Can I prevent Calibre from deleting blank lines present in the orig docx file?

I'm trying to convert a docx to mobi, and I want the spacing and indents that are present in the docx to be retained in the mobi. For example, a single blank line before and after a date heading at the top of a chapter, a single blank line before and after a correspondence letter in a section of narrative, a single blank line to indicate a soft scene break where there is only a shift in viewpoint character within the same scene, and therefore not enough change to warrant a scene break marker like asterisks, etc. (Note that asterisks are used as scene separators when there is an actual change of scene or time frame.)

Logic would tell me to have Remove Spacing Between Paragraphs unticked, Insert Blank Line Between Paragraphs unticked, and Heuristcs turned off, yet this doesn't work. All blank lines end up deleted, even the blank line between the chapter heading and first paragraph, and all indents get removed. In other words, the opposite of the commands! I've tried every combination possible with these aforementioned settings and still can't get it to display as it's set in the docx.

Any suggestions for getting Calibre to mimic the blank lines and indents that already exist? Or is my Calibre having a unique malfunction by doing the opposite of the selected options?

Thanks,
Rach