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The death of Cambodia's former king Norodom Sihanouk in Beijing on Monday symbolized how China had sheltered the monarch in a mansion with personal medical, diplomatic and financial assistance throughout much of his often bloody reign.

Beijing benefited, especially during the 1970s and 1980s, from its supportive relationship with Sihanouk. But his death at the age of 89 is not expected to slow China's current rapidly expanding political and economic influence in...