If the enemy’s troops march up angrily and remain facing ours for
a long time without either joining battle or taking themselves off
again, the situation is one that demands great vigilance and
circumspection.
Capt. Calthrop falls into a trap which often lurks in the word 相.
He translates: “When both sides, eager for a fight, face each
other for a considerable time, neither advancing nor retiring,”
etc. Had he reflected a little, he would have seen that this is
meaningless as addressed to a commander who has control over the
movements of his own troops. 相迎, then, does not mean that the two
armies go to meet each other, but simply that the other side comes
up to us. Likewise with 相去. If this were not perfectly clear of
itself, Mei Yao-ch‘ên’s paraphrase would make it so: 怒而來逆我,
etc. As Ts‘ao Kung points out, a manœuvre of this sort may be only
a _ruse_ to gain time for an unexpected flank attack or the laying
of an ambush.