Art of War 11.46

This end, according to Tu Mu, is best attained by remaining on the defensive, and avoiding battle. Cf. supra, § 11.

The T‘ung Tien has 其 instead of 之. The present reading is supported by the 遺說 of Chêng Yu-hsien. As Tu Mu says, the object is to guard against two possible contingencies: 一者備其逃逸二者恐 其敵至 “(1) the desertion of our own troops; (2) a sudden attack on the part of the enemy.” Cf. VII. § 17: 其徐如林. Mei Yao-ch‘ên says: 行則隊校相繼止則營壘聯屬 “On the march, the regiments should be in close touch; in an encampment, there should be continuity between the fortifications.” He seems to have forgotten, by the way, what Sun Tzŭ says above: 輕地則無止.