bThe explosive, behind-the-scenes story of Donald Trump's high-stakes confrontation with Beijing, from an award-winning iWashington Posti columnist and peerless observer of the U.S.-China relationshipb p There was no calm before the storm. Donald Trump's surprise electoral victory shattered the fragile understanding between Washington and Beijing, putting the most important relationship of the twenty-first century in the hands of a novice who had bitterly attacked China from the campaign trail. Almost as soon as he entered office, Trump brought to a boil the long-simmering rivalry between the two countries, while also striking up a friendship with Chinese president Xi Jinping -- whose manipulations of his American counterpart would undermine the White House's already disjointed response to the historic challenge of a rising China. All the while, Trump's own officials fought to steer U.S. policy from within. p By the time the COVID-19 pandemic erupted in Wuhan, Trump's love-hate relatio