Final answer:
Legalism is the belief system that supports punishments for corrupt behavior by government officials, focusing on a strict legal code and firm punishments for law enforcement.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Chinese belief system that best supports punishments for corrupt behavior by government officials is d. Legalism. Legalism emphasized a strict legal code and an expansive system of rewards and punishments to maintain social order and enforce the law.
This contrasts with Confucianism, which focused on moral leadership and virtuous conduct, and Daoism, which advocated for simplicity and living in harmony with the natural way, the 'dao'. The Legalists, such as Han Feizi, believed that virtue and ritual were ineffective and that firm punishments for lawbreaking were necessary to maintain order.