ripe, he must be put to death together with the man to whom the secret
was told.
[Word for word, the translation here is: "If spy matters are heard
before [our plans] are carried out," etc. Sun Tzŭ’s main point in this
passage is: Whereas you kill the spy himself "as a punishment for
letting out the secret," the object of killing the other man is only,
as Ch’en Hao puts it, "to stop his mouth" and prevent news leaking any
further. If it had already been repeated to others, this object would
not be gained. Either way, Sun Tzŭ lays himself open to the charge of
inhumanity, though Tu Mu tries to defend him by saying that the man
deserves to be put to death, for the spy would certainly not have told
the secret unless the other had been at pains to worm it out of him."]