38. a piece already in the way, by the soldier

Helpmates in xiangqi

4 moves

Black moves first and both sides cooperate: Black, Red, Black, Red, and Red's second move mates. Black has 40 legal first moves and exactly one of them works. 16 pieces, Black 40 to Red 6 in material, mate by the soldier. Themes: a piece already in the way, the general walks in,…