There are many famous historical figures in China, and each dynasty has a variety of roles, performing different duties and pushing the wheel of history forward. Everyone is just a screw in the evolution of the times.
Cao Cao of the Three Kingdoms period is the most unique of these many "screws". In drama and historical interpretation, Cao Cao is a treacherous villain who does nothing wrong and is criticized by everyone; in the main history, Cao Cao is a tyrant with great talent and grandeur, a capable and talented figure.
However, in reality, it is actually difficult to evaluate a person. Is Cao Cao a bad guy? So to speak. Because he really does things in order to achieve the goal by any means, he even allows himself to bear the people of the world, and does not allow the people of the world to bear him. But to tell the truth, what he did was actually something that all the owners would do, but Cao Cao used it more flexibly.
Is Cao Cao a good man? It could also be said. Although he was the boss of an armed separatist force, and there were often wars between him and other forces, which caused the people to die, but this was not his own doing, this was what the chaotic world had to do at that time. Moreover, Cao Cao spent his whole life unifying the entire northern region of the Central Plains, and successfully implemented the Tun Tian system in the areas he ruled, saving the lives of many poor people.
It can be seen that although Cao Cao was not bright and upright in doing things, and occupied the dove's nest as a chancellor and occupied the imperial power for decades, the credit he did was also huge, and even it could be said that his merit was far greater than that, after all, his credit was based on the entire Cao Wei ruling area.
Of course, the reason why Cao Cao was able to do this was inseparable from the help of his military generals and strategists. On the one hand, Cao Cao relied on his subordinates to work hard and consolidate the country and mountains, constantly expanding his own power, and on the other hand, he used his huge power to absorb a large number of capable people and strangers to do things under his account.
In the very beginning, Cao Cao was able to be the first to assassinate Dong Zhuo, and his courage was evident. Later, through the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao, the leader of the Central Plains forces, was crushed, and he also absorbed the forces of Yuan Shao's army and became the most powerful force in the land of China.
In the later period, although due to strategic mistakes, the Battle of Chibi occurred, lost to Sun Wu's alliance, and even almost captured alive, its damaged strength was still comparable to that of the Shu Han clique led by Liu Bei and the Jiangdong clique led by Sun Quan. After the Battle of Chibi, the pattern of the Central Plains Continent became a situation of three divisions of the world.
However, in addition to Liu Bei and Sun Quan, Cao Cao had always hated a person, and even the degree of hatred was higher than that of Liu Bei and Sun Quan. This person is the Western Liang general Ma Chao.
What exactly did Ma Chao do? Make Cao Cao hate it so much? It should be known that although Liu Bei and Sun Quan joined forces to beat Cao Cao's strength into this way, Cao Cao also had an element of appreciation for them, and there was never a bloody vendetta like Ma Chao.
To say this reason, it is also very complicated. However, judging from the great war between Ma Chao and Cao Cao, it is also because Ma Chao is indeed a generation of talents, not only repeatedly thwarted Cao Cao's plans, but even almost captured Cao Cao alive.
The most classic battle between Ma Chao and Cao Cao was the Battle of Tongguan. This battle can be described as a disgrace to Cao Cao, a tyrant, for a lifetime.
At that time, Cao Cao wanted to first deal with Ma Chao's Western Liang forces and then speed up the capture of Hanzhong, so he personally led a large army to confront Ma Chao's Western Liang army at Tongguan. Cao Cao, who originally did not put Ma Chao in his eyes, was amazed by the wisdom of this Western Liang man in front of him.
Cao Cao was originally preparing to cross the river to the west, but was intercepted by Ma Chao with his troops in the north of the Wei River, and this move made Cao Cao lament that if Ma Chao did not die, he was afraid that he would have to die in the future.
After another month of confrontation, Cao Cao wanted to adopt the strategy of attacking the west from the east, tricking Ma Chao into seeing and crossing the Tong Pass in the north, but was helplessly recognized by Ma Chao. Ma Chao personally led the elite of the army to pursue Cao Cao, and Cao Cao, who was surprised, could only flee in a hurry under the cover of Xu Chu and other generals. And Ma Chao was not soft,losing his hands in the back, chasing and beating him furiously, and repeatedly almost shot Cao Cao to death with random arrows. Unfortunately, the generals around Cao Cao were not vegetarians, and although they were embarrassed, they finally managed to cover Cao Cao's escape.
Cao Cao, who escaped death, completely remembered this great vendetta, and this great shame and humiliation was far worse than the blow that Sun Liu's coalition army had hit him. After repairing Cao Cao, he used a divisive tactic to successfully deceive Ma Chao. And the price of being deceived this time is that more than two hundred people in the Ma family have lost their lives.
At this moment, Cao Cao and Ma Chao's bloody feud could not be solved by simply killing, and Liang Zi was completely and thoroughly knotted.
However, although he repaid the previous humiliation, Cao Cao still hated Ma Chao and tried to kill Ma Chao. And Ma Chao also regarded Cao Cao as a sworn enemy because Cao Cao killed his family.
After Ma Chao lost power, he immediately defected to Liu Bei and became the staunchest anti-Cao element in Liu Bei's camp. Because of his strong strength, he also became one of Liu Bei's "Five Tiger Generals". In order to consolidate his relationship with Liu Bei, Ma Chao also married Liu Bei and became Liu Bei's relatives.
At this time, even Cao Cao was helpless against Ma Chao, because Liu Bei's power was in its heyday.