Chinese are masters of propaganda. Their will go all out in ensuring the sustenance of their narrative that one party communist system has restored political, military and economic might of China. So letting a messy democracy to win is an anathema to them. They will use their stooges in media/politics/intelligensia entrenched in various countries to do their bidding. However the world is wise to this.Though they can peddle their propaganda in their country, the world will receive it with extreme prejudice and will know that China backed down.
Politburo of CPC knows ASEAN, Vietnam, Japan and the entire world is watching the stand off keenly. Is BRICS so important to loose face? they know this back down will embolden others in the region and will create a paradigm shift in how countries with dispute would respond to China henceforth. For a bully weakness would mean his downfall.This simple reasoning should have lead to escalation. However we have seen the opposite happen. Dont know who blinked the Secretary General XI or Chairman of the Central Military Commission.
Kudos to our PM and his team for unilaterally forcing two major policy shift in the neighborhood by making use of opening provided by the adversary:-
1)Blew a hole in pak's assertion that it has a short nuke threshold contigent of their territory being threatened by conducting the surgical strike, showing their posturing was all bluster.... setting the tone for making pok our own playground.
2) Coming of age of India as a net security guarantor against Chinese hegemonism akin to what US was post ww-II. Even US let down Georgia and Ukraine in the face of less stronger adversary (a weak russia) in less hostile threatening conditions despite promising things to the contrary....But India stood by a small weak country against a potential rising Super power amid unprecedented rhetoric that the world has seen coming from CPC's mouthpiece news outlets.
Remember in both cases India reacted.....held its nerve, came on top morally and politically..what will happen if the current team in Delhi plans, executes and holds the narrative...it will be Diwali for all.