Chinese Civil War

[The Rock Doctor]

This thread is for news and in-character reaction only.  Please post comments in the Meeting Room.

[The Rock Doctor]

The Second Chinese Civil War:  August 1919

Ground War

In the northeast, nine RRC corps cross from Kiangsu into Shangtung, facing four Imperial corps.  Four hundred Republican and three hundred Imperial aircraft clash overhead, with heavy losses to the latter.  Ultimately, the Imperials are able to bleed the Republicans heavily, inflicting about 90,000 casualties to about 40,000 of their own, with little ground lost.

In central China, two RRC corps making probing attacks from southern Hubei across the Yellow River into Imperial-controlled north Hubei.  Stiff resistence is encountered and the Republicans are driven back with about ten thousand casualties.

The main Republican attack is from Anhwei into Honan.  Nine Republican corps, with over one thousand aircraft in support despite heavy cloud cover and rain, face only two Imperial corps, with four hundred aircraft flying almost against the Republican ground attack missions.  Casualties are about even at 20,000 apiece, but the weight of the Republican attack sends the Imperials reeling backwards.  The arrival of three additional Imperial corps stems the Republican advance on August 14, as does news of a massive disaster in the making.

The Imperials, it turns out, had a contingency plan in place for such an occasion:  over the course of August 11-13, teams of infiltrators and saboteurs use explosives to breach dikes, dams, and levees along the Yangtze River watershed, in both Imperial and Republican territory.  River levels begin rising at a noticeable but not immediately catastrophic rate, from west to east, over the course of the next few days. The military effects of this are fairly simple:  the river is much wider (miles, in places) and more turbulent.

Imperial forces have prepared for such an eventuality; in the initial days of the war, they commandeered any river craft they could lay their hands on and they initiated a massive evacuation of civilians on their side of the Yangtze, under the guise of removing them from possible warzones.  With Republican troops forced from their positions by rising waters, the Empire strikes back.

Counter-attacks from Shantung into Kiangsu accomplish little more than locating Republican reserves, though, costing the Imperials about ten thousand dead and wounded.  Both Kiangsu and Anhwei lie north of the Yangtze River, meaning that the front is not affected by the flooding, though Republican logistics likely will be to the south.

Counter-attacks from northern Hubei into southern Hubei are a limited but expensive success, as the fast-flowing river disrupts what is essentially an amphibious operation.  Though elements of five corps do establish beachheads in southeast Hubei, the casualties are heavy - 50,000 Imperials to just ten thousand Republicans.  

Further west, Imperial forces make the most of Republican inactivity from Szechwan and attack from Sinkiang, Kansu, and Senshi.  Ten Imperial corps, supported by eight hundred aircraft, advance into northern Szechwan province.  Eight Republican guerilla corps, aided by seven hundred aircraft, fight a delaying action that is particularly effective in the mountainous northwest of the province.  Although the Imperials do take ground, they suffer almost 100,000 casualties, in return for about 70,000 Republican losses.  Air combat is similarly costly, about two hundred aircraft lost on both sides, including a number of heavy bombers striking from Republican bases towards Imperial lines of communication.

The Yangtze Flood

Yichang, straddling the de facto border in western Hubei, experiences light to moderate flooding from August 12th onward.  Jingzhou and Yueyang experience moderate to heavy flooding from August 12 onward.

The area between Wuhan, not yet recovered from the battering it took in the Third Pacific War, and Jujiang is heavily flooded from August 13 onward.  By the next day, the heavy flooding has extended to Hefei and Nanjing, in the east.  Further downstream, the effects are moderated by the wider width of the river, but communities on the coast nonetheless sustain damage.

The human effects of this flood are, as of the end of the month, impossible to accurately assess.  The Middle Kingdom had implemented an evacuation of several hundred thousand people in a strip of northern Hubei as the flooding was beginning.  Others have chosen to flee on their own initiative, with whatever they can carry, pull, and haul.

The Republic, surprised by the incident, struggles to organize and undertake effective evacuations; its troops are tied down in the fighting, and civic reaction ranges from honest efforts to outright panic.  Hundreds of thousands - perhaps millions - of people flee for higher ground, leaving behind anything they can't carry, ride, or haul.  Damage to key Republican industrial sites is expected, but their owners can do little more than hope for the best.

The Naval War:

South China Sea

This region is quiet - the Middle Kingdom does not seem to interdict the western most Republican coast line and ports, allowing RRC imports and exports to move essentially unmolested.  Brandenburger and Indochinese patrols are evident in their respective coastal waters.

East China Sea/Yellow Sea

Imperial naval forces, consisting of several dozen torpedo-boats backed up by a dozen very new destroyers, attempt to implement a blockade of the mouth of the Yangtze River, just north of Shanghai.  Imperial submarines are a part of this effort, and are also seen operating between the coast where Shantung and Kiangsu meet and the Japanese island of Cheju.

Republican naval forces, meanwhile, attempt to implement a blockade of Kiaochow.  Submarines are employed here as well.  Republican cruisers make high-speed hit-and run attacks against Imperial coastal positions on the Shantung coast.  Consequently, the waters between the two port cities are the scene of a number of skirmishes and engagements between these light forces.  

Several hundred dedicated Republican naval strike aircraft, with more flying top cover, swoop in to strafe or drop bombs and torpedoes at military and civilian shipping alike.  These are opposed by four hundred Imperial aircraft, a mix of floatplanes and land-based fighters, which undertake their own strike and top-cover missions.  

Though the Republican cruisers manage to return to their bases without suffering any significant damage, their smaller cousins are not so lucky.  A number of Imperial and Republican torpedo-boats and destroyers are lost over the course of the month, along with two Republican submarine losses.  Most are lost to each other, or occasional submarine attacks.  Aircraft are less effective - perhaps surprisingly so, given the effectiveness shown in the Rift War.  However, bombing or torpedoing an agile torpedo-boat making 30 kts is a much different proposition than a lumbering cruiser or merchant ship cruising in convoy.  Still, sheer numbers mean that both sides do manage aerial kills.

[maddox]

When somewhat dependable reports trickle in (like october), 2 men have a nice talk in Chez Loulou, the club, not the basements...


Monsieur Grange It seems that China is erupting in a volcanic bloodbath.  They have more men in the 2 armies than some complete countries have of inhabitants. And the days of old, where the chinese ricefarmer with a stick walks into the musket fire of modern soldiers are over.
In the short time we have seen the most modern tricks mankind has deviced to kill used by both sides. The only thing we didn't see are fleets of dreadnoughts. No sir, swarms of torpedo boats is their kick. They like numbers , those China-men. Skies blackened with aircraft, and not an airship in sight. I'm counting the days untill one of the 2 sides decide on using gas.

You're right. But one thing is something I don't like.

Oh Monsieur Grange, I don't like the wholesale slaughter of civilians those yellow menaces indulge in. But what is what you don't like?

It seems, according to our information, that the Middle Kingdom is rather restricting naval actions concerning blockades, only a half hearted attempt at the Yangtse. But the RRC is using every trick in the book, and a few not yet written down, to hamper the few ships that could go the the MK. All the ports the Middle Kingdom would or could use to unload modern merchant ships are directly under the dark cloud of the RRC.
But the thing I don't like...  the RRC is demonstrating why we lose so many merchants. Mines, Submarines, torpedo's, all hidden menaces and cheap compared to large surface ships. Most even easely transported to seas far away. Like the coast of Nice, the Gibraltar strait, or what about Tricomalee.  

But why?

I don't know, the line of thinking I follow is a possible deal with Bharat.
The RRC never was shy of seeking strange allies, even NS almost got a foot between the RRC door. And Bharat would be all to pleased is Glorious france weakens even more. Ceylon is nearby,and only the "buying of Kolkatta" makes sure the Bharat navy, again sponsored by those infernal Dutch, isn't expanding like a weed in an unchecked pasture.

But , the Dutch are openly aiding Imperial China... I heared Minister Lebrun arguing with Premier Galpoux to aid a fellow republic in need.

Remember the Spanish scourge in the Middle ages?  Only the unwilling agreements between French and Norman nobles could keep the Spanish boot from our necks. But the Dutch, protected by their dikes, levies, canals and  earthworks could stand up to the Spanish, even better, annoy the Normans to no end. And to top it off, build an world empire. Funny considering that Spain bought very functional weapons from the Dutch, when they were at war...  A Dutch merchant can sell anything. Even a new fangled cooling unit to a polar bear.
Remember the sandbag issue of a few years back.  A Dutch firm convinced a female procurer from Lebruns office that burlap sack ain't good enough for France, and that linnen sacks were needed.

If you bring it like that, I see the logic in it.  Oh well, it was nice to talk to you Monsieur Grange, but I'm not here for an evening of talking shop, but to get my ashes hauled, before I go back on the 7 seas.

[Logi]

August 20, 1919

OOC: Anybody can get their hands on the article. Printed in Chinese, English, French, German, and Japanese.

A newspaper boy runs the streets yelling "Extra! Extra! Read all about it!" in Guangzhou as well as many major cities in the RRC. This article is also greatly distributed along the front.

The Imperials massacre millions in cold blood!

One week ago, in the face of the serial victories won by the hard-willed and brave Republican troops, the cowardly Imperial troops retreated. Instead of standing their ground and fighting with honor, they retreated.

Then... they used broke the dikes of the Yangtze River. In this master of cowardly acts, they attempted to, with the flooding, stall the victorious Republican advance. They gave no warning to the civilians about what was happening, and left the innocent to die by drowning.

Millions were caught be the floods, families torn apart by the surging waters. The people who got to high ground quickly enough witnessed their fields, their homes, their families, wiped out.

The Republican Armies, tied down by Imperial forces still attempted to conduct evacuations of the civilians from both sides.However due to the Imperial forces, engaging the Republican army, such efforts were limited and stalled. However, the Imperial Army has made no such effort to save it's people!

Wake up my brethren! How can we, the people of the land, still support the Imperial Government? It is in times like this the true nature of the government is revealed. And the Imperials have revealed theirs, to abandon their own countrymen to death. To drown them by the millions in cold blood.

Wake up! Your masters have abandoned you for death. They do not value you, they believe you are expendable. Your country has betrayed you.

Today it may have been your family, cousins, or just people from another province. But how long? If the Imperial Government is willing to sacrifice millions of it's own people so readily and so easily, how long until you are part of their disposal?

Never has Heaven's Will been made so readily clear, such a government. Such a corrupt beast should never been allowed to remain. Such a government, such evil. That is the reason revolutions are born. That is the reason why governments turn over. That is why, the Republican Armies must be victorious.

And they can not be, without your support. How can you toil the land knowing you are supporting your family's killers and your own killer?

[Carthaginian]

20AUG19
1525 local time
Shanghai Cantonment

"Colonel... we have the estimates. Upwards of 25,000 individual bodies have been pulled from the water by the net boats. We have no idea of the actual number of dead as many of the corpses are partial. 50,000 would be on the conservative end... 100,000 could be possible. These are, mind you, just the corpses that we have fished out. Heaven only knows what is happening further upstream.

"Has there been any word from our 'representatives?" We could use some intelligence on the matter.

"One man sent this back by pigeon, sir- it's a headline from a republican newspaper claiming that the Kingdom's troops broke the levees. As yet, it is the only 'hard'- and I use that word very lightly- intelligence that we have.

"Very well, Captain Bradley. Keep me posted. If anything... ANYTHING comes up to support or dispute this claim, I want to know about it."

"Yessir."

"Oh, and Omar... before you leave, I have one other thing. You made the Lieutenant Colonel's list. Congratulations."

[Logi]

OOC: Let's assume the paper is in French and Chinese. Also Carth, your date is two days ahead of the publishing of the first newspaper. That makes it impossible to refer to the newspaper.

Newspaper Sossu was established by one Mr. Sossu, war reporter. He had hailed from a long family line of reporters for war. Their family newspaper was always minimalist, containing only facts and leaving out much of anything else. Mr. Sossu's article this time was fairly quick due to the Republican railroad network and the long built and widespread news network of the Sossu family.

Shanghai, August 29, 1919

Newspaper Sossu

On August 13, the dikes all along the Yangtze River were destroyed by an unknown force.

Yichang experiences light to moderate flooding. Jingzhou and Yueyang experience moderate to heavy flooding.

The area between Wuhan, Jujiang, Hefei, and Najing is heavily flooded.

There have been reports of the Middle Kingdom evacuating a few thousand civilians before the flood in the interest of keeping the civilians out of a war zone. No such effort was done beforehand by the Republic of China.

Death count is unable to accurately assess, though the estimates place the death tolls at a million. Most of these deaths are assumed to be civilian as both military have reported little to no losses.

Great damage is sustained towards the Republic of China and relatively little damage to the Middle Kingdom is reported. This is due to the flood area being most Republican territory.

Panic from both sides' civilians fleeing the area make it hard to ascertain anything else.

[Carthaginian]

EDIT NOTICE: Fixed the date. I figured that other papers would have been running 'flood stories' for a bit since it was going on for a while at that time, and since I have people that are out crawling China to do business, they would send word back to the Consul in Shanghai ASAP.

Assuming that the paper is French or Chinese isn't a really big deal- Omar Bradley (a fast-rising star here as in OTL) knows halting French- enough to make out the intent of the article himself. And he has access to a secret weapon... a friend fluent in several languages, steeped in classical thought, and crazy as a fruit bat eating a peyote button.

[Logi]

OOC: I was talking about Newspaper Sossu when I said assume the paper is printed in French and Chinese. ;)

[Carthaginian]

OOC: I was talking about Newspaper Sossu when I said assume the paper is printed in French and Chinese. ;)

OK... French, a touch of German, and of course, Chinese are about the only languages spoken by the staff at Shanghai. Some Japanese- but not enough to really read anything beyond roadsigns.

[maddox]

Moved from the "wrong place"

Finally I found the time to get some stories done...

The coast near Qingdao, August 1919

Captain He Dang was not a happy man. Oh, he was happy enough to have the command over his own vessel, even though it was "only" a torpedo boat, but considering his origins - 3rd son of a lowly coolie who had been struggling to get by as a load porter in the streets of Yantai until a former war uprooted him and his hungry brood and transported them to a village not far from Qinqdao where better chances lurked for an ambitious street urchin - with what he had accomplished now he felt like a small god. There were bigger gods of course. But here, on his own vessel, he reigned supreme.
Now, if only he could say that of the stretch of sea he was deployed in...

The first sign of trouble had been several fisher boats that hadn't shown up on the habitual time and place. Low-born himself Captain He had made it a useful habit to get acquainted with the local vessels and their crew wherever he was stationed, knowing that little would escape those industrious souls - always eager for an opportunity, always on the lookout for possible trouble. They hadn't returned yet from their morning run and that was worrying. Fisherman NEVER would pass by the good fishing to be had on a day like this. And they would have returned by now. He scanned the horizon. Frowning. *Is that thundering I hear ?*

The Fast and The Furious - Fly-By Division..

Shandong, August 1919

Gao Shu-Chàng ("Happy Go Lucky") looked down. His lovely plane, no matter how obsolete it might have been to the yang-quizi who sold it to the Middle Kingdom, was soaring over the fields and made its pilot a very happy young man, causing him to grin like a little boy with a shiny new toy for all that he was 33 years old and his family despaired of him every growing up and behaving like a responsible adult. It was an agile little craft, just what he ever wanted. And now he was going to war with it. The fields below his plane were teeming, not with the usual farmers one might expect at this time of the year, but with swarming figures that were moving with a purpose that was definitely not farming. *Pfff... mud-eaters... they too were going to war,* the young pilot mused, *but who was better off ? The grumbling foot-soldier in the mud, or the thoroughly soaked and miserabely cold-wet pilot in the sky ? Ah well... flying beats walking all the time !*

He banked to the left, noting that his wingmates did follow him like ducklings trying to catch up with Mama. Some were still struggling with the fact that they were actually flying, but Gao himself had been piloting aircraft since he was 15 and felt absolutely at home in the skies. He still had the occasional argument with trees though. Gao did not like trees. They were his enemies. And the knowledge that artillery will soon get rid of the trees in this landscape filled him with many warm and happy feelings. Nope, Gao Shu-Chàng is not a treehugger. He's done that too many times in the past.

*Oops, specks in the sky in front. The enemy ! Oh yes, let's show those upstarts how a real pilot fights ! Onward glory !!*
Gao's wing, together with several other wings, met their foes head-on and the dogfight that ensued would have been a sight to behold if there had been anyone on the ground interested to watch. Unfortunately for the brave and dashing pilots the mud-eaters had a fight on their hands as well and were too busy dying instead of admiring the spectacular acrobatics. And the valiant sacrifices.

In the end Gao's aircraft limped back to base all alone. He'd lost his entire wing, he'd seen another wing obliterated, too many pathetic fireflies spiralling to the ground, too many explosions heralding the end of yet another comerade. He didn't care anymore. The only thing that mattered now was getting home in one piece, preferabely with as much pieces of his plane as possible and he himself in it. He didn't even curse the trees near the landing field as he approached his base, and for the first time in his life he completely ignored them during landing. He was sick and tired. There were holes in his plane, and holes in his body... and one gaping hole in his heart where his "happy-go-lucky" self had crumpled into a shivering bawling wreck.
He was a man now.

Bingbu Yamen, Beijing, August 8th 1919

"And so, Your Most Serene Majesty, after the victory we only need to mop up the remaining pockets of survivors and take back this part of the Middle Kingdom," the general droned on. It took truly heroic efforts for Longyu, Empress-Mother of the Middle Kingdom, in order to not to nod off into slumber with agonizing boredom as she watched the -what was it again the yang-quizi called it? ah yes- the Dog and Pony Show. This was not what she had come to the Bingbu Yamen for. The endless receptions, meetings, talks, and presentations. But it was inflicted upon Her August Person anyway and she wondered what she had done for the Heavens to mete out this cruel punishment to her.

She looked askance and smiled at the sight of a hapless reporter who was bravely attempting the same feat as Herself but inevitably lost the battle. A head drooped. A gentle little snore was emitted. And the head jerked suddenly upwards as the owner realized with a shock that the show had ended. *Oops,* the Empress-Mother thought mischieveously, *that came close didn't it ?*

"I noticed that you have made a point of evacuating the civilians near the river," she remarked when the general finally, mercifully, fell silent, "do you expect such heavy fighting there then ?"
"Ah, Your Most Serene Majesty," the general answered, *hmm, have to be careful, with that reporter present...*, "we do foresee that the civilians could be heavily affected by roving battles. There's no certainty in war, but only that fighting may happen everywhere. Better to take these poor coolies and farmers out of the equation, if you catch my meaning. Civilian casualties are bad pre... eh... for the country. Besides, we expect the enemy to try and engage in some sabotage. They might try to infiltrate and destroy dams and dykes, with flooding as a result. We try to foresee every possibility..."
"I see," the Empress-Mother replied gravely. "But now I will depart for the frontlines and visit the troops. Are you not coming ?"

She did notice the general's face developing a few drops of prespiration. It appears he had some urgent last-minute business to take care of, but of course, if Her Most Serene Majesty was going, how could he not accompany her ?

Beijing Lihong, Cycle 76, year Ji-wei, month 7, day 20
(August 15th 1919)

The war has begun ! Heavy casualties but progress made !

The Bingbu Yamen has announced that the civil war we all dreaded has finally started. Brother will now fight brother, father will now fight son. But the Government remains adamant that the rebels must be called to heel and brought back into the fold, and thus our troops have been rallied and sent over to the rebels' lands in order to make it so.

The first battles have been fought, and as feared the casualty rate has been staggering. Modern warfare has no respect whatsoever for valiance and courage, the modern weapons mowing down the brave and less-brave alike. Machine guns and cannons have no regard for heroes, offer no chance for valorous deeds. And after the battle we have seen the windrows of dead, friend and foe alike, lying undecorously in the mud.

Yet the rebels have not gained what they wanted. Our troops were not overrun, but held steadfastly. There is the occasional spot where rebels have advanced, but so have we. All in all, as the yang-quizi say, it's a stalemate.

Reports have also come in about the Yang-Tse floods. It appears that rebel elements have sabotaged the dykes, thereby flooding the countryside. Just as General Wu predicted, when he briefed Her Most Serene Imperial Majesty the Empress-Mother who was preparing to tour the frontlines, just a week ago.

Her Majesty's presence at the frontlines will certainly galvanize the troops to greater deeds, but will it be enough ?

[Phoenix]

Some more stories. I'm still writing, but thought that titbits would be appreciated.
You might say that our good old friend Admiral Gao is a busy man... juggling work and family all the time...

The Fast and The Furious - Fly-By Division..

"So, Happy-Go-Lucky, how's my favourite nephew doing ?"
"I see my esteemed Uncle the Admiral is finally showing the inevitable signs of ruthlessly encroaching old age and the dotage that comes with it..."
"I beg your pardon ?"
"This is a hospital. This is a hospital bed. This is me lying in it. What part of the chain of logic has eluded my esteemed ancestor ?"
"All right, you've got me there. It was a silly question. But seriously, how are you ?"
"Alive, I guess."
"I've read the report, 'Lucky, where the technicians have described your plane as "a sieve, held together by prayers and sheer stubborness". How in Hell did you survive that ?!"
"You know, Uncle," the younger Gao mused, "I guess that during my time with the experimental plane division I had gotten used to crashlanding so much it's become almost second nature to me..."
He paused for a moment. "But, come to think of it, back then I always used to have the plane in tatters after the landing. You might say it was a novel experience to try to land one already wrecked."

Gao the younger didn't notice the other pilots in the ward grinning hugely at his words. But Gao the elder did, and his grin was even huger. *Oh yes, my nephew,* he thought, "make them laugh and forget their own pain. But how to get you back on the horse ? Or plane in this matter...*
"You know," he said aloud, "that I have been told another plane is already awaiting your recovery ? That they are assembling new wings already so that you can strike again ?"
"I know," 'Lucky said sadly. "but I'm in two minds at that. You see, Uncle, I can't help but have nightmares. I can't help but shiver when I look outside that window and see a plane flying overhead."
"That's why you have to get out of your bed and climb back into that plane nephew !" the admiral chided him. "As soon as the doctors let you go, you're in the air again. And no buts !", he interrupted 'Lucky's sputtering, "you do as your superiors say. And who could be more superior than the next Patriarch of the family ?"

Both men sobered up. "It's true then ?" 'Lucky said sadly. "Grandfather is that poorly ?"
"Such happens in life, and you can't say his wasn't a full and productive one..." Admiral Gao mused, "but yes, he's in bad shape and Grandmother First Wife is fearing the worst. But in the meantime, we must do what we must do. Your responsibility awaits, Happy-Go-Lucky."
"Sigh. I know Uncle. I just hope the nightmares will go away..."
"They never do, my boy," the elder man said sadly as he got up from his chair and made to leave the hospital ward, "they never do. But if it may console you, you will find that with the years you stop hurting so much..."

The Fast and The Furious - Wet Feet Division..

The little tug delivered its cargo of wet, bedraggled and utterly miserable survivors. Amongst them a despairing Captain He Dang. Completely absorbed in his misery he didn't notice the party waiting for them on the quay, he just kept trudging along with the rest, until a hand on his chest stopped him and he found himself eye to eye with an admiral.
"Now there, you're looking extremely despairing Captain..." the admiral gently chided him.
But Captain He could only shrug: "I lost my command. I will never command a vessel again..."
"What makes you think so ?"
"But Sir !! My boat has been shot from under me ! I lost the vessel entrusted to me. There is no doubt whatsoever my superiors will never let me have one again, for I am such a miserable failure !"
Admiral Gao gently shook his head. "If having your boat sunk would disqualify you for command I would never have been wearing these insignia and commanding these men, ever."
The bedraggled captain looked with huge eyes.
"Yes, I'm THAT Admiral Gao. The one who has had more ships shot out from under him, sunk, exploded and frankly fallen apart, than he can conveniently remember. Can you imagine His Most Serene Imperial Majesty entrusting part of His fleet to that man ? Well ?!"
He took the captain by one shoulder and turned him towards another part of the docks. "See that ship overthere ? The one they're loading ? It needs a captain."
"No. Oh no. Oh nononono..." the hapless captain said, arms waving in denial, "that couldn't be possible..."
But Admiral Gao only grinned. "I had other candidates in mind. But I think you might just be the right man for the job. So hop on and soldier, captain !"
"The Lei Cheng ? But that's a Destroyer ! I can't command a Destroyer ? I'm just a lowely torpedo boat skipper..."
"Pfff," the admiral scoffed, "a boat is a boat man ! You're just going to have to get used to a bit more crew, and a bit more weapons..."
"A lot bigger weapons..." the captain mused. You could see something dawning in his mind. His face started to clear up. To grin. "A looot bigger weapons..."
"That's my man."

Gao's staff wasn't so happy with his impulsive decision.
"Why give such a prize to such a blundering fool ?"
"Not so blundering... he came back alive didn't he ? That, in my book, makes him successful."
"But he's lost his ship, the new ship is way above his experience and standing !"
"Because he's the son of a coolie ? Because his father can't even read his license ?"
"No, it's not that, Admiral, and you know it. It's just... this is one of the newest Destroyers in the fleet, and you entrust it to a man who's commanded only a torpedo tub..."
"Mind you, I commanded torpedo tubs in my time..."
The staffers fell silent at that.
"... but afterwards went on to bigger and better. In any case I have made up my mind, Captain He is the perfect man for that Destroyer."
"But why Sir ?"
"Because he's got experience. Because he's seen the other side fight and came back to tell about it. Because he survived that and came back to re-arm and go back and show them now that he's learned their tricks... and he'll probably show them a few new ones to boot."
They just looked at him.
"The son of a coolie, remember ? I've never met a coolie who couldn't come up with something new when it means he can pull one over the others."

[The Rock Doctor]

CHINESE CIVIL WAR:  SEPTEMBER 1919

Ground Combat:

Weather across the front is generally okay - rainy, frequently, but not enough to severely disrupt aerial operations.

The RRC continues its drive into Honan with heavy thrusts from Anhwei and Kiangsu (via southeastern Shantung).  Imperial defenders are outnumbered by approximately a two to one ratio (an estimated fourteen corps to six), and the terrain is, being generally flat in these parts, does not assist greatly in the defence.  Overhead, nine hundred Republican aircraft support the attack, the majority of which are fighters tasked with keeping Imperial fighters away from the ground support elements.  This strategy is generally successful, and the Republicans manage to push the Imperials further back, incurring 70,000 losses to 60,000 Imperial casualties.  The Republicans essentially control all of the plains portion of Honan, and hundreds of thousands - if not millions - of civilians have been displaced as they flee in advance of the fighting.

Mid-month, the Imperials begin counter-attacking.  Four corps attack from Shantung with the objective of regaining the occupied southern extents and pushing into Kiangsu.  However, the four Republican corps are well positioned to stop the attack cold, and inflict 40,000 casualties to just 20,000 suffered.

Imperial intentions to attack from Honan into Anhwei, if they ever existed, have been derailed by the Republican offensive.

However, the main Imperial thrust enjoys considerably more success.  Here, five Imperial and two Dutch Volunteer corps attack from Hubei into southern Anhwei, employing the swollen Yangtze as their right flank. To the extent possible, movement and attacks take place at night to avoid Republican air attack, but this still leaves them vulnerable in daylight, and the Imperial air force pays dearly in an effort to fend off the numerically superior Republican aviators.  By month's end, the Imperials hold the high ground in the Tongbai Shan and Dabie Shan  ranges bounding the two provinces, and have taken Anqing along the Yangtze.  Approximately 35,000 Imperials and 30,000 Republicans have fallen in this campaign.

Requsitioned river craft on both sides have engaged in clumsy battles along the River as far east as Tongling, disrupting the flow of Republican supplies across the river.

Further west, Republican forces undertake raids against Imperial beachheads in southeastern Hubei.  The Imperials lack the airpower to provide much defence from the Republican air force, but ground fire is fairly effective, and there are just not enough Republican rifles being committed to accomplish much more than hold the Imperials in place.  Approximately 10,000 Republicans and perhaps half as many Imperials fall in these actions.

In the far west, in northern Szechwan, neither side undertakes significant offensives, but positional fighting costs each side approximately 25,000 casualties as units fight for control of passes and peaks.  Republican aircraft attack logistical targets and troop concentrations in northern Szechwan and across the border to further disrupt any would-be Imperial offensives.

Along quieter stretches of the border, troops from both sides are observed by each other to be digging in and fortifying their positions.

YANGTZE FLOOD

Flooding begins to ebb around 5 September, and is no worse than normal (for the time of year) by mid-month.  Civilian survivors are able to return to the site of their homes, where combat has not blocked their way.

NAVAL ACTION

In the northern Yellow Sea, Republican submarines continue to interdict Imperial shipping, making best efforts to confirm identities before engaging.  Imperial air and surface attacks appear to claim between one and three of the Republican boats during the month.

Intense combat rages across the southern Yellow Sea and East China Sea as the Imperials attempt to blockade Republican ports and the entrance to the Yangtze.  Despite taking heavy losses from the outnumbered Republicans and their substantial naval aviation forces, the Imperials generally succeed in isolating the coast north of the Yangtze, and maintain a distant blockade between Shanghai and Japanese Formosa.  Neutral shipping is turned back; Republican shipping captured or sunk.

Night-time minelaying raids by the Imperials further disrupt Republican operations around the mouth of the Yangtze.

Sporadic clashes take place in the South China Sea as Imperial forces attempt to undertake minelaying operations with requisitioned civilian craft.  Some of these vessels are caught and sunk by Republican forces, but coastal shipping losses are suffered off Macau and Fuzhou to suggest that some of the Imperial efforts were successful.

[The Rock Doctor]

CHINESE CIVIL WAR - OCTOBER 1919

Ground War

On October 5, the RRC begins a new push into Shantung from northeastern Honan.  Despite appalling weather that keeps aircraft from both sides grounded, five corps engage Imperial defensive positions in western Shantung, exchanging rockets for railgun shells.  Imperial forces note somewhat less intense fire from the Republicans than might be expected, but still take significant casualties.

On October 8, with three Imperial corps heavily engaged against the Republicans in southwestern Shantung and no small amount of Imperial confusion following a large explosion at Qingdao, another several Republican corps hit the Imperial line from northern Kiangsu.  Despite their fortified lines and railguns, the Imperial corps here are dislodged and driven northward.

All total, each side has lost approximately 45,000 casualties but they are losses that the numerically superior Republican attackers can better afford.

On October 9, the RRC launches its October Offensive.   This grand operation is intended to trap and destroy the seven Imperial and Dutch corps that drove into southwestern Anwhei last month.  The weather is favorable for operations.

From north of the Tongbu Shan range, the three Republican corps (5th, 6th, 7th Infantry) dislodged by the Imperial offensive seek to redeem themselves by pinching the northwestern part of the Imperial salient.  Their attack is supported by seven hundred Republican aircraft, and encounters two Imperial corps (1, 2 Infantry), backed by two hundred aircraft.  Intense dogfighting claims one hundred fighters on each side, but the bulk of the Republican attack aircraft are able to lend their support.  This is not enough, though:  with the terrain strongly favoring defence and the Republicans having some supply difficulties, their attacks are thrown back with dreadful losses.  Sixty thousand troops are killed or wounded, against perhaps ten thousand Impeirals.

From southwestern Hubei, two Republican (14th, 15th Infantry) corps attempt an assault across the Yangtze, with the intention of pinching the southwestern part of the Imperial salient.  The attack faces one Imperial corps (3rd Infantry), and despite having the advantage in aircraft numbers by a four to one margin, this attack also fails.  Twenty thousand Republicans and ten thousand Imperials are killed or wounded in this sector, and one hundred Republican bombers are lost in action.

From northern Hunan, two Republican corps (8th, 9th Infantry) are scheduled to attack the southern part of the Imperial salient, via another assault across the Yangtze.  Although they face two Imperial corps (4th, 5th Infantry), the attack is (almost unexpectedly) successful.  The Republicans establish a beachhead and quickly expand it, then hold it against an Imperial counter-attack.  Casualties are about twenty thousand apeice.

Another thrust across the Yangtze comes from northern Chekiang, across the Yangtze into the Imperial salient.  Unusually potent Imperial fighter tactics cost the Republicans over two hundred aircraft and serious disrupt Republican ground-attack operations.  The cross-river assault by four Republican light infantry corps - all using 1895 pattern kit - suffer heavy losses against the two modern, elite Dutch corps opposing them.  No ground is gained, and 35,000 Republicans fall against ten thousand Dutchmen.

The final attack is furthest west; nine Republican corps attack into northwestern Hubei from Szechwan and southwestern Hubei.  This attack, directed through mountainous terrain, falls afoul of strong Imperial defences:  five corps with well-prepared fortified lines.  Despite shooting down almost two hundred Imperial aircraft and employing four hundred aircraft in a ground-attack role, the Republican attack is a failure.  Casualties are about 90,000 Republicans and 30,000 Imperials.

Imperial forces do not launch attacks in other sectors, nor do they launch counter-attacks against the Republicans involved in the October Offensive.  The strategy appears to be to allow the Republicans to come to them and mow them down when they do.

Skirmishes continue in northern Szechwan between Imperial regulars and Republican guerrillas.  Casualties are approximately five thousand apiece.

Reports begin to reach adjacent borders of low-level warfare in northwestern most Imperial China, between Imperial regulars and Muslim irregulars.

NAVAL ACTIVITY

Imperial forces continue to use requisitioned civilian craft to mine Republican harbours.  Increased Republican patrols and general awareness of these activities results in a high failure rate, but mines are successfully laid off Hong Kong and Shanghai during the month, costing 6,400 GRT of Republican shipping.  Most of these ships are smaller coasters, but two large freighters are also lost.

The Imperial blockade of the northeastern RRC coast is generally maintained.  Losses are somewhat heavier, however; Republican air superiority has not only taken a direct toll on Imperial ships, but some early efforts at aerial spotting and recce have allowed Republican forces to overwhelm isolated portions of the Imperial blockade on two occasions.

Republican armored cruisers make a bold sortie to support the Republican attack into Shantung in early October.  Naval gunnery inflicts several hundred Imperial casualties, while further confusing Imperial defensive efforts, as some units move to block possible Republican landing sites when they are needed elsewhere.  The armored cruisers escape unscatched, though one of their escorting cruisers is lightly damaged in a skirmish with Imperial torpedo-craft on the way home.

The Republian blockade of the Yellow Sea continues, with submarines accounting for 7,600 GRT of merchant shipping and an Imperial monitor sunk.  One Republican submarine is successfully engaged and sunk on the surface on the night of the 13th.

EXPLOSION AT QINGDAO

On October 7th, the Imperial port of Qingdao is rocked by a massive explosion as a merchant ship explodes just off of the port.  The ship itself is obliterated, and several nearby coastal vessels and an Imperial torpedoboat are badly damaged by flying debris.  The port district is heavily damaged by the initial explosion, debris, and a second explosion caused by fires at a chemical tank farm.  Imperial troops move to assist civilian authorities in controlling the fires and rescuing casualties.

The explosion causes some disruption to the city's communications and transportation systems, hampering regional coordination of the Imperial defence against the Republican offensive in Shantung.

[The Rock Doctor]

As of October 31, 1919...

[TexanCowboy]

EXPLOSION AT QINGDAO

On October 7th, the Imperial port of Qingdao is rocked by a massive explosion as a merchant ship explodes just off of the port.  The ship itself is obliterated, and several nearby coastal vessels and an Imperial torpedoboat are badly damaged by flying debris.  The port district is heavily damaged by the initial explosion, debris, and a second explosion caused by fires at a chemical tank farm.  Imperial troops move to assist civilian authorities in controlling the fires and rescuing casualties.

The explosion causes some disruption to the city's communications and transportation systems, hampering regional coordination of the Imperial defence against the Republican offensive in Shantung.

The Imperial Romanian goverment officially denies any knowledge, plotting, or other concerns of this explosion in a port. (Which is very eerily similar to what happened at Varna.  :o)