將軍之德
The Virtues of the General
..赤子，愛之若狡童，敬之若嚴師，用之若土芥，將軍....不失，將軍之智也。不輕寡，不劫於敵，慎終若始，將軍....而不御，君令不入軍門，將軍之恆也。入軍..將不兩生，軍不兩存，將軍之....將軍之惠也。賞不逾日，罰不還面，不維其人，不何....外辰，此將軍之德也。
[Treat the soldiers as] infants; love them as mischievous children; respect them as a stern teacher; use them as earth and grass. The general [...] does not fail — this is the general's wisdom. Not underestimating the few, not being intimidated by the enemy, being as careful at the end as at the beginning — this is the general's [...]. [Acting autonomously] without being controlled, the ruler's orders not entering the army's gate — this is the general's constancy. Entering the army [...] the general does not seek to survive at the army's expense; the army does not seek to survive at [the state's expense] — this is the general's [...] grace. Rewards do not exceed a day's delay; punishments are executed face-to-face; not showing favoritism to any person; not [lacuna] ... at the appointed time — this is the general's virtue.
Notes
This chapter survives in fragmentary condition but preserves a portrait of the ideal general's character. The principle that 'the ruler's orders do not enter the army's gate' (君令不入軍門) asserts the general's operational autonomy once in the field — a principle also found in Sun Tzu and the Sima Fa. The metaphor of treating soldiers simultaneously as 'infants' (to be protected) and 'earth and grass' (to be expended without hesitation) captures the paradox of compassionate command.