Synthesized answer
The provided passages do not contain the central thesis of "The Liberal Tradition in China." The passages only state the title, author, and categories of the book [Passage 1]. Therefore, it is not possible to determine the central thesis from the given information.
Synthesized from the book passages below. Chat with the book on Feynman for follow-up.
From the book
Title: The Liberal Tradition in China by William Theodore De Bary Categories: Philosophy Pages: 122