Alas for these brave words! The long feud between the two states
ended in 473 B.C. with the total defeat of Wu by 勾踐 Kou Chien and
its incorporation in Yüeh. This was doubtless long after Sun Tzŭ’s
death. With his present assertion compare IV. § 4: 勝可知而不可爲
(which is the obviously mistaken reading of the _Yü Lan_ here).
Chang Yü is the only one to point out the seeming discrepancy,
which he thus goes on to explain: “In the chapter on Tactical
Dispositions it is said, ‘One may _know_ how to conquer without
being able to _do_ it,’ whereas here we have the statement that
‘victory can be achieved.’ The explanation is, that in the former
chapter, where the offensive and defensive are under discussion,
it is said that if the enemy is fully prepared, one cannot make
certain of beating him. But the present passage refers
particularly to the soldiers of Yüeh who, according to Sun Tzŭ’s
calculations, will be kept in ignorance of the time and place of
the impending struggle. That is why he says here that victory can
be achieved.”