Wendy, I wouldn't listen to the weasels on this board who pretend they know what China is and isn't about. The fact that they would label said business practices as being related to "culture" shows exactly how much of an idea of culture they have: close to or exactly zero! It's human nature to want something better and to put yourself to a higher standard. People who just want to be apologetic and persuade others to get used to a situation don't exactly want anything better for themselves. This really should make you wonder if you should even work in certain countries.

Although generalizing this won't help matters or bring concrete solutions. To a single person it's important to be fair to yourself, sometimes you just have to trust your gut.