Marc Anthony, as Muhammad Ali’s fighter, is a legendary figure. He fought to win. And when he won, he was generous with his spoils. Once upon a time, Marc Anthony had two beautiful women in his life: his wife Marcia and the stunning Cleopatra.
The first lady of Rome had a deep love for her husband but she knew that he had a wandering eye. So she taught him to play chess. She would often win. Whenever she did, he would take her to bed and make love to her all night. He knew that if he had beaten her in chess, he could have slept with her the whole night.
Cleopatra, on the other hand, never lost a game of chess. But Marc Anthony was so enamored by her beauty and charm that he fell deeply in love with her. And once in love, he would not let go easily. When Cleopatra could not control him anymore, she decided to get rid of him. She laced his wine with a poison that killed him.
Many years later, there was another man named Anthony who lived in China. He had two beautiful women in his life too: his wife and the stunning concubine he loved so much. He treated them both very well but they were not contented.
The wife said to her husband one day: “I heard that you love your concubine so much because she is a great chess player. I can beat her at chess anytime I want.” The husband was delighted and he challenged his wife to play a game of chess with the concubine present.
She won easily. After they finished playing, the wife went upstairs. She came back down with an air of dignity and said to her husband: “I have one condition for you before I sleep with you tonight.”
“What is it?” he asked. “You must never play chess again.”
The husband was dumbfounded. He had never seen his wife so confident before. But after that night, the wife’s air of confidence disappeared. The husband could not understand why.
One day when she was cooking in the kitchen, he asked her why she lost interest in him all of a sudden. She said: “I am not sure if I want to tell you. You might get mad.” He promised not to get angry and so she told him: “When we made love, I could never lose control like Cleopatra did with Marc Anthony. But after that game of chess, whenever I slept with you, I felt like Cleopatra.”
The husband was silent for a moment. Then he said: “I understand now.” He walked away and left her in the kitchen alone.
