That is certainly an important point regarding Chinese reactions to Europeans arriving on Chinese shores.

However I was interested in looking at why China observed in isolation lacked the conditions to develop a steam engine.

Europe in contrast had those conditions. In many ways we are all victims of our past and present. China was an enormous empire where maintaining order was most strongly emphasized.

In Europe in contrast numerous smaller nations could not favor internal stability as they were constantly in danger of being outcompeted by their neighbors.