Preamble:
Guan Yu is not chaotic in the face of danger, Cao Cao is magnanimous, what is the story of the two, and how will their conduct affect that turbulent era?
Chapter 1 Cao Cao captures Xiapi
The Three Kingdoms stand together. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the world was in turmoil, the government was unstable, and the dethronement was impermanent. As an important minister of the Han family, Cao Cao forged ahead, trying to sweep the world, reunify the territory, and seek a peaceful and prosperous era for the people.
In that year, Cao Cao led a large army to capture Xiapi. This battle is an uphill battle for both sides. The city of Xiapi was strong, the defenders fought bravely and skillfully, and Cao's army stretched under the city for several months with heavy casualties. In the end, it was Cao Cao's careful deployment and trickery that he finally took this city.
In this battle, Liu Bei, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei fought together, which can be described as sharing weal and sorrow. They formed a deep friendship of life and death together in the midst of war. Who knew that after the fall of Xiapi, Liu Bei and Zhang Fei took refuge in Yuan Shao, but Guan Yu was captured by Cao Jun.
Cao Cao treated Guan Yu with great courtesy
In the face of Guan Yu, who was loyal and brave and good at fighting, Cao Cao did not imprison him, but gave him a mansion and gold, and named him a partial general, and Jiajue as the Marquis of Hanshou Pavilion. Such love was rare at the time.
It turned out that Cao Cao had long taken a fancy to Guan Yu, a fierce general with outstanding martial arts. He had seen Guan Yu's courage and diligence, and respected his talent and morality very much. As a far-sighted military strategist, Cao Cao hoped to take this outstanding man under his command, and with the help of Guan Yu's strength, he could pacify the world as soon as possible, reunify the territory, and seek a peaceful and prosperous era for the people.
Chapter 2 Guan Yu's heart is towards Liu Bei
However, Guan Yu turned a blind eye to Cao Cao's heavy appreciation. In his heart, there was only Liu Bei. For Liu Bei, Guan Yu cherishes the loyalty of both a father and a brother. This kind of loyalty has gone beyond the ordinary relationship between the master and the general, and is more like a kind of family affection where blood is thicker than water.
In the face of Cao Cao's lavish reward, Guan Yu was unmoved. The only way he wanted was to find Liu Bei and continue to follow Liu Bei's subordinates. Seeing that Guan Yu had no intention of staying for a long time, although Cao Cao tried his best to keep him, he couldn't keep him after all. Because Guan Yu had already made up his mind, he would rather abandon the glory and wealth given by Cao Cao, but also follow his brother Liu Bei and share the hardships with him.
Guan Yu took Yan Liang's head to repay his kindness
Before leaving, Guan Yu deliberately galloped towards Cao Cao and took Yan Liang's head among the ten thousand armies, in order to repay Cao Cao's kindness. This move not only reflects Guan Yu's gratitude to Cao Cao, but also shows his courage and skill.
In such a huge army, being able to single-handedly capture a general shows that Guan Yu's martial arts have been perfected. Seeing this, Cao Cao couldn't help but sigh with emotion, and guessed that Guan Yu was going to leave his command.
Chapter 3 Cao Cao is magnanimous
Guan Yu hung up the seal and sealed the gold, and left a letter to find Liu Bei. In the face of Guan Yu's departure, although Cao Cao was lonely, he did not stop him, but only told his soldiers not to pursue Guan Yu. As a generation of military strategists, Cao Cao knows that talents are rare. Although Guan Yu left his command, he was not willing to hurt this loyal and brave man.
Seeing this, Zhang Liao hesitated again and again, and finally reported the matter to Cao Cao. However, Cao Cao just said calmly: "Each for his own master." It shows his magnanimity towards Guan Yu. As the overlord of one side, Cao Cao should severely punish the soldiers who betrayed him. However, instead of doing so, he chose to let go. This kind of open-mindedness is really admirable.
Chapter 4 Cao Cao's benevolent style
Thinking about Cao Cao's treatment of Guan Yu, it is really a legacy of the previous king. Although it was already a bad etiquette at that time, Cao Cao could still embody the style of benevolence, and compared with the previous kings of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, he was not far behind.
We know that although the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period were constantly fighting, the two sides still paid attention to etiquette when marching and fighting. For example, Duke Wen of Jin once fulfilled his promise to the king of Chu, and took the initiative to retreat when the two armies were fighting, in order to show his sincerity. Captured generals will also try to return to their king's side, turning a blind eye to the riches of money and silk. This kind of loyalty and integrity was the mainstream value of society at that time.
Chapter 5 Guan Yu Sets New Heights
Guan Yu's move directly raised the moral standard of the late Eastern Han Dynasty to a new height and set a new model for generals. Although he is in Cao Ying, his heart is towards Liu Bei, and this spirit of loyalty is really admirable. In that era of class division and gatekeepers, few people could be so unswerving.
It is Guan Yu's noble character and Cao Cao's wisdom and wisdom that complement each other to achieve this legendary story. Cao Cao fulfilled Guan Yu's loyalty, and Guan Yu's loyalty also demonstrated Cao Cao's magnanimity. If Cao Cao had imprisoned Guan Yu at that time and forcibly left him, this good story would have lost its brilliance.
Chapter 6 Cao Cao attaches great importance to feelings
In fact, Cao Cao is not a person who blindly pursues power. Judging from the howling and crying when he later passed by Yuan Shao's cemetery and went to mourn and worship, Cao Cao was a person who attached great importance to feelings. In that era of iron and blood, it is rare to be able to have such tenderness.
Chen Shou's "Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms" recorded that Cao Cao killed Lu Bohao's family because Lu Bohao's son and guests wanted to covet Cao Cao's money and horses, so Cao Cao killed them in anger. It can be seen that Cao Cao is not a ruthless person, he just finds it difficult to tolerate treachery. If the Lu family could be faithful, Cao Cao would definitely not harm them.
Chapter 7: Kindness Becomes Regret
However, it is this kindness that has also become Cao Cao's regret that he could not dominate the world in the end. If Guan Yu repeatedly asked Cao Cao for Qin Yilu's wife, Mrs. Du, could Cao Cao agree to Guan Yu as he did with Yan Liang?
If Cao Cao could be as magnanimous as he was with Guan Yu, perhaps Guan Yu would be grateful and continue to follow Cao Cao. At that time, Cao Cao's men will have an elite force, enough to sweep the world and dominate China.
After all, Cao Cao is one of the "senior enthusiasts". For beauty, he has always been difficult to control. If he could restrain his selfish desires like he did with Guan Yu, maybe his fate would be rewritten. However, this is just wishful thinking on our part, and no one can change the history that has already happened.
Epilogue:
Looking at the story of Cao Cao and Guan Yu, it is not difficult for us to find that the word loyalty and righteousness are not idle. Guan Yu is in danger and has supreme loyalty to Liu Bei; Cao Cao was magnanimous and courteous to Guan Yu. It was their noble character that pushed the moral standard of that turbulent era to a new peak.
This historical anecdote not only bears witness to the purest and noblest side of human nature, but also sets a glorious example for us. It tells us that no matter what the circumstances, we should be loyal and upright, and be committed to our careers and ideals.
At the same time, we should also be like Cao Cao, magnanimous, tolerant of others, and fulfill the ideals and aspirations of others. Only in this way can we find a sense of tranquility in the chaotic world and find the meaning and value of life.