People on the island have grown so accustomed to Chinese displays of power that life continues as usual.

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As China carried out live-fire drills and rehearsed a military blockade in the waters surrounding Taiwan this week, 70-year-old Liao said she wasn’t worried about war. She was enjoying life as a retiree, playing mahjong with her friends and keeping an eye on the stock market.

“Everyday life hasn’t been impacted,” Liao told Al Jazeera as she was having her hair shampooed and cut in time for the new year at a salon in New Taipei City. “I’ve lived in Taiwan for 70 years. I’m used to it. We all still have to wash our hair.”