兵不厌诈

Pronunciation: bīng bù yàn zhà Literal meaning: Warfare does not spurn deceit

Origin & Usage

Before the battle of Chengpu, Duke Wen of Jin asked how to fight an enemy with more men. His uncle Fan answered that in matters of ritual one cannot have too much good faith, but between armies one cannot have too much deception — soldiers (兵) are not sated by (不厌) trickery (诈). Han Feizi preserves the exchange, and the two halves matter together: the licence is explicitly bounded to war, not extended to life. It is now used well outside that boundary, in negotiation and competition, and usually as a pre-emptive excuse rather than an observation.

Examples

English: "In negotiations, he often uses clever tactics to outsmart his opponents."

Chinese: 在谈判中，他常常使用巧妙的策略来智胜对手。