A: In terms of building a navy, ten years isn't anything like long term
B: There's no such thing as an organization that practices long-term planning. It's a myth, much like the unicorn in your avatar. Everyone thinks that their enemies/rivals are steely-eyed strategists. For instance, if you get into the weeds of political websites, you'll quickly learn that the The Other Party has a cadre of devious but amoral operatives with a long term plan that will fundamentally alter the country for the worse.
Truth is that long-term plans, when anyone bothers to make them, are incredibly hazy projections made either by pompous blow-hards or tired, overworked folks who would much rather get back to coming up with jerry-rigged short term solutions to foil the masterful plans that The Other Guys have laid.
Now you're just being silly. The fact that China doesn't publicize it's political cycles doesn't mean they don't exist. Reformers and conservatives and political cliques rise and fall, and that dominates the thoughts of your average Chinese official just like election cycles dominate the thoughts of your average American pol.