The most famous sayings of Heshen in history are undoubtedly the two last poems he wrote in prison. The poems are as follows:

Poem 1:

The night is so bright,

I am still sleepy.

A hundred years is just a dream,

Twenty years are in vain.

Poetry 2:

The dream has been true for fifty years,

Now let go and thank Hongchen.

The water will be like the dragon's sun in the future,

I will recognize the cigarette as my back body.

In both poems, Heshen mentioned the word "dream". It seems that Heshen also felt that his decades of time were too illusory, and he was as rich as the country's wealth and luxurious. The incomparable enjoyment, the favor of the emperor, and the fear of the ministers all made him lose direction. It was not until he was imprisoned that he suddenly woke up. It turned out that the past decades had been a big dream.

Extended information:

When Heshen first became an official, he was smart, capable and honest in government. He consolidated his position through the Li Shiyao case. Emperor Qianlong favored him and married his youngest daughter, Princess Ten, to Heshen's eldest son Fengshen Yinde, making Heshen not only powerful but also a relative of the emperor. As his power grew, his selfish desires also expanded. He took advantage of his position to form parties for personal gain, amass money, and used bribery, persecution, intimidation, violence, kidnapping, etc. to win over local forces and attack political opponents.

In addition, Heshen also personally operated industry and commerce, opened 75 pawn shops, set up more than 300 large and small banks, and had business dealings with the British East India Company and the Guangdong No. 13 Bank. He became known as the "King of Corrupt Officials" and "King of Corruption" with overwhelming power and wealth. Heshen was also the richest man in the world in the 18th century, surpassing Meyer Rothschild at the same time.