Wu Tzŭ (ch. 3) less wisely says: 進有重賞退有重刑 “Let advance be richly rewarded and retreat be heavily punished.” issue orders 懸, literally, “hang” or “post up.” without regard to previous arrangements; 杜姦媮 “In order to prevent treachery,” says Wang Hsi. The general meaning is made clear by Ts‘ao Kung’s quotation from the _Ssŭ-ma Fa:_ 見敵作誓瞻功作賞 “Give instructions only on sighting the enemy; give rewards only when you see deserving deeds.” 無政, however, presents some difficulty. Ts‘ao Kung’s paraphrase, 軍法令不應預施懸也, I take to mean: “The final instructions you give to your army should not correspond with those that have been previously posted up.” Chang Yü simplifies this into 政不預告 “your arrangements should not be divulged beforehand.” And Chia Lin says: 不守常法常政 “there should be no fixity in your rules and arrangements.” Not only is there danger in letting your plans be known, but war often necessitates the entire reversal of them at the last moment. and you will be able to handle a whole army 犯, according to Ts‘ao Kung, is here equal to 用. The exact meaning is brought out more clearly in the next paragraph. as though you had to do with but a single man. Cf. supra, § 34. 57. 犯之以事勿告以言犯之以利勿告以害 Confront your soldiers with the deed itself; never let them know your design. Literally, “do not tell them words;” _i.e._ do not give your reasons for any order. Lord Mansfield once told a junior colleague to “give no reasons” for his decisions, and the maxim is even more applicable to a general than to a judge. Capt. Calthrop translates this sentence with beautiful simplicity: “Orders should direct the soldiers.” That is all. When the outlook is bright, bring it before their eyes; but tell them nothing when the situation is gloomy. 58. 投之亡地然後存陷之死地然後生 Place your army in deadly peril, and it will survive; plunge it into desperate straits, and it will come off in safety.