📚 Yuanshen Haikua — a Qing-dynasty endgame manual
Red to move, and the task is to hold a draw against an army nearly twice the size. Black has two chariots, five pawns and an advisor and elephants guarding the palace; Red has a single chariot, two elephants and two pawns — but those two pawns have burrowed deep into Black's half, and Red's chariot can harass without pause. The classical manual Uyên Thâm Hải Khoát (game 329) concludes: draw. Not machine-verified; the result follows the book. The name marks the first encounter in the most famous tale of Zhuge Liang's southern campaign: in 225 he marched south, captured the chieftain Meng Huo — and released him. Why such a decisive commander released his prisoner again and again — seven times — before winning him over is told in the anecdote below. On this board: with Red's six pieces, can you hold the draw to the very end?
Captured and Released Seven Times: Why Did Zhuge Liang Refuse to Kill Meng Huo?
In 225, Zhuge Liang marched south into Nanzhong to quell a revolt. The chieftain Meng Huo was captured alive — and released. Captured a second time — released again. Why would a famously decisive strategist show such baffling mercy? According to the Romance of the Three Kingdoms (chapters 87–90),…
Stories around this position — storytelling, not part of the engine-verified content.
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