This brings up the matter how China trains its snipers, details are sketchy but I do remember seeing a video clip about a Chinese sniper training that is a hybrid of the Unknown distance and stalking+Advance field skills in which a 2 man sniper team is tasked to hit 3 man sized targets scattered randomly in a wooded area while another full sized squad is tasked with tracking them. What is amusing in that video was the choice of weapons used, the sniper used a M99 Zhijiang .50 cal which means every shot taken raised hell on earth. For the last target the sniper used a crossbow which even if we put aside the fact that he could had easily scored that kill with a suppressed DMR the crossbow itself was crudely made.
For a long shot from a high caliber round the bullet will often impact the target before the sound of the shot does at extended ranges this means that raven though the 12.7x108mm rifle barks like a tank by the time the target knows what hit him it’s over and the snipers are on the move.
However Crossbows are cheap, easily sourced and fairly quiet. but with a short range.
Although Suppressors are getting better the type you find on a rifle based around a Assault rifle caliber are not the quietest things in the world. In order to get decent amounts of sound reduction you need a sub sonic round. And Subsonic means close range.
In the west today new classes of specialized calibers have emerged optimized for sub sonic and suppressed super sonic like .300BLK these offer low noise but increased range and effectiveness vs a pistol caliber. However for a long time the only real option for being as quiet as possible for attack was a 9mm Smg the MP5SD and before that a .45APC or even quieter a .22 Lr. Rifle with suppressor. Small low velocity rounds are easy to suppress and very quiet. This is why from world war 2 till the end of the Cold War when quiet was the want it was a Pistol caliber. But at the cost of range and penetration.
In the east the Russians have lots of answers the 9x39mm subsonic. A highly specialized ammunition and weapons family’s are built around this system that emerged at the end of the Cold War or the comparatively cheaper option. The SV99 .22LR Rifle.
The Chinese however didn’t adopt the specialized Russian round. And they don’t seem to have taken a likening to .22LR. They liked the Crossbow. It offered the same range as the pistol caliber suppressed but the mechanism is quieter.