As he accepted the Communist Party's designation to be China's president and supreme military leader in March, Xi Jinping vowed "to achieve the Chinese dream of great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation."

Xi's speech to the National People's Congress won plaudits from the press. "His crisp yet rich voice and frank yet resolute gaze revealed a power to invigorate the people," the China People's Daily reported.

But the speech left analysts guessing about what sort of rejuvenation — also translated as "revival" or "renaissance" — the new leader has in mind. Presumably U.S. President Barack Obama will be looking for clues when he meets with Xi later this week in California.