Cao Cao (155–220), courtesy name Mengde (chinese: Jili, nicknamed Ah Qi), was a native of Peiguo County (present-day Bozhou, Anhui). He was an outstanding politician, military figure, writer, and calligrapher at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the founder of the Cao Wei regime.
Portrait of Emperor Cao Cao of Wei Taizuwu
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms says that he was a descendant of the han dynasty name Cao Shan, which of course is nothing more than a historian putting gold on Cao Cao's face. According to the research of archaeologists in later generations, the genes of the Cao Cao family have nothing to do with Cao Ginseng. Cao Cao's father, Cao Song, was the adopted son of Cao Teng, a famous eunuch during the reign of Emperor Huan of Han, and Cao Teng was supposed to be Cao Song's uncle. The previously popular Cao Song was originally the son of Xiahou And was the same as the brothers Xiahou Huan and Xiahou Yuan, but now it has also proved to be a wrong statement. As a native, the Xiahou clan did have a great relationship with the Cao family, and the two families had a long-term intermarriage and good relationship, such as Cao Cao and Xiahou Yuan, who were consorts.
In his youth, Cao Cao was debauched and did not love to study and learn, and was originally from the descendants of eunuchs, so he was not favored by the family clan at that time (and even despised). Only Qiao Xuan of Liangguo, He Yong of Nanyang, and Xu Shao of Runan, spoke highly of him, and Xu Shao even gave the comment that has been sung through the ages: "The traitor of Jun Qingping, the hero of the chaotic world." However, Cao Cao was very fond of martial arts and military books in his early years, and he read a lot of books, especially liked the art of war, and transcribed the ancient martial arts of war, as well as the "Wei Wu Notes Sun Tzu" works that annotated the "Art of War of Sun Zi". These laid a solid foundation for his later military career.
In the third year of Xiping (174), Cao Cao, who had just turned 20 years old, was elected as a filial piety, entered Beijing as a lang official (alternate reserve cadre), and soon became a lieutenant in northern Luoyang (the head of the county public security bureau), beginning his political career of more than 40 years.
As the capital of the Eastern Han Empire, Luoyang was inhabited by a large number of imperial relatives and nobles, who often bullied men and women and disregarded the royal law, which was difficult to govern. As soon as the young Cao Cao arrived at his post, he affirmed the prohibition and strict law and discipline, and he created more than ten sticks of five colors, which hung around the yamen, and stated to the outside world that "those who violate the prohibition will be killed with sticks." At that time, a man named Jian Tu was forbidden to walk at night, and Cao Cao showed no mercy and executed him with a five-colored stick. It should be known that this Jian Tu is not an ordinary person, his nephew Jian Shuo is a very favored eunuch of the Emperor Han Ling Emperor (the author believes that this Jian Shuo may be the most favored eunuch of the Ling Emperor, ten years later the Ling Emperor formed the Western Garden Forbidden Army, he appointed Jian Shuo as the leader of this army, the Forbidden Army is the core gun of the Empire, and non-absolute confidants will certainly not receive this heavy responsibility). Cao Cao even dared to kill such a person with a backstage, so for a time "The Beijing master traced, no one dared to offend", but at the same time, Cao Cao also offended some of the powerful people of the dynasty.
In the sixth year of Xiping (177), although he was very jealous and dissatisfied with Cao Cao, due to the relationship of his father Cao Song, the magnates still rose to the top and sent Cao Cao to Dunqiu (present-day Qingfeng County, Henan).
In the first year of Guanghe (178), Cao Cao was implicated in the murder of eunuchs by his cousin Song Qi the Marquis of Haoqiang (probably the brother of Empress Song of the Han Ling Emperor), implicated, and removed from his official post. After that, there was nothing to do in Luoyang and he returned to his hometown of Yuxian County.
In the third year of Guanghe (180), Cao Cao was again recruited by the imperial court and appointed as a parliamentarian (advisor to respond and a minor official on duty). Earlier, the great general Dou Wu and Taifu Chen Fan plotted to kill the eunuchs, but they were killed by the eunuchs. Cao Cao wrote a statement that Dou Wu and others had been framed for official integrity, resulting in the treacherous and evil people filling the dynasty, while the loyal people could not be reused, and the words were earnest, but they were not adopted by the Han Ling Emperor. Subsequently, Cao Cao wrote to him several times for advice, and although it was occasionally effective, the eastern Han Dynasty became increasingly corrupt. Cao Caokong was full of enthusiasm for Chen Shiyi, but he had to get the helplessness of resigning from the government after not being able to correct it.
In the first year of Zhongping (184), zhang jiao led the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Cao Cao was appointed to the mountain as a cavalry lieutenant (cavalry regimental commander), along with the famous general Huang Fusong to suppress the uprising, and after his meritorious service, he was appointed minister of jinan (equivalent to the mayor of a prefecture-level city, the state of Jinan in present-day Jinan, Shandong). Although the Yellow Turban Rebellion was suppressed, the political ecology of the Eastern Han Empire had reached its darkest point, and there was even a system of buying officials at clear prices. Soon, the imperial court once again recruited Cao Cao as the Taishou of Dong Commandery and worshiped as a huilang, but he refused to cater to the magnates, so he returned to the township due to illness, read in spring and summer, hunted in autumn and winter, and temporarily lived in seclusion.
In the fifth year of Zhongping (188), the Han Ling Emperor, in order to consolidate his rule, set up the Eight Lieutenants of Xiyuan, and Cao Cao was appointed as the lieutenant of the Eight Schools (the fourth of the Eight Lieutenants) because of his family lineage.
In the sixth year of Zhongping (189), the Han Ling Emperor died, and the Eastern Han Empire fell into greater chaos. First, the general He Jin, who represented the interests of the Shi clique, killed Jian Shuo of the eunuch clique (who was heavily relied on by Emperor Hanling and prepared to support Emperor Ling's second son Liu Xie as emperor), and Liu Jie (He Jin's nephew) as emperor. Then, in the blink of an eye, Zhang Rang and others of the eunuch clique killed He Jin in the inner court, and Yuan Shao of the Shi clique once again eliminated Zhang Rang and other eunuchs. In the end, Dong Zhuo, a warlord of Liangzhou in the northwest who had originally been invited to Beijing by He Jin, expelled Yuan Shao and others, deposed The Young Emperor, and established Liu Xie as Emperor Xian of Han. Cao Cao, seeing the chaos in the world, escaped from the capital and returned to Chen Liu's father's house, where he persuaded his father to scatter his family wealth, recruit volunteer soldiers, and advocate that the heroes of the world form a coalition to fight against Dong Zhuo.
In the first month of the first year of Chuping (190), Yuan Shu and others jointly promoted Yuan Shao of Bohai taishou as the leader of the alliance, and Cao Cao was appointed by Yuan Shao as the acting general of Fenwu to participate in the joint army of Dong Dong (historically known as the "Kwantung Alliance"). In February, Dong Zhuo, who had been defeated by the coalition forces, forced Emperor Xian to move the capital to Chang'an (northwest of present-day Xi'an, Shaanxi), and he himself burned the palace, dug up the royal tomb, and plundered the people, leaving Luoyang 200 miles desolate and uninhabited. However, the Kwantung Coalition army, fearing the combat strength of Dong Zhuo's elite Liangzhou army, did not dare to advance towards kansai, all of which were in the area of Tun Bing Sour Jujube (present-day northern Yanjin County, Hebei). Cao Cao believed that Dong Zhuo "burned the palace, robbed the Son of Heaven, and shook the sea", and should take the opportunity to fight a decisive battle with him, so he led the army west alone. Cao Cao marched to Xingyang (荥阳汴水, in modern Xingyang, Henan) and engaged Dong Zhuobu's general Xu Rong ( Xu Rong ) , but because of the disparity in the number of soldiers , Cao Cao was defeated , and most of the soldiers were killed or wounded. He himself was injured by a stray arrow, but was saved by his cousin Cao Hong. Returning to sour jujube, Cao Cao suggested that the armies should each have their own strongholds, and then divide their troops west into Wuguan (武關, southeast of present-day Danfeng County, Shaanxi) and besiege Dong Zhuo, but the generals in Kwantung refused to comply. The Kwantung Coalition army was called a crusade against Dong Zhuo, but in fact each of them had a ghost fetus in mind, intending to develop their own forces. Soon, friction broke out between the various armies and began to fight with each other.
In the second year of Chuping (191), the joint army of Dong led by Yuan Shao collapsed due to the different hearts of the people, and Cao Cao began to choose to go it alone in disappointment. He was stronger than Poison, BaiHuo, Xiaogu, and Yu Fuluo in Dong Commandery (東郡, in present-day Puyang, Henan), and Yuan Shao represented him as the Taishou of Dong Commandery (東郡太守).
In the third year of Chuping (192), Liu Dai, the assassin of Yanzhou, was killed in battle against the Yellow Turban Army, and Cao Cao was invited by Bao Xin, the chancellor of Jibei, to break the Yellow Turban Army in Qingzhou (in present-day western Shandong Province, northeastern Henan Province, and southeastern Hebei Province), and was appointed by the imperial court as Yanzhou Mu (equivalent to the current governor). Cao Cao also helped Yuan Shao defeat the armies of Liu Bei, Shan Jing, and Tao Qian, and from then on, based in Yanzhou, officially became one of the heroes of the late Han Dynasty.
From the fourth year of Chuping (193) to the thirteenth year of Jian'an (208), Cao Cao killed Tao Qian, Earn Yang Feng, Swallow Zhang Xiu, Ping Yuan Shu, kill Li Dai, Xue Lübu, destroy Yuan Shao, break Wu Maru, expel Liu Bei, lower Liu Chun, and the princes of Jiuhe, basically unifying the Central Plains. During this period, in August of the first year of Jian'an (196), he accepted the advice of the strategist Mao Jiu, greeted the returning Tianzi Han Xiandi, and moved the capital to Xuchang (xuchang, henan); Cao Cao was appointed as Sikong, Lu Shang Shushi, and Hundred Officials general of the Hundred Officials, and henceforth occupied the political opportunity, "Feng Tianzi ordered not to be a subject", and became famous for any of the princes. In June of the thirteenth year of Jian'an (208), Emperor Xian of Han was forced to abolish the Three Dukes, restore the system of ministers, and appoint Cao Cao as the minister of the Han Dynasty, and from then on, the Eastern Han regime existed in name only, and the power was in cao Cao's hands!
Although Jian'an was defeated at the Battle of Chibi in the thirteenth year (208), Liu Bei and Sun Quan divided Western Shu and Eastern Wu respectively, and from then on, Cao Cao was never able to unify the country again. However, he then pacified Ma Chao, Han Sui, Song Jian, Yang Qiu, etc. of Liangzhou in the sixteenth year of Jian'an (211), and Zhang Lu in Hanzhong in the twentieth year of Jian'an (215), completely unifying the north and laying a solid foundation for the later unification of the whole country by the Western Jin Dynasty.
In May of the eighteenth year of Jian'an (213), Emperor Xian of Han was forced to appoint Cao Cao as the Duke of Wei, establish the State of Wei, and add Nine Tin to build the capital of Jizhou Yicheng (邺城, in present-day Linzhang, Hebei), which owned the ten counties of Jizhou and could place hundreds of officials such as Cheng Xiang and Tai Wei. In the twenty-first year of Jian'an (216), Emperor Xian of Han was forced to appoint Cao Cao as the King of Wei and 30,000 households, breaking the agreement of Liu Bang of han Gaozu that "the oath of the White Horse Alliance: those who are not surnamed Liu are not kings".
At this time, Cao Cao, who was on the throne of the princes, did not play a vassal, was not commanded to worship, and worshiped the heavens and the earth with the crown of the son of heaven, the car costume, the flag, and the suburbs of Lile, and the entry and exit were called police feet, and the zongmiao, ancestor, and la were all like the Han system, and the princes were all marquises. He was still nominally a Han courtier, but in fact he was already an emperor without a crown.
In the first month of the twenty-fifth year of Jian'an (220), Cao Cao completed his magnificent heroic life and died of illness in Luoyang, at the age of sixty-six, at the age of 66, and was buried in Gaoling, the western suburbs of Yecheng. In October of that year, Cao Pi, the succeeding King of Wei, replaced Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty and established himself as emperor with the state name of Great Wei, posthumously honoring Cao Cao as Emperor Wu and Taizu as the temple.
Statue of Emperor Cao Cao of Wei Taizuwu
In his lifetime, Cao Cao made outstanding achievements in politics, economy, military, and literature.
Politically, he accepted Mao Jiu and Xun Yu's "orders from the Son of Heaven not to be subordinate", providing a moral premise for him to resign and destroy the princes of the world.
Economically, he implemented the "Tun Tian system" and the "rent modulation system", which played a great role in restoring the people's livelihood at the end of the Han Dynasty.
Militarily, he has made remarkable achievements, and his "Sketch of Sun Tzu" written by him has set a precedent for sorting out and commenting on the thirteen articles of "Sun Tzu"; he advocates the concept of war of "soldiers moving with righteousness", emphasizing that divisions are famous and in line with morality; he is flexible and changeable in strategy and tactics, and he sets up surprises according to events, allows the situation to win, and the soldiers are not tired of deception.
In terms of employing people, he advocated "meritocracy", precisely because he was eclectic and demoted talents, and the talents under his hands were like clouds, and the military generals were like rain, gathering a large number of talents. Among them: the general Zhang Liaoyuan was the general of Lü Bu, Zhang Gaoyuan was the general of Yuan Shao, Xu Huangyuan was the general of Yang Fengbu, Yu Banyuan was the general of Bao Xin, Zang Ba was originally the general of Tao Qian, Wen Ping was originally the general of Liu Biao, Pang De was originally the general of Ma Chao, and Le Jin was excavated by him among the low-level soldiers; among the strategists Xun Yu, Guo Jia, and Cui Yan were originally subordinates of Yuan Shao, Jia Xu was originally under Zhang Xiu, and Chen Qun was originally under Liu Bei; Cao Cao could all know people and use them well.
Literarily, his poems expressed his political ambitions, reflected the miserable life of the people at the end of the Han Dynasty, and was majestic, generous and sad, creating a precedent for "Jian'an literature"!