Kids addicted to gaming -> bad family relations & bad grades -> decreased productivity & unemployment -> social unrest -> people revolt against the communist party.
I'd argue the fact that CCP solves problems at the source is exactly the reason China didn't crack when people thought it would.
Because the US military is not about defending trade, arguably it's the very opposite: it is China's goal to protect global trade as it is the biggest trading partner of most countries, while the US invests heavily to maintain the ability to disrupt trade of any country it thinks is benefiting too much. (e.g. the first island chain for blocking China's access to the seas - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_island_chain)
Google doesn't give me any result if I search "武汉 肺炎" (Wuhan Pneumonia) prior to December 30. December 30 was definitively the first time it appeared on the news, and when it did, it quickly became the top news in about a week.