THIRTEEN

BEAT THE GRASS TO SCARE THE SNAKE

打草惊蛇

Military expert Qiao Liang tells us : 由于它是心里战，是信息战，　所以说你在使用这一计的时候一定要充分地考虑　：心里的因素信息的因素。只有把这两个因素牢牢地抓住，你才能成功的实施这一计 。

THE THEORY

疑以叩实

察而后动

复者

阴之嫫也

Finding out the truth behind a suspicion, not acting without first confirming suspicions, repeatedly if necessary,to bring out hidden elements.

"Beat the grass to scare the snake" ; also known as "psychological warfare" "心里战" and "information warfare" "信息战":

The idea of this strategy is that, when you have suspicions about another person, you send out a piece of information (usually false or deceptive, just as a stick in the grass is not intended to really hit) which will be disturbing to those who have a guilty conscience "虚心" , who will, in response, act in such a way that will give themselves away.

PUTTING IT INTO PRACTICE

In the case of the maid who stole her employer's jewelry, the investigator in the case, sure that one of the two maids had done it, gave her and the other maid one twig each, and said to hold onto the twig until the following day.

One of his agents tells the maids that the twigs are magic, that the person who is guilty will make their twig grow two inches in the night. This is the sending out of information that will worry the guilty party.

The guilty maid snaps two inches off her twig in the night to avoid the truth being known

The investigator knows that the maid with the short twig is the guilty one.

LINK TO ORIGINAL EXPLANATIONS BY MILITARY EXPERT 乔良

part 1 http://video.sina.com.cn/v/b/8911388-1301809380.html

part 2 http://video.sina.com.cn/v/b/8914933-1301809380.html