Idiom Explanation:
The use of the army is valued for its swift action. It means that a man who uses his troops quickly can be taken by surprise, attack them unprepared and achieve victory.
Pronunciation:
兵贵神速
bīng guì shén sù
Origin:
西晋·陈寿《三国志·魏书·郭嘉传》：“太祖遂行至易，嘉言曰：‘兵贵神速。’”
Story:
Guo Jia was a native of Yangzhai, Yingchuan. He was wise and resourceful and was trusted and relied on by Cao Cao.
Cao Cao defeated Yuan Shao, who had four states, namely Ji, Qing, You, and Bing, and killed Yuan Tan, the eldest son of Yuan Shao, whose other two sons, Yuan Shang and Yuan Xu, fled and joined the leader of the Uwan tribe in the Liaohe River basin. The other two sons of Yuan Shao, Yuan Shang and Yuan Xu, fled and joined the leader of the Ugandan tribe in the Liao River basin. Cao Cao had the intention to conquer Yuan Shang and Steppington, but some officials feared that after the expedition, Liu Biao of Jingzhou would take the opportunity to send Liu Bei to attack Cao Cao’s rear.
Guo Jia analyzed the situation and said to Cao Cao, “You are now a powerful town, but Wuzhun, being located in a remote area, is bound to be defenseless. If you make a surprise attack, you will be able to destroy them. If the time is delayed, let Yuan Shang and Yuan Xu catch their breath and re-collect the remnants, the Uguns will respond, and Steppington will have ambitions, I am afraid that Jizhou and Qingzhou will not belong to us again. Liu Biao is an empty talker, knows that his talent is not as good as Liu Bei, will not reuse Liu Bei. Liu Bei is not reused, but also refuses to contribute more to the Liu table. So you can just rest assured that the expedition to Wuwan will not have worries.”
Cao Cao then led his army to the expedition. After reaching Yixian (now Hebei), Guo Jia said to Cao Cao, “It is important to use the army with great speed. Now when we go to a place thousands of miles away to fight, there are many military supplies, so the marching speed will be slow. If the Wuzhun people know the situation of our army, they will be prepared. Why don’t we leave the bulky military supplies behind and the troops lightly loaded, advance at double speed, and launch an attack when the enemy is unprepared, then we can win a great victory.”
Cao Cao followed Guo Jia’s plan, and his troops marched quickly and reached the stronghold of Steppington Monarch, where the Uguns responded in panic and were defeated. Steppington was killed, Yuan Shang and Yuan Xu fled to Liaodong, and was later killed by Sun Kang, the governor.
Similar Idioms:
- 速战速决
