Invasion: China (Invasion America) (Volume 5) (51 page)

“I see,” Stan said, on guard now. Caesars seldom wanted the truth from anyone. Still, it appeared as if McGraw had taken elaborate procedures to speak with him alone. What did that portend?

“Can I trust you to tell it to me straight, General?” McGraw asked.

“Sir, I’m an American soldier. I don’t believe in lying to my superior officers.”

“Nice evasion,” McGraw said.
“But I’ll take you at your word. Stan, General, what is your estimation on the Chinese soldier.”

“I’m not sure I understand the question, sir.”

“By what you’ve seen in Manchuria, do you think the Chinese are scraping the bottom of the manpower barrel?”

Stan pursed his lips. “They’re far from that.
But I will say that although the soldiers facing us in Shenyang are brave and determined, they’re not like the Chinese we faced in the early days in North America. Those soldiers knew their trade, and they were willing to fight. The Chinese here…they’re still learning their trade.”

“But they’re brave, you say?”

“At the beginning of this campaign in Heilongjiang Province, a lot of them ran away after their unit sustained…hmmm…ten percent losses. They were on the short end of the stick and they knew it. The ones now aren’t giving up. I’m sure you’re studying the reports. Far fewer Chinese formations that are surrounded surrender until they’re starving to death or have taken fifty, sometimes sixty percent casualties.”

“Can we take Shenyang?” McGraw asked.

“We might with the men at hand, but it would cost us, and it would likely be the last major offensive we could make for some time.”

“You’re speaking about our boys?”

“The US 3rd Army Group,” Stan said. “If you want my opinion, sir…?”

“Yes
, go ahead.”

“The Russians are running out of desire
, while the average Chinese has hardened his heart. There are a lot of enemy riflemen, Militia and guerillas. Many of those hardly know the front end of a gun from the back, but they have desire. Ever since Changchun I’ve begun to wonder—”

“Wonder what?”

“What we’re really doing in Manchuria,” Stan said. “The 3rd Army Group isn’t going to do much more than secure Manchuria. Holding onto it might be a lot harder than taking it with Russian help.”

“You realize
major reinforcements are already in the pipeline.”

“
We’ve gotten a few and I’ve heard many more are on the way, but I don’t know if you’re sending enough. Now if we had some Behemoths…”

“They’re guarding Texas and New Mexico.”

Stan nodded. He understood that.

“The Chinese appear to have bounced back
then,” McGraw said.

“Historically, an invaded people usually do.”

McGraw opened his mouth, and he hesitated. Finally, he nodded. “Thank you, Stan, old son. You’ve told me what I needed to hear.”

I don’t believe that
, Stan thought.
You were going to ask me something else, but you just lost your nerve. What’s really going on, Tom? I wish I could ask you
.

“How’s my son?” Stan asked.

“I thought you’d ask about him. Jake went to the hospital and he’s fit for duty. I believe he’s already back in his platoon.”

“You couldn’t send him home?” Stan asked.

“If I did, Homeland Security might take him again. I don’t think you want that.”

Th
e information put heat in Stan’s heart. “So we’ve become America’s new legions, eh?”

“What’s that mean?”

“We’re only good so long as we fight overseas?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” McGraw said.

It hit Stan then. He didn’t say anything, and he didn’t believe he gave anything away on his face or in his eyes. Jake was here, and so was he. He knew Taylor and the other generals of V Corps felt similarly as he did. Stan used to think that was a coincidence. Now he wasn’t so sure. But that would mean…

“It’s good to talk with you again, Stan. I wish I were over there with you. I envy you the ability to hurt our enemy where it counts,
in his own backyard.”

“We’d love to have you here, sir.”

McGraw gave him a careful look before smiling. “I’m on a fact-finding mission, trying to take the pulse of our Expeditionary Force. Once all the reinforcements arrive, we have some surprises in store for the Chinese. I think we have them on the ropes, Stan. I think it will take a few more hammer blows to make them cry uncle.”

“Is that why they attacked in Inner Mongolia
as they did? They don’t care about losses.”

“Who knows Chairman Hong’s mind? It’s a mystery.”

“If we could hit with all our THORs, we would have a much better chance of making them cry uncle. I think there’s your answer.”

“That will be all, General
,” McGraw said. “Thank you for your time, and good luck.”

“To you too, sir,” Stan said. Afterward, McGraw cut the connection
, leaving a thoughtful Higgins to ponder these new, inner revelations.

BEIJING, CHINA

Shun Li took her place at the conference table. It was a full meeting of the Ruling Committee. Marshal Kiang sat down beside the new Minister of the Navy. She finally understood that Hong and the Army would always be at odds with each other. Both Hong and the Police must leash the Army, or the Army leaders would rule over them.

Yes, that has been the trick all these years, the politicians and the police holding the twin leashes that kept the crocodile of the Army from devouring each of them in turn.

For all his supposed madness and brutality, Hong was the most cunning among them. Perhaps as bad, he could change course with abrupt suddenness, catching others by surprise.

Is that the great trick—to fake one way and then go another?
He also used another tactic.
The Chairman slays his most powerful enemies, killing each of us one by one. If I am to survive, must I kill Hong first in self-defense?

Such a strike
was worth careful consideration. The danger of trying it and failing, however, would be catastrophic to her life.

“I am here to report wonderful news,” Hong
told them. “Unfortunately, none of us can tell anyone else about the news, at least for a time. We must hold this secret until we can unleash it at a pivotal moment.” The Chairman cleared his throat. “Some of you may know that I spoke with a personal envoy of Premier Konev.” He nodded to Shun Li.

She smiled in an approximation of joy
, but her cheek muscles felt frozen and stiff. She had helped spirit the envoy from the airport to Hong and back again to the airport.

“The Russians are concerned,” Hong
told Marshal Kiang. “Your latest offensive in Inner Mongolia convinced them of the futility of their invasion—that we will fight for a thousand years to keep our freedom.”

The Army Minister shook his head. “I cannot take credit for th
e…the so-called offensive. It was your own creation, Leader.”

“Do you still not approve of it?” Hong asked.

“As a military man, the Chinese losses sicken me,” Kiang said. “Although I am overjoyed it shook the Russian leader.”

Shun Li wondered how much longer the marshal would get to speak his mind
like that.

“It was ill-conceived as an operational procedure,” Kiang
added. “However, it appears that you are one hundred percent correct from a political consideration. I marvel at your insights concerning foreign leaders.”

Shun Li didn’t believe it was insight that had
guided Hong. No. Once again, the Chairman had gotten lucky. Why such a callous killer should receive such luck, she could not say. It made her doubt the entire idea of karma.

“You must have reasoned it out
due to some national characteristic I missed noting,” Marshal Kiang said. “We were the Russians to the Germans of World War II. The Russians in Mongolia outfought us, but we can afford to take massive losses and they cannot. It is a simple equation and yet most profound.”

“Are you attempting to steal my glory?” Hong asked.

“On no account, Chairman,” Kiang said. “I am profoundly stunned at this turn of events. Yet as I ponder it, I see its logic. The enemy began the invasion with too small of a force.”

“It was all they could muster on short notice,” Hong said.

“The Americans should have shipped their Behemoths to Siberia. They should have sent a million soldiers, not their mere two hundred thousand or so.”

“It wouldn’t have made a difference
,” Hong said.

“Not
at this point,” Kiang said. “But we were on a slender thread two months ago. We’ve lost most of Manchuria and Mongolia before we stiffened and stopped them. What if we had lost even worse because they started with more and they had raced here to Beijing?”

“They could never hold
our country,” Hong said.

“They might not have to,” Kiang said. “If they put puppets in place and split China into separate regions…it could have worked
for them with more soldiers at the beginning. As it is, we have weathered the initial storm.”

Hong barked laughter. “I say to you that we have done more than that. The Russian proposal changes
everything
.”

“The enemy is still in three-fourths of Manchuria and much of Inner Mongolia, to say nothing of having captured all of Outer Mongolia.”

“Meaningless,” Hong said.

Kiang gave him a perplexed look.

“Let me explain,” Hong said. “Konev wants a peace treaty. He will exit China in return for our recognizing his right to Siberia and Kazakhstan. What will he tell the Americans?”

“To leave with him, I suppose.”

“No,” Hong said, grinning. “We will trap this American Expeditionary Force. We will kill every one of them. The last ones will likely surrender. We will hang every one of those as war criminals. Then we will use the American atrocities to whip up the people to a new frenzy. We will demand more troops from Korea, Japan and Vietnam. Then we will build a vast force in Mexico.”

“The American submarines—”

“No!” Hong said. “The Americans have shown us the answer. We will devote intense resources to space, and take control of it. Their THOR missiles will become outdated. We will develop our own, only much superior. Our industrial capacity far exceeds theirs. I already plan to strike their heartland with biological agents.”

“Leader?” Kiang asked
, sounding shocked.

“Don’t worry,” Hong said. “My scientists are working on agents that will produce fevers and flus of an intense nature, enough to ensure a majority of their workforce with debilitating sickness.”

“But—”

Hong banged
a fist on the table. “The scientists say that glaciation will get worse before it gets better. We have Australia, and with it, we kept the Indian League at bay. The Americans have the right idea. They tried to take Australia from us. Combined with American wheat…well, we will tear their farmlands from them to feed our people and force the rest of the world into submission through their yearning for food.”

“It will take time to rebuild our merchant marine,” the Navy Minister said.

“Agreed,” Hong said. “That is why our army in Mexico is so critical. Because of it, we can keep the South Americans in our camp.”

Kiang frowned thoughtfully.

“The time may come where we will demand the Indian League to send troops,” Hong said. “Ladies and gentlemen, the glaciation means this is a Darwinian struggle. Nature wishes to discover which race is the strongest. I assure you, it will be the Chinese. Our two worst enemies have played their strongest cards against us. Yes, they bloodied us, and we have taken setbacks. But once the Russians retreat and we kill the Americans…a few years of intense industrial production will give us the upper hand. We own the world’s heaviest industries. Soon, we will have the Earth’s best farmlands as well. All we must do is insure we have iron determination. I tell you, this is China’s finest hour.”

“Interesting,” Kiang said. “Your optimism is worthy of a conqueror. Our armies are exhausted, but our enemies have lost heart. What’s more,
our enemies need time to resupply. It is a race to see who can replace his armies fastest.”

“We will win that race,” Hong gloated.

“I believe you are right,” Kiang said.

Shun Li stood. She saluted Chairman Hong. “You are China’s savior, Leader. Let me be the first to congratulate you on your insights and iron will.
I pledge the police service to a hundred years of war, if that’s what it will take.”

“Thank you, Police Minister,” Hong said. “But I doubt it will take more than another ten years of hard fighting.”

Shun Li smiled as she resumed her place. Yet in her heart, she feared. Hong was cunning and he maneuvered more easily than any of they did. Would the world continue to battle like this for ten more years?