China as it is today is barely 70 years old since they destroyed their own culture as I understand it. And it's been a rocky 70 years. Other nations leaders may get chinese money but what do normal people get from chinese expansion? Communism and an orwellian police state and social credit score? Mass censorship? Chinese don't have freedom or wealth except for the upper class so they don't even do communism right since I thought the point was for everyone to be equal and get rid of classes. China's salami slicing was going to get noticed and piss everyone off at some point I'm surprised it tool this long. Now china's rise on easy mode is over and they are watched and thwarted far more than before. There is no sign of this trend ending. I think king Xi got to confident and thought nobody would ever stand up to him and now he has an alliance against him he can't beat and is still stuck in the first island chain. I don't think chinese want war for some islands and the ability to take others resources.
Countries don't get powerful because of outside nations support them getting powerful. Countries get powerful because of structural strengths that causes that power to rise. These structural factors could be big population, natural resources, a society that is fully united an don't have too many divisions due to ethnic or religious factors. When these factors exist then a country can develop its economy and spend money on research into newer technology. When people of that country becomes rich, they have more money to spend on things like entertainment, which creates a bigger market for entertainers to develop themselves. Talented people who probably would not join the entertainment business start to do so because now they have a viable market. This creates higher quality cultural and entertainment products.
When countries become rich and powerful they have more money to spend outside their own country for entertainment, investment and leisure. People of those outside countries start to notice this and naturally move in directions to get more money. So, they might learn their language, or focus on learning their culture.
When a country get rich and powerful, people naturally and automatically start to be friendly with them just so that they can use that power for their own benefits. Ideas and political groups that were suppressed by countries that were formally more powerful start to appeal to them for support so that they no longer have to suppressed.
A country that is rich and powerful will naturally have supporters who will look at the political and governance of that system and think the reason that country got rich is because their governance system is good. Maybe our country should have the same system and we will prosper.
This is how a country gets powerful and popular. This is how a country gets soft power. Soft power and popularity is nothing but hard power that is available and being applied for a long time.
Western thought, western entertainment industry and western political system is popular and dominant because they have been the countries with most hard power for almost 3 centuries now. They were the richest countries for a long time and had the viable market to develop a solid entertainment industry with high quality product. Everyone else were colonized or mostly rural and poor and didn't have the luxury to develop an entertainment industry.
Western language is popular because again they have been the richest and most powerful countries for 3 centuries. People of other countries learn english not because its somehow the magic language, its because for the last 200 years most of the business came from British and Americans who spoke english. If you wanted to get rich you had to learn English.
Western politicial system that democracy is popular again because people think if they use democracy it will make their country better because western countries are so rich and they use democracy.
A strong and rich China will naturally have soft power in all these aspects just by that hard power alone. Its all about having that money and power and having that power for a long time. A rich China that is able to remain rich for 200 years will utterly dominate soft power in many parts of the world. A rich China that is able to remain rich and united for 400 years will absolutely eliminate all western soft power and the Chinese culture, language and political thought will dominate.
So why does China does not have these aspects now? Cause even 10 years ago they were nothing in terms of GDP and wealth. They have not applied their power long enough. But even now you are seeing drastic changes. Countries that were opressed by US and the west are now starting to rely on Chinese support. Hezbullah and Iran, who never considered China now think it is their lifeline against western onslaught.
There is a lot inertia before a train gets moving. You just have to apply force long enough and it will get faster and faster. Chinese wealth and power is that force that will change mental inertia in the minds of the world. Every year China will get more popular and more respected.
Will that mean people who are the curent ruling class will hate China? ofcourse. The west and countries that rule certain regions will absolutely hate China. So, countries like India, which rules South Asia hates China. EU also hates China because Chinese power is causing their dominance to fall.
But on the other hand countries that are under the suppression of the ruling class love China. Pretty all muslim countries love China because for them their biggest enemy is the western domination. China is a natural ally for them to fight that domination.
African countries, Latin American countries also love China so that they have a viable alternative to American and European power and market.
So, in conclusion, China doesn't need to be nice to be popular. they just have to be powerful and maintain that power for another century or two. That is enough to make them extremely popular, respected and worth emulating.