📚 Shiqing Yaqu — the famous Ming-dynasty collection of entertaining endgame compositions
Red to move. Only three Cannons and two Kings remain on the board: Red has one Cannon, Black has two. One against two, with no other piece to lean on — yet the classical manual Thích Tình Nhã Thú (No. 544) concludes that Red still holds the draw. This position has not been verified by engine; the result follows the old book. The name comes from the fable of the fox borrowing the tiger's might: the weakest animal in the forest escapes death and becomes 'lord of all beasts' simply by walking one step ahead of the tiger. On this board, Red's lone Cannon must likewise borrow something to survive against Black's two. In your view, whose — or what — 'might' is Red's Cannon borrowing here?
森で最も弱い狐が「百獣の王」になった――虎の一歩前を歩いただけで
狐は虎に捕らえられ、今にも夕食になるところだった。ところが数言で虎をボディガードのように後ろに従わせた――それ以来、森全体の目に、狐は「百獣の王」だった。 狐は落ち着いて言った。「あなたは私を食べてはなりません。天は私を百獣の王となさいました。私を食べれば天命に背きます。信じられなければ、私が前に歩き、あなたが後ろについてきてください。どの獣が逃げないか見てください」。半信半疑で虎は従った。獣たちは見た……虎を。そして慌てて散った。虎は頷いた。本当に狐を恐れているのだ、と。 この話は『戦国策』にあり、その本来の枠組みは子ども向けの教訓よりも鋭い。江乙は楚の宣王に、北方の諸侯が将軍・昭奚恤を恐れ…
Stories around this position — storytelling, not part of the engine-verified content.
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