TERMBASES
Without the trust of the
people, the government will not be stable. Chinese people have since antiquity
put high value on “trust” (good faith). Confucius(551-479 BC) applied it to the
relationship between officials and the people and saw it as a crucial factor in
the stability of the state. What this means is that the government or the ruler
should be honest in dealing with the people, not acting recklessly with force
or power, so that the people will trust the authorities and act in good faith
in regard to them. This is the solid basis and guarantee of state power. It is
also an extension of the notion of “people are the foundation of the
state.”