Marquis Cao of Pingyang was wounded by seventy times, attacking the city strategically, with the most merit and the first.
Cao San was the second chancellor of the Western Han Dynasty and Xiao He's successor, and the two had already known Gao Zu when they were in Pei County. At that time, Xiao Cao was an official and Gao Zu was a nomad, but the two not only did not dislike Gao Zu, but also matched his brother and helped him deal with many problems, so these two later became the core members of Gao Zu's Fengpei forces.
Statue of Cao Ginseng
After Xiao He stayed away from the court to protect himself, Cao San was named as prime minister, and this act also gave rise to a famous idiom "Xiao Gui Cao Sui". Many people feel that Cao San's ability is under Xiao He because of this idiom, but this idea is actually incorrect. Cao Shen not only made a big splash when he was enthroned in that year, but also maintained a sober mind in his later years, advanced and retreated properly, and preserved the foundation of the Cao clan.
When Gao Zu fought the world, Cao San bravely took the lead
In the past, when Gao Zu raised an army in Pei County, there was a team of about three thousand people, and the composition of this team was roughly divided into two categories.
The first category is that the powerful people in the Fengpei region used the banner of Gao Zu to lead private soldiers and horses to obey Gao Zu, and this matter is clearly recorded in the list of Gao Zu's meritorious servants. The number of people in this category accounts for more than half of the entire team.
The three masters of the early Han Dynasty were not guests
The second category is some relatively idle forces, such as Fan Duo and Cao Shan, although they also try to join Gao Zu's ranks with clan relatives and property, but their strength is small, and the scale of the followers cannot be compared.
Obviously, for Gao Zu, in the early days of the uprising, the help of the guests was even greater, and there were indelible merits for the entire uprising, so when it came to the reward of merit, all the guests were greatly rewarded.
For example, among the second category of personnel, the number of people who have made great contributions is relatively small due to the inherent lack of conditions, which seems unfair to them, but in the brutal struggle of the uprising, it is an indisputable fact.
The many forces during the Chu-Han struggle for hegemony
However, those who can compete with the merits of the guests, although the number is small, but some people have done it. For example, Cao San, and the reason why he was able to do it was because he bravely took the lead in the process of Gaozu's fight against the world, and his heroic behavior touched the entire Han army camp:
Marquis Cao of Pingyang was wounded seventy times.
When Gao Zu rewarded the meritorious service, the courtiers all hoped that Cao San would receive the first merit, but Gao Zu gave the first merit to Xiao He. This incident made Cao San's heart unhappy, and he blamed Xiao He, and a certain gap arose between the two. Even so, Cao Shen knew Xiao He very well and sat in Guanzhong together.
After Emperor Hui ascended the throne, Cao Shan stayed away from the imperial government
Before Gao Zu's death, Lü Hou asked him about the government, looking for a trustworthy ruler, and Gao Zu first recommended Xiao He. However, at this time, Xiao He was old, and Lü Hou continued to ask who could serve as Xiao He's successor, and Gao Zu elected Cao San.
Before Xiao He's death, he also recommended Cao San to Emperor Hui:
In the second year of Emperor Hui's reign, Xiao He died. Refer to it, tell the people to be interested in the rule of action, "I will enter the picture."
The same choice of Gao Zu and Xiao He, coupled with Cao San's status and reputation, made Liu Ying extremely trust Cao Gan, but after Cao Gan's appointment, he feasted and drank with his subordinates every day and did not ask about political affairs. Some of the counselors could not see past him and made suggestions to him, but he poured wine on people and forced them not to speak.
Emperor Hui of Han Liu Ying
Cao San's loyalty to the Han Dynasty and even to the descendants of the Liu clan has been verified by time and can prove to be very profound, so his behavior clearly shows that he does not want to interfere too much in the affairs of the dynasty.
As a young successor, Emperor Hui had great ambitions that belonged to young people, so he sent Cao Shan's son Cao Zhen to inquire about why Cao Shan did not ask about political affairs. Cao Zhen took the emperor's instructions and went back to explain the reason to his father, so he was beaten up and scolded until he was young and could not teach Lao Tzu a lesson.
Although Cao Qi was young, it was obvious that he was the microphone of Emperor Hui, and his words and deeds fully represented Emperor Hui, and Emperor Hui asked him to talk to Cao Shan, one was to find out the reason, and the other was to remind Cao Shan.
With Cao Shan's life experience and political experience, it is impossible to think about this matter. However, his behavior was suspected of disrespecting the emperor, except that he was a former dynasty elder, and the real reason was that he hoped to reply to Emperor Hui through this matter, and he would not change his style because of his reminder.
Cao Gan, who knew how to advance and retreat, kept a clear head
Cao Zhen's beating did not come in vain, and the curious Emperor Hui finally asked Cao San's question directly, which made the truth of Cao Gan's idea come out.
Cao Shan replied to Emperor Hui that he was not lazy, but because the governing policy of his predecessor Xiao He originated from Great Qin, which was the advanced experience accumulated by the Qin people over the past hundred years when they changed the law from the Shang Martingale, and Xiao He believed that this experience was beneficial to the Han Dynasty, so he did not make changes and took it all, and also received great results (the establishment of unification of the Han Dynasty).
In the face of such excellent policies, Neither Emperor Hui nor himself had the extraordinary talent to propose new policies that surpassed the former, and in this case, it was most important to maintain stability and let the various policies continue to be implemented as they were during Xiao He's reign.
At this time, Lü Hou had already shown a domineering side
In other words, since the monarchs do not have the ability and necessity to make changes, it is the most important thing not to toss.
Many times, in order to show their difference, young emperors are always willing to overturn the policies of their predecessors to show their greatness. However, most people planted their heads here, and the sensible Emperor Hui also understood the reason why Cao Gan did not toss at this time.
In addition, Cao San's identity has also changed, from the Pei County official in that year to the Marquis of Ten Thousand Households who is under one person today, he has a huge position and material conditions, which is an important guarantee for the survival and growth of his clan and descendants, in order to ensure that these conditions can be smoothly transmitted to the hands of future generations, he does not want to be planted in the political struggle.
Han Xin, Xiao He, Yingbu, Peng Yue, and countless heroes of that year fell on the liquidation of the heroes by Gao Zu and Lü Hou, and Cao Gan was able to stand alone in the complex court by maintaining a sober mind.
Cao Chengxiang, who stirred up the storm at the end of the Han Dynasty
Four hundred years later, the Eastern Han Dynasty is in turmoil, the glorious history of the entire Han Dynasty is about to end, a new era is coming, and in the turbulent world, countless heroes have risen together and continued the cycle of struggle, among which cao san's descendants have participated.
However, in the four hundred years of storms, not every family has the opportunity to continue to the end. Among the prominent figures of the early Han Dynasty, many of their descendants were defeated in the struggle between the court, which affected the entire clan, not only the titles and wealth were recovered, but even the lives of the clans were difficult to save, and they had to be abandoned by the times.
In contrast, Cao San's decision not to ask about the government is extremely clever, and this choice not only ensures that the newly established Han Dynasty can run smoothly with the assistance of Xiao He's governing strategy, but also keeps himself and the clan away from the center of the power storm, which fully proves that Cao San's choice of keeping the business is rational and clever.