Abstract: Similar to Kant, Rawls’ doctrine of public reason involves issues such as citizens’ cooperation intention and reciprocity. It has been ignored that the Confucian doctrine of liangzhi (innate knowledge) emphasizes the “common-sense” between the self and others: to hurt others is to hurt oneself. This contains not only the inborn sympathy (that is, the sympathy to others’ predicaments), the responsibility of mutual assistance, but also the sentiment of treating each other in a fair way. The ultimate empirical evidence for the “common-sense” of the personal experience is that “all things are one body”. This Confucian position is demonstrated in Confucius’ stress on “repay a good turn with a good turn”, especially “repay an injury with straightness”. The public appeal in the Confucian doctrine of innate knowledge makes it possible to be a foundation for the construction of public reason.

Key words: innate knowledge, reciprocity, public reason, straightness innate knowledge, reciprocity, public reason, straightness