I completely agree. It makes me wonder if these authors really believe what they are saying or if they are trying to spin a narrative that helps them sell books?
The other annoying thing that Western authors on China do is attribute everything to "face" and try to use this point as a huge distinction between Chinese and Westerners.
Something I was struck by when reading the Dark Forest trilogy (at least the first two books, as that's all I've finished), is how alien the thinking sometimes comes across as. As my first exposure to Chinese fiction, it was somewhat eye opening. Not just in a different thought process from a different culture, but in how they attribute motives and thoughts to characters from more "western" societies.
it's funny considering face stuff works pretty much same in West, just not to that extent as in China, yeah people will admit they don't know something unlike China, but still don't dare to tell someone they are cheap for instance
The other annoying thing that Western authors on China do is attribute everything to "face" and try to use this point as a huge distinction between Chinese and Westerners.