Mindzine Xiangqi News - 14 December 1999

Qin LU vs. the World II

Updated 14 December

Java problems? Click here to see the text and diagram version.

Moves so far:

Algebraic Notation

Chinese Notation

1. Che3 Hg8
2. Hg3   Rh10
3. Rh1   Pg6
4. Rh7   Hc8
5. Pc5   Ci8
6. Rg7   Ci9
7. Hc3   Ade9
8. Ca3   Cg9
9. Rf7   Hh6
10. Rb1   Rb10
11. Hge2  Pg5
12. Rf6   Cxg4
13. Rb7   Hf5
14. Cg3   Rh8
15. Cxg5  Rf8
16. Hd5   Ca8
17. Rxc7  Rb3
18. Pc6   Ch4
19. Pb6   Rf3
20. Hec3  Rf2
21. Ade2  Rg2
22. Ece3  Ch1
23. Rg6   Ei8
24. Rh6   Hxe3
25. Cxe3  Rxg1
26. Rxh1  Rxh1
27. Pb7   Rh5
28. Pb8   Rxg5
29. Pxc8  Ad10
30. Cxe7  Rg7
31. Ce5   Rxc7
32. Hxc7  Rh8
33. H3d5  Ca9
34. Pc9   Ca8
35. Pd9   Eg10
36. He7+  Ce8
37. Hg6+  Cxe4+
38. Af3   Rb8
39. He8+

1. C2=5 N8+7
2. N2+3  R9=8
3. R1=2  P7+1
4. R2+6  H2+3
5. P7+1  C8=9
6. R2=3  C9-1
7. H8+7  A4+5
8. C8=9  C9=7
9. R3=4  H7+8
10. R9=8  R1=2
11. H3-5  P7+1
12. R4-1  C7+5
13. R8+6  H8+6
14. C5=3  R8+2
15. C3+2  R8=6
16. H7+6  C2=1
17. R8=7  R2+7
18. P7+1  C7=8
19. P7=8  R2=6
20. H5+7  R++1
21. A6+5  R+=7
22. E7+5  C8+3
23. R4=3  E7+9
24. R3=2  H6+5
25. C9=5  R7+1
26. R2-5  R7=8
27. P8+1  R8-4
28. P8+1  R8=7
29. P8=7  A5-4
30. C5+4  R7-2
31. C5-2  R7=3
32. H6+7  R6=8
33. H-+6  C1-1
34. P7+1  C1+1
35. P7=6  E9-7
36. H6+5  C1=5
37. H5-3  C5+4
38. A5+4  R8=2
39. H7+5

Game Commentary has started:

Readers seeking illustrative games, can find them easily by installing the CCHVIEW 3.5 database available for free from the Xiangqi homepage.

Just open the program, start a new file, and play the moves of either Qin Lu/world game. At any point during the opening, you can hit the "diag query" button, and choose from a list of games with that position. Two good places for a query in this game, are after 5. Pc5, and after 10 ... Rb10. - Bill Brydon

The Last Word

After 31.Ce5: Red has complete control of the e-file. The protected cannon on e5 together with a nice collection of double and discovered checks provide one of the most powerful tactical weapons in Xiangqi. Black will lose two chariots in the line 31...Rff7 32. Re7+ (double check) Afe9 33. Rxf7+ and 34. Rxg7.
- Jouni Tolonen

Message board

Read the discussion from our message board.

Choose the next move:

Algebraic	WXF
39...Ade9	A4+5
39...Afe9	A6+5

Taking on the world

Grandmaster Qin LU is taking on the rest of the world in a xiangqi challenge similar to the one held by chess champion Garry Kasparov.

Lu is the reigning Qi Wang - effectively the world champion - so this rematch generates lot of excitement in the Chinese chess community.

The match began on 6 November. The rate of play is one move per day.

The official site of this match is: http://chess.online.tj.cn
and instructions for non-Chinese users (for the first match) can be found here.

The site has revised the web page, which is supposed to add more features and to let more people take part.

It looks good if you use MS IE. However, the background is way too dark to read the (Chinese) text in Netscape. (David Woo)

The same team are helping the MSO cover the match: Bill Brydon and Peter Sung of the Toronto Xiangqi Association, top Finnish player Jouni Tolonen and David Woo of the Xiangqi Review.

For the first game, click here.

For the third game, click here.

Former Women's World champion Ye Lin analyses the game deeply here

Algebraic Xiangqi Notation

The starting position of Xiangqi:

Red pieces and their abbreviations:
chaRiot (R) at a1, i1
Horse (H) at b1, h1
Elephant (E) at c1, g1
Advisor (A) at d1, f1
King (K) at e1
Cannon (C) at b3, h3
Pawn ( ) at a4, c4, e4, g4, i4

The notation of a move consists of the abbreviation of the piece plus the destination square. For example, a rook move from a1 to b1 is Rb1.

If more than one piece of the same type can move to the square, the original rank or file of the moving piece is added. For example, in the starting position two advisors can move to e2, the other move being Ade2, the other Afe2.

In Chinese notation, the files are numbered one to nine, from right to left, movement along ranks given as number of points moved, from the viewpoint of each player. The system we are using here is based on David Woo's from the Xiangqi Review.

An alternative notation is:
P = pawn
K = king
C = cannon
R = chaRiot
B = bishop (minister, elephant)
G = guard (advisor)
N = knight (horse)