Simply put, Xiao He needs a follower who can firmly enforce his rules, not a "consultant" with a lot of advice.
After Liu Bang's death, Emperor Hui of Han succeeded to the throne. As a meritorious serviceman, Xiao He continued to serve as chancellor. Within two years, Xiao He was about to die, and Liu Ying personally visited him and asked him who was suitable to succeed him as chancellor. None of the people present expected that he recommended Cao Ginseng.
After Cao San heard that Xiao He had died, he could actually predict in advance that the phase was none other than him, and began to prepare for his post. Sure enough, within a few days, the imperial court sent someone to announce the appointment.
First, Cao Gan has enough qualifications, while Chen Ping is halfway to vote
Xiao He and Cao Shan are old acquaintances, and their relationship has always been good. In the early years of Pei County, they and the chief of the Surabaya Pavilion were "fox friends and dog friends". Later, Liu Bang raised an army, Xiao He and Cao San, assisted together, one wen and one martial, one sitting in the rear and one front line to work hard, each performing his duties, and making great contributions to the creation of the Han Dynasty.
In the ranking of heroes, Xiao He and Cao Shen secretly competed for the first time, and there were some misunderstandings. At that time, many heroes elected Cao San as the first meritorious person, which was still reasonable.
Since PeiXian started his army, whether it was against the Qin soldiers, the Chu army, or later with Han Xin to open up the northern battlefield, pacifying Wei, Zhao, Yan, and Qi, Cao San always took the lead, "wearing seventy creations" and making great achievements. Cao Gan's record of achievements, Sima Qian has a detailed record:
"Two kings, three generals, six generals, one each of Da Mo'ao, Junshou, Sima ( 司馬 , Hou , and Yushi – History of cao xiangguo's family"
This report card, in addition to Han Xin, Yingbu and other generals with different surnames who stand alone, Fan Duo, Zhou Bo and others are not comparable, and Chen Ping is even more difficult to look forward to.
After the establishment of the Great Khan Dynasty, Cao Ganyou participated in the war to quell the kings with different surnames and made new contributions.
Chen Ping followed Xiang Yu in his early years, and later did not get reused before defecting to Liu Bang. In the Han camp, Chen Ping's role is mainly to give advice, more like a consultant. He once plotted against Liu Bang and alienated western Chu junchen; deceived Yunmeng and captured Han Xin wisely; and relieved Liu Bang's siege of Bai Deng. The credit is not small, but compared to Cao Shen, Chen Ping is still separated by a Fan Duo.
At that time, many of the Great Han Meritorious Heroes were still alive, and compared with the seniority of the two, Cao Shen was indeed more prestigious than Chen Ping, and it was more appropriate to be a chancellor.
Second, Cao Ginseng has sufficient working ability
Liu Bang had a son named Liu Fei, who was the illegitimate son of a woman named Cao. Liu Fei was of mediocre ability, but was appointed king of Qi by Liu Bang. Liu Bang's handing over the largest vassal state to Liu Fei was also a helpless move, simply because he was a little older. Therefore, Liu Bang was worried that Liu Fei would not govern the country of Qi well, and it was very necessary to find a capable general for him.
After deliberation, Liu Bang selected Cao Ginseng. After Cao San took office, he invited the "elders and sentient beings" of the State of Qi to discuss the way to govern the country, and finally, Cao San decided to take the Huang Lao Doctrine as the concept of governing the country, recuperate, and lightly dispense with thin endowments. The State of Qi soon developed into a powerful country, and Cao San, who also completed the transition from general to civilian subject, "in the ninth year of Xiang Qi, Qi Guo'an Gathered, greatly known as Xianxiang".
The feudal state of the Han Dynasty is like a small imperial court, and if it can be the minister of state of the State of Qi, it has the ability to govern the Great Han Dynasty well. In particular, Cao San's inaction coincided with the national policy of the Han court. On the other hand, Chen Ping has a lot of ghost ideas, and he also likes to be left and right, and it is okay to be a consultant, and governing the country is not the best candidate.
The chancellor was the head of the empire's hundred officials, and he held a high position of power, and he had to assist the emperor in governing the country. Xiao He Gong was loyal to the country, and from a long-term perspective and from the overall situation, he recommended Cao San to be a sage for the country. Cao Shen is also worthy of Xiao He's recommendation, continuing to develop along Xiao He's route, and leaving a good story of "Xiao Zhi Cao Sui".