Original text in classical Chinese:
Zhao Kuo learned the art of war when he was young and spoke about military matters, which no one in the world could match. He talked extravagantly about military affairs with his father. It is not difficult to talk extravagantly, but it is not a good thing. Kuo's mother asked She the reason, and She said: "Soldiers are dead, but Kuo is easy to say."
It's enough to prevent Zhao from encircling him; if he must do so, those who defeat Zhao's army must do so! When Kuo was about to go, his mother wrote to the king: "Kuo cannot use the general." When Kuo was about to go, his mother wrote to the king: "Kuo cannot use the general." The king said, "Why?" : "When I first served my father, when I was a general, the number of people I served and ate was counted as ten, and the number of friends I had was counted as hundreds;
All the rewards given by the king and the clan were given to the military officials, officials, and officials. On the day he was appointed, he did not care about family matters. Once Jin Kuo became a general, he faced east and no military officer dared to look up to him. The gold and silk given by the king were kept at home, and those who saw convenient land and houses could buy them.
Why is the king like his father? I hope the king will not send him away because he has different intentions. "The king said: "I have decided to send him away." Kuo's mother said: "The king will send him away. If you don't say it, will I be able to sit down with you?" Wang promised.
Since Zhao Kuo replaced Lian Po, he was more restrained and easy to replace military officials. When Qin general Bai Qi heard about it, he sent out a surprise attack, pretended to be defeated and fled, cutting off his food route, dividing his army into two, and causing the soldiers to become disengaged. After more than forty days, the army was hungry. Zhao Kuo sent out his soldiers to fight among themselves. The Qin army shot Zhao Kuo dead. Kuo's army was defeated, and hundreds of thousands of troops surrendered to Qin, who was trapped by Qin. (Selected from "Historical Records")?
Reference translation:
Zhao Kuo has been studying the art of war since he was young, talking about using troops to fight, thinking that no one in the world can resist him. (Zhao Kuo) once discussed the use of troops to fight with his father Zhao She. Zhao She could not refute (him), but (Zhao She) did not admit that he had military talents. Zhao Kuo's mother asked Zhao She the reason, and Zhao She said: "War is a matter of life and death, but Zhao Kuo made it easy.
What if Zhao Kuo was not allowed to be a general? Forget it, if he must be a general, then it will be Zhao Kuo who destroys Zhao Kuo's army." When Zhao Kuo was about to set off, his mother wrote to King Zhao: "Zhao Kuo cannot be a general."< /p>
When Zhao Kuo (who was worshiped as a general) was about to send troops, his mother wrote a letter to King Zhao saying: "Zhao Kuo (this person) cannot make him a general." King Zhao said: "Why ?" (Zhao Kuo's mother) replied: "When I first started serving his father, (he) was a general. He personally held meals and gave them to (others) dozens of times, and he made many friends. Hundreds;
All the things that the king and the clan gave him were given to the military officers and scholar-bureaucrats. From the day he accepted the appointment, he no longer interfered with the affairs of his family. As soon as Zhao Kuo became a general, he faced the east to accept worship. None of the officers in the army dared to raise their heads to look at him. He took all the gold and silver that the king had rewarded and hid them at home, and he saw cheap fields every day. If the house can be bought, buy it.
How does the king think (Zhao Kuo) compares with his father? They have different hearts. I hope the king will not send him to send troops." Old lady, please put your opinions aside for now. I have already made up my mind." Zhao Kuo's mother then said, "The king finally decided to send him to send troops, so if something goes wrong, I will not be affected. "?" King Zhao agreed to her.
After Zhao Kuo replaced Lian Po (who served as the anti-Qin general), he changed all the (original) disciplines and regulations, and replaced and rearranged officers. After Qin general Bai Qi heard about this incident, he sent a small force to lure Zhao Kuo into making a wrong judgment. He pretended to fail, but cut off his food route, divided the two armies, and the morale of the soldiers was in chaos.
More than forty days later, the soldiers in the army were hungry, so Zhao Kuo led the elite soldiers to fight in person. The Qin army shot Zhao Kuo to death. Zhao Kuo's army was defeated, so hundreds of thousands of soldiers surrendered to the Qin army, and the Qin army buried them all alive.
Extended information:
Talking on paper, pronounced zhǐ shàng tán bīng, is a Chinese idiom that refers to talking about war on paper. It is a metaphor that empty talk cannot solve practical problems. It also means that empty talk cannot become reality.
The classic comes from "Historical Records·Biography of Lian Po and Lin Xiangru": Zhao Kuo, the son of Zhao She, a famous general of Zhao State during the Warring States Period, studied the art of war when he was young, and his father could not trouble him when talking about military affairs. Later he succeeded Lian Po as Zhao general during the Battle of Changping. They only knew how to follow the military instructions and did not know how to adapt. As a result, they were defeated by the Qin army.
However, there was no paper during the Warring States Period. The most primitive paper was born in the Western Han Dynasty, later than the Spring and Autumn Period. Therefore, the source of the four words "Talking about Soldiers on Paper" is neither "Historical Records" nor Sima Qian.
Character introduction:
Zhao Kuo (? - 260 BC), surnamed Ying, Zhao, given name Kuo. A native of Zhao during the Warring States Period, he was the son of Zhao She, the famous general of Zhao, Ma Fujun. Zhao Kuo was familiar with military literature, but lacked battlefield experience and did not know how to be flexible. ?
In the Battle of Changping in the seventh year of King Zhao Xiaocheng (260 BC), King Zhao Xiaocheng was eager to win. As a counter-intentional plan of the Qin State, Zhao Kuo replaced the veteran Lian Po.
Zhao Kuo reversed Lian Po's strategy and switched from defense to offense. He took the initiative to attack the Qin army in Changping (now northwest of Gaoping, Shanxi). Qin general Bai Qi divided his troops into two groups: one way, he feigned defeat to attract the Zhao army to the Qin army's fortress; the other way, he cut off the Zhao army's retreat and implemented a counter-siege, cutting off the Zhao army's food route and trapping him in Changping.
In the end, the Zhao army was deprived of food for forty-six days and failed to break out of the encirclement five times in four directions. Zhao Kuo personally led the warriors to break through and killed the enemy bravely. He was shot to death by the Qin army. More than 400,000 Zhao Kuo soldiers After all the troops surrendered, they were trapped and killed by the Qin army.
Historical evaluation:
Lin Xiangru: "Kuotu can read his father's biographies, but he doesn't know about the merger."
Zhao She: "A soldier is a dead place. , and encirclement is easy to say. It is enough to make Zhao not encircle him. If he must encircle him, he must encircle him if he defeats Zhao's army."
Zhao's mother said: "When I first became a concubine, I served as a general. The number of people who eat and drink is counted by ten, and the number of friends who are friends is counted by hundreds. All rewards given by the king and the clan should be given to the military officials. On the day of receiving orders, they will not care about family affairs. Once Jinkuo becomes a general, he will go eastward. In the imperial dynasty, no military officials dared to look up to him. The king gave him gold and silk and kept them at home. If he saw that the land and house were convenient, he would buy them. I hope the king will not send him away. "?
Sima Qian's "Historical Records": "Zhao Kuo has learned the art of war since he was young and talked about military matters. No one in the world can do it." . Who can escape the mother material after a defeat, pity the 400,000 people."