Wonder why the Chinese government, especially the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has appeared more aggressive, self-confident, and assertive in dealing with the US and its allies? The answer could lie in an ancient Chinese strategy called the "unrelenting strategy" – a part of the "thirty-six political military strategies" derived from the I Ching. Mao Zedong incorporated this ancient teaching into his strategic thinking, and it was recently discussed in Chinese media as having made the Japanese miserable over the Senkaku/Diaoyu island dispute. Use of this strategy suggests that Beijing has taken the US-China relationship onto an adversarial path, as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) systematically seeks to reduce Washington’s influence in Asia.