My bet is there should be a war against Taiwan between 2025~2030, when China has enough technology capability to manufacture all high techs nowadays being imported from the West. China will be put on the strictest export control list by the West following Sudan, Iran, Iraq and NK as soon as Beijing government declares war with Taipei government.
The goal is to incorporate Taiwan, if Xi flattens Taiwan he lost, so how would he do it?
I analyzed the reason and situation in the other Trump vs China thread. The behavior of Xi matches what a state leader would to preparing a war -- gain complete dictatorship on speech, capital and military, as well as spending tons of money on daily use high tech research trying to gain 100% technology independence.
Just recently he told PLA that they "shall not fear death" and continue to "train in strategic zones", well, thats the usual words of a dictator/psychopath on his way to war.
My guess is Beijing will have a fight with Taipei and any potential NATO forces but not touching any NATO soil and win the war. The 50 million Taiwanese people will bring a significant political instability factor to China, hence Beijing will have to declare a peace transition from communism to multi-party, and Xi will not only be the Chinese president that unites the country, but also the Chinese Boris Yeltsin.
Boris Jeltsin did the opposite, he dissolved the sovjets not merging them. Some sees Xi as an "PAN Asian" nationalist sort of guy, plays on all kind of invented and real sentiments for his nationalism, hatred towards Japanese for Manchuria , the Brit's , French Asian imperialism etc , a classic way to conduct imperialism , play the role of the
insulted for prior generations pain, but is he as good as Goebbels!
Besides China is not an uniform country by any means unless an idea in the head of a Han Chinese with imperial disease.
Chinese communist party knows its time is about to come, so with or without a war, this transition is happening. Rather than being revolutionized out of power and lose possibility of gain control of Taiwan forever, it's better for CPC to gain Taiwan even if the cost is to allow Taiwanese government to peacefully take over, at least then the CPC leaders will not have to face disgrace and jail time.
All totalitarian ideologies have internal enemies or they create them. Who is going to put CPC leaders in jail?
Thats not going to happen. Just as noone is US will ever put goons Bush , Cheney, Rumsfeldt etc in jail after all they just did what deep-state told them to do, well they where part of it to. Same crap same mentality.
The formal communist leaders will still be the ones who actually control the country for at least a few years because their corruption has gained them enough financial advantage to still have their privilege even if competing with others in a fair manner. This has been seen in Russia Federation, and I can see the same happen to China.
Thats not what hapend in Russia, after US wrecked their economy during "Boris the drunk" time there was a
not to well known "cou de' etat" by the Chekists (a Russian tradition) then Putin put pressure on the new
oligarcic elite that came during Boris time but as you indicate it could turn out similar to Romania , the elites
kills of the "front face" then take over country under a new "polished" flag.
As time goes by, the advantage of formal communist leaders will diminish as part of the wealth
redistribution and the West will restart to invest in China, further bringing money to compete with existing
oligopolies , until the market becomes truly free and open.
Your constantly referring to communists , China has newer been communists per text book definition.
There have never been a 100% socialist country either, all so far have been the typical Chekist thing
an self proclaimed elite with an idea of how to get to the power and maintain it and pass on to next
generation within the family. Elits replacing elits a bunch of psychopaths rely.
What is a truly free and open market? I argue there is none and will newer be, ancient Greeks warned the future there
will be none, so far they have been right on the dot. A complete rebake of banking system is needed, will Oligarchs
accept that? Not in a million years. And west will not invest into a China that has high wages and tax. Vietnam next!
This could be a win-win situation, the Beijing side creates demand and less dependency on exporting, and the Taipei side gets to ragain democracy of entire China. Xi will be remembered as the one who not only united but also freed China, and he can't care much about his privilege and money in China because his off springs (a daughter, and
a speculated undocumented son) are already secretly immigrated to US as of now.
I doubt that scenery to play out. For example China is the biggest pork eater on the planet and the piss and shite the pigs leave is polluting China! China and fish? Well there is a reason for China's military take over of the Chinese see
to shrink wrap Taipei elites in to submission by starvation. A Marshall plan for Taiwan by US? Dont think US can afford it.
Speculated undocumented son, that suggest Xi have been dicking around, or done a "in like Flynn"!

Of course, there is not true win-win. Some lower rank CPC officers will lose their power at all (which could make them defect or even assassinate Xi), NK will lose its sponsor, and Russia will not be happy losing a weapon buyer and a fail safe energy (gas, oil) buyer when the West acts up. So how will this play out is an interesting thing to follow in the coming few years.
There we go, yes of-course there is no win win. I bet 10 american fiat money there will be an attempt to a knifeing into Ceasars back, it's traditional homo-sapiens behavior.