True. But Mao and Stalin survived in spite of murdering millions and terrible economies. Who is going to oppose Xi? There is no one left.
I don’t think it’s comparable. Both Stalin and Mao ruled over countries that were devastated by war so their populations were accustomed to economic hardship, and misery in general. Xi took power in China when the country was experiencing height of its prosperity. When you drive that economy off a cliff people are going to notice, and not just the peasants notice, the ruling class, the CCP members, none of them like seeing their wealth evaporate.