Emphasis on Righteousness and Justice
Taking shape in the Shandong area, Confucianism is not only the essence of traditional Chinese culture, but also the core and representation of Qilu culture (who according to China Radio International, takes "benevolence" as the core, "gentility" as the form, and "harmony between human and nature" as the goal).
Confucianism greatly influenced the building of the national character; similarly, it also influenced the form of Shandong people's personality. Business views, psychologies, and styles were all stamped with Confucianism.
Yi(Justice) is the origin ofLi(self-interest), meaning people should achieve their self-interests only through justice. The relationship betweenYiandLiis an important part of Confucianism, which states that people should do what is moral and right rather than pursue their own selfish interests. Under the influence of Confucianism, people in Shandong assumed strong moral obligations.
Rui Fu Xiang, the largest silk vendor in old China, is a quite typical example. Founded by the descendants ofMencius(the second sage afterConfucius), Yi dominated their business development. They believed moral was at the core of business.
Though Rui Fu Xiang merchants were driven by profits, morals always came before interests. Anything against social morals would be punished in turn. Therefore, people and clients were always placed at the highest position in Rui Fu Xiang. Thanks to their business belief, the merchants survived the pressure from both foreign capitalism and compradors (Chinese agents of foreign companies) in old China.
Hard-working character
Mencius once had the famous saying that "When Heaven is about to confer a great office on any man, it first exercises his mind with suffering, and his sinews and bones with toil. It exposes his body to hunger..." Impelled by this ancient admonition, people in Shandong enjoyed "suffering" from difficulties of life, and could be counted as the hardest-working and most industrious group in the country. Even when taking a look at the successful Shandong merchants of today, you will find most of them are tough.
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