Marrying a daughter to an emperor may have been a dream of many people in ancient times. Cao Cao was no exception, and he successively married his three daughters Cao Xian, Cao Jie, and Cao Hua to Emperor Xian of Han. It's just that he didn't do this to get over the addiction of being the emperor's father-in-law, but to have his own long-term plans, or to say that he had to do it.
Why?
Just look at what happened before he married his daughter.
According to the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, Emperor Xian of Han could not stand Cao Cao's arbitrariness and wrote a belt edict to Dong Cheng, asking him to secretly contact some people to kill Cao Cao. Dong Cheng found Wang Zifu, Wu Zilan, Ma Teng, Liu Bei and others to prepare for the uprising. Unexpectedly, before he could start the action, he was discovered by Cao Cao, Dong Cheng and others were defeated and killed, and Liu Bei had a great life, and he escaped the disaster because he was sent to fight Yuan Shu in advance.
Film and television stills | Cao Cao discovers the blood edict written by Emperor Xian of Han
Although he killed a few guys who wanted to create his own rebellion, Cao Cao was still very uneasy in his heart. He knew that there were still many people like Dong Cheng who could approach the emperor alone, which was a big hidden danger for Cao Cao.
What is Dong Cheng's identity?
Orthodox imperial relatives: nephews of Empress Dong, the mother of Emperor Hanling; because his daughter was a nobleman, he was also the father-in-law of Emperor Xian of Han.
Of course, Dong Chengken risked his life to help Emperor Xian of Han, saying that it was a simple old man helping his son-in-law, which was a bit unsatisfactory. After all, the emperor's father-in-law was not only himself, and Dong Cheng could not take himself too seriously. The reason why he was willing to accept the blood edict was nothing more than two reasons: one was interest, and the other was blood relatives.
From the perspective of interests, at that time, the emperor and the imperial court were under the control of Cao Cao, which changed the situation of foreign relatives in power during the Eastern Han Dynasty, so that the royal clans such as Dong Cheng had no power and no real name. Therefore, not only did the emperor hate Cao Cao, but Dong Cheng also wanted to get rid of him.
Cao Cao discovered that the blood edict written by Emperor Xian of Han | stills
In terms of blood relatives, Empress Dong was the grandmother of Emperor Xian of Han, and Dong Cheng was the cousin or cousin of Emperor Xian of Han. Cousins are also relatives, related by blood, and are a family. His own imperial court was occupied by a foreigner, and he could not swallow this breath no matter how he said it; not to mention that once Cao Cao was taken, it would be a great achievement, and the fortunes of the Dong family would be very different.
With such an abacus, how could Dong Cheng, who was as smart as Cao Cao, not have imagined? Now it was only the discovery of Dong Cheng, so many relatives of the emperor, and then there were people like Dong Cheng who opened up their lives and did it against themselves, which would be a disaster for Cao Cao, and it would be impossible to prevent it.
Without stopping, Cao Cao decided to send his daughter to the palace as well— there were seven daughters! Although he did not despise being the father-in-law of such a nested emperor, and even knew exactly what the fate of his daughter would be in the future, it was worth sacrificing several daughters for his great cause.
Film and television stills | Han Xian emperor Liu Xie
The three daughters are the same husband, although the reputation is not good, but the three daughters together, because of the relationship between family and blood will stand on the same front, can form a powerful force to fight against other forces in the harem, Yu Cao family will be of great benefit.
But Cao Cao underestimated the power of love.
There are not many written records of Cao Xian and Cao Hua in the history books, so I will not say it. His second daughter Cao Jie had a good relationship with Emperor Xian of Han and was made empress in the first month of 215. Cao Jie had a weak personality, adhered to the traditional virtues of Chinese women, obeyed the orders of Emperor Xian of Han, maintained everywhere, and was not willing to help Cao Cao at all.
Film and television stills | Cao Cao's daughter Cao Jie
After Cao Cao's death, she was also unwilling to help her brother Cao Pi to usurp the throne, and refused to hand over the jade seal of Emperor Xian of Han to him. Although he was finally forced to hand it over, he also threw the jade seal to the ground with contempt, and cursed Cao Pi and said, "Heaven is not Zuo'er", which means that God will not help you. After all, it was his own sister, and Cao Pi couldn't do anything to her.
Cao Jie opposed Cao Pi's usurpation of the throne, saying that it was not an exaggeration to say that he had a long-term affection for Emperor Xian of Han, and that he also had her own selfish intentions.
Cao Pi deposed Emperor Xian of Han as the Duke of Shanyang himself, and Cao Jie was the Duchess of Shanyang, how could his status be compared with that of the empress? In the face of such a big gain and loss, the love of brothers and sisters is like a floating cloud.