China's military operates as a state.
At all times in Maoist China, a large percentage of the party's central leadership was military officers.
There were complex and subtle connections among the government, party, and military at various levels of the system.
Strong personal and career ties bound the military leaders to civilian officials who had previously served with them in communist army units before 1949.
In many cases, groups of individuals had fought side by side for one or two decades, and these bonds became an important thread in the tapestry of post 1949 politics.
At the end of the civil war these groups controlled various parts of the country , which added territorial dimension to the situation.