16. Let loose in order to capture
“Let loose in order to capture” is a phrase where you let your enemies loose in order to capture them without wasting more energy and resources. By exhausting your enemies’ energy by letting them escape, they will start to surrender when they know it is fruitless. Leave them a path to run so they will only focus on that option. When they are exhausted from even their final option, they will eventually surrender and be captured by you.
The reason why it is better to capture than to kill is because you will have to waste more men and resources killing than capturing. Trapping your enemies with no hope of escaping will force the enemies to fight to the death (further wasting your own men and resources). Give the enemies some hope of escaping and then shatter their dreams to wipe out their morale. This strategy is used in order to have a higher success rate of capturing an enemy that can become a part of your own. That is what it means to “let loose in order to capture“.
