In executing an Artful Strategy: When ten times greater, surround them; When five times greater, attack them; When two times greater, scatter them. If the opponent is ready to challenge: When fewer in number, be ready to evade them; When unequal to the match, be ready to avoid them. Even when the smaller opponents have a strong position, the larger opponent will capture them.

When he pretends to flee, do not pursue.

Unless you enter the tiger's lair, you cannot get hold of the tiger's cub's.

Of all those in the army close to the commander, none is more intimate than the secret agent.

Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.

We cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbors. We are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country.

To see victory only when it is within the ken of the common herd is not the acme of excellence.