An Chonghui, a powerful minister of the Later Tang Dynasty during the Five Dynasties period, had once strategized alongside Emperor Mingzong (Li Siyuan) and earned the emperor's deep trust. As a key figure in Mingzong's rise to the throne, he held a high-ranking position where he decided all court matters, both great and small, amassing ever-growing influence.
After An Chonghui assumed his high-ranking position, all important matters from every region were first reported to him before being presented to Emperor Mingzong. Though he dedicated himself to his duties, he grew arrogant, relying on his past achievements and the emperor's favor. Without wise and virtuous advisors by his side, he gradually became autocratic and arbitrary, leaving no one in the court daring to offer counsel.
At that time, Qian Liu ruled the region of Liangzhe, establishing the Kingdom of Wuyue as a vassal state of the Later Tang. After Emperor Mingzong ascended the throne, his chief advisor An Chonghui dispatched his favored official Han Mei and Wu Zhaoyu as envoys to Wuyue. Relying on An Chonghui's power, Han Mei repeatedly humiliated Wu Zhaoyu, even drunkenly flogging him once. Wu Zhaoyu swallowed his pride and forbade Qian Liu from reporting this to Emperor Mingzong. Upon returning to the capital, Han Mei struck first with false accusations, slandering Wu Zhaoyu: "When he saw Qian Liu, he performed the dance of submission and called himself a vassal, secretly divulging court affairs to him." An Chonghui believed Han Mei's one-sided story and executed Wu Zhaoyu; Emperor Mingzong then issued an edict stripping Qian Liu of his official titles. Seeing the Later Tang's treachery and injustice, Qian Liu severed all lord-vassal ties with them from that day forward.
Li Congke, Prince of Lu, was the adopted son of Emperor Mingzong of the Later Tang Dynasty, known for his bravery in battle. The powerful minister An Chonghui grew deeply worried, believing the prince would become a future threat to the state. An secretly plotted against him, forging an imperial decree to order Yang Yanwen to ambush the prince during a horse inspection. When Emperor Mingzong learned of the attack, he suspected a conspiracy and ordered Yang captured alive for interrogation. Fearing exposure, An Chonghui had Yang executed first to silence him. An repeatedly urged the emperor to punish the prince by military law, but Mingzong, recalling their father-son bond, evaded the topic. Soon after, the emperor recalled Li Congke and confined him to his residence at Qinghua Lane, ordering him to remain behind closed doors. An Chonghui had sacrificed Yang Yanwen's life for nothing.
When Meng Zhixiang and Dong Zhang were stationed in Sichuan, both harbored rebellious intentions. An Chonghui, sensing their disloyalty, secretly dispatched his trusted soldiers to guard the region, aiming to curb their power and prepare for emergencies. Realizing this was a move against them, Meng and Dong struck first, raising an army in revolt. Emperor Mingzong then sent Shi Jingtang to suppress the rebellion, but his entire army was lost in the Shu territory.
Later commentators remarked: "An Chonghui took the world's affairs as his own responsibility, striving to make a difference for the state. Yet he trusted Han Mei too readily, cutting off Qian Liu's path to submission; he drove Yang Yanwen to his death in vain, without removing the hidden threat of Li Congke, the Prince of Lu; and the rebellions of Meng Zhixiang and Dong Zhang stirred unrest across the land. This was like pouring oil on a fire—it only accelerated the flames, leading to calamity and enmity."
"Throwing oil on fire" means using oil to extinguish a fire, only to make it burn more fiercely. It describes improper measures that achieve the opposite effect.
Source: *New History of the Five Dynasties*, "Book of Jin", "Biography of An Chonghui"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "投膏止火" came to describe using oil to extinguish a fire, only to make it burn more fiercely.