James Packer chose his words carefully.
In announcing his return to the Crown Resorts board on Tuesday the casino billionaire said his top priority was "managing through the whole China situation".
He went on to say that advocating on behalf of the 17 Crown staff detained on the mainland would be done "in a way that is respectful to China and in a way that best represents our staff".
There were no demands for a fair trial or suggestions the company felt singled out, just deference to Beijing and the Communist Party, which is ultimate arbiter of justice in China.
This strategy of not giving the story any oxygen has been Crown's approach from the earliest days of this crisis, which began with a series of overnight raids in at least four cities across China in mid-October.
Since then Crown has shut down all avenues for publicity, believing the best chance of its staff avoiding a long jail term is lowering the case's profile, which may allow a deal to be cut with Chinese authorities.
This is still a possibility as the 17 detained staff, including three Australians, have not been formally charged.
The group, along with a fourth Australian detained in connection with the case who does not work directly for Crown, were formally arrested in mid-November. Their case has since been handed over to prosecutors who can take six months or more to press charges.
Only at this point will the Crown staff know what crimes they have been accused of committing.
So far Chinese authorities have only said the group is accused of "gambling related crimes".
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop confirmed before Christmas the Crown staff were in for a long wait, saying; "details of any charges on which the Australians may face trial will not be known until considerably later in the Chinese legal process".
That could be as late as mid-year with a trial coming some months later.
Crown is clearly hoping by maintaining a respectful silence on the matter it can limit the jail time of its staff and have the Australians home by year's end.
