Why did Cao Cao have to kill Hua Tuo? The Book of the Later Han gives the truth, and Cao Cao was right. History often does not give straightforward answers, and always hides the truth in the fog.
Hua Tuo's medical skills are superb and famous, what kind of character is Cao Cao, and what kind of sparks will be inspired when power and medical skills meet? Is it the power of the arts, or is it the nature of the power? Or is it for a motive we don't know about? All kinds of questions are repeated, and there are many confusions.
1. Hua Tuo's life experience and achievements
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, it was a time of turmoil, epidemics, and disasters. In this difficult period, an ordinary family in Peiguo Qiaozhou gave birth to an extraordinary child - Hua Tuo. Gifted and intelligent since childhood, he studied diligently and was not discouraged in the extremely backward medical environment at that time, and combined with his own practice, he created many unique clinical diagnosis and treatment methods.
In 145 AD, Hua Tuo was born in the area of Bozhou, Anhui Province, which belonged to the Peiguo Prefecture at that time, and was an important town in the Jianghuai Valley during the Eastern Han Dynasty. When he was young, the Eastern Han Dynasty was declining, the government was corrupt, and the people were struggling to make a living. There are even more wars and turmoil throughout the country, plagues are raging, and people's lives are dying. In this harsh environment, very few people can calm down and specialize in medical skills, let alone Hua Tuo's humble background.
However, Hua Tuo was not trapped by the environment, but surpassed the times with extraordinary perseverance and wisdom. He traveled all over the world, collected medicine himself, and accumulated extensive practical experience. Especially in the Xuzhou area, he treated a worm disease caused by eating habits for the then Taishou Chen Deng, and became famous in one fell swoop.
In addition to clinical experience, Hua Tuo is also good at theoretical research. He delved into ancient medical texts, and boldly innovated, and proposed a unique way of health preservation - five poultry opera. This set of exercises focuses on prevention and treatment, and has a unique effect on enhancing physical fitness and prolonging life.
At the same time, Hua Tuo also devoted himself to drug research and development, and invented the world-renowned hemp boiling powder, which became one of the earliest anesthetics in the world. With the assistance of hemp boiling, surgery can be quickly promoted. It can be said that without Hua Tuo's contribution, it would be difficult for Chinese medicine to reach such a high level.
With his extraordinary wisdom and medical skills, Huatuo has won a high reputation. However, his personal personality is a troubling question. According to the Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Hua Tuo was "evil in human nature, rare and undesirable, and ashamed to take medicine as a profession". It can be seen that despite his extraordinary medical talent, Hua Tuo still retains a certain arrogant and rebellious personality in his bones.
It was this character trait that opened the curtain on his later fate. After his fame spread, he was favored by Cao Cao and was recruited to serve left and right. At first, this seemed to be a good opportunity for Hua Tuo to have a long future. However, fate often goes in unexpected directions......
2. Hua Tuo was called to serve
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the government and the opposition were chaotic, and warlords from all walks of life divided one side and eyed Xuzhou, a strategic place. Chen Deng, as the Taishou of Guangling at that time, governed well, and restored Xuzhou's prosperity for several years. It was Chen Deng who was infected with a strange disease, and Hua Tuo relieved Chen Deng's urgent need with his extraordinary medical skills, thus making a name for himself.
Xuzhou is located in an important town and wars are frequent. It first belonged to Tao Qian's command, and then was seized by Liu Bei, and then controlled by Lu Bu. As soon as Lu Bu went, Xuzhou was owned by Cao Cao for the first time. Soon, Liu Bei raised his troops again, taking advantage of Cao Cao's expedition to Yuan Shao, and recaptured Xuzhou. In the end, Cao Cao pacified Liu Bei, and Xuzhou came under Cao Cao for the second time.
It was during these changes of hands that Cao Cao heard of Hua Tuo's name, intentionally or unintentionally. According to the "Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms": "Taizu summoned Tuo when he heard it, and Tuo was always around. Taizu suffers from the wind, every hair, dizziness, acupuncture, and acupuncture. It can be seen that Cao Cao's summons to Hua Tuo is really to solve his own head wind.
Cao Cao's head wind disease has a long history, and whenever he attacks, the pain is unbearable, and his mind is often confused. This is really unbearable torture for a reckless hero. Therefore, when he learned that there was a miracle doctor with superb medical skills, he would naturally include him in his personal service at all costs.
At that time, Xuzhou was also a gathering place for literati and scholars. Chen Deng himself is a person of filial piety and honesty, and he greatly admires culture. Hua Tuo is even more stunning, including "the art of knowing the number of scriptures and knowing the cultivation of sex", which makes Cao Cao eager to go.
With Hua Tuo's joining, it is undoubtedly a big help for Cao Cao. Not only can it treat stubborn diseases, but also use Hua Tuo's talent and cultivation to improve its own cultural literacy and lay the foundation for the establishment of a dynasty in the future.
Therefore, Cao Cao's attention to Hua Tuo can be imagined. At that time, there was a record that "Taizu often ordered Tuo to sit left and right, and he was extremely respectful". It can be seen that Cao Cao not only attaches importance to Hua Tuo's medical skills, but also treats him as a VIP.
However, just as Cao Cao was being courteous to Hua Tuo, the rift between the two sides was also quietly spreading. One is due to Hua Tuo's character, and the other is due to Cao Cao's insistence on authority.
According to historical records, Hua Tuo "is evil to human nature and difficult to get along with". As a generation of medical saints, his conceit of medical skills is understandable. But such an arrogant and domineering temperament is inevitably estranged from Cao Cao.
And Cao Cao has always been domineering and domineering, and he is even more ruthless to his cronies. The slightest disobedience will be punished severely. Soon, the spark where the two men confronted each other was burning darkly.
There are all kinds of signs that it is difficult for the two sides to stand side by side for a long time, and there will be a day when they will part. It's just that when power and art meet, which one will fall, which one will come first, I'm afraid even Hua Tuo himself didn't expect the final outcome.
3. Factor 1: Personality factors
At the beginning of Hua Tuo's conscription to serve Cao Cao, the relationship between the two sides was harmonious for a time. Cao Cao praised this famous medical saint and regarded him as a treasure. And Hua Tuo also knew the grace of encounter, and benefited a lot from Cao Cao's treatment of stubborn diseases.
However, under this seemingly calm appearance, a fire has spread secretly. This is due to the huge difference in the personalities of the two sides.
According to the record of the Book of the Later Han Dynasty, Hua Tuo "is evil for human nature, and it is rare to be happy". As the world's top medical master, Hua Tuo's conceit is understandable. But this overly arrogant temperament is far from Cao Cao's personality.
Since he was a child, Cao Cao has shown ambition and sharpness that are different from ordinary people. Although martial arts and good fighting are one of his major characteristics, he also contains a strong and domineering personality in his bones. As a generation of heroes, he was resolute and invincible, and with this unborn courage, he finally dominated the world.
When these two very different personalities meet, they are destined to be as difficult as fire and oil. Especially when they first met, Cao Cao's attention to Hua Tuo had reached the extreme, and he was often ordered to "sit left and right, and be extremely respectful". However, in the face of such hospitality, Hua Tuo was unmoved.
According to historical records, although Hua Tuo served around Cao Cao, "whenever there is a call-up, Tuo often refuses". It can be seen that he didn't take Cao Cao in his eyes at all, and he despised such a major summons so much. This was undoubtedly an open provocation to Cao Cao's authority.
As the ruler of power above 10,000 people in the current dynasty, how could Cao Cao tolerate someone under his command to act so recklessly and openly disobey his orders? As a result, the relationship between the two sides broke down little by little in this frequent conscription and prevarication.
Once, Hua Tuo even rejected Cao Cao's recruitment as many as seven times. In the face of such blatant contempt, how could Cao Cao still swallow his anger? As a result, Cao Cao, who had been grudging for a long time, finally broke out into the vicious side of an iron-fisted ruler.
In Cao Cao's dictionary, no resistance is allowed on the part of his subordinates, let alone such blatant disregard and contempt. According to the rules of the Game of Thrones, Hua Tuo's actions are undoubtedly provoking Cao Cao's authority.
As a powerful minister of the current generation, how could Cao Cao tolerate such a provocation? Otherwise, once he continues to indulge, no one under his command will obey orders, and his future will be bleak. Therefore, fueled by personality factors, Cao Cao was determined to get rid of this stubborn disease that hindered his rule.
It can be said that it was precisely because of the violent conflict of the personalities of the two sides, coupled with the game of power, that finally led to this tragedy. If Hua Tuo could change his temperament and obey Cao Cao's orders, maybe he wouldn't have ended up like this.
4. Factor 2: Status
In addition to personality factors, another important reason for Cao Cao's break with Hua Tuo was the disparity in status and identity between the two sides.
Looking at the social environment at that time, although Hua Tuo's medical skills were already famous, from the perspective of status, he was just a commoner-born "Fang Skill" after all. And Cao Cao is a generation of heroes, with majestic power and commanding the world.
In that hierarchical feudal society, even an outstanding talent like Hua Tuo was difficult to be really valued by the bureaucracy and aristocracy. In their eyes, the "skill" of medicine is still classified as the lowest level of "craft".
The talent of a generation of famous doctors is certainly admirable, but after all, it cannot break the identity confinement of the time. In the face of such a strong social hierarchy, a commoner like Hua Tuo from a humble background is destined to find it difficult to gain respect and status.
Even under Cao Cao, Hua Tuo's situation is not too good. Because in Cao Cao's eyes, Hua Tuo is just a "doctor" after all, a "tool" for his own use.
At the beginning of Hua Tuo's recruitment, the reason why Cao Cao attached so much importance to it was completely out of personal selfish desires, hoping that Hua Tuo could cure his stubborn disease. Once this level of demand is satisfied, it is easy for Cao Cao to ignore the value of Hua Tuo's existence.
Judging from Cao Cao's status, he was born in an upper-class family and has been cared for since he was a child. In addition, with his martial courage and good strategy, he climbed to the position of holding power step by step, and naturally retained an innate arrogance and arbitrariness in his bones.
In the face of a low-level commoner like Hua Tuo, Cao Cao's attention to him is more for the purpose of exploitation, and it is inevitable that he will have a certain "high-minded" attitude. It was this arrogant psychology that exacerbated the rift between him and Hua Tuo.
There is a widely circulated Chinese record that when Cao Cao summoned Hua Tuo, he was quite disrespectful to him, and even verbally intimidated. Although the veracity of this statement is unverifiable, it does reveal the contempt of the rulers of the time.
In Cao Cao's view, Hua Tuo is a "subordinate" who doesn't even know what to do, and dares to disobey his call so blatantly. As a generation of heroes, it is undoubtedly difficult to tolerate such acts of defiance of authority.
As a result, stimulated by the huge gap in status and identity, Cao Cao's hatred for Hua Tuo was rekindled again. He firmly believed that as a ruler, he must severely punish this reckless "subordinate" in order to maintain his ruling authority.
It can be said that the disparity in status and identity not only exacerbated the estrangement between Cao Cao and Hua Tuo, but also was an important inducement for the tragedy to occur. When power meets lowliness, it is destined to provoke catastrophe.
5. Commentary and discussion in later generations
Cao Cao's killing of Hua Tuo was widely circulated in later generations, and it also triggered countless comments and discussions. Some people think that Cao Cao is a kind of revenge psychology and accidentally killed a generation of medical saints; Others are positive, believing that Cao Cao's actions are reasonable and legal to maintain his rule.
Judging from the historical records, the "Book of the Later Han Dynasty" did not comment too much on Cao Cao's disposal of Hua Tuo, but only stated the facts: "Tuo Shu fled to take up his name, doubted him, and punished him." It can be seen that Cao Cao's approach did not cause much controversy and criticism at that time.
It was not until the Southern Song Dynasty that some historians commented on this matter. The famous historian Yan Zhitui commented in the Book of the Later Han Dynasty: "Ordinary people say that they love to kill good people, but it is not true. He is a medical saint, and he is proud of his heritage. ＂
Yan Zhitui's words are undoubtedly excusing Cao Cao's actions. He believes that ordinary people have some criticism of Cao Cao's indiscriminate killing of innocents, but this is not the case. Although Hua Tuo is a generation of medical saints, his personality is too arrogant and presumptuous, and it is normal for Cao Cao to be dissatisfied.
This kind of comment is undoubtedly defended from the standpoint of the rulers. As long as it is an act of disobeying authority and challenging the rule, even if the other party is an outstanding talent, it is natural that they will be severely punished.
Later, Lu You held the opposite view, and in his "Notes on Lao Xue'an", he pointed out that Cao Cao "killed him because of his medical skills". This is undoubtedly criticizing Cao Cao for being narrow-minded and indiscriminately killing innocents.
The two-for-tat comments reflect the different views of later generations on Cao Cao's handling of Hua Tuo. However, on the whole, it seems that there is more criticism and sympathy for Hua Tuo's views.
After all, Hua Tuo is a master of the current generation of medical skills, and his many medical attainments and contributions are obvious to all. And Cao Cao's actions do seem to be a bit small-bellied and paranoid.
But from another point of view, the situation of the rulers is really not easy. If subordinates are allowed to act recklessly, it will inevitably lead to the loss of authority, which will affect the security of the country. Therefore, Cao Cao's severe punishment of Hua Tuo was not a means of maintaining his rule.
This also seems to indicate that there was a fundamental contradiction and conflict between the rulers and the commoners in the social environment of the time. The irreconcilable disparity in status is destined to lead to tragedy.
As one critic said: "Cao Cao's killing of Hua Tuo was caused by the social class contradictions at that time. Perhaps, when we comment on this historical encounter, we really need to have a broad vision and a broad mind.