Maybe I can be of some assistance
If you want a US vs China scenario, at least make it realistic. Don't bother looking to the East China Seas as:
a) China's relations with its Regional neighbours are improving considerably all the time and
b) A Naval and Maritime Conflict is playing to America's strengths and not the primary front that the PRC would want.
Instead you need to look at the Oil Rich, largely undeveloped and unstable countries of Central and Southern Asia, where US and PRC forces are in direct contact.
You also need to remember that no such war would be fought in isolation as both NATO and the SCO would be rapidly drawn into the conflict if not actively involved at inception.
Finally, all major ways are really a series of smaller wars that either/or join up or become actively promoted by opposing superpowers, originally as proxies, but then become personally involved in the fighting.
So with that established ..... let us begin.
Instability in Afghanistan spills across the border into Pakistan with Islamist terrorists seemingly very prone to hit vital infrastructure such as the road and rail links from Tibet to Gwader and the construction project of the Iran - Pakistan - China Gas Pipeline.
The turmoil in Afghanistan and Pakistan spreads further, this time into Iran and Turkmenistan. Once again Chinese Oil supplies and Development areas seem disproportionately affected by the terrorists as indeed do many Russian assets held by Gazprom and throws Caspian basin Oil & Gas production into chaos.
The chaos spreads further as Islamists make attacks in Uzbekistan attacking Oil Pipelines and other trade based infrastructure used primarily by China.
Finally the trouble crosses the Chinese border with attacks against China's own Oil and Gas Infrastructure in Xinjiang province and terror attacks against ethnic Hans in predominantly Uighur areas.
China frequently accuses the US in Afghanistan of stirring up and maybe supporting the trouble, accusations that the US strenuously deny and challenge the Chinese to provide evidence of such claims.
Against this background China and Russia start moving very large military formations into the adversely affected SCO territories and start calling up reservists. simultaneously recruiting levels are raised and Military Service heavily promoted through he media.
Suddenly China stuns the world by producing both Live and Dead US military personnel which China describes as US Special Forces, caught in Xinjiang province itself delivering a shipment of old Eastern Block Weaponry and Explosives bound for Uighur terrorist groups.
China denounces the US as a State Sponsor of Terrorism and recalls its Ambassador permanently to Beijing as indeed do all other SCO nations and Pakistan. All nations then sever Diplomatic relations with the US. Large Chinese forces then move into Pakistan ans through to Iran to take up Strategic positions on local forces on both Afghan and Iraqi borders. Russian forces also deploy with Uzbek and Turkomen forces on their respective external borders.
Chinese forces then enter Afghanistan in strength from China, Uzbekistan, Pakistan and Iran................
