Chapter 197: Ranking the Top Ten Historical Strategists, Fifth Place — Fan Li

Ranking the Top Ten Historical Strategists, Fifth Place — Fan Li

Era: Late Spring and Autumn period (Wu–Yue hegemony)

Titles: Lord Tao Zhu, Merchant Sage, the most perceptive person of all ages

The name flashes, and a shadow on the left freezes. The person who appears is rather interesting.

Not like a strategist, more like a… especially resourceful country gentleman.

A slender face, three strands of long beard, eyes not large but bright, and when looking at someone seems to filter all your innermost calculations.

Sometimes he wears the modest black robes of a Yue official, whispering low with Goujian in the rain‑leaking court;

Other times he dons coarse cloth, squatting by the river to argue the morning fish‑market trends with an old fisherman;

In a flash he's in brocade robes and jade sash, laughing at the bustling market gate while handing money to beggars, unbothered by the dust on his sleeves.

There's a peculiar ease about him; even if the backdrop is battlefield wreckage or palace intrigue, he stands as if it's none of his business, merely passing by to watch the spectacle.

The seal script floats beside him, the strokes lazy:

"If you can lie down, never stand; when it's time to slip away, never look back. Eradicating Wu is just a convenience, making money is the proper cultivation."

"Fan Li? The one who helped Goujian restore his state, then went on to do business and get rich?"

Li Si leaned toward Ying Zheng, his voice pressed low.

Ying Zheng gave a "hm" and his finger joints tapped his knee unconsciously: "Interesting. I've heard that after this man fled, his life was more comfortable than that of an official."

He always gives an extra glance to those who are both comfortable and useful.

A voice from the heavens rose, its tone flat and light, like a storyteller in a teahouse breezing through an over‑told anecdote, skipping the flourish and getting straight to the meat:

Fan Li, courtesy name Shao Bo. Among strategists, he is an oddity.

While others pin their heads to their belts seeking a place in history, he treats that very place as a job, gets paid, clocks out on time, and never does overtime.

Others ponder how to "advance"; he spends half his effort figuring out how to "retreat," and after withdrawing can switch arenas and thrive.

In an age when a bad death was almost a rule for top strategists, he stubbornly turned "achieve success and withdraw" into a cheat‑code, complete with hidden Easter eggs.

Below are the seven turning points of Fan Li's life

First arc: Two idle youths from Chu heading south for excitement

The scene cuts to Wan City in Chu State, a bustling market.

Two young men squat by the street eating noodles, one Fan Li, the other Wen Zhong.

The noodle stall owner complains about taxes; the two listen and exchange a glance.

Wen Zhong wipes his mouth: "The air here is foul, not our forte."

Fan Li finishes the last sip, sets the bowl down, and flicks his finger toward the southeast,

"I heard over in Yue, they're about to be crushed by Wu. Goujian looks like a hard bone that can endure."

Wen Zhong laughs: "You're the type who waters trees about to die?"

Fan Li chuckles: "If you revive a dying tree, that shows skill. Let's go watch the spectacle."

The two pat their backsides, slinging a small bundle, and wobble southward into the war‑torn pit.

"Looking for a job, of course I pick the challenging ones; salary and benefits are barely a concern, the equity structure is simple, the boss is a single person, on the brink of bankruptcy, easy to handle."

Second arc: Rain on Mount Kuaiji, kneel when you must

In 494 BC, the Battle of Fu Jiao ended in a disastrous defeat.

On Mount Kuaiji, shattered soldiers and defeated generals, the rain making hearts uneasy.

King Goujian of Yue, eyes blood‑shot, clutches his sword, roaring to kill his wife and burn treasures, fighting the Wu.

Wen Zhong pleads from the side, his lips worn raw.

Fan Li offers no counsel.

He waits until Goujian's roar fades, his strength spent, then steps over, lands with a splash, and kneels straight in the mud.

Not a melodramatic kneel, just a plain one, splashing mud droplets.

"My lord," he says, voice low but not drowned by the rain.

"At this point, to survive you must first learn how to die."

Goujian is stunned.

Fan Li continues, his words like shards of ice: "Now fighting head‑on is death."

"Go to Wu, serve Fuchai as a beast of burden, live like a dog, and only then will we have a chance to wait for them to relax, for us to recover."

"I, your servant, will go with you. This mess, we'll share."

In the scene, Goujian's facial muscles twitch, and finally that desperate blaze of spirit is snuffed out with a puff, doused by rain and those words.

He sits dejectedly, nodding.

"Is the hero's spirit short? No, it's seeing reality."

"The spine, when it should be soft, must be flexible; only then can it stay firm when needed."

Third arc: Three years in the Stone Chamber, feeding horses, tasting dung, and secretly passing notes

Arriving in Wu, Goujian and his wife reside in the Stone Chamber, raising horses.

Fan Li's status is "accompanying minister‑servant," giving him a slightly broader range of activity.

His daily duties:

Before dawn, he brushes the horses until they shine;

When Fuchai goes out, Fan Li leads the horse ahead, his head drooping lower than the horse's.

When Fuchai falls ill, Goujian "samples dung to inquire of disease" to show loyalty, while Fan Li stands guard outside, his expression unchanged.

Wu nobles come to "tour" the fallen lord and minister, pointing and commenting, and Fan Li pretends not to hear.

Yet his eyes never idle.

Which Wu official is lustful, which is greedy for money, which is at odds with Wu Zixu—he knows it all.

He took his own meager savings, plus the wealth Yue secretly sent, turned them into generous gifts, and precisely delivered them to the residence of Grand Tutor Bo Pi.

The gifts contained a pledge of loyalty reading "Yue will forever serve, with no second thoughts," written by Fan Li in wording so humble it was like dirt.

Bo Pi accepted the gift, read the letter, and whispered into King Fuchai's ear:

"That good-for-nothing Goujian is scared out of his wits; Fan Li is just a horse‑keeper, nothing to worry about."

King Fuchai gradually came to believe it.

To act, you must go all out—from lines to gestures, even that bit of resentment in your heart—it has to be genuine, or you won't fool anyone.

Fan Li performed that humility down to the marrow.

【Fourth Act: Ten Years of Accumulation, Xi Shi and the Steamed Seeds】

After great difficulty he was released back to Yue, only to find the land ravaged.

Goujian slept on a pile of firewood at night, licking the bitter gall.

Fan Li and Wen Zhong divided the work:

Wen Zhong oversaw how much grain the fields could yield and how much cash the treasury could hold;

Fan Li handled "outside affairs".

He did a few things that didn't look quite proper:

1. Find a beauty.

Not just any beauty, but one capable of toppling a state.

By the stream of Chuoluo Village he saw Xi Shi washing silk.

He didn't spout grand principles; he only told the startled girl and her family: "Yue must survive, and it needs help."

"You're too beautiful—this can save the state, but it can also ruin you."

"Come with me, and I'll make this 'good' of yours useful."

Later Xi Shi entered the Wu palace, becoming a dagger plunged soft‑yet‑deadly into King Fuchai's heart.

When Fan Li saw her off, he stood on the shore for a long time, finally sighing and turning away.

2. Grain speculation.

Yue borrowed ten thousand shi of grain seeds from Wu.

When it came time to repay the next year, Fan Li had the seeds all steamed before returning them.

The Wu people saw the plump grains and happily took them as seed.

As you can imagine, nothing sprouted in the fields, and famine broke out.

Someone cursed Fan Li for lacking virtue; he shrugged: "In war, do we still have to observe peasant ethics with the enemy?"

3. Secretly train a navy.

In the depths of Southern Forest he set up a secret base.

He himself followed veteran soldiers to learn naval warfare, studying the weaknesses of Wu's large ships.

He ate stinking fish jerky with the troops, slept in the ship's hold, and laughed off the lice that crawled on him.

"Revenge of this sort can't be rushed; it must be like simmering soup—low heat, slow stew—so that when the time comes, the flavor is full."