2.22
The Master said, “I do not see what use a man can be put to, whose word cannot be trusted. How can a waggon be made to go if it has no yoke-bar or a carriage, if it has no collar-bar?”
子曰：「人而無信，不知其可也。大車無輗，小車無軏，其何以行之哉？」
Notes
Confucius emphasized that “trustworthiness” is not an optional virtue but the cornerstone of character. Without integrity, one loses fundamental social standing. If a person lacks trustworthiness, it is nearly impossible for them to establish themselves in society.
“….who in intercourse with friends is true to his word — others may say of him that he still lacks education, but I for my part should certainly call him an educated man.”(Analects 1.7)
Just as a vehicle cannot function without its pivotal mechanism, so too can a person without trustworthiness neither gain footing in society, undertake responsibilities, nor earn others’ confidence.
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