During the Northern Song Dynasty, a scholar named Chen Jichang, who called himself Mr. Longqiu, was fond of entertaining guests and keeping singers. However, his wife Liu, who was from Hedong, was very jealous and fierce. Chen’s friend, the famous poet Su Dongpo, wrote a humorous poem about Chen’s situation:

"The scholar of Longqiu is pitiful indeed,
Talking idly, sleepless at night.
Suddenly hearing the roar of the Hedong lion,
He drops his staff in confusion."

The “Hedong lion” refers to Chen’s wife Liu from Hedong, and the idiom 河东狮吼 came to describe a wife’s fierce and loud scolding.

One famous story involves Su Dongpo inviting Chen Jichang out for a spring outing. Liu, fearing that Chen would associate with prostitutes, forbade him from going unless he promised to be faithful. When Liu found out Chen did bring prostitutes, she wanted to punish him, and despite his pleas, she made him kneel by a pond as a penalty.

When Su Dongpo visited and saw Chen’s humiliation, he scolded Liu for her harshness, leading to a quarrel. Liu, angry at Su Dongpo’s interference and Chen’s behavior, chased him away. Liu’s strong and jealous nature controlled Chen Jichang, and her fierce scolding became legendary, hence the idiom “Hedong lion’s roar.”

Idiom Summary

  • Idiom: 河东狮吼
  • Pinyin: hé dōng shī hǒu
  • Literal Translation: the roar of the lion from Hedong
  • Extended Meaning: Used to describe a wife who is fiercely jealous and loudly quarrels with her husband.