Sometimes, winning the big game means cleverly sacrificing a small battle.
Now let's head north, far to the frontier, where land disappears into the wild, for the story of an old man who lived there more than 2000 years ago.
History never recorded his real name, though.
People simply call him the Frontier Old Man, or Sai Weng in Chinese.
One day, one of Sai Weng's finest horses suddenly ran off straight into the land where the enemy lived beyond the frontier.
Hearing of the loss, neighbors came to comfort him and said, What bad luck.
But how did Sai Wong respond?
He simply shrugged and said, Well, losing a horse, who knows if this isn't a good thing.
A few months later, a miracle happened.
The lost horse not only returned, but brought back a strong, magnificent steed with it.
The neighbors rushed back to congratulate him.
Such incredible luck!
But Saiwo frowned and said Gaining this fine horse for free.
Who knows if this won't bring Not soon after, his son, who loved riding the new horse, accidentally fell off and broke his leg.
This was surely unfortunate, and all the neighbors came to comfort him.
Still, Sai Wong simply said, A broken leg?
Maybe that's not a bad thing either.
Soon, a war broke out.
All the young men in the region got drafted, and many never returned.
But Sai Wong's son was spared because of his broken leg.
This is a famous Sai Wong lost his horse story, reminding generations after generations of Chinese people that misfortune may be a blessing in disguise.
Life is like a suspenseful mystery box.
You never know if the next opening brings fortune or challenge.
This leads us to our second and perhaps the most important piece of wisdom.
Keep an open and calm mind.
Good things can turn bad.
Bad things can also turn good.
Life is an adventure full of unknowns.
Don't become too overjoyed or upset by temporary gains or losses.
So let's run it all in.
From Tianji's horse racing we learn that we can be the strategic architect of our own fate, using smart thinking to play our hand better.
From Sai Wong we learn to be patient observers of fate's unpredictable flow, knowing it's never just one thing.
Together, they give us the superpower for life, the wisdom to know when to change the situation of the race and when to simply trust that the race isn't over yet.
Together, they gave us a super powerful lie.
The wisdom to know when to change the situation of the race and when to simply trust that the race isn't over yet.
That's quite a gallop through two more incredible horse related tales.
If you loved discovering these strategies and surprises, welcome to our channel.
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Tell us, have you ever experienced a Sai Wung moment or used a Tian Ji strategy in your own life?
See you next time.
