Conflict and Unity

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

4.2

Word count: 504 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

Drawn from the Guiguzi, a summation of the lobbying experience of the Vertical and Horizontal Alliance school, whose author was a Zhou-dynasty thinker, a representative of Daoism, and the founding figure of the Vertical and Horizontal Alliance school. "Elder Wang Chan" is how later generations referred to Guiguzi, who is counted as one of the five branches of Laozi's teachings.

Editor's review

"Wu He" comes from the Guiguzi and is a theoretical distillation of the lobbying experience of the Vertical and Horizontal Alliance school; the 2024 Bashu Publishing House edition presents this classical text as a single piece. The title "Wu He" points to the dialectical relationship between divergence and convergence, discussing how to assess situations, choose positions, and grasp when to advance or retreat amid complex interpersonal and political configurations. Its value lies not in offering fixed scripts but in presenting a way of thinking centered on analyzing stakes and interests: first observe the other party's intentions and one's own circumstances, then decide whether to accommodate or diverge. The text is not long, yet it condenses the Vertical and Horizontal Alliance school's cool-eyed observation of human nature and power; reading it can be cross-checked against the lobbying cases in the Intrigues of the Warring States. It suits readers as an introductory text to pre-Qin thought and classical strategy, and also as a thinking reference for real-world scenarios such as workplace communication and negotiation. Note that its stance leans toward expediency; readers should maintain critical distance and not treat it as a moral guide.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Beginning readers interested in pre-Qin thinkers and the Vertical and Horizontal Alliance school
Professionals seeking to improve communication, negotiation, and situational judgment
Readers who enjoy short classical texts and prefer fragmented reading
Enthusiasts studying the text of the Guiguzi and lobbying theory

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting systematic ethical or moral-philosophical instruction
Advanced researchers needing a complete annotated edition of the Guiguzi
Readers who prefer long-form narrative or literary works

Reading tips

Read the original text through once, marking the contexts in which "wu" and "he" appear, then return to sort out the relationship between the two.
Read alongside one or two lobbying stories from the Intrigues of the Warring States to appreciate the practical application of expedient thinking.
After reading, apply the text's method of assessing situations to a real communication scenario and write a review note.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.

版权信息
忤合第六

FAQ

What exactly do the two characters "wu he" refer to?

"Wu" means divergence or incompatibility, while "he" means convergence or accommodation. The piece discusses, in lobbying and in conducting oneself, how to judge when to diverge and when to accommodate according to circumstances and the other party's intentions. The core is a mode of expedient thinking based on analyzing stakes and interests, not fixed, unchanging rules of conduct.

Can I understand it without prior knowledge of the Guiguzi?

Yes. This edition presents the text as a single piece and is not long, with its core concepts centered on the dialectical relationship between "wu" and "he." It is advisable to read the original text through first, consult annotations where passages are obscure, and not insist on fully grasping it in one sitting; afterward, compare it with relevant Warring States lobbying cases to deepen your understanding.

What should readers be wary of when reading this book?

"Wu He" is grounded in stakes and expediency; its stance leans toward practical strategy and lacks the constraint of a moral dimension. Readers should maintain critical distance, treating it as material for understanding the thinking of the Vertical and Horizontal Alliance school rather than as conduct guidelines to copy, and especially should not simply equate it with real-world communication techniques.

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About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.