China's Check Mate

March 20th, 2024  21:30hrs 

The rain was coming down lightely but with a steady force, enough for Chen  to pull his coat closer to around his neck. He stared down at the water below him, it was dark.  So dark one could not see immediately beneath the surface.  He knew only death stared back up at him, be it his reflection or whatever form of creatures swam just out of eye sight.  

   Growing up as a son of a fisherman on Hainan island, he learned from experience with his father about the dangers of the water of the Great Sea.  His father instilled respect the water and how fast it can kill you if you take just a moment to relax.  He brought this life lesson to his Naval career in the People's Liberation Army Navy and it kept him numerous times from danger that others foolishly enticed which ended their careers and a few lives.

   As he stood there in the darkness at the pier, he gazed across to the massive cranes of the Port of Shenzen, their bright lights illuminating the night on that side, as pitch blackness enveloped his side to keep any prying eyes averted.  The orders were that the working side would be doubling their workload that night to attract any attention away from his berthing area.  

   Dark waters lapped the sides of his submarine.  The Type 094 under his command had gone through a solid year of renovations here at this pier, all tucked under a massive canopy and blocked from view by a screen of four large cargo ships that would come and go as 'normal'.  An more assertive eye would have noticed it was the same four ships in a rotation, that were actually moving cargo and machinery to and from the submarine.  The canopy appeared to be nothing more than a work zone for the ship/dock workers that serviced the massive cargo ships.  

   His Type 094 was redesigned Type 994 and renamed the Sheng Li (Victory).   The biggest changes came in the acoustical and engine performance.  Other changes were to crew berthing.  Much of them were removed and space made for food storage since this was going to be a long, tedious journey.  

   The rest of the renovations were more checks and rechecks of every system and wiring upon the submarine.  A few redundant systems were added as a precaution.  This mission could not fail.

   As Captain Xuwen watched the dark waters, he noticed off to his left shoulder, more of presence approaching than anything.  Probably a last minute political officer to ensure total commitment to the Party was in order, if only they would just let the military be the military, a lament he heard even from the Americans.  

   The figure, shrouded in the darkness of the pier kept approaching, Chen took a cursory look just more out of curiosity than worry.   Then he noticed the outline of the man, his gait and even the slight tilt to the left he held his head.  'No, it can't be' Chen thought.   Chen turned to face the approaching man directly and in the darkness of the night, he knew who had come.

    'Don't salute or change your stance Captain Xuwen, I wouldn't want spies to notice something after all this time' said the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party.   Chen froze for the moment unsure why has 'he' come here??   

   "Is everything ready to go in your opinion Captain?" the General Secretary said more than asked.

   "Yes Sir" was all Chen could reply.  

   There was a long silence as both men turned to face The Type 994.   

    "Did you know Captain Xuwen, that your father was also a fighting Naval man?" 

   "No Sir, he never mentioned anything to me or my brother or sister.  My mother said nothing either"

     "He was on a small coastal attack boat that fought against the Western Imperialist in Korea.  There was a small but significant naval battles near Wonsan.  The Imperialist were attempting a landing of forces but shore batteries and hazing attacks kept them from accomplishing their objective.  Your father's small boat unit was hit by enemy fire and all ships were sunk but most of the soldiers made it to our forces lines. They had successfully kept laying mines in the harbor preventing the Imperialist to launch and all out attack."  The Chairman paused...he then reached into an inside jacket pocket and pulled out a piece of cloth.  'Here, this was your father's."   It was a dark brown cloth with a Communist China Star and a rank and name sewn in.  Chen could tell it was old and authentic, he read his father's name.  

    The Chairman said "Take it as a symbol of devotion to our Country.  Our Country has spent a lot of money and effort on this mission Captain, achieve 'Sheng Li' for its efforts."  The Chairman turned and walked away into the dark night.  

    Chen stood a rigid attention, out of instinct and respect for what the Chairman did in bringing this story of Chen's father to him.  The impact and significance of both what his father did and what he was to do felt as if a mountain had fallen upon him.  This was an auspicious day for China,  the time and direct of sail were also good, or so Chinese horoscopes said for this day. 

  March 20th, 22:15hrs

The sailors on the Sheng Li let the mooring lines loose and they would quickly pulled in by the soldiers that had been guarding this pier for a year now.   Never allowed to leave or call anyone for a year, they hurriedly pulled the lines in and watched the huge submarine pull out into the channel of the Pearl Rive Estuary, oddly the huge container ships had also pulled out alongside the submarine as if to guide it out.

   The platoon of 20 soldiers watched as the submarine and ships disappeared quickly into the darkness of the night as the blinding lights from across the channel obscured even their view.

    A rumble of trucks came up to the soldiers, they noticed they were all marked with Ministry of State Security, maybe they would all be rewarded with higher pay and positions working for the MSS.  Within an hours time, all twenty of those soldiers were shot in the back of the head and buried in an unmarked mass grave in the countryside.  Their families would be notified they died in battle against the Indian Army at the Line of Demarcation up in the Himalayas.   

March 20th, 23:30hrs

  Captain Xuwen had gathered all the senior officers and enlisted men in the dining facility which was the largest area to convene this meeting.   He looked at the 8 men before him, this was a very small crew they were all aware of.  Captain Xuwen held an envelope which already knew its contents.  Its sealed confidential markings were verified by the Political Officer/Missile Officer on board.  Chen used a sharp cooking knife and slipped open an end and pulled out a single sheet of paper that he turned so the assembled could see it was authentic with a CCP embossment on the bottom.  

   "These are our orders:  Using the shipping lanes as cover, maneuver into firing position at these coordinates, on April 4th receive the final order.  After executing the mission, return to Hainan"  They all looked at each other, April 4th, is Qingming Festival, Tomb Sweeping Day.   

    Captain Xuwen said "Even our leaders have a morbid sense of detail. We will accomplish this mission two-fold.  Follow the shipping lanes and stay with our own ships that will be moving cargo to the Americas.  If there is any enemy naval activity we are to go to the bottom and sit for as long as it takes to ensure we have not been detected.  This is why the extra rations for this small crew."

    "Once we have reached our firing position, if the final order is given, we will launch every silo.  This is not a training exercise, this is for the future of China."

    Wou Yimou was the Political Officer, at a nod from Captain Xuwen he took over the meeting.  "As Captain Xuwen said, this mission is for the future of China.  You all were allowed access to several news sites and told to read up on the political situations across the World and especially in the Untied States.  What I hope you all read and realized is the dire situation that faces our Nation and our People.  The American political situation changed drastically with their 2020 Election and putting puppets into their leadership positions.  Those puppets have been manipulated greatly by forces that we had thought been extinguished in the Second Great War in Europe.  But they have been resurrected and call themselves 'Progressives', manipulating the laws and pushing their perverted ideals and lifestyles upon the American People who themselves are too weak to resist.   As you saw they successfully removed their Elected President and installed another puppet who has the laugh of a zoo's hyena and is unable to make a coherent sentence.  All of this has put America at the brink of another civil war, which outcome will spell a death knell for China.  For if the Progressives win, a new 'National Socialism' will rise and they have already forced their Western European allies to follow their depravities and say they will use military force to make other Nations follow their ways.  If the extreme Right wins, the backlash will take time but they too will use economic and military means to alter other Nations directions.  They believe that China purposely let the Covid virus loose and they demand retributions and capitulation from China.  

    We can not allow either of those forces to assume power and control in the United States.  The window to strike is now and we will remove the Imperialist plague from the World and usher in the rightful place of China as the true leader and beacon of the World."

    "Russia has yet to stabilize from its own breakdown after the Ukraine War.  Western Europe is barely holding together economically, politically, or socially.   The Middle East Nations are still maneuvering for control over each other.  There are no other powers to stop what we must and are going to do."

    All the men looked at each other and nodded in silent agreement.

April 4th, 0030hr, 2 hundred miles north of Hawaii.  The Sheng Li received its final order "Check mate".  The submarine rose to firing position and opened all the silo doors.  The sequence of firing from the 12 silos would take all but 20 minutes.  As each warhead descended upon its target city or military installation, the hapless Americans could only react as long as communications continued which were simultaneously attacked in space by China's anti-satellite kinetic weaponry.  Most of the strategic personnel in the US Military consisted of the 'woke' generation or those harangued into following Leftist ideologies, that were on duty at the hour, all mostly panicked and abandoned their positions once the word of a Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco had been hit by a nuclear weapon.  The EMP effect was minimal but the panic was tremendous.   As each target was hit, America died almost as fast.  By 4am, April 4th, 2024, the United States of America ceased to exist as a Nation.