It is what Deng said. He said he was going to teach Vietnam a lesson even if it costs Yunnan province 25 years of development. It did not work out that way.Things settled down, and economic development in China, and the entire region eventually went up, then shot up like a rocket.
Back then, I don't think China was going to be stopped, but the west could have slowed China down.
It is impossible today for that to happen. The trade war and tech war will attest to that.
The 9/11 attacks, really was a break for China, who took full advantage.
This Russian Ukraine war will change everything again.
At the moment, it certainly does not appear to favour the west for the next couple of years.
It is another European war. Add the stagflation to it too.
The natural reaction for the rest of the world is to say, "Thanks, but no thanks."