The Lady of Kwangchow

[Republic of Dayue]

"Asia is full of lunatics!" the man shouts as he slams the table in front of him, "Can't have peace without driving each other crazy, can we?" He inhales from his pipe and puffs out a big cloud of smoke from his mouth. He proceeds to follow it with an immediate cough.

"At ease, General Cheng. Asia has never been this peaceful, well it certainly is at peace at the moment. You don't need to be too harsh on our brethrens," says a woman as she walks into the room. She isn't just any woman, she is Suen Wan-lung, Premier of the Republic of Dayue. She is also perhaps one of the only people who can deal with the hotheaded General Cheng Bai-cheng, having earned his respect by being viewed as, in his words, "one of the only politicians in Dayue that has both the brain and the backbone to support it." "Also, control the nicotine. I can hear you cough from as far as Beijing."

"I'm fine, thank you. But please, Premier. You're late and you haven't even told us your intentions of bringing all of us here," replies the aging but still tough general as he places his pipe down.

And indeed they are not alone in the room. Present are two more people, Minister of Defense Chao Jie-chi and Minister of Foreign Affairs Kwan Cheng-chun. Their venue isn't quite formal either, located in a private tea house nestled right inside the bustling city Kwangchow. A secretive place perfect for informal meetings hosted by the relatively young and ambitious premier.

Minister Chao nods in approval. "General Cheng has a point, Premier. Two actually. First off, you've told us that we'll be talking about geopolitics and that we should look into the news. Interesting, but you weren't clear about what are steps would be. And second, he might be harsh but I do believe that the East Asian chessboard is being shaken more than it has been for quite a while now. We should be wary."

The Minister of Defense delivers his words in his usual analytical manner. However, doing it with the right level of eloquence so it doesn't come off as an annoyance to anybody.

"Who's to say that we aren't, Mr. Chao? I'm sure that you all know one thing: we need to up our diplomacy. Everybody is making moves everywhere and the Chinese will forever be cold towards us, as much as we have aided them in building up from the gutter. Perhaps it is jealousy, we never know what to expect from those northerners. But the Chinese aren't the only concern and if any power balance is to be tipped, we must be ready and be able to stand guard as the bastion of Asian democracy," replies Premier Suen with a different kind of eloquency, one made for orations rather than analytics.

Everybody nods in agreement and moment of silence follows. Premier Suen pours tea to each cup and each person takes a sip from it. After having his share, Minister Kwan finally speaks up.

"If I may, Premier. You are very much correct in your belief that we lack diplomatic action. And I do belive that we must begin establishing stronger ties with some of our neighbours or even nations further away. I have my list based on plausibiltiy, first would-"

"How about Majapahit?" asks Premier Suen, cutting of the minister before he manages to elaborate on his list.

"Well, they're not number one based on my calculations but they will certainly prove valuable. Of course, if we want to advance further with them we must each guarantee each other's sovereignty over respective parts of the South China Sea. Especially regarding the islands located at it," replies Minister Kwan, slightly aback by the sudden interruption.

"You mean the Spratly? Why would we be permanently surrendering what could be a foothold for our nation in the sea? Premier, surely you didn't consider this?" interjects General Cheng.

"Please General, we have bigger issues to deal with. After all, do you seriously think that we'll be able to acquire the Spratly without triggering something... unfavorable. Stronger ties with the Nusantarans on our opposite shore would mean a lot of things, for example our ships passing through their waters to trade west could be very much eased. And as everything goes, nothing is instant. Preliminary talks would be hosted before anything is decided on territorial issues."

General Cheng doesn't seem completley satisfied, but he doesn't seem to object either. In fact, nobody in the room seems to object to the proposed move.

"Well, if that is to be our course of action then I'll be looking forward to it. I'd be inspecting matters at home as well," says Minister Chao to break the awkward silence.

"Thank you, Mr. Chao. And Mr. Kwan, please arrange for your meeting with Wilwatikta," replies Premier Suen with a smile on her face.