On December 29, Chinese state media pivoted from the previous days’ focus on 2025 leadership retrospectives toward an immediate military posture. In the morning, Xinhua and People's Daily concluded a multi-day campaign framing Xi Jinping’s 2025 'major-country diplomacy' as a global success. This coordinated narrative was quickly replaced by urgent reporting from the PLA Eastern Theater Command and Global Times regarding fresh joint military drills and Fujian Coast Guard patrols around Taiwan. Editors framed these maneuvers as a 'justified' response to U.S. arms deals and 'separatist' activities. By early afternoon, while domestic outlets promoted 2026 fiscal expansion and 'high-level opening up,' external sources such as SCMP and BBC Chinese highlighted the 'hard-and-soft' approach of Beijing, noting how the drills coincided with cross-strait city forums. In Hong Kong, the media focus remained on the further suspension of student unions and stagnant holiday business, contrasting with the mainland's triumphalist year-end economic summaries.