Pretty interesting. I had never heard about any of this.
Yet again, the evidence shows, in places like Russia and China, the culture wins, over “politics”, and while the personal and political labels, and the surface of things, change, the underlying cultural foundations of society remain in actual charge of the course of the country.
In short - culture trumps politics & religion, and the most so where that culture has been in place the longest.
Things could get interesting for Xi, especially after the big meeting today between T Rex and his Chinese counterpart. I expect major purges after the Communist Party Congress, no matter who wins then.