Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Li Longji, was a capable ruler in his youth. He appointed Yao Chong and Song Jing as chancellors to reform corrupt governance, leading to great social and economic development, known historically as the "Kaiyuan Golden Age."
However, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang later appointed the corrupt Li Linfu as chancellor, and the government began to decay. In the fourth year of the Tianbao era (745 AD), he elevated his consort Yang Yuhuan to the rank of Noble Consort, indulging in sensual pleasures and lavish extravagance, plunging the court into ever-deepening corruption.
Consort Yang Yuhuan had a cousin named Yang Zhao. Because of her favor, Yang Zhao rose rapidly, becoming an imperial censor, and Emperor Xuanzong of Tang bestowed him the name "Guozhong." Soon after, when Li Linfu died, the emperor appointed Yang Guozhong as chancellor, entrusting all court affairs to him.
For a time, the Yang siblings wielded immense power, forming cliques and corrupting the entire court, plunging it into chaos until soon after, the rebellion of An Lushan and Shi Siming erupted.
At that time, the Yang siblings lived a life of extravagant indulgence. On March 3, 753 AD, Yang Guifei and her family held a lavish spring outing at Qujiang River, causing a sensation. The poet Du Fu, outraged by their selfish revelry while the people suffered, wrote the famous poem "The Beautiful Women," boldly exposing their luxury and power. Two lines read: "Their influence burns hot, unmatched in its might; Beware the prime minister's wrath, do not come near."
"The idiom 'hot enough to burn one's hands' originally meant that one's hand feels scalding hot upon approach. Later, it came to describe someone with immense power and arrogance."
Source: Du Fu (Tang Dynasty), *The Beautiful Ones*
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "炙手可热" came to describe how someone with immense power and arrogance is intimidating to approach.