用英语讲中国故事——Killing Someone With a Borrowed Knife 三十六计之借刀杀人

借刀杀人

Killing Someone With a Borrowed Knife

“三十六计”中的第三计——借刀杀人计

The third of the "Thirty-Six Stratagems" - Killing with a Borrowed Knife

这一计是利用第三方的力量来打击敌人，自己保持表面的清白，是一种间接打击对手的策略。

This strategy is to use the power of a third party to attack the enemy while maintaining the appearance of innocence. It is a strategy to indirectly attack the opponent.

这个计策源自于多个历史典故，其中一个著名的故事与战国时期魏国的信陵君有关。

This strategy originated from many historical allusions, one of the most famous stories is about Xinling Jun of Wei State during the Warring States Period.

在战国时期，信陵君是魏国的贵族，他深得民心，但因权力斗争被魏王所忌。

During the Warring States Period, Xinling Jun was a noble of the State of Wei. He was deeply loved by the people, but was feared by the King of Wei because of the power struggle.

当时，秦国对魏国构成威胁，信陵君想要联合楚国共同对抗秦国，于是派门客唐雎前往楚国寻求援助。

At that time, Qin posed a threat to Wei. Xinling Jun wanted to unite with Chu to fight against Qin, so he sent his retainer Tang Ju to Chu to seek help.

唐雎在楚国成功说服楚王，但返回魏国途中，被魏王得知其行动，魏王担心信陵君的势力壮大，于是设计陷害。

Tang Ju successfully persuaded the King of Chu in Chu, but on his way back to Wei, the King of Wei learned of his actions. The King of Wei was worried that Xinling Jun's power would grow, so he framed him.

魏王找到一个与信陵君有仇的贵族，假意与他交好，并授意他去刺杀信陵君。

The King of Wei found a noble who had a grudge against Lord Xinling, pretended to befriend him, and instructed him to assassinate Lord Xinling.

这位贵族虽然与信陵君有仇，但并不想亲手杀人，于是他找到一个剑客，许以重金，让他去执行刺杀任务。

Although this noble had a grudge against Lord Xinling, he did not want to kill him personally, so he found a swordsman, offered him a large sum of money, and asked him to carry out the assassination mission.

这位剑客在刺杀信陵君的过程中却被信陵君的门客所杀，而信陵君也因为这次事件，看清了魏王的真实意图。

The swordsman was killed by Xinling Jun's followers while trying to assassinate him, and because of this incident, Xinling Jun saw through the true intentions of the King of Wei.

最终选择了逃离魏国，避免了直接冲突，保住了性命。

He eventually chose to flee from the State of Wei, thus avoiding direct conflict and saving his life.

这个故事中，魏王利用了与信陵君有仇的贵族，贵族又利用了剑客，最终达到了削弱信陵君势力的目的，而自己却保持了表面的清白，这就是“借刀杀人”策略的体现。

In this story, the King of Wei took advantage of the nobles who had a grudge against Lord Xinling, and the nobles in turn took advantage of the swordsman, ultimately achieving the goal of weakening Lord Xinling's power while maintaining his own innocence. This is the embodiment of the strategy of "killing with a borrowed knife."

这个故事告诉我们：在复杂的人际关系中，要谨慎处理与他人的关系，避免成为他人计谋中的“刀”。

This story tells us: In complex interpersonal relationships, we must handle our relationships with others carefully and avoid becoming the "knife" in others' schemes.

小编这时有感而发：这有点像敌人的敌人就是朋友，所以你需要防范所有的敌人，他们可能会联合起来。同时也提醒你们在面对困境时，要有智慧和策略，保护自己不受伤害。

The editor was inspired at this time: This is a bit like the enemy of my enemy is my friend, so you need to guard against all enemies, they may unite. At the same time, it also reminds you to have wisdom and strategy when facing difficulties to protect yourself from harm.