Cao Xi was the fourth monarch of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period. By the time Cao was in power, Sima Zhao had complete control of the government. Cao Xian could not stand Sima Zhao's oppression, so he led hundreds of courtiers and servants to attack Sima Zhao in the palace, and was finally killed by Sima Zhao's minister Chengji.
Obviously, taking only a few hundred servants to fight Sima Zhao was a kind of moth to put out the fire for Cao Xian. So why didn't Cao Xian bring Sima Zhao Zhao into the palace and kill him? Compared to the previous moth-fighting methods, this common palace coup seems to be more suitable for Cao Xian. But if we analyze it carefully, things are not so simple.
In his later years, Sima Yi firmly held the power of Cao Wei. Later, through the management of Sima Shi and Sima Zhao's brothers, it can be said that Cao Wei was a party of Sima Shi. If Cao Xian wanted to expel Sima Zhao from the palace, he must have his own party members, and these party members must also be powerful people. Otherwise, Cao Xian could not have killed Sima Zhao in the palace with just one army.
According to the Spring and Autumn Chronicle, Cao Xian invited many people to discuss before his crusade against Sima Zhao. At first, Cao Fu angrily accused Sima Zhao of his authoritarian regime, and then he told the three of them that he had decided to go after Sima Zhao. After listening, The Minister of State Wang Jing strongly demanded that Cao Xi say: "This power has existed for a long time, and all aspects of the court have died because of it, and no matter what the principle is against the will, it will not take a day." In addition, there was no room for defense, and the number of soldiers was small and weak. What is the use of His Majesty? Once this happens, nothing is to eliminate disease and further evil! It is appropriate to see more details of the accident.
Wang Jing told Cao That Sima Shi had ruled the government for a long time, and now all the people in the government were Sima Zhao. In addition, the soldiers in the palace were empty. What will you use against Sima Zhao? It can be seen from here that Cao Xian is now a complete army. Neither in the imperial court nor in the imperial palace had the right to compete with Sima Zhao (there were also people in the palace who were bribed by Sima Zhao).
Cao Huan was blinded by his anger at Sima Zhao. He did not listen to Wang Jing's advice and insisted on fighting for his life. Later, court member Wang Yi and ordinary court member Wang Ye went directly to inform Sima Zhao after secretly meeting with Cao. Two of the three people Cao Xian trusted betrayed him. It can be seen that no one in the imperial court at that time was willing to work for Cao Xi. Even though Wang Jing did not join Cao Xi in his crusade against Sima Zhao, he was eventually executed for failing to inform Sima Zhao in time. Therefore, Cao Xian could not kill Sima Zhao inside or outside the palace. Without the support of his followers, he could only make heroic sacrifices in the end.