"De" (Virtue) is an important concept in the discussion of "Tao" in the universe in the early Taoist philosophy. "De" is always interpreted with reference to "Tao." Yet since the Han and Jin Dynasty, the discussion has a great development on the discrepancy of De and Tao. Virtue gains its theoretical understanding without regard to "Tao." Guo Xiang is one of the representatives. Guo Xiang's "Notes on Zhuangzi" proposes that the universe is composed of beings that are self-referential. In Guo's term, they are "Du-hua" (self-emergent) and ",Zi -sheng" (Self-developing). This proposal turns down the long-lasting hypotheses in "Zhuangzi" that Tao is the origin of the universe, and Tao is Nature. Guo believes that everything has its property by which De is justified. In this respect, Guo provides an alternative in understanding the Zhuangzi theory that De embodies Tao. The paper attempts to analyze Guo's discussions on De, particularly with a focus on the interpretation of De with regards to Du-hua and Zi -sheng.