Treatise on Armament Technology, Volume 7

Commentary on Military Secrets: The Three Strategies

[Those who are strong,] ruin them ruin the enemy; those who are greedy, enrich them if a general is greedy, provide him with sufficient wealth and resources; those who have desires, employ them to carry out your intentions
expressing your will; those who are fearful, shield them keep them hidden and not exposed; those who are schemers, keep them close be intimate and close with them; those who are slanderers, monitor them do not employ them without covering or checking their faults
Those who are disparaged, re-examine them review their cases repeatedly and carefully; those who are rebellious, discard them; those who are overbearing, thwart them; those who are conceited, diminish them; those who
return, recruit them; those who submit, let them live; those who surrender, release them; when a stronghold is captured, defend it if you gain a fortified position, then guard it
When a narrow pass is captured, block it; when difficult terrain is captured, station troops there if you gain a difficult or hazardous place, then camp your soldiers there; when a city is captured, partition it divide the land to reward merit; when
land is captured, distribute it divide and grant it as rewards for service; when wealth is captured, disperse it; when the enemy moves, watch them; when the enemy is near, prepare for them; when the enemy is strong,
act submissively act humble to make them arrogant; when the enemy is at leisure, withdraw lead your troops away to avoid them; when the enemy is aggressive, wait one should wait for their strength to decline; when the
enemy is violent, delay them; when the enemy is perverse, use righteousness subdue them with righteous conduct; when the enemy is unified, sow discord; when they follow the natural order, act to thwart them if things follow reason, the action will succeed
Use their nature follow the momentum of the situation to break them in order to break the enemy masses; if loose talk occurs, reprimand it in the army, if rumors are spread, punish those responsible
Break the Enemy’s Spiritoriginal: "敵氣" (di qi). Refers to the morale, momentum, and psychological "vital energy" of the opposing army. by following the Momentum of Circumstanceoriginal: "因勢" (yin shi). A core concept in Chinese strategy referring to the inherent power or "slope" of a situation that a clever commander exploits..