No. 7: Spring Thunder Wakes the Insects

No. 7: Spring Thunder Wakes the Insects楚河 漢界砲馬馬車帥仕車傌仕兵砲俥炮兵士象兵將士象

"No. 7: Spring Thunder Wakes the Insects" is a Xiangqi (Chinese Chess) puzzle from the collection Elegant Pastimes (Shiqing Yaqu, 1570). Red moves first and wins in 20 moves; the key first move is R2+2. Below you will find the full solution, what each move achieves, where it could go wrong, and the alternative defences.

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Pieces on the board

Red has a General, 2 Advisors, a Chariot, a Horse, a Cannon, 3 Soldiers. Black has a General, 2 Advisors, 2 Elephants, 2 Chariots, 2 Horses, 2 Cannons.

Solution move by move

  1. 1. Red R2+2 (check, threatens mate next move, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    1. Black C6-5 (threatens mate next move)
    1楚河 漢界砲馬馬車帥仕車傌仕兵炮兵士象兵將砲俥士象
    1. Black C6-5
  2. 2. Red R2=4 (captures the Cannon, check, sacrifices the Chariot, threatens mate next move, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Wins material: takes the Cannon.
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out for
    • Gives up the Chariot; the follow-up must be exact or the sacrifice is wasted.
    2. Black R6-7 (captures the Chariot, threatens mate next move)
    2楚河 漢界砲馬馬車帥仕傌仕兵炮兵士象兵將車士象
    2. Black R6-7
  3. 3. Red P8=7 (check, threatens mate next move, the only legal reply)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    3. Black K4=5 (threatens mate next move)
    3楚河 漢界砲馬馬車帥仕傌仕兵炮兵士象兵將車士象
    3. Black K4=5
  4. 4. Red C1=5 (check, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    4. Black E5+3 (threatens mate next move)
    4楚河 漢界砲馬馬車帥仕傌仕兵象炮兵士兵將車士象
    4. Black E5+3
  5. 5. Red C5-6 (captures the Chariot, check, the only legal reply, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Wins material: takes the Chariot.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    5. Black E3-5
    5楚河 漢界砲馬馬炮帥仕傌仕兵兵士象兵將車士象
    5. Black E3-5
  6. 6. Red A5-6 (check, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    6. Black E5+3
    6楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥傌仕兵象兵士兵將車士象
    6. Black E5+3
  7. 7. Red +A-5 (check, the only legal reply, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    7. Black E3-5
    7楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕傌兵兵士象兵將車士象
    7. Black E3-5
  8. 8. Red A5+4 (check, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    8. Black E5+3
    8楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥傌仕兵象兵士兵將車士象
    8. Black E5+3
  9. 9. Red H7+5 (check, the only legal reply, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    9. Black E3-5
    9楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵傌兵士象兵將車士象
    9. Black E3-5
  10. 10. Red H5+7 (check, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    10. Black E5+3
    10楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵傌象兵士兵將車士象
    10. Black E5+3
  11. 11. Red H7+5 (check, the only legal reply, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    11. Black E3-5
    11楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵傌兵士象兵將車士象
    11. Black E3-5
  12. 12. Red H5+6 (captures the Advisor, check, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Wins material: takes the Advisor.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    12. Black E5+3
    12楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵象兵傌兵將車士象
    12. Black E5+3
  13. 13. Red H6-5 (check, threatens mate next move, the only legal reply, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    13. Black E3-5
    13楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵傌兵象兵將車士象
    13. Black E3-5
  14. 14. Red H5+3 (check, threatens mate next move, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    14. Black E5+3
    14楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵象傌兵兵將車士象
    14. Black E5+3
  15. 15. Red +P=6 (check, threatens mate next move, the only legal reply)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    15. Black K5-1
    15楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵象傌兵兵車士將象
    15. Black K5-1
  16. 16. Red P6+1 (captures the Advisor, check, threatens mate next move)
    Why it works
    • Wins material: takes the Advisor.
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    16. Black K5+1
    16楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵象傌兵將車兵象
    16. Black K5+1
  17. 17. Red H3+5 (check, sacrifices the Horse, threatens mate next move, the only legal reply)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    What to watch out for
    • Gives up the Horse; the follow-up must be exact or the sacrifice is wasted.
    17. Black K5+1 (captures the Horse)
    17楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵象兵將車兵象
    17. Black K5+1
  18. 18. Red +P=6 (check)
    18. Black K5-1
    18楚河 漢界砲馬馬仕炮帥仕兵象兵將車兵象
    18. Black K5-1
  19. 19. Red A6+5 (check, threatens mate next move, the only legal reply, the General has no escape square)
    Why it works
    • Forcing: the opponent has only one reply, so the line cannot be avoided.
    • Creates an immediate mating threat that must be answered.
    • Takes away the General's escape squares.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    19. Black E3-5
    19楚河 漢界砲馬馬炮帥仕仕兵兵象將車兵象
    19. Black E3-5
  20. 20. Red -P=5 (captures the Elephant, checkmate)
    Why it works
    • Ends the game: no legal reply remains.
    • Wins material: takes the Elephant.
    What to watch out forNo real drawback in this position.
    20楚河 漢界砲馬馬炮帥仕仕兵兵將車兵象
    20. Red -P=5

Variations and alternative defences

The source manual records 2 variations. Each branch starts from the move number shown.

Final position

Final position楚河 漢界砲馬馬炮帥仕仕兵兵將車兵象

Red wins after 20 moves. The General has no legal move.

Questions about this puzzle

Who moves first in "No. 7: Spring Thunder Wakes the Insects"?

Red moves first, as in every puzzle of Elegant Pastimes (Shiqing Yaqu, 1570).

How many moves does the solution take?

20 moves. The main line is shown above; alternative defences are covered in the variations section.

What is the key move?

The first move R2+2 starts the combination. Everything that follows depends on it.

Can I play this position myself?

Yes. Open it on ChessZing, where the board checks your moves and shows the solution if you get stuck.

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