In 1937, after years of internal conflict, China is briefly united by a devastating war with Japan, which reaches a horrific climax in the cities of Shanghai and Nanking. As its own ‘War of Resistance’ rolls on, China then becomes a key player in the Second World War, joining the allied fight against the Japanese Imperial Army across Asia. Victory is finally earned, but it comes at a staggering cost to the nation. In the power vacuum that follows, the old rival factions - Communists and Nationalists - will continue their fight for leadership. Just months after China emerges from the wreckage of one global conflict, it is once again plunged into a bitter civil war.