Miànduì kèhù de zhíyí, tā bùkàng-bùbēi de jiěshì le qíngkuàng.
Facing the client's doubts, he explained the situation with neither defensiveness nor obsequiousness.
Tips
history
Recorded in Ming-dynasty 朱之瑜's 《答小宅生顺书》: 圣贤自有中正之道，不亢不卑 - 'sages have a way of the proper mean: neither haughty nor humble.' The phrase captures the Confucian ideal of 中庸 (the doctrine of the mean) applied to interpersonal demeanor.
usage
Often interchangeable with the more common form 不卑不亢 - same meaning, just reversed order. Both are used as praise for poised, dignified behavior, especially when dealing with people of much higher or lower status.
