In the South Wing of the Great Hall of the People, Admiral Tsou strode briskly down the corridor, his lone footsteps echoing off marble walls. At the end of the long corridor, urgently assembled in the conference room, Huan Zhixin and the eight members of the Politburo awaited his report. Although Admiral Tsou would normally have been flanked by two Captains—his aide on one side and his chief of staff on the other—he would deliver the news alone today. It was only fitting; the amphibious assault on Taipei had been his plan. His and his alone, convincing the Politburo it was the only path to success.
Tsou reached the end of the corridor, pausing momentarily with his hand on one of the two immense wooden conference room doors. He found it difficult to contain his emotions. For any man, especially one in his position, it would not be proper to display such a lack of control. Straightening his back, he pushed the door firmly. It swung noiselessly inward, revealing the impatient faces of President Xiang and the other seven Politburo members seated around the conference table, plus Huan Zhixin, seated along the perimeter.
Taking his place at the front of the conference room, Admiral Tsou faced the eight men in China’s Politburo. Their faces were difficult to read. As was his, he supposed. After clearing his throat, he began.
“As you are aware, the American Pacific Fleet launched a counteroffensive with four carrier strike groups and twenty-seven fast attack submarines. The Americans were able to discern the malware in their Aegis software and implement a fix, and as a result, our Dong Feng missiles have been rendered ineffective. Their submarine force has proven extremely capable, clearing a path to Taipei for their Marine Expeditionary Forces, and has broken through our blockade of the Taiwan Strait. We’ve lost all submarines assigned to the blockade, with confirmed kills of only three American submarines.
“The United States has dealt equally well with our Hongqi missile batteries, destroying all but seven launchers. There is nothing left to deter the American carrier strike groups from entering the Taiwan Strait, cutting off supplies to our one hundred thousand troops on Taipei. Even now, satellite reconnaissance reports the four American strike groups are entering the Strait, two through the northern entrance and two from the south. Their air wings are now within striking distance of all resupply nodes.”
Admiral Tsou paused, waiting for the Politburo to absorb the information and its implications. His eyes met President Xiang’s for a moment, then passed over each man in the room. Finally, Tsou could no longer contain the emotion. A broad smile spread across his face, matched by wide grins displayed by Huan and the eight men around the table.
The smile faded from Admiral Tsou’s face as he continued, his features returning to their normal, stoic state. “Everything is proceeding exactly as planned.”