Former Chinese President Jiang Zemin, who died on Nov. 29 at the age of 96, was not particularly popular during his 1993-2003 tenure, even though it was a time of fast economic growth and opening up after the Tiananmen crackdown. But he is looking better in retrospect compared to current leader Xi Jinping, who has largely put the breaks on market reforms in favor of state control and has governed with greater repression than his recent predecessors. The timing of Jiang’s death is immensely awkward for Xi, who is facing down widespread protests that have included calls for his ouster over his harsh COVID restrictions.