Chapter 4 · Chaos Stratagems
釜底抽薪
Fǔ dǐ chōu xīn
Remove the Firewood from Under the Pot
釜底抽薪
cauldron · bottom · pull-out · firewood
Don't fight the boiling water. Pull the fuel out from underneath and the whole problem goes cold.
今 Today
The garden association's nastiest feud runs entirely on the monthly meeting — the ringleader needs a packed room to perform to. You quietly move the contested decisions to a written vote between meetings. No audience, no fuel, and the whole thing goes cold within a season.
反 When it backfires
Pull the wrong log and the pot boils on. Misjudge what's actually fuelling a threat and you've tipped your hand while the fire keeps burning on a source you never found.