This term refers to maintaining moral integrity. It comes from the book Xunzi. Xunzi (313?-238 BC) believed that one could improve his moral cultivation through constant study. However, the impact of external factors could cause moral lapse. Hence Xunzi attached great importance to maintaining moral integrity. This means that one should always be guided by the norms of propriety in his thoughts, statements and acts, and should be unaffected by any external factors. Maintaining moral integrity is the basis for refining one’s character.

Therefore, a person of high moral cultivation is not lured by power or gain. He is not swayed by others, and does not waver in the face of anything. He remains so in both life and death – this is what moral integrity means. Xunzi