The three kingdoms of Wei, Shu, and Wu fought for many years and finally fell into the territory of the Western Jin Dynasty. Cao Wei was nominally the second of the three regimes to perish, but in fact had already died in name only. Sima Yi, Sima Shi, and Sima Zhao controlled the Cao Wei dynasty for a long time before Sima Yan replaced Cao Wei to create the Western Jin Dynasty. There were many reasons for Cao Wei's demise, the most obvious and direct reason being that the lord was weak and strong, and the Wei Ming Emperor Cao Rui entrusted non-human. Cao Rui had Cao Shuang and Sima Yi assist Cao Fang, and Cao Shuang and Sima Yi first fought among themselves, and then Sima Yi overthrew Cao Shuang and began to control the imperial government, gradually replacing Cao Wei's regime. In fact, Cao Rui's initial choice of chancellor was called Cao Yu, but it was soon changed to Cao Shuang and Sima Yi. So who is this Cao Yu, and why is he replaced by the latter?
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="2" > Cao Yuqi</h1>
Cao Yu was the son of Cao Cao. Cao Cao had many wives and concubines, and many sons, so as one of Cao Cao's many sons, Cao Yu's fame was not so prominent. However, one of his brothers can be said to be famous, that is, Cao Chong. Cao Yu, like Cao Chong, is the son of Lady Huan. Cao Chong was deeply loved by Cao Cao, and if it were not for his early death, he would have posed a great threat to Cao Pi's position as the son of the world; and Cao Yu was once infinitely close to Cao Wei's power center, but later he was far away because of the obstruction of others and his own abandonment.
Cao Rui was with Cao Yu in his youth, and their relationship was very close. This is probably also the reason why Cao Yu later got Cao Rui's favor and thought that he was entrusted with the orphan minister. Like many other Cao Wei kings, Cao Yu was made a marquis during the Jian'an period of the Eastern Han Dynasty; he was enthroned as a duke in the second year of the Huang Dynasty of Cao Wei (i.e., 221 AD); and in the third year of the Huang Dynasty (i.e., 222 AD), he was enthroned as a prince. Since then, he has also carried out some migration and re-sealing, successively becoming the King of Xia Pi and the Single Father King (the King of County, Cao Pi changed the kings to the county kings in the fifth year of the Huang Dynasty and 224 AD). In the sixth year of Taihe (i.e., 232 AD), Cao Rui ordered the restoration of the kings as county kings. Cao Yu changed his name to King Yan.
During the Cao Pi period, Cao Wei's restrictions on the princes of the clan were very severe, and they were not limited to Cao Zhi alone. By the time of Cao Rui, Cao Rui deliberately changed this tendency. For example, in the fifth year of Taihe (i.e., 231 AD), Cao Rui ordered the princes and dukes to send their sons to the dynasty; the following year, the county king was changed to the county king. And Cao Yu, the little uncle who was better than Cao Rui, entered the dynasty from the third year of Qinglong (that is, 235 AD) to the first year of the Jing Dynasty (that is, 237 AD), although Cao Rui had deliberately relaxed the restrictions on the kings of the clan, but this situation like Cao Yu was still very rare.
In the second year of the Jing Dynasty (i.e., 238 AD), Cao Yu was once again conscripted into the court. Although Cao Rui became seriously ill in the second year of the Jing Dynasty and died in the third year of the Jing Dynasty (i.e., 239 AD), cao Yu showed no signs of illness when he entered the dynasty. From the time of entering the DYNASTY, cao rui had a special attitude towards Cao Yu. When Cao Rui was seriously ill, Cao Rui also thought of Cao Yu for the first time, planning to let Cao Yu assist the Young Emperor Cao Fang. Cao Yu, as Cao Cao's son and a close branch of Cao Wei's clan, being given such a position is also a very breakthrough move.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="7" > Cao Yu, Cao Shuang, and Sima Yi competed</h1>
Cao Rui's earlier finalized auxiliary ministers were Cao Yu, Xiahou Xian, Cao Shuang, Cao Zhao, and Qin Lang, and we see almost Qing Yishui's sons of the Cao clan Xiahou clan (Qin Lang, although surnamed Qin, was one of Cao Cao's adopted sons and the object of Cao Rui's intention to cultivate). Among them, Cao Yu, as a great general, was the head of the auxiliary chancellor. Although Cao Shuang is also inside, he is not a girder. At this time, Cao Rui undoubtedly still believed very much in the loyalty and ability of the Cao Wei Sect.
However, this list caused dissatisfaction and jealousy among Zhongshu Ling Sun Zi and Zhongshu supervisor Liu Fang. Sun Zi and Liu Fang had long been in the position of cardinals, and they were able to come into contact with these orders as early as possible, and there was also room for influence and change. Sun Zi and Liu Fang insisted on changing Cao Rui's orders and persuaded Cao Rui to abandon Cao Yu and use Cao Shuang and Sima Yi as auxiliary ministers.
There has always been much room for discussion about the motivations for this matter. From a more macroscopic point of view, many people believe that the full power of cao Wei's imperial family is not conducive to the interests of Sun Zi and Liu Fang, which is quite reasonable. However, there is a clearer explanation of Sun Zi and Liu Fang's motives in the historical data. It was because Sun Zi and Liu Fang were seriously at odds with Qin Lang, Cao Zhao, and Xiahou Xian. This discord is also caused by the struggle for power. Xiahou Xian and Cao Zhao once commented on the chickens on the trees in the temple, "This is also a long time, how many can it be restored?" ", meaning to threaten Sun Zi and Liu Fang. When Cao Yu and the others (except Cao Shuang) were deliberating outside the palace, Sun Zi and Liu Fang immediately took action.
As for the struggles of Sun Zi, Liu Fang, Cao Yu, Cao Shuang, Sima Yi, Xiahou Xian, Cao Zhao, Qin Lang and others before Cao Rui's death, and the transformation of the list of ministers, the Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, the Spring and Autumn of the Han Dynasty, the Shiyu and other historical materials are recorded, but there are some discrepancies in the details. Perhaps the historians of Cao Wei and the Western Jin Dynasty were also relatively secretive about this period.
Combined with the above historical data, a summary is made: Sun Zi and Liu Fang desperately prevented Cao Rui from using Cao Yu as an auxiliary chancellor; excluded Xiahou Xian, Cao Zhao, Qin Lang, and others; supported Cao Shuang to replace Cao Yu's position; and recruited Sima Yi and Cao Shuang to assist and contain each other. After repeated calculations, Cao Rui finally agreed to sun zi and Liu Fang's suggestion, and when he was seriously ill, Cao Rui's hand edict was even completed by Liu Fang holding Cao Rui's hand. Cao Yu was then dismissed from office, just one step away from the center of Cao Wei's regime. Cao Wei also fell into the abyss of being replaced by Sima Shi because of this step.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="13" > Cao Yu's son became emperor</h1>
Because of the influence and interference of Sun Zi and Liu Fang, there are also historical records that Cao Yu personally did not want to compete for power and insisted on resigning, so Cao Yu was not able to become an auxiliary minister of the Young Emperor Cao Fang. Cao Yu's son later became emperor of Cao Wei, but he actually had little power and had little political influence, that is, Cao Wei's later lord Cao Wei.
Beginning with the Young Emperor Cao Fang, the Cao Wei regime had a tendency to be a strong vassal. In the first year of the reign of Cao Shuang, in the tenth year of the reign (i.e., in 249 AD), Sima Yi launched a mutiny to eliminate Cao Shuang, which can be regarded as the starting point for Sima Shi's usurpation of power. Cao Fang himself had the idea of resistance, and there were many loyal generals within Cao Wei, so there were some mutinies and coups d'état during the Cao Fang period, but they were all resolved by Sima Yi and Sima Shi.
After resolving the "Jiaping Rebellion", the brothers Sima Shi and Sima Zhao deposed Cao Fang and installed Cao Fang as emperor. During the Cao Dynasty, although there were mutinies in the Huainan region, they still failed to succeed. Instead, the forces supporting Cao Wei were repeatedly cut, and Sima Shi's control over Cao Wei became more and more firm. Cao Fang's personality is more fruitful than Cao Fang's. With very little chance of winning, Cao Xian still organized palace servants to fight Sima Zhao as an army, and as a result, he was killed by Jia Chong in the palace. Later, Cao Yu's son Cao Yu (曹奂) succeeded Emperor Dazong and was proclaimed emperor, and Cao Yu became Cao Yu's vassal. Cao Yan did not have the courage and ambition to oppose Sima Shi, and Cao Wei did not have enough residual strength, and Cao Yi had always been a puppet controlled by Sima Zhao, and was eventually replaced by Sima Yan as the king of Cao Wei's fallen kingdom and the guest of honor of the Western Jin Dynasty.
Reference: "Three Kingdoms"