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chinese idiom (大公無私 DÀ GONG WÚ SI)
During China’s Spring and Autumn Period (77—476BC), there lived a man named Qi Huang-Yang. When the emperor asked Qi who he thought would be a suitable magistrate for NanYang County, he answered, “Xie Hu would definitely do an excellent job.” The emperor was surprised at this answer and asked, “Isn’t Xie Hu your sworn enemy? How come you’re suggesting that he do the job?” Qi replied, “You only asked me who would make a suitable magistrate, you didn’t ask me whether I liked him.” So, the emperor sent Xie Hu to NanYang County, where he did many good things for the people there. A year later, the emperor once again asked Qi for a recommendation, this time for a judge, to which he got the response, “Qi Wu would definitely do an excellent job.” Once again, the emperor was surprised and asked, “Isn’t Qi Wu your son? How come you’re recommending him?” Qi replied, “You only asked me who would make a suitable judge, you didn’t ask me whether he was my son.” When Confucius heard about this, he praised Qi Huang-Yang for recommending someone for a job, solely based on that person’s ability, not allowing his personal relationship to get in the way.
Today, the idiom 大公無私 is used to describe an impartial person who is just and fair.