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Cover image for Series Teaser — 6 People, 36 Stratagems, and an AI Rabbit Hole That Keeps Getting Deeper

Series Teaser — 6 People, 36 Stratagems, and an AI Rabbit Hole That Keeps Getting Deeper

xulingfeng on June 23, 2026

What Are the 36 Stratagems? If you've heard of The Art of War, think of the Thirty-Six Stratagems as its scrappy younger cousin. Sun Tzu...
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itskondrat profile image
Mykola Kondratiuk

the 'besiege Wei to rescue Zhao' move is the one I keep seeing in AI project rescues - not fixing the agent directly but changing the constraint it operates in. works surprisingly often.

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xulingfeng

You nailed it. That's what makes Besiege Wei to Rescue Zhao such a cheat code — you don't need a smarter protagonist, just one looking at the right piece of the board. Derek got there eventually, just 16 days late. The ones who spot it sooner... you'll see 😄

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Mykola Kondratiuk

right — and it transfers fast once you’ve seen it. the expensive lesson is usually smarter agent, same wall. the cheat code clicks when you stop staring at the agent and start mapping what it’s actually bumping into.

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xulingfeng

"smarter agent, same wall" — filing that one away because it's the pattern I keep running into. upgrade the model, add more layers, nobody bothers to ask "what's this thing actually hitting?" until the post-mortem. just dropped a story that's exactly that — Leo walked into an AI fire that had nothing to do with making a smarter anything. it was about finding the wall.

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itskondrat profile image
Mykola Kondratiuk

honestly post-mortem curiosity is just the expensive version of asking first. that question keeps moving earlier in my workflow the more agents I run

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xulingfeng

"Smarter agent, same wall" — just a question of whether you see it coming or catch it in the rearview. Sounds like you've already got your headlights pointed further down the road.

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technogamerz profile image
𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕃𝕒𝕫𝕪 𝔾𝕚𝕣𝕝

This series keeps getting more intriguing with every teaser. 😄
The mix of history, strategy, personalities, and AI feels like the kind of rabbit hole where you start reading "just one article" and suddenly realize an hour has passed. Looking forward to seeing how the 36 Stratagems connect with modern AI thinking and decision-making

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xulingfeng

Glad you're enjoying it! Which of the 6 characters are you most curious about — the strategist, the data sniper, or the one who fights dirty? 😏

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technogamerz profile image
𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕃𝕒𝕫𝕪 𝔾𝕚𝕣𝕝

The third one!!!

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xulingfeng

Great taste. Lena's story is… something else. Let's just say she plays a different game than the rest. I have a feeling you're into the scheming type 🤣

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technogamerz profile image
𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝕃𝕒𝕫𝕪 𝔾𝕚𝕣𝕝

Really? 😅

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xulingfeng

Well, looks like I ended up just like the villain in the old series — crashed and burned.🤣🤣🤣

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xulingfeng

One thing I'm genuinely curious about: when you read about Lena's $5,000 recording buy or Mark's hidden failsafe — does it make you think "I'd do the same" or "that's crossing a line"? 🤔

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xulingfeng

First story's coming. Let's just say the benchmark that had everything figured out... didn't. 👀

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leob

Intriguing!

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xulingfeng

Wouldn't feel right starting a new series without you in the comments🤣🤣🤣