The literal meaning is: If a person is not loyal and trustworthy, then he will not be able to gain a foothold in the world.

“No one can survive in the world without loyalty.” This is a famous saying by Cheng Yi, a famous Neo-Confucian scholar in the Northern Song Dynasty. No matter what a person does, he must be "loyal" and "trustworthy" and not do anything that goes against his principles and his own conscience. Loyalty is the inner view, from the inside to the outside, with a subjective meaning; Faith is the appearance, from the outside to the inside, with an objective meaning; the essence of loyalty and trust is one, benevolence.

Extended information

Anecdotes and allusions:

Shuangfeng gave birth to a son

During the reign of Emperor Renzong of the Song Dynasty, Cheng Yuan from Henan Province lived in Huangpi County for He became an official, and then settled in Chengjia Fang, the western suburb of Huangpi. Unfortunately, he died of illness due to overwork, and the imperial court appointed his eldest son Cheng Jue as Huangpi County Lieutenant.

In the 10th year of Tiansheng's reign (1032) in the Northern Song Dynasty, Cheng Jue's wife, Hou Shi, had a dream one night. In the dream, I went to the garden with the officials. When they walked under a plane tree, they raised their heads and saw a bird's nest on the tree. They were about to climb up and dig out the eggs when they suddenly saw two golden phoenixes flying straight towards the garden in the distance.

The golden phoenix flew lower and lower. After hovering around Mrs. Cheng for a week, it rushed towards her chest. Mrs. Cheng quickly hugged the golden phoenix tightly. The official looked at the two golden phoenixes, looked up to the sky and laughed, and his wife woke up. Not long after, Mrs. Cheng became pregnant. The eldest son was born, named Cheng Hao, and the next year, the next son Cheng Yi was born.

Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi were eager to learn since childhood, respected Confucius and Mencius, and had outstanding talents. Later they became famous Neo-Confucianists. During the Ming Dynasty, people built a pavilion and named it Shuangfeng Pavilion.