The wife of a fallen Chinese leader goes on trial Thursday on charges of murdering a British businessman in a politically charged case that may have little to do with whether she really killed him.

Instead, the trial of Bo Xilai's wife, Gu Kailai, is seen largely as a tightly managed way for the leadership to cauterize a political scandal that has embarrassed the Communist Party.

"The men at the top have already made their decisions, and in conspicuous political trials like this, that's where the decision is made," said Perry Link, a Princeton University emeritus professor of East Asian studies. "So the trial, whatever the results and whatever the arguments, it will be theater, just theater."

The scandal has drawn attention to bare-knuckled infighting that politicians prefer to keep behind closed doors -- particularly at a time when the government is preparing for a crucial once-a-decade political transition that will install a new generation of leaders. Until his fall, Bo was considered a contender for a top job.