Stratagem 22 of 36

Shutting the Door to Catch the Thief

关门捉贼

Stratagems of Contending · 混战计

Core Definition

核心释义

Cut off the enemy's escape routes. Ensure total victory by eliminating all avenues of retreat.

小敌困之。剥,不利有攸往。

Historical Origin

历史典故

The Classic Story

In the Battle of Changping, Bai Qi surrounded the Zhao army completely and cut off all supply lines and escape routes. With no possibility of retreat or reinforcement, the Zhao army of 400,000 was forced to surrender.

长平之战中,白起将赵军团团围住,切断所有补给线和退路。在无路可退、无援可求的情况下,四十万赵军被迫投降。

Modern Applications

现代应用
  • Creating exclusive contracts that lock in key resources before competitors can access them
  • Building complete solutions that make it difficult for clients to switch providers
  • Filing comprehensive IP protection to block competitor workarounds
  • Designing ecosystems that create high switching costs for users

Supplementary Case Studies

补充案例分析

Apple App Store Ecosystem

Apple's App Store creates a "closed door" for developers — once invested in iOS development, switching costs are enormous. Users are similarly trapped by purchased apps and iCloud data. Both doors are shut; the "thief" (user/developer) cannot easily escape.

苹果App Store为开发者创造了"关门"——一旦投入iOS开发,转换成本巨大。用户也被购买的App和iCloud数据困住。两扇门都关上了,"贼"(用户/开发者)不易逃脱。

Encirclement at Stalingrad

Soviet forces completed a massive encirclement of the German 6th Army at Stalingrad, cutting off all supply lines and escape routes. With no possibility of retreat or reinforcement, the surrounded army was forced to surrender.

苏军在斯大林格勒完成对德军第6集团军的大包围,切断所有补给线和退路。在无法撤退或增援的情况下,被围军队被迫投降。