alt Hacker News> But China can (and this is their smart play, IMO) is to just win Taiwan over politically over the long term.
Yeah, that is certainly the smart play and one China is almost guaranteed to win in the long run. But that won't secure Xi as the leader that reunited the nation. He might prefer the option where he gets a chance at glory to the smart one.
I think Hong Kong has been enough of a cautionary experience for Taiwan that this is more or less not going to happen willingly.