How Beauty Took Down a Kingdom
An ancient example of “honey-trap” espionage, and its lasting legacy today
It was the 5th century B.C.E. during the spring and autumn periods in Chinese history. While Confucius was spreading his philosophy and Sun Tzu was writing his book on strategy, the Zhou Dynasty was slowly crumbling with dozens of states hungry to replace its hegemony. King Fuchai of Wu had just vanquished his long-time foe, King Goujian of Yue, and was deservedly jubilant over his recent conquests. As he celebrated and held court, in walks one of the most beautiful women in China…
The Story of Xi Shi
Xi Shi (later to be known as one of the “Four Beauties” in Chinese history) was said to have been born in the State of Yue, in an area in modern-day Zhejiang, China. As the daughter of a woodcutter, she lived a simple life at first, but no villager really knew peace in those times. King Goujian had just been defeated by Wu and humiliatingly made Yue into a tributary state. Desperate for revenge, the defeated king consulted his ministers, who came up with a “beauty trap stratagem,” to take advantage of Fuchai’s renowned love for women. One of the ministers, Fan Li, toured the countryside and found Xi Shi and another girl to present to the King of Wu as “tribute.” Eager to avenge their homeland, the girls underwent specialized training to turn them from common, peasant girls into irresistible court entertainers.
Fuchai took an instant liking to Xi Shi, who was said to be so beautiful that fish would look upon her and forget how to swim, and birds would forget how to fly. The king gradually lost all interest in statecraft and kingly duties and ignored the pleas and warnings of his top advisors and generals. Unbeknownst to him, Xi Shi was actually working as a spy for Yue, providing intel for her mother-state while simultaneously distracting Fuchai from running his kingdom at every turn. Xi Shi, specially trained to be as charming and persuasive as possible, even convinced Fuchai to eventually execute one of his top generals, Wu Zixu.
While Wu slowly deteriorated due to state negligence, Goujian was secretly regaining his strength, and eventually amassed another army to challenge Wu. This time, however, it was Goujian that was victorious, crushing the Wu army battle after battle. Fuchai was forced to commit suicide, lamenting not having listened to his advisors’ warnings in the past. Thus, through the efforts of beautiful women, Yue toppled its rival and came to dominate what is now Shanghai, Zhejiang, and Jiangsu.
The Art of the “Honey Trap”
The Story of Xi Shi is actually likely apocryphal, there is conflicting information to the actual historical authenticity of the character. Nonetheless, her tale is traditionally told as insight and warning of the dangers of so-called “honey trap” operations, or espionage through romantic or sexual exploitations.
One of the best known Western examples of this would probably be Mata Hari, the Dutch exotic dancer that was accused of spying for the Germans during World War I. She was said to have charmed Allied officers through her travels and then relayed critical intel back to Germany. France eventually convicted her of espionage, and she was sentenced to death by firing squad. Although recent literature casts doubts on the extent of her guiltiness, “Mata Hari” has nonetheless become a byword for femme fatales engaged in espionage.
A Stratagem for the Ages
Interestingly enough, state strategists today still seem to apply lessons learned from the story of Xi Shi. Even now, Chinese Intelligence uses honey-trap operations as a legitimate way to conduct espionage. In 2010, British domestic intelligence agency MI5 released a report detailing Chinese espionage tactics, one of them being cultivating sexual relationships with Western businessmen to eventually use as blackmail for political purposes.
Even more recently, news reports have come out about a woman named Christine Fang, who is a suspected Chinese intelligence operative that had ties with many United States government officials, the most prominent of which was Representative Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.). While her interactions with Swalwell were limited to political fundraising and a few events here or there, it is known that she did have sexual relations with at least two Midwestern mayors during her active years in 2011–2015. Fang is apparently just one pawn in an escalation of intelligence activities between the two nations in recent times. Nevertheless, it goes to show that some political strategies are time-tested throughout the ages.
References
Institute, Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian, Zach Dorfman of the Aspen. n.d. “Exclusive: How a Suspected Chinese Spy Gained Access to California Politics.” Axios. Accessed December 26, 2020. https://www.axios.com/china-spy-california-politicians-9d2dfb99-f839-4e00-8bd8-59dec0daf589.html.
Knightley, Phillip. n.d. “The History of the Honey Trap.” Foreign Policy (blog). Accessed December 26, 2020. https://foreignpolicy.com/2010/03/12/the-history-of-the-honey-trap/.
Siegel, Rachel. n.d. “‘I Am Ready’: Mata Hari Faced a Firing Squad for Spying — and Refused a Blindfold.” Washington Post. Accessed December 26, 2020. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/retropolis/wp/2017/10/15/i-am-ready-mata-hari-faced-a-firing-squad-for-spying-and-refused-a-blindfold/.
Theobald, Ulrich. n.d. “Xi Shi 西施 (Www.Chinaknowledge.De).” Ulrich Theobald. Accessed December 26, 2020. http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Zhou/personsxishi.html.
“Xi Shi | TravelZhejiang.” n.d. Accessed December 26, 2020. http://travelzhejiang.com/legends-folklore/xi-shi/.
