People comparing Chinese chess and Western chess today feel that the answer is obvious: The design of the games reflects the realities of the two cultures. The Chinese emperor lived in a secretive enclosed palace, so naturally the field marshals also came to restrict themselves to the nine-hall palace.
今天人們比較象棋與西洋棋，總是理所當然的認為，棋戲的設計反映現實，中國帝王處在深宮大院，自然出現將帥「故步自封」於九宮格的侷促型態。