I read it somewhat differently. From my limited interaction with Chinese citizen as a resident of Singapore, many think more pragmatically.

"We do what it takes to get a billion people to first world middle class standard of living. Yes, there's a bit of collateral damage but you guys' industrial revolution was not all roses, read some Dickens. We can have the luxury of rights when we're there. You're telling me to eat cake since we ran out of bread."

In other words the majority of Chinese citizen (that I know - YMMV, selection bias, etc.) think that the government is doing an alright job considering its constraints, and don't feel particularly oppressed - the authoritarianism is population-sanctioned. Just like the new French anti-terrorism measures.