The difference is that HK was ALREADY under PRC control. It is useless to fight another opium war . However, Taiwan remains de facto independent and stands a chance of winning should the US intervene. The Taiwan Strait is also another prime playing ground for US submarines (especially if the Y-8Qs could be grounded). Yes China has missiles, but at some point, all the SRBMs, GLCMs, and MRBMs would run out. What is needed is boots on the ground, which would be very hard for China achieve should the US choose to intervene.Wow. It's so easy to defeat China. I wonder why they haven't started the war already. I always hear China is worse than Nazi Germany. What's holding the US back? Maybe because of fear of losing what they have especially their lives. China's first missile barrage will take's out Taiwan high tech industry. After that Taiwan becomes worthless to fight for. Remember Hong Kongers thought they were worth fighting for too.
For Beijing, why not just spend the next 3-5 years building its ICBM and hypersonic gliders arsenals, as well as vastly expanding the amphibious assault fleet. China has the industrial capacity, but it needs more times to stockpile arms. Also, more airports and helicopter refueling stations are needed.