Welcome to this special episode. Today, we’re not discussing grand narratives or tech trends. We’re talking about people—specifically, the supporting characters struggling in the cracks of history and the frontline workers being ruthlessly crushed by systems in today’s big tech companies.

Drawing on Ma Boyong’s brilliant book The Supporting Characters of the Three Kingdoms, we map the power struggles of 3,000 years ago pixel-perfectly onto the most real and cold-blooded power games in modern business. In this two-hour deep dive, you’ll hear the deadly truths hidden behind historical records and financial reports.

Whether you are a struggling ‘Xu Ta’, a ‘Ma Su’ taking the fall for your boss, or a ‘Zhang Xiu’ ready to be discarded at any moment, we hope this episode serves as your final dose of clarity in a brutal workplace.

• Opening: Why we’re not talking about Zhuge Liang or Cao Cao today, but rather the ‘screws’ (cogs) in big tech.
• Act I: The Jie Ting Incident & The Big Tech AI Scapegoat
  • The truth behind Zhuge Liang’s Northern Expeditions: Pushing super OKRs to mask internal contradictions.
  • The distortion of Ma Su: A ‘PPT General’s’ high-risk gamble, cross-departmental friction, and Wang Ping’s cold observation.
  • The Silicon Valley chaos: 43% of AI projects fail, and CEOs blame mid-level executives.
• Did Ma Su Really Die?
  • The three ‘code bugs’ left by Chen Shou and the smallpox escape story.
  • Reincarnating as Guo Xun to assassinate Fei Yi: The death warrior returns for ultimate revenge.
  • The commercial revenge of Ji Qi, founder of Huazhu Group: How he returned to the top with absolute IT platform control and direct store manager oversight after being expelled from Home Inn.
• Act II: The Guandu Murder Case & The Information Cocoon
  • Internal espionage under malicious M&A: Security Captain Xu Chu and the lowest-level ambitious Xu Ta.
  • When you try to assassinate the CEO with an outdated version of the OKR, the executives have already reconciled.
  • Deep Management Theory: Resource Dependence Theory, Silo Mentality, and the Mushroom Management Law—why big tech intentionally creates data silos.
  • Early 2026: Google DeepMind’s ‘shell-stripping’ talent acquisition of Hume AI—frontline programmers desperately inflate valuations in an information cocoon, only to wake up and find the core brain has been drained by the giant, leaving them in an empty shell to die.
• The Final Tragedy: The Wancheng Shock & The Assassinated Star Project
  • Surface Logic: Boss Cao’s lower body triggers a mutiny, and Dian Wei fills the gap with his flesh and blood.
  • The Dark Truth: Why did the infallible Jia Xu specifically kill the heir apparent, Cao Ang?
  • Lady Bian’s Scheme: Using a ‘borrowed knife’ to kill the Crown Prince’s business line and promote Cao Pi.
  • Internal factional infighting in big tech: How to use external partners or M&A as ‘white gloves’ to precisely snipe an opponent’s star project? Why is the pitiful Zhang Xiu discarded after use?
• Closing: There are no permanent supporting characters in big tech. See through the system, guard your wallet.