Duke Ai asked, “What can I do in order to get the support of the common people?”
Master Kong replied, “If you ‘raise up the straight and set them on top of the crooked,’ the commoners will support you. But if you raise the crooked and set them on top of the straight, the commoners will not support you.”
哀公问曰：“何为则民服？”孔子对曰：“举直错诸枉，则民服；举枉错诸直，则民不服。”
Notes
Duke Ai of Lu asked Confucius how to win the people’s trust. Confucius replied: “Promote the upright and competent, placing them above the crooked and incompetent — then the people will submit. Promote the crooked and incompetent, placing them above the upright and competent — then the people will not submit.”
This passage from the Analects revealed that merit-based governance anchors popular allegiance, while corrupt leadership breeds public distrust. The people obey not power itself, but the impartial justice behind its exercise.
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