Exactly. China is learning valuable lessons from the Russian frustrations in Ukraine. It is good that China is learning them now through Russia, and not directly. Indeed, Russia should've learned this from the US experience in Vietnam and the reversal of that in Desert Storm.
Those lessons are:
1. control the media and if not, make sure the media reports little to nothing at all. In Vietnam, it was very demoralizing to see US troops on tape being captured by Viet Cong or North Vietnamese soldiers and it made them ashamed to see war crimes committed by their troops. In Desert Storm they learned to silence opposition media and amplify their own.
2. don't hold back at the start. negotiations are for before the war or after the war, not during.
3. hitting infrastructure is key.
These critical Russian mistakes might have cost them alot more than the direct value of their military losses.