In the eyes of people who know history, Cao Cao was a great hero, a hero in the Three Kingdoms period, but he was portrayed as treacherous and suspicious by Luo Guanzhong, a novelist of the Yuan Dynasty in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, which was really unfair to Cao Cao.
When Cao Cao was young, he was quick-witted, but he was willful, chivalrous, unruly, uneducated and unlearned. Therefore, no one in the society thinks he has any special talents, only Qiao Xuan of Liang thinks he is different. Qiao Xuan said to Cao Cao, "There will be chaos in the world, and people who are doomed can't help it. Who can live in peace? " Xu Qing of Nanyang said to him: "The one who died in the Han Dynasty and settled down in the world must be this person!" Xu Shao, a word general, is famous for knowing people. He once said to Cao Cao, "You are a traitor and a hero in troubled times."
In the third year of Xi Ping (AD 174), Cao Cao, who was only twenty years old, was promoted to filial piety and became the A Lang of Luoyang. Soon, he was appointed as the northern commander of Luoyang. Luoyang, the capital of the Eastern Han Dynasty, is a place where imperial power and power coexist and it is difficult to govern. As soon as Cao Cao arrived at his post, he announced that it was forbidden to strictly observe the law and discipline, and made more than ten colored sticks to hang around the yamen. "Anyone who violates the ban will be beaten to death with a stick." The emperor's favorite eunuch's uncle Jian Shuo was forbidden to go at night. Cao Cao showed no mercy and executed him with a five-color stick. As a result, "the capital is gone, and no one dares to commit crimes." But Cao Cao also offended some powerful people in the dynasty, such as Jian Shuo. Because of his father Cao Song, Cao Cao was transferred to Dunqiu (now Qingfeng, Henan) far away from Luoyang. Ren Dun Qiu Ling this year, Cao Cao was twenty-three years old. Cao Cao wrote a letter to his son Cao Zhi: "I used to be a commander of Qiu, and I was twenty-three years old that year. At this time, I think about what I have done, and I have no regrets today. " You are 23 years old now, don't be reluctant!
In the first year of Zhong Ping (A.D. 184), the Yellow Scarf Army uprising broke out, and Cao Cao was worshipped as the riding captain, and was ordered to jointly attack the Yellow Scarf Army in Yingchuan with Lu Zhi and others. As a result, the Yellow Scarf Army was defeated and tens of thousands of people were beheaded. Then moved to Jinan. During his tenure in Jinan, Cao Cao managed things as always. In more than ten counties in Jinan (now Jinan, Shandong), county officials are attached to your power, taking bribes and perverting the law, and have no scruples. Before Cao Cao, all countries ignored it. After Cao Cao took office, he made great efforts to rectify, and eight out of ten officers were exempted. Jinan shakes, corrupt officials flee. "The politics and religion are big, and one county is bright." At that time, it was extremely dark in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and there was even a system of buying officials. The court appointed Cao Cao as the negotiator, but Cao Cao refused to cater to the dignitaries and returned to the village on the pretext of illness.
During the Eastern Han Dynasty, consorts and eunuchs took turns to take power, and the atmosphere in the ruling and opposition parties was filthy. Stepping into the Jian 'an era, the Eastern Han court was hopeless. In this regard, Sima Guang once commented in "Zi Zhi Tong Jian": "At the beginning of Jian 'an, it was everywhere; "Without an inch of land and a nation, this is not the style of China people."
Dong Zhuo was good at abolishing legislation, Ada made his own royal robes, and the title of Huainan Brothers was engraved in the troubled times in the north. Cao Cao has always maintained respect for the imperial court.
As early as five years in Zhong Ping (A.D. 188), some people plotted to overthrow Emperor Han Ling and set up a new Lord, but Cao Cao, who was still negotiating at that time, refused. When the Allies marched eastward to Dong Zhuo, Cao Cao took the lead in making progress compared with other people's wait-and-see concerns. In the second year of Chuping (A.D. 19 1), Yuan Shao and others in the Han Dynasty wanted to make Liu Yu, a shepherd from Youzhou, emperor, but Cao Cao refused again, and made it clear: "Gentlemen, I am from west to north." You can listen to the shepherds in the northern Youzhou. I am still loyal to the western emperors. Li urged others to bring disaster to Chang 'an, and when his party fled for their lives, there were indifferent people, people who fish in troubled waters and people who hit people when they were down. Cao Cao was one of the few people who took the initiative to meet Xian Di. In December of the 24th year of Jian 'an (AD 2 19), after Wu and Wei jointly killed Guan Yu, Sun Quan wrote to Jin as a vassal, but Cao Cao refused to listen: "This boy wants to set me on fire!" . Although there are cautious tactics of Cao Cao in this series of words and deeds, it cannot be denied objectively that this is a respect for the imperial court.
Although Cao Cao was in power, he always respected the authority of Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty, and even his own life and death were in the hands of Xian Di. When Cao Cao met Xian Di, he followed the custom of meeting the emperor at that time, and there was a tiger with a sword beside him. In the 19th year of Jian 'an, that is, the year when Cao Cao killed Wan Fu, Xian Di once said to Cao Cao, "If you think I deserve help, please help me. If you can't, you can." At that time, Xian Di could kill Cao Cao as long as he gave the order. Cao Cao was shocked and sweaty when he heard this (Cao Cao really didn't dare to go to court after that). Of course, when Cao Cao returned, he could kill Xian Di in turn, but Xian Di didn't order him to be killed, and Cao Cao didn't show any disrespect to Xian Di. It can be seen that Xian Di still trusts Cao Cao, at least 1, and he, or the world still needs Cao Cao; Cao Cao won't hurt him. I don't know why, Liu Bei said something similar to Zhuge, but Xian Di said something similar to Cao Cao, deceiving and confusing the monarch. Cao Cao said that "there are no orphans in the world. I wonder how many people call themselves emperors and how many people call themselves kings", which is actually a truth that everyone knows. Objectively speaking, Cao Cao should be called the terminator and successor in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He let a terminally ill old man spend his last years peacefully and succeeded in inheriting his "legacy".
Cao Cao's literary talent is brilliant, and his martial arts are unparalleled. At the time of war, marching to fight "because of miracles, the enemy wins and becomes like a god." He once wrote a "gauntlet" of hundreds of thousands of words. Cao Cao commanded many battles in my busy schedule. Chen Shou, the author of The Three Kingdoms, commented: "This is Bai Han's unique strategy", saying that Cao Cao has the strategies of famous military strategist Han Xin and Bai Qi. In Shu Wei, Wang Shen compared it with the great militarists Sun Tzu and Wu Qi. Later generations recognized Chen and Wang's views. I thought Cao Cao:
First, be familiar with the art of war. Cao Cao studied the art of war and had profound military theories. I sorted out a set of necessities for domestic soldiers and discussed them with my own war experience. A Brief Interpretation of Sun Tzu's Art of War is the first book to sort out Thirteen Articles of Sun Tzu's Art of War, which enriches and develops China's ancient military theory. It is moral to advocate the concept of war that "soldiers move with righteousness" and emphasize that teachers are famous. In terms of strategy and tactics, it is always fair to be flexible and changeable and cheat because of strange things and winning or losing situations. These farsightedness are highly valued by future generations.
Second, be good at being a general. "Emperor Wu Ji" said: Cao Cao knows how to be kind, withdraws from the forbidden line, enjoys the progress between the lines, and takes Zhang Liao and his country into subjugation, all of which are meritorious deeds with their lives and are listed as famous names. Cao gave full play to Cao Can's strengths according to the characteristics of generals. For example, Chu Xu and Dian Wei are strong and loyal to the law, so Cao Cao let them fight for the army and rest for the army; Cang Ba had confidence in the East, so Cao Cao entrusted the two states of Qingxu to the tyrant, so that he could concentrate on dealing with Yuan Shao without considering the East. Wen Pin, a general under Liu Biao's account, is very prestigious in Jianghan area. Cao Cao named him Jiangxia satrap, entrusted peripheral affairs, and made him Sun Quan's imperial concubine.
Third, strictly manage the army. Clear rewards and punishments, set an example. On one March, Cao Cao ordered that horses were not allowed to trample on the wheat fields. If they violate it, they will all be beheaded. The soldiers all dismounted and walked for fear of hurting the wheat seedlings. But Cao Cao's steed was frightened and stepped on the wheat field. He drew his sword and cut off a lock of hair as punishment, which shows the seriousness of law enforcement. There were many defeats in the early days, but the army never dispersed, which was related to the strict management of the army.
Fourth, it is longer than tactics. Resourceful, flexible and changeable, able to make decisions according to the situation of the enemy and ourselves. In a series of battles with Lu Bu, Zhang Xiu, Yuan Shao, Ma Chao and Han Sui. Tactics, such as shifting from east to west, evading reality, ambushing, outflanking, raiding, alienating, grabbing food, attacking the other, and abandoning things to lure the enemy, are often used to win and turn weak into strong. According to the rough statistics of Wu Di Ji, Cao Cao personally commanded about 30 wars in his life, and most of them won, and some of them played very beautifully. For example, Jian 'an was defeated for three years, and Yuan Brothers took the head in eleven years without fighting. The battle of Guandu is the most classic. He fought Yuan Shao for two months, and Cao Cao was in an extremely difficult situation. At this time, Yuan Shao shipped more than 10,000 wagons of hay from Hebei, and sent general Chunyu Qiong to guard the troops and stay in Wu's lair. Cao Cao was overjoyed when Xu You put forward a plan to attack the Wu Dynasty. He personally led the elite to ride 5,000 horses and sneaked into the path at night. When the army arrived in Wu overtime, it set fire everywhere. Yuan Jun was in chaos, so he broke it and burned its food and grass. When the Wu Dynasty was defeated, Yuan Jun was scattered, and General Zhang He and others surrendered to Cao Cao. Yuan Shao abandoned the army and fled back to the north of the Yellow River. In February of the fifth year of Jian 'an, Yuan Jun general Yan Liang besieged Baima. In April, Cao Cao led the troops to solve the siege of the white horse. He advanced to Yanjin (now north of Yanjin, Henan, west of Baima), made a gesture of crossing the river to attack Yuan Jun, attracted him to divide his troops and move westward, and then quickly turned around and took Baima. Cao Jun suddenly arrived, caught off guard, Yan Liang was beheaded, the army was defeated, and the siege of the White Horse was broken. Throughout the battle of Guandu, Cao Cao is a classic, and Mao Zedong spoke highly of it in his works.
Fifth, it is shorter than a water war. Cao Cao only commanded a big water war once in his life, that is, Battle of Red Cliffs, and he fled in defeat. According to Liang Wudi's records, in the 13th year of Jian 'an, Cao Cao practiced the water army in Xuanwu Pool, Yecheng. In July of the same year, he conquered Liu Biao and later wanted to conquer Jiangnan. Because he is not familiar with water warfare, how can he practice the water army in the pool for a short time? According to Zhou Yu Biography, on the eve of Battle of Red Cliffs, Huang Gai made an idea: "Being outnumbered today is difficult and lasting. However, the military ship is connected with the ship end to end, and it can burn away. " Yu accepted his plan, pretended to surrender, attacked with fire and defeated Cao Jun. Ships are the main tools of water war. On the great river, warships are connected end to end, and they don't prepare for fire attack, but they believe in false surrender, which reflects Cao Cao's ignorance of common sense of water warfare.
Cao Cao is also a writer.
In the Jian 'an period, although the Three Kingdoms were divided, the cultural center of China was concentrated in the literati group centered on Cao Zhi and his son. Jian 'an literature occupied a very important position in the history of China literature, especially in the poetry circle centered on Cao Zhi and his son, which broke the silence and prosperity of poetry in the Han Dynasty for more than 400 years, including not only five-character poems but also four-character poems.
Judging from Cao Cao's more than 20 existing Yuefu poems, most of them are vigorous in style. Compared with many literati works in the Han Dynasty, their four-character poems Guishou, Guancanghai, Short Song, Dugu, Tu Bu Tong, and five-character poems Hao, Dujiu Liquor Store and Kuhan Xing are obviously better than those in the Han Dynasty. His poems not only absorbed the rich and simple features of the folk songs of Han Yuefu, but also had impassioned tragic artistic conception. Because of his historical and political position, his works had a great influence on the development of Jian 'an literature at that time. So Mr. Lu Xun once called him "the founder of reform articles", and his prose also has the characteristics of "simplicity" and "freedom". Therefore, he is the mediator of cultural innovation in China. It can be said that without the transformation and innovation of the style of writing by Wei, Jin and Cao Shi, there would be no cultural development in China in the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, Cao Cao made an indelible contribution to the development of China culture. Among them, "Short Songs" and "Guithough Shou" were used as mottos or quotations by people with lofty ideals in past dynasties because of their strong philosophical and influential nature, which shows that Cao Cao's deep influence on China culture is rare.
Poems in Cao Cao's Good Li Xing
The soldiers of the Kwantung Army rose up against the cruel people.
On the first day of the first date, General Ding Meng went to attack Dong Zhuo in Chang 'an.
Dong Zhuo's army came together, each with its own plans, looked at each other and refused to stand out.
These two sentences led to the battle of various armies, and then the armies of various armies killed each other.
Yuan Shao's cousin Yuan Shu proclaimed himself emperor in Huainan, and the emperor Yuan Shaomou carved the emperor in the north.
Because of the war, soldiers have long been unable to take off their battle clothes, their armor is covered with lice, and many people have died because of years of war.
The bones were bare in the field, and there was no one among them, and there was no crowing.
It is extremely sad to think that only one person in a hundred people is alive. "。
Many people think that Cao Cao is a traitor who "holds the emperor to make the princes" because some literary, film and television works are not very correct in understanding and image-building.
In fact, Cao Cao is a politician with the mind and ambition to save the people from fire and water.
Redemption of Cai Wenji and his short songs with a large sum of money shows his love for talents.
Compared with military achievements, our achievements are even worse.
Looking back at the history before the Three Kingdoms, during the reign of Emperor Huan of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the population of China once reached more than 50 million, but by the time of the Three Kingdoms, it had dropped to more than 7 million, even worse than during the Warring States Period, when people were beheaded frequently four or five hundred years ago (there were still more than 10 million). It is impossible to kill so many people, but it is not difficult to starve to death. The root cause is nothing more than natural and man-made disasters.
Since Emperor Huan of the Eastern Han Dynasty, droughts, floods, plagues, riots and rebellions of ethnic minorities have continued, and the population and households have been greatly reduced. According to the Records of the Later Han Dynasty, during the reign of Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty, the catastrophe was "in the spring of the ninth year (A.D. 166), Li Si and Yuzhou starved to death, and even destroyed their households". According to this estimate, about three or four million people starved to death in these two places this year alone; During the period of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, "In the first month of spring in the third year of Jianning (A.D. 170), people in Hanoi ate husbands and people in Henan ate wives", and "In the fifth year of Guanghe (A.D. 182), there was a great epidemic." In the sixth year of Guanghe (AD 183), there was a severe drought in summer. Other small-scale natural disasters, ethnic minority rebellions or invasions are numerous. Coupled with the Yellow Scarf Uprising in 184 and the subsequent warlord scuffle, the production was completely destroyed. In such troubled times, it is an urgent and primary task to restore normal production order and let the people have plenty of food and clothing.
Among the princes of the Three Kingdoms in the late Han Dynasty, there were many military talents and few internal affairs. Political and economic success or failure will naturally be reflected in the military (on the other hand, it is by no means easy). Most people suffer from it and eventually get stuck in the "rice", and even have no chance to prove whether they are "smart women". The way to resume production is to increase revenue and reduce expenditure, and Cao Cao has done well in both aspects. The implementation of the reclamation system is actually to ensure reproduction by means of state investment, and the work efficiency is of course higher than that of ordinary yeomen. Therefore, this policy achieved immediate results, and in a short time, it turned this place into a thriving place where "agricultural officers and soldiers, chickens and dogs speak, and buildings belong to each other". It is not too much to call it a great pioneering work. After Cao Cao captured Yecheng, in view of the heavy poll tax at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, he changed to household rules and charged landlords (including yeomen and landlords) four liters of land rent per mu, and each household paid two silks and two kilograms of cotton. "He must not be good at making money." The policy of vigorously stopping unreasonable apportionment to farmers has greatly reduced the burden on farmers and won unanimous support.
When Cao Cao was alive, he vigorously built water conservancy facilities and achieved fruitful results. For example, the seven gates and three weirs built in Shucheng, Zhou Yu's hometown, can still irrigate 20,000 hectares of fertile land every day until Song Renzong in the Northern Song Dynasty.
The severity of "trivial matters" not mentioned in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms can be reflected in the following examples:
First, Cao Cao fought two wars in Hanzhong, first defeating Zhang Lu and then losing to Liu Bei. However, due to the recovery of vitality in the north, it successfully moved out of Wudu and other places in Hanzhong, with a population of134,000 (although there are inducements and no threats). According to a family of four, this is more than 500 thousand. Think about the fact that when Shu Han surrendered, there were only 280,000 households with 940,000 people, and you will understand what kind of drastic measures Liu Bei took! After all, soldiers and civilians are the foundation of the war of resistance.
Second, in May of the 19th year of Jian 'an (AD 2 14), Lv Meng reminded Sun Quan that Cao Cao was cultivating land in Anhui (namely Lujiang), and if he waited for them to harvest, it would be tantamount to adding wings to the tiger. Therefore, Wu Dong took advantage of the rainy season water army to come and go freely. Sun Quan personally went out to levy such a tiny place as Anhui City. After Monroe Gan Ning went into battle, Zhu Guang, the satrap, was captured alive and tens of thousands of people were moved back to Wu. According to statistics, Sun Ce's Sun Quan brothers have called Zhou Yu's hometown, Huainan Shucheng, four times, but without exception, they all returned from looting. So Zhou Yu's hometown is so funny: Cao Wei tried his best to build a large-scale building, and Sun Wu tried his best to destroy Cao Pirui after Cao Cao killed people and stole goods. Although he is not bound in his personal life, he basically follows these policies. Later Sima Yi and Zhang He of Cao Zhen were able to repeatedly bring down Zhuge Liang without tactical mistakes in Qishan and other places because they had "deep internal forces" and sufficient material security.
Accordingly, Wu Shu's construction in this area is also very lacking. Because of its superior natural conditions, Sichuan already has such a masterpiece as Dujiangyan. It is understandable that there is no need to gild the lily and waste money.
Soochow was a complete failure.
Wu Dong once built a lake field in Danyang twice and built Pulitang. Yong' an was first built in the third year (the first year of Wei Jingyuan, AD 260), and countless human and material resources were invested. However, due to the failure to carry out construction in dry season, the pier foundation was flooded due to strong winds and waves. As a result, "the soldiers died, or the thieves died, and the people complained." The second reconstruction failed. No wonder later generations want to open canals and build reservoirs in Jiangnan. Although Jiangnan is known as the land of plenty, the agricultural level in the Three Kingdoms period was quite low. Even things that have long been common sense in the north, such as Niu Geng, have not been popularized, and there is no water conservancy construction such as reservoirs and ponds that can be irrigated with water. Its production efficiency can be imagined. In this case, even if there are millions of soldiers, they will starve. How do they compete for hegemony? If Cao Wei left a rich legacy to future generations, then Shu Han is the capital preservation, and Soochow is the debt.
At the same time of open source, Cao Cao also pays great attention to throttling and sets an example. According to historical records, Cao Cao was "elegant and frugal, but not gorgeous, and the harem dress was not gorgeous, and he did not adopt royal shoes, but made up for it with curtains and screens, and took wormwood with warmth, without feuds." To put it simply, clothes are not gaudy, shoes are not carved or embroidered, curtains and screens are patched, and beds and bedding are "tattered". With Cao Cao's vigorous correction, the extravagance since the Eastern Han Dynasty was reversed, and the people in the world were honest, diligent and self-disciplined. Even high-ranking officials and dignitaries dare not be extravagant, and there are even strange things that someone deliberately wears shabby clothes to please Cao Cao. In the 14th year of Jian 'an (AD 209), Cao Cao, in turn, had to order the rectification of this strange unhealthy trend.
Cao Cao's will also reflects his consistent frugal style: "The world is not yet stable, and there is no future." They were all taken away after the funeral. Garrison personnel are not allowed to leave the station. There is a division, and each rate is the location. There is nothing hidden in the clothes. "
In contrast, Liu Bei and Sun Quan were at a loss in their later years. Reflection? Liu Bei Biography quoted Dian lue as saying: "Liu Bei is called the king of Hanzhong, so he built a pavilion, covering an area of more than 400 miles from Chengdu to Baishuiguan", and Guan Yu, who fought alone, did so ... What he did later became a negative textbook for Chen Qun to persuade Cao Rui to abandon extravagance and attack the palace: "Yesterday, Liu Bei went from Chengdu to Baishuiguan and made more passes, which was too much. Later, in the battle of Yiling, Liu Bei's performance was even worse. Sun Quan was even more "crazy", even when he was not old, he was a little confused, so that Zhang Zhao mocked Zhou Wang's "wine pool and meat forest". Later, Sun Quan abolished the stupidity of the prince, which made the princes fall apart and become a laughing stock. Admittedly, Cao Cao is not perfect. His massacre in Xuzhou (mentioned below) should be condemned.
In addition, there are some widely misunderstood problems.
The most typical example of Liu Bei's love for the people is to escape with the people of Xinye. And Cao Cao? When he was in Guandu, he expected that Yuan Shao might kill the city, so he also evacuated with his people.
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms did not write this paragraph, but it is recorded in the history books. Why Liu Bei praised others and Cao Cao was not mentioned, alas. Besides, Liu Bei fled with the people of Xinye: before, he ran with the people. Later, he heard the spy report that Cao Jun was catching up immediately, and he was so scared that he left the people behind, even his wife and children (much like his ancestor Liu Bang).
Look at Cao Cao, advocating frugality, setting an example, and developing people's livelihood all his life without interruption.
The only massacre in Xuzhou City is a stain. But that's because his father was killed, and it's understandable to act irrationally in a rage. Later, Cao Cao made a series of measures to compensate the people in Xuzhou, such as tax exemption.
There is another problem, that is, Cao Cao's sentence, "I would rather teach me to be negative to the world than to teach the world to be negative to me." This sentence is hopeless. But in fact, this statement is also made up of romance.
The real record should be: "I would rather be negative than negative." The word "world" was added to romance, and the artistic conception was completely changed. It was romance that caused Cao Cao's unjust case.
From a historical point of view, his success is by no means accidental. He is worthy of Chen Shou's evaluation. He is an extraordinary man and a peerless leader.