Wang Shao, courtesy name Junmao, was a native of Taiyuan Jinyang. A voracious reader from childhood, he was renowned for his extraordinary memory. Whenever scholars forgot passages from ancient texts and had no books to consult, they would seek out Wang Shao, who could recite the answers verbatim. When they later verified his responses against the original texts, they found not a single error. Emperor Yang Jian of the Sui Dynasty, recognizing Wang Shao's exceptional talent, appointed him as Editorial Assistant.
Wang Shao was a man of considerable learning, but he was no earnest scholar—he had another talent: flattery.
Once, Emperor Wen of Sui dreamed he was trying to climb a high mountain but could not make it, until his attendants, including Cui Peng, helped him reach the top. When the official Wang Shao heard of this, he told the emperor, "This is an extremely auspicious dream: dreaming of a high mountain signifies that your imperial throne is as lofty and stable as a mountain. Cui Peng is like the legendary long-lived figure Peng Zu—this is a symbol of longevity." Emperor Wen was greatly pleased upon hearing this.
Wang Shao not only excelled at flattery but also deceived Emperor Wen of Sui through deliberate mystification. He frequently fabricated prophecies and omens, spreading absurd children's rhymes and falsely reporting various supernatural phenomena, all to predict the nation's supposed prosperity.
For example, once Wang Shao falsely reported that a divine turtle was discovered somewhere, with the words "The Yang Clan Will Flourish Under Heaven" on its belly. After the empress died, he fabricated nonsense, claiming she was the reincarnation of the "Miaoshan Bodhisattva" and that she had not died but "returned to the truth and ascended to the immortal path," thus currying favor with Emperor Wen to keep his official position.
Therefore, the *Book of Sui* commented on Wang Shao: He enjoyed using bizarre language, vulgar words, and unrealistic content to shock people, ultimately causing everyone to despise him.
Later, the idiom "shocking to hear" came to describe events that are extraordinary or deliberately exaggerated, causing great alarm when heard.
Source: *Book of Sui*, "Biography of Wang Shao"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "骇人听闻" came to describe events that are extraordinary or deliberately exaggerated, causing great alarm when heard.