It was a twelve-story building off Datong Road in a mixed-use area of Pudong. To United States satellites in orbit, the building’s electromagnetic signature appeared no different than the surrounding commercial buildings. The complex, however, housed China’s Unit 61398, the premier unit of the PLA’s Fourth Department, responsible for cyber warfare. On the twelfth floor, Admiral Tsou Deshi and General Cao Feng, Commander of the Fourth Department, supervised the most critical element of Admiral Tsou’s plan: the dismantling of Unit 61398.
“Everything must be moved to underground bunkers before hostilities commence, Admiral,” General Cao commented. Tsou looked around as the thirty men and women busily packed away computers, displays, computer servers and their racks, power supplies, and cables. It was like watching a vacuum operate in slow motion—an entire hi-tech complex disappearing into hundreds of cardboard boxes.
“There will be a temporary disruption in ability,” Cao added, “but we are doing this in stages, and this is the last unit to be moved. All units will be fully operational by morning.”
Tsou nodded as General Cao continued, “We are a decade ahead of our American counterparts in cyber warfare, but they are catching up fast. They have finally realized the predicament they are in, and have established their own cyber warfare command. Fortunately for us, they have no idea of the inroads we have made.
“They will realize all too soon what we have done, and will attempt to respond in kind. But we have thoroughly prepared, Admiral. Their communication networks are vulnerable, while our nodes our impervious to cyber counterattacks.
“However, while our command and control networks are protected from cyber attacks, we cannot underestimate America’s ability to harm us via conventional methods. Our critical communication nodes must be moved to hardened underground bunkers, along with our cyber warfare units. We cannot risk the possibility America will discover their existence and eliminate them with Tomahawk missiles or Air Force strikes. You know better than anyone that your plan hinges on their capabilities.”
Admiral Tsou could not argue with the General’s words. Cyber warfare was the one area where China had superiority over the United States, and Cao was taking every measure to ensure America could not destroy that advantage during the conflict.
The last of the computers were placed into cardboard boxes and sealed, then loaded onto dollies and wheeled toward nearby elevators. A few minutes later, the Admiral and General stood alone on a desolate floor, with loose papers and dust balls littering an otherwise deserted office space. The two men headed toward the elevators in silence. The General would join Unit 61398 in one of the underground command bunkers, while Tsou would accompany his aide, waiting in the car below, for the long trip to Ningbo, headquarters of the East Sea Fleet.