The two Sidewinder missiles fired from the pursuing Taiwanese F-16 fighter each hit and destroyed an engine, tearing them off the wings in a huge ball of fire. The Y-8 burst into flames and veered sharply right, and it hit the granite wall of the mountains seconds later.
But the Y-8’s radio operator had made over a dozen position and contact reports in that short period of time, and almost every one of his transmissions had been received by military listening posts in mainland China.
The secret Taiwanese underground airfield at Kai-Shan was a secret no longer.
“We have them, Comrade Admiral!” Jiang Zemin said joyously as Admiral Sun Ji Guoming was ushered into the president’s office. “General Chin has just briefed me. A secret air base! Do you believe it? A secret underground air base in eastern Formosa, just a few miles west of Hualien, cut into the mountain itself. We have its exact location.” Admiral Sun did not react to the news. “Now is your chance, Comrade Admiral. You can attack and destroy the rebel Nationalists’ remaining air forces with ease.”
Sun bowed to President Jiang and the chief of staff, General Chin, but remained silent for several long, uncomfortable moments. Finally: “Comrade President, I request permission to be relieved of duty.”
General Chin rolled his eyes in complete exasperation. Jiang laughed and said, “Relieved of duty? You are a national treasure, comrade! And victory is within your grasp, the victory you told me we could achieve before Reunification Day! One of our maritime patrols tracked a group of rebel F-16s back to their secret lair, an underground air base near Hualien. We sent in commandos, who verified their location. We must draw up a strike plan and destroy that facility immediately!”
“Comrade General Chin’s forces are more than capable of destroying that facility, sir,” Sun said. “You do not need me any longer. I am of no use to you now. ”
“Why do you say such things, comrade?” Jiang asked. “Are you ill? Did you suffer some family misfortune?”
“I am unable to continue my duties because I feel we have lost our tao, ” Sun replied solemnly.
“What in blazes are you talking about, Sun?” Chin exploded.
“We have lost our way, our reason for going to war in the first place,” Sun said, keeping his eyes averted. “We may achieve a victory over the rebels, but we cannot win this conflict now. The tao we follow will not lead to a true and honorable victory. ”
“That is nonsense, comrade,” Jiang said. “You have done well. It is your right, your destiny, to deliver the final blow to the Nationalists. This is a great honor we bestow on you. You deserve it.”
“But this cannot be my victory because it is not my tao—it is the tao of Comrade General Chin,” Sun said. “The nuclear attack on Guam was his way, his road to victory. It is not mine. I cannot lead the People’s Liberation Army forces along this path.”
“The Paramount Leader has conferred a great honor upon you, Sun,” Chin said impatiently. “Take it. Plan a strike mission using any air, rocket, or naval assets you desire. We expect this underground airfield complex to be destroyed or occupied by the People’s Liberation Army within forty-eight hours.”
“I humbly request to be relieved of duty,” Sun intoned.
“Request denied, Admiral,” Chin responded. “Carry out your orders. Present a strike plan to the Paramount Leader and myself within eight hours, and prepare to execute the plan within forty-eight hours.”
“Sir, I humbly request you to accept my resignation from your service,” Sun Ji Guoming said, bowing deeply in total obeisance. “A man cannot follow other than his own tao. Mine is lost. I am of no usefulness to you any longer.”
“That is not true, Comrade Admiral,” Jiang said. “What are you trying to tell us?”
“I am saying that to return to the tao that will ensure victory, we must now strive to make peace just as ferociously as we strove to destroy,” Sun said. “We must gather our forces to our center and protect it, and in doing so show the world that we are no longer a threat. We should configure all our air and naval forces for defensive operations only. We should destroy all our remaining offensive ballistic missiles, and openly pledge never again to employ thermonuclear weapons—”
“Are you insane, Sun?” Chin Po Zihong exploded. “Stop now? Obviously the rebels are far stronger than we anticipated. We need to destroy them quickly and utterly. And we need our nuclear-deterrent forces now more than ever to ensure that the United States will not attempt a massive attack against us.”
“Sir, Sun-tzu teaches us that if faced with superior forces, do not fight. We may feel we have gained the upper hand, but Sun-tzu’s words are a warning to us. Our forces are not superior to the United States. The American forces are massing over the horizon. I can sense it. I can feel it. They have not been destroyed. I urge the Paramount Leader to immediately contact the American president and pray — no, I urge him to beg for peace. ”
"What?” Chin retorted angrily. “Beg? We should beg the Americans?”
“Yes, sir,” Sun said. “Now. Immediately. Before it is too late.”
“Admiral Sun, you are dishonoring yourself by this flagrant display of pompous indignation and insubordination,” Chin said angrily. “Your request is denied. You are ordered to prepare a strike plan against the rebel Nationalist underground airfield complex and present it, in person, to me and the president’s staff within eight hours. Is that clear?”
“Yes, sir,” Sun replied.
Chin looked at the president, who was looking at Sun Ji Guoming as if he had grown a second head on his shoulders. With no additional comments, Chin snapped, “Then get out of here.” Sun bowed again, turned, and departed. Once Sun had left, Chin said, “All that Sun-tzu crap has addled his brain, I think.”
“Unfortunate,” Jiang Zemin said. “He appeared to be such a promising young officer. Perhaps we should reconsider this attack plan, Comrade General?”
“Because Sun thinks it is not his ‘way’ to do this attack?” Chin retorted. “He is upset because his plan of waiting for the Nationalists to capitulate did not work. He is upset because in the end we had to use brute strength to shove the Americans out of Asia. He thought he could do it with unorthodox methods and trickery, and his lack of vision allowed the Nationalist air force and the Americans to counterattack. We cannot allow that to happen again. We are on the threshold of a great victory over the rebels on Formosa, comrade, and this attack will break the backs of the Nationalists once and for all. Every missile, every attack plane, every bomb we have available should be used against this mountain hideout. We shall pound the Nationalists’ mountain fortress into sand!”
“But what if the Americans do stage a counteroffensive?” Jiang asked. “Perhaps we should be watchful, gather our forces, and prepare to repel an American attack. We can deter the Americans by sheer force of numbers. Surely they will not try a nuclear attack if we ask to begin peace negotiations now. ”
“And then where will the rebels be? Rebuilding their forces, getting more assistance from the Americans, and conducting more hit-and-run air attacks on our forces,” Chin said. “No. We should attack the rebel mountain complex immediately. If Sun will not do it, I have many more competent generals who will.”