Xiao Song was a prominent official during the Kaiyuan era of the Tang Dynasty. Tall and handsome with a magnificent beard, he caught the emperor's favor and was appointed as Zhongshu Sheren, the imperial drafter of edicts.
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang once considered appointing Su Ting, son of Duke Su Gui of Xu, as chancellor—a man of great literary renown. Seeking counsel, the emperor asked his ministers, who all agreed. When he turned to Xiao Song, Xiao replied, "Your Majesty, this appointment is most fitting."
One day, Emperor Xuanzong of Tang ordered Xiao Song to draft an edict appointing Su Ting as chancellor. Xiao Song immediately began writing. After reviewing it, the emperor found some wording inappropriate, especially praising Su Ting as "the nation's treasure," which violated the taboo of Su Ting's father Su Gui's name. He then instructed Xiao Song to revise the edict.
Xiao Song, after being pointed out by Emperor Xuanzong, realized his oversight. Anxiously, he picked up his brush to revise, but due to nervousness, his inspiration dried up and he couldn't write, merely forcing himself to change "national treasure" to "national gem."
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang took a look and was very displeased, so he waved his hand to dismiss him. After Xiao Song left, Emperor Xuanzong threw the edict to the ground and said angrily, "I never expected him to be all show and no substance!"
In truth, Xiao Song had merely panicked in the moment, not the empty shell Emperor Xuanzong had dismissed him as; he possessed both literary talent and outstanding military skill, and soon after being sent to guard the frontier, he earned considerable merit for the court, prompting the emperor to reconsider his judgment, recall him to the capital, and appoint him as Chief Minister of the Secretariat.
Later, the idiom "deceptive appearance" came to describe something or someone that is flashy but insubstantial, or exists in name only.
Source: Zheng Chuhui (Tang Dynasty), *Miscellaneous Records of Emperor Ming*
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "虚有其表" came to describe how something or someone is flashy but insubstantial, or exists in name only.