(Alternate History) The Second Sino-Japanese War

It is a pleasant spring morning when you and your wife, Sakura, arrive at the pier to board the RMS Amazon, the ship that would take you Britain. First, however, is meeting the lieutenant that the IJN is sending along as your naval advisor. It was something you had been dreading as, while you were on better terms with the Navy than most Army men, the smouldering grudge of interservice rivalry had a tendency to rear its head at the most inopportune times.

Thankfully, you don't have to wait long, as mere minutes after your arrival, and with a good 10 minutes before boarding even starts, a young man in a Lieutenant's uniform comes walking down the pier. Upon spotting the pair of you, he makes to greet you,something you consider a good sign, as an irate officer would likely have pretended not to have seen you.

"Kaigun-dai-i Inoue Shigeyoshi, reporting sir!" The man gives you a by-the-book salute, before bowing appropriately, and you respond in kind.

"At ease, Lieutenant," you say as you straighten, "It's good to meet you, I'll be counting on you for naval advice."

"Likewise, General. I'll be in your care from now on, sir."

After the military formality is over with, you introduce him to Sakura, and the three of you make small talk while waiting for the ship's crew to give you the all-clear on boarding. During the conversation, three things are made clear to you. First, the Lieutenant speaks decent, if accented English, and second, while he very much is a naval man he seems to have a predilection for aviation, as he talks about the seaplanes used in the Battle of Formosa with great enthusiasm (including grand ideas of a naval aviation), and thirdly, he seems to have served aboard the IJN Fuso, which performed coastal bombardment for the forces under Prince Kan'in at Dairen. This third fact, you consider, is likely the reason for his friendliness, as the Navy relied a lot on your command for access to luxury goods, like cigarettes and alcohol, in Korea.

Soon, the ship is on its way to Hong Kong, and Singapore where it will stop to pick up additional passengers, before heading to Bombay, its final stop before the Suez Canal. During the trip, apart from spending time with Sakura, you also manage to work a fair bit of time with Lieutenant Inoue, talking about…

Choose 2:

[X] Naval matters. Getting you up to speed on the Royal Navy, the IJN and their differences in general doctrine and design philosophy. Britain is, after all, the leading nation in naval design, by virtue of sheer volume of ships put out, if nothing else.

[X] Army matters. When all is said and done, you are ultimately the senior officer and as such, the lion's share of the scrutiny from the British will be on Army matters.

[X] Amphibious matters. Forces under your command performed semi-amphibious landings in Dairen, and Inoue was part of both the fleet escorting the Imperial Guard and the fleet that supported them with shore bombardment. It's time someone took a proper look at the Kaigun Tokubetsu Rikusentai (Special Naval Landing Forces), and see what lessons could be learned from the Royal Marines - perhaps a formal Marine Corps, rather infantry-trained sailors?

[X] Aviation matters. Naval Aviation, Army Aviation, and the newly created Imperial Japanese Air Service. What important things can be learned from the British, and what is to be made of attached units, like the seaplanes belonging to the seaplane tender Wakamiya, or the floatplanes on the Haruna?

The stop in Singapore is largely uneventful, apart from a minor scuffle when one of the passengers' purse was stolen while the passengers were on the shore side, stretching their legs. Inoue immediately set after the thief, and you yourself made to intercept him alongside two police officers who were on shore.

You end up catching the thief in no more than a couple of minutes, when you clothesline him as he turns a corner. The purse is returned its rightful owner, and the woman, who introduces herself as Mrs. Bertha von Bohlen und Halbach, thanks you greatly. The four of you receive a large silver coin with three interlinked rings on one side, and a stylized K on the other, as well as a fistful of pound notes each. A thank-you from her husband, Gustav, comes a few days later, as he was unfortunately ill with a bad fever during the incident. Nevertheless, the journey continued, and after a brief stop in Bombay, you head through the Suez Canal, before finally arriving in London, on the 4th of May.

Greeting you in the pleasant 20 degree temperature is General Ian Hamilton, and three men who introduce themselves as General Horace Smith-Dorrien, from GOC Southern Command, and a fellow Sandhurst graduate, as well as Vice Admiral John Jellicoe, on behalf of Admiral George Callaghan, and First Sealord Winston Churchill.

Horace Smith-Dorrien is a very ordinary man, who looks and sounds like any other, but is perfectly pleasant and you get along well after your introductory salutes, but Smith-Dorrien bids his goodbyes early, citing the need to return to his command post. The Vice Admiral salutes you as well, but apart from a short exchange greeting each other, his attention is mostly drawn to Inoue, who has an excitable discussion in somewhat-staggered English (during which Inoue accidentally calls the good Admiral senpai three or four times) about the Battle of Formosa. Winston Churchill, on the other hand, is not dressed in uniform but in a suit, as he holds a mostly administrative and logistical position, and is not an actual officer. Nevertheless, he greets the two of you amicably enough.