Bases are dead in the long run. The current pretense at keeping or expanding bases is purely a medium term tactical move to stem high rates of resignation untill enough people have joined in HKG on local conditions of service and the last remaining expat contracts are over and done with.
The covid crisis has made that strategy redundant and reduce the company's worries about labour retention hugely.
The long term plan all along has been to have cheaper labour - all HKG based on local conditions, and any expat unwilling to do that would get a commuting option. The need for expats will constantly dwindle anyway in future.
Every other asian airline already figured that out 20 years ago but cx has taken a while to reinvent that wheel. As they do...
So take your base while and if you can. The option will disappear soon.