Premier Li has been calling for a much more moderate stance than President Xi. There are many voices in China and they don't all align to the extreme end of the PLA. Many see Xi's aggressive global approach as risky and counterproductive. Xi also allowed Hong Kong to get out of hand by being too harsh.
There are undoubtedly many voices within the upper echelons of the CCP that would prefer a return to Deng's progress with patience model.
