Cao Cao had a total of twenty-five sons in his lifetime, of which there were many outstanding ones, so for Cao Cao, choosing who would become his heir was a very tangled problem. In the beginning, he was most interested in Zhong Lingyuxiu and his eldest son Cao Ang, who was both literate and martial, but in the Battle of Wancheng, Cao Ang was killed in battle to cover Cao Cao's escape; later he appreciated Cao Chong, who died at the age of thirteen; later the equally excellent Cao Pi and Cao Zhi made him waver. His entanglement did not matter, and his subordinates who hoped to find a good future in the future were divided into several different camps. However, although there are many camps, there is only one ultimate heir, and most of the people who lose the bet have a miserable end, such as Yang Xiu.
Yang Xiu was the son of The Great Lieutenant Yang Biao, who had little talent and was good at guessing Cao Cao's intentions, so he was very much appreciated by Cao Cao. When he was most favored, he "always knew the outside and inside, and everything was satisfactory." However, he, who had always been familiar with Cao Cao's intentions, made a mistake in the most crucial one, that is, the issue of heirs. The person he supported was Cao Zhi, and he repeatedly helped Cao Zhi pass Cao Cao's test, which soon aroused Cao Cao's dissatisfaction, so he was killed for the crime of "leaking words and teachings before and after, and handing over the princes". In order to let Cao Pi better receive his inheritance and help Cao Pi eliminate his political enemies, cao cao was not to blame, for example, Zhou Bu, who was originally close to Cao Chong, was also assassinated by him. However, at the same time, among Cao Zhi's supporters, there was also a pair of brothers surnamed Ding, namely Ding Yi and Ding Shu, who supported Cao Zhi far more firmly than Yang Xiu, but Cao Cao killed Yang Xiu and let them go. Xiaobian believes that there are mainly the following reasons.
First, Yang Xiu himself left a handle for Cao Cao
Cao Cao's charge against Yang Xiu was "leaking words and teachings before and after, and handing over to the princes", which means that he leaked military secrets and privately made friends with members of the royal family, which is difficult to determine, and it is likely that Cao Cao wants to add to the crime and force it. However, Yang Xiu was able to guess Cao Cao's intentions, and "always know the outside and inside" is an indisputable fact, and he has always been arrogant and proud, and it is likely to tell some of his own speculations to show off his talent. He himself knew that sooner or later he would be killed, so before he died, he said, "I insist that I will die too late." ”
The Ding brothers only supported Cao Zhi, liked to exalt Cao Zhi in front of Cao Cao, and belittled Cao Pi, they had no ability or opportunity to learn the secrets of Gao Ji, nor did they leave other handles, and Cao Cao had no reason to move them.
Second, the Ding brothers are brighter than Yang Xiu
Yang Xiu has always been arrogant, seemingly grinning, and everything is on the face, for example, after he speculated about Cao Cao's intentions, he expected cao Cao to test Cao Zhi with what problems he might use, and had already prepared countermeasures for Cao Zhi, never knowing to hide, which caused Cao Cao's dissatisfaction. However, he was not a bright and honest person, and when Cao Cao proposed to make Cao Zhi crown prince, Cao Pi felt very uneasy, so he invited Wu Zhi, who was on his side, to the palace for consultation, and as a result, Yang Xiu secretly ran to complain to Cao Cao. Although he supported Cao Zhi, on the surface, his relationship with Cao Pi was still good, and there was an exchange of letters between the two, and as a result, he engaged in such a play, a set on the surface and a set behind it, and Cao Cao naturally did not like it.
The Ding brothers never engaged in this set in front of Cao Cao, no matter when and in front of whom, they have always firmly supported Cao Zhi, never vaguely expressed their attitude, and did not secretly make small reports. For suspicious people like Cao Cao, the Ding brothers are more trustworthy.
Third, Yang Xiu's personal ability is far above that of the Ding brothers
Cao Cao was very worried that Cao Pi would not be able to control the situation well after inheriting his position, so he wanted to help Cao Pi eliminate his political enemies as much as possible. At this time, Cao Chong had already died, and Zhou Bu, who had a very good relationship with Cao Chong, was assassinated by Cao Cao's dispatches, just imagine that now that Cao Zhi is still alive and well, will Cao Cao let Yang Xiu go? After all, no matter how high or low his talent was, Yang Xiu's personal influence was far greater than Zhou's, and Yang Xiu at that time "went down from the Prince of Wei and fought for friendship", if he still supported Cao Zhi after Cao Pi succeeded to the throne, he would definitely be able to cause great chaos again. Based on these considerations, Cao Cao must eliminate Yang Xiu. The ding brothers' talent and influence are not much different from Yang Xiu's, and there is not much difference between killing and staying, and Cao Cao believes that such a figure has no ability to cause trouble for Cao Pi, so he let them go.
Fourth, the camps are different
Yang Xiu was from the "Hongnong Yang Clan" and was the son of the taiwei Yang Biao, and Yang Biao's allegiance was to the Han Dynasty. Cao Cao himself did not usurp the throne, and had planned to kill Yang Biao, but was dissuaded by Kong Rong and others. He knew that after he was, Cao Pi would definitely use Wei Daihan, just imagine which side Yang Xiu would be on at this time? Yang Xiu himself has a huge influence, coupled with the prominent background of the Yang family's "Fourth Tai Wei", what kind of consequences will be triggered after he takes sides? For this point, Cao Cao did not dare to gamble, so in order to avoid this situation, he could only get rid of Yang Xiu to avoid future troubles.
The Father of the Ding Brothers, Ding Chong, was a close confidant of Cao Cao, who had supported Cao Cao in welcoming the Son of Heaven as a vassal, and his personal relationship with Cao Cao was also good, so the Ding family could accept such things as Wei Daihan, that is to say, no matter which son of the Ding brothers supported Cao Cao, they would not be enemies of Wei, and they could remain as supporters of the change of dynasty. Cao Cao certainly wouldn't kill them.
After the analysis of the whole article, it is not difficult for us to find that Yang Xiu was inevitably killed by Cao Cao, he accepted this reality a long time ago, and now we can only sigh a pity. Although the Ding brothers, who were deliberately retained by Cao Cao, saved their lives during Cao Cao's time, the final outcome was even worse than Yang Xiu.'s Although Yang Xiu died, the Yang family was saved, but after Cao Pi succeeded to the throne, the Ding family was almost equivalent to extinction. According to the "Chronicle of the Three Kingdoms, Wei Shu, And Chen Siwang", "Emperor Wen was the throne, and Ding Yi, Ding Yi, and his male mouth were noted. ”
All the historical materials in this article are from the book "Romance of the Three Kingdoms", and the author guarantees the authenticity of the historical materials, and there is no innuendo or politics involved.