将在外君命有所不受

将在外，君命有所不受

Literally means:

when the commander heads the army to fight outside, if the royal orders affect the fighting negatively, he may ignore them

Actually means:

将, commander; 君, emperor.

It means in the broad sense that when one undertakes to handle some problem outside, he should do it flexibly according to the situation without being rigidly restricted by his supervisor. It is usually used on formal occasions.

将，将帅。君，皇帝。

将在外，君命有所不受，指将帅领兵在外面打仗，朝廷的命令如果对战争不利，可以不执行。泛指奉命在外办事，应该根据实际情况，随机应变，灵活处理，不受上级指示的束缚。多用于比较正式的场合。