But as more details emerged, the case that the Chinese government granted Trump’s trademark as a simple quid-pro-quo deal with the president began to seem less clear-cut—although that’s not to say that the possibility can be categorically ruled out. The court case long predates Trump’s run for president. He has been fighting to wrest control of his brand in China for more than a decade against entrepreneurs who have marketed products under his name—or, as some claim, just the word “trump,” with no intent to refer to the famous businessman-turned-politician. The February 15th ruling, though not yet a decisive victory, gives the Trump Organization the sole rights to use the president’s name for construction purposes, which could open the door to further decisions in his favor on some 49 pending trademarks and 77 previously registered trademarks on a wide range of products that could come before the court in the near future. And, as The Washington Post observed, the Chinese court’s decision does not necessarily mean that the Trump Organization will be imminently expanding into China; rather, it simply means that Trump will be able to stop other developers or entrepreneurs within the country from using his name on their buildings or products.

Moreover, the decision to grant Trump his long-sought-after trademark actually happened months ago. The same court invalidated a competitor’s claim to the Trump name in September; in November, shortly after the election, the Chinese government granted Trump provisional approval to trademark his name for real-estate services within the country, an outcome that itself was seen at the time as likely paving the way for last week’s announcement.

Besides, it’s not altogether uncommon for American brands to have difficulty registering their trademarks in China. Just as quick-thinking entrepreneurs in the U.S. often grab domain names before they become important—Shannon Burchett, who purchased TrumpPence2016.com well before Trump won the Republican nomination, springs to mind—buying up trademarks that may be valuable in the future is something of a cottage industry in China. Trump is neither the first to face such a problem nor the first to win back his trademark in court; in 2012, Apple paid the Hong Kong-based hardware manufacturer Proview International Holdings $60 million to take back its trademark for the iPad, while in 2016, Facebook and Michael Jordan, two of the most recognizable brands in the world, wrapped up legal battles to attain control over their names.

None of this definitively proves that Trump and China did not execute a straight-up swap, with Trump receiving a trademark and China receiving renewed adherence to the One China Policy. Nor does the mere coincidence of Trump receiving his trademark so shortly after speaking with Chinese President Xi Jinping represent the smoking gun his critics desire. Instead, what the story demonstrates is just how much the president’s financial dealings complicate any understanding of the motivations behind his policy decisions: Whether on purpose or by mere coincidence, the outcome of a decade-long legal dispute is now inextricably linked, in the public imagination if not in fact, to a high-profile question of international diplomacy. And it highlights the way accusations of corruption often exist not in obvious acts of self-dealing or one-to-one trades but in shades of gray, with cross-cutting motives and well-timed coincidences that almost never definitively prove payoffs but that nevertheless continually suggest malfeasance.