Has anybody actually addressed how much of a barrel the pro-democracy protests actually have the "Communists" over? If Xi is seen to crack down on HK too hard, business will flee HK, and China's economy is already slowing down thanks to Trump's trade war. The only think keeping the "Communists" in power is their ability to provide prosperity, and when that is taken away, their primary lever of power becomes the Red Army, which means a return to chaos. One thing is certain, Xi is no Deng, and the question of whether he understands the fragility of his grip on power is moot. There are a lot of Maoists in the Red Army who don't like modern China's prosperity, and see it as a betrayal of the Revolution. As to how many democrats there are in the Red Army... Up for grabs doesn't even begin to describe it.