Wang Yan, a celebrated scholar of the Western Jin Dynasty, was a master of Laozi and Zhuangzi's philosophy and a brilliant conversationalist, which quickly brought him fame.
When Emperor Wu of Jin's father-in-law, General-in-Chief Yang Jun, admired Wang Yan's reputation and wanted to marry his youngest daughter to him, Wang Yan feigned madness to refuse, seeking fame as one who shunned the powerful—yet he later married Guo, a relative of Empress Jia, who wielded even greater influence than Yang Jun.
Wang Yan often pretended to be aloof, spending his days discussing obscure and empty philosophies while never speaking of worldly matters. His wife, relying on her influence, amassed countless riches for him to squander, yet he never uttered the word "money."
Once, Lady Guo deliberately spread copper coins in front of his bed after he fell asleep. When he woke up and saw them the next morning, he said, "Quick, someone, take these 'Adu things' away!"
Wang Yan's displays of lofty detachment brought him official success, eventually rising to the position of Imperial Secretary. His daughter was even selected to enter the palace, becoming the consort of Crown Prince Minhuai.
During the Western Jin Dynasty, Emperor Hui of Jin, Sima Zhong, was mentally feeble, leaving his empress, Jia Nanfeng, to seize power. Empress Jia fabricated evidence, falsely accusing the crown prince, Minhuai, who was not her biological son, of rebellion and demoting him to a commoner. Fearing he would be implicated, the official Wang Yan quickly submitted a memorial to Empress Jia, urgently requesting that his daughter divorce the crown prince.
Soon after, the Western Jin dynasty erupted into the War of the Eight Princes. Wang Yan was dismissed by Prince Zhao, Sima Lun, but when Prince Hejian, Sima Yong, seized power, he restored Wang Yan to his former post, eventually making him chancellor.
In 315 AD, the Jie chieftain Shi Le led his forces south to invade. Sima Yue, the Prince of Donghai who held the reins of Western Jin's government, marched out to meet him with 200,000 troops—only to die suddenly of a violent illness while on campaign.
The soldiers unanimously urged Wang Yan to take command. As Grand Commandant, he had no choice but to accept. Yet, too afraid to engage the enemy, he ordered a retreat—only to be overtaken by Shi Le's cavalry. Wang Yan and his entire force were captured.
When Shi Le initially respected Wang Yan, treating him as an honored guest, he asked, "Why did the Jin Dynasty suffer endless internal strife?" Wang Yan repeatedly evaded, claiming he never meddled in state affairs and bore no responsibility for the chaos. Enraged, Shi Le roared, "You are one of the treacherous ministers who ruined the Jin realm!" That very night, he had Wang Yan executed.
By the Northern Song Dynasty, someone wrote an essay titled "On Identifying Treachery," arguing that Wang Yan was a treacherous minister who deceived the world and stole fame—a judgment that holds some truth.
Later, the idiom "Deceiving the World for Fame" came to describe those who cheat the public to gain undeserved reputation.
Source: *Song Wenjian*, "On Distinguishing Villainy"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "欺世盗名" came to describe those who cheat the public to gain undeserved reputation.