Originally Posted by Martin

Maybe people are confused because they don't know the other very well. (That goes both ways.) In all the years I've been visiting mainland China, I never saw mistrust. Depending on the places there was curiousity, kindness or indifference. Sometimes trying to lure you into buying shitty goods for 88 times the price. But ripping you off is kind of universal. Shops in Rome also try this, like do cab drivers in Paris or Brussels when they think you're a tourist.
As for the language: I also heard that and yes, I had the experience once (1X), speaking Cantonese to an older taxi driver here in Hong Kong. Now that was done on purpose or ontherwise my accent was completely and utterly wrong. In general though, I consider it mostly an urban legend and never experienced such behaviour on the mainland.