How did Ossip Bernstein avoid being shot by firing squad?

The whole story sounds suspiciously like someone contacted the superior officer in charge of the firing squad, asked him to intercede, and he did—in a very clever way.

This was so cool!

Daybonn, either that or the superior officer thought taking a man’s life for being an advisor to bankers was over the top.

Imagine that you can avoid death by playing a chess match or something that lets you avoid death