Despot Xi Prepares to Strut and Posture as Conqueror of Wuhan Virus at Friday’s Opening of National People’s Congress, the Annual Rubber-Stamp Parliament Dominated by the Communist Party; Event Will Be Regimented and Shortened to Shield Dictator Xi from Possible Outbursts of Anger by Local Cadre Resentful of Dishonest Handling of Pandemic; Xi Impudently Boasts Party Has Acted with “Openness, Transparency, and Responsibility”; Apparatchiki on Defensive after Economy Contracts at an Official 6.7% Rate in First Quarter; New York Times Cheerleads for Xi’s Personality Cult