After the Alaskan War, the old Chairman had deteriorated. He’d summoned his nephew, a Vice-Admiral who had botched most of his tasks during the war. Nevertheless, trusting blood over ability, the Chairman had raised his nephew, granting him the post of commander of the Lion Guard and becoming the Chairman’s Representative on the Ruling Committee. The nephew, a lazy man with a strong streak of cruelty, had surprisingly risen to the task. The youngster—a man of forty-three—had begun intriguing immediately. He kept the Chairman secluded and soon began to shuffle his own people into higher and more important posts. The final straw had been when the nephew took the post of Minister of the Navy for himself. Out of fear, Jian and Deng had allied against him. During the height of the short Hawaiian Campaign, the Chairman’s nephew fatally crashed into the side of a mountain, everyone in his transport plane burning to death. Afterward, news leaked out that the Chairman had been dead in his underground bunker several months already.
Nung used to wonder if that was true. If it was false, who would have dared to kill the Chairman? The answer to such a question could be found in who had benefited the most from the Chairman’s passing. Jian Hong, the Leader, would be that person. Perhaps that’s why Jian feared assassination so desperately. People often feared in others what they themselves would most likely attempt.
The Leader now stood and put his manicured fingertips on the table. Their reflective quality matched the shiny tabletop, as if each tried to outdo the other.
“I have summoned the Ruling Committee and Marshal Nung so we can decide today what to do with the Americans. By now, each of you has read the secret report from East Lightning. The Americans managed to infiltrate elite commandos behind our lines in Mexico. In some fashion, they learned about Blue Swan. A convoy transporting a Blue Swan missile was destroyed en route. Worse, pieces of the warhead were ferried back to America. My analysts inform me that we must presume the Americans have uncovered the missile’s purpose. If that is so, they can conceivably counter its action in the coming conflict.”
The Leader glanced at the others, finally focusing on Deng. “Do you have a comment, Foreign Minister?”
“May I ask about the nature of Blue Swan?”
“Marshal Nung, would you explain the situation, the reason why we needed the missile?” the Leader asked.
Nung folded his hands on the table, clearing his throat and leaning forward so he could look at Deng.
“Sir, the Americans have heavily fortified the southern border, particularly the Californian-Mexican portion of it. There is no Rio Grande River Line there and California is a rich prize by any standard. In a starving world, its agricultural benefits—”
“I am aware of California’s food value, General,” Deng said.
Nung blinked, wanting to say, “It’s Marshal, sir,” but not daring to correct someone so powerful and vengeful. It was too soon to say that the Leader would outlast his most dangerous foe.
“Please, stick to the issue of the military need for Blue Swan,” Deng said.
Nung bowed his head, keeping his features placid. It was the Chinese way.
Marshal Kao glanced at him, and the old man’s right eyebrow twitched the tiniest fraction.
Nung recognized why. The others in the Army thought of him as the “Russian Bear,” easily angered and unable to respond in a civilized manner. By civilized they of course meant Chinese.
“Many of the Americans have dubbed the California fortification as the ‘Maginot Line’,” Nung said. “The reference is to the pre-World War II French fortification. Everyone considered the Maginot Line impenetrable, even the Germans who eventually attacked around the defensive line and conquered France through blitzkrieg, which means ‘lightning war’.”
“Your Front is stationed across from this ‘Maginot Line’?” Deng asked.
“Yes, Foreign Minister.”
“Are the American fortifications impenetrable?” Deng asked.
“It is a matter of cost,” Nung said, “the price paid in flesh and blood to smash through an obstacle. No, the fortification cannot stop our attack in an absolute sense, but it will make such an assault incredibly costly.”
“Blue Swan will negate these defenses?” Deng asked the Leader.
“Marshal Kao?” the Leader asked.
Nung sat back as the old marshal told the others that the scientists agreed the missiles would indeed negate the majority of the defenses.”
“But not all?” asked Deng.
“The missile will nullify the technological wonders emplaced by the Americans,” Kao said. “The missiles will not harm the machine gun nests or disintegrate the concrete pill boxes or embankments there.”
“How does our wonder weapon achieve this miracle?” Deng asked.
Kao glanced at the Leader.
“Please, tell us, Marshal,” the Leader said.
“The missiles will emit a heavy electro-magnetic pulse,” Kao said.
Deng sat up sharply like an angry panda bear. His weak eye attempted to open, failing in that but making the lashes quiver. “We’re using tactical nuclear weapons?”
“No!” the Leader said. “Greater China shall never use nuclear weapons without heavy provocation. Firstly, it is unethical. Secondly, we want to conquer America for its agricultural usage. How does it profit us to irradiate the wheat fields and poultry farms that we so desperately need?”
“If I might digress for a moment…” Deng said.
The Leader stared at the older man, finally nodding.
“Why attack America at all?” Deng asked. “Meet with them. Exchange a lessening of our military forces in Mexico for reinstating their food tribute. It was a brilliant concept to put such a heavy concentration of troops into Mexico and prod the Americans to buying us off with grain. I happily concede that I was wrong in opposing the idea. I feared what is now occurring—that we would be fatally tempted into putting too many soldiers there and attacking America because our forces are so handily in position.”
“It heartens me to hear you admit your error,” the Leader said. “You are a man of stature, Foreign Minister. By our Mexico occupation, we have pushed the Americans and found them to be a hollow people indeed.”
“Not quite hollow,” Deng said. “Their ABM lasers destroyed many of our satellites. The Americans reacted more aggressively than we thought possible for them.”
“A tiny victory that we allowed them,” the Leader said with a wave of his hand. “We all can note that Alaska nearly fell to us seven years ago. If not for the former Chairman’s nephew and his blunders, we would have added Prudhoe Bay and Anchorage to our conquests. Even with the man’s blunders, we successively smashed American carriers, reaping the reward in the Hawaiian Campaign by demolishing America’s surface fleet.
“The Americans are clever, however. It makes sense, as they must have been clever to fool the world all these years. I believe the Americans play for time while they build up their land forces.”
“I agree with you,” Deng said.
The Leader blinked in astonishment. “That meant they gave us foodstuffs to purchase time. Then President Sims cut off the food shipments, leading me to believe he thinks America strong enough to defend itself.”
“Again, I would agree with you,” Deng said. “My thought, however, is that instead of attempting a continental conquest we offer the Americans an alliance. Let us replace hostility with peace. The Europeans are investing heavily in several of the Saharan countries, thinking to turn deserts into paradises. If successful, I suspect they will attempt to increase their economic zone, possibly replacing it with an empire to challenge us, especially after we’ve weakened ourselves with a North American War. Consider. We’ve placed much more of our military into North America than they have in Cuba. The South American Federation holds no true love for the PAA. They are simply greedy vultures, eager to reap the rewards that others, namely ourselves, have worked to produce. Let us offer the Americans an alliance and gain the use of their relative plenty, making an end run around our so-called allies. Now is the perfect moment to achieve this.”