Hua Yuan 華元: The Earliest Record of Stealth in Chinese Strategic Warfare

The earliest recorded instance of stealth in Chinese strategic warfare occurred in 594 BCE when...

The Role of Ye Bu Shou 夜不收 and Zhuosheng 捉生 in Military Intelligence During the Ming 明-Qing 清 Transition

This essay utilises the core analysis from the 2005 article by Qí Měiqín 祁美琴 on Ye...

An Overview of the Black-Clad Masked Operatives

When we think of stealth today, images of covert military operatives or the iconic black-clad...

Ye Bu Shou 夜不收 – An Overview

In ancient China, the concept of warfare extended far beyond battlefield confrontations. Intelligence gathering, reconnaissance,...

The Origins of Assassins 刺客 and Their Connection to Retainers in Ancient China

The role of cìkè 刺客, or 'assassins', is deeply intertwined with the historical practices of...

Dié 諜 – ‘spy/reconnaissance scout’

An important Chinese character related to the ancient Chinese arts of stealth is dié 諜...

The Penetrators 通士

The stealth operatives behind the mask of mystery.