King Helü of Wu won three successive battles while attacking Ying, Chu’s capital. He asked Wu Zixu: “Shall we retreat?”
Wu Zixu replied: “If you only pour a mouthful of water to drown a man and then stop, you cannot kill him. Only keep pouring relentlessly to sink him entirely. We ought to press our advantage to destroy Chu completely.”
Note
Never halt operations after minor victories; chase the defeated enemy relentlessly to achieve total victory.
Late Warring States Legalist, uses this military dialogue to elaborate the strategy of pursuing routed foes.
Helü
King of Wu, outstanding monarch who led Wu’s invasion into Chu.
Wu Zixu
Core strategist of Wu, mastermind behind the Wu expedition against Chu.
Wu’s Conquest of Ying
Ancient military philosophy
Pre-Qin military thought advocates pursuing fleeing enemies to annihilate their main force instead of stopping at partial victory.
Metaphor of drowning a man
A common folk analogy used by ancient advisors to illustrate continuous suppression of defeated opponents.
阖庐攻郢，战三胜，问子胥曰：“可以退乎？“子胥曰：“溺人者一饮而止，则无溺者，以其不休也。不如乘之以沉之。”
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