In ancient China, the establishment and collapse of each dynasty were accompanied by wars, marked by sacrifices of blood.
During wartime, even victories resulted in the deaths of thousands of soldiers, which is incredibly tragic! What’s strange is why soldiers at that time were willing to charge into battle or be captured but did not dare to pretend to be dead to survive?
In fact, the reason is quite simple! In a conflict, there are always winners and losers. If your side wins, pretending to be dead means missing the chance to achieve merit and potentially not getting promoted. Moreover, lying down and pretending to be dead often had a lower survival rate compared to engaging in battle!
When encountering an enemy soldier pretending to be dead, the outcome is only tragic. (Illustrative Image).
Firstly, on the battlefield, the two armies do not simply end the battle and return home! Because the victors will stay to clean up the battlefield.
To clean up the mess, the most important task is to collect lost weapons, military rations, and other materials. The second task is to seize the spoils of war. The winning side will check how many weapons and supplies the enemy left behind during their retreat.
For the surviving soldiers on the battlefield, searching for and bringing back the wounded is a given. When encountering an enemy soldier pretending to be dead, the outcome is only tragic.
Dealing with Corpses
No matter how skilled an actor you are, when the enemy comes to clean up, no one can survive. Because after clearing the battlefield, the next step is to dispose of the bodies.
At that time, there were two common methods of dealing with corpses: the first was live burial, which involved digging a mass grave and placing soldiers—whether alive or dead—into it.
The second was cremation. This is the quickest and most effective method. In this case, all remains from the battlefield would turn to ashes, and you, a person pretending to be dead, regardless of how good your acting skills are, would not be spared! Therefore, if you lose the battle, you will surely not escape if you pretend to be dead!
In ancient warfare, pretending to be dead was utterly futile. (Illustrative Image).
So what happens when soldiers pretend to be dead on the winning side? At that time, comrades from the victorious side will come to clean up the battlefield and discover the truth. Not only will there be no merit, but the soldier pretending to be dead could face severe punishment and shame.
Moreover, on the battlefield, it is extremely difficult to pretend to be dead. When everyone is charging forward, if you lie down to pretend, even if you are not trampled by your comrades, you could be discovered and beheaded immediately by an overseer. Notably, when looking for a place to lie down and pretend to be dead, it is very likely that an enemy arrow will come flying your way.
In summary, in ancient warfare, pretending to be dead was utterly futile, so soldiers would rather die in action than lie down and pretend to be dead. Even when charging into battle, if they survived, they could achieve great feats, glory, and endless wealth!
