During the Song Dynasty, there was a man named Chen Zao, also known by his courtesy name Jichang, who styled himself "Longqiu Hermit." Chen Jichang loved hosting guests and keeping a few singing and dancing girls at home, but his most famous trait was his intense fear of his wife. His spouse, Lady Liu, was notoriously fierce and jealous, ruling over her husband with an iron fist. Whenever she flew into a rage, Chen Jichang would be so terrified he didn't know where to put his hands or feet.
The great Song Dynasty writer Su Shi, who often interacted with Chen Zao, knew his peculiar habit well. Once, he wrote a poem mocking Chen Zao: "Longqiu recluse, pitiful man, talks of emptiness all night without rest; suddenly hears the eastern river lion's roar, staff drops from hand, his mind a blank."
"East of the River" refers to the Liu clan's ancestral home, alluding to Chen Zao's wife, née Liu. "Lion's Roar" is a Buddhist term originally symbolizing authority; since Chen Zao and Su Dongpo both enjoyed discussing Buddhist scriptures, this was used to mock Chen's wife for her strict and fierce nature.
The idiom "The Lion's Roar from Hedong" often describes a wife's fierce and jealous outburst, and is also used to mock henpecked husbands. "Fear of the wife" means being afraid of one's spouse. Later, being henpecked was also called "Jichang's quirk."
Source: Hong Mai (Song Dynasty), *Rongzhai Sanbi*
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "河东狮吼" came to describe a wife's fierce and jealous outburst, and is also used to mock henpecked husbands.