AD 220 was the 25th year of Emperor Xian’s founding at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty in China. At that time, the situation in the country was relatively complicated. Although Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty was named the Emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the country had actually been divided into three parts: Cao Cao, Liu Bei, and Sun Quan. In three parts, the situation of the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu and Wu has been formed. From the perspective of talent replacement, the three kingdoms of Wei, Shu and Wu all suffered heavy losses in 220, with Wei and Shu suffering the most serious losses. Talents who died in the Wei Kingdom: In 220, the talents who died in the Wei Kingdom include Cao Cao, Xiahou Dun, Cheng Yu and others. Cao Cao died of illness: Cao Cao was undoubtedly one of the most outstanding emperors during the Three Kingdoms period and even in the entire history of China. Although the Three Kingdoms period was an era where heroes emerged in large numbers, to be fair, based on all aspects of performance, especially in terms of ability and quality, Cao Cao should be ranked first. Liu Bei and Sun Quan, who are often compared with them, are slightly inferior to Cao Cao in terms of personal abilities. Cao Cao was the most outstanding statesman, military strategist, writer, and calligrapher during the Three Kingdoms period. There are not many emperors and generals who have excelled in these four aspects throughout the ages. Political aspects. Cao Cao used the emperor to command the princes, and always held the political initiative, always overpowering other separatist forces, including Liu Bei and Sun Quan. Military aspects. Cao Cao fought countless battles in his life, and even until his death, he was still directing wars. He raised an army with one man's strength and defeated many warlord forces such as Lu Bu, Yuan Shao, Zhang Xiu, Ma Chao, and Han Sui. He also went on an expedition to Wuhuan and unified most of northern China. He was extremely flexible in using troops, and extremely strict in running the army. In particular, his ability to recognize and employ people was first-rate. Therefore, Cao Cao made great military achievements in his life. Literary aspects. Cao Cao was very accomplished in poetry and prose, and he was very good at expressing his political ambitions through poetry. The poetry was majestic and amazing to read! Calligraphy. According to historical records, Cao Cao also had high attainments in calligraphy. The "Book Review of the Tang Dynasty" said: "Cao Cao's calligraphy is like a golden flower falling down, everywhere is exquisite, jade and jade are divided into brilliance, and yao is like a dazzling flower." Cao Cao often met with calligraphers Zhong Yao and Liang Hu. , Handan Chun, Wei Dan, Sun Zi Jing and others competed in calligraphy. Unfortunately, there are very few calligraphy works handed down by Cao Cao, so his talent in this area can only be proved from the side. Cao Cao's death is undoubtedly the biggest loss of Cao Wei's power. Fortunately, his son was not weak and supported the career he left behind. General Xiahou Dun passed away: Xiahou Dun was a well-known general under Cao Cao. From the time Cao Cao first joined the army, Xiahou Dun gradually followed Cao Cao in all directions. After gaining his own territory, Xiahou Dun guarded the rear for Cao Cao many times. He once led the army and the people to block the Taishou River and built ponds to irrigate farmland, which benefited the people. He has made outstanding achievements and served as the captain of Zhechong, the prefect of Jiyin, the general of Jianwu, and the official. The highest general was granted the title of Marquis of Gao'an Township. According to historical rumors, Cao Cao was extremely suspicious and often feared that those around him might kill him, but he treated Xiahou Dun with special courtesy. In 220, after Cao Cao died of illness in January, Xiahou Dun also died of illness in April. Cao Pi gave him the posthumous title of Zhonghou, and later gave him the honor of being the advisor of Taizu (Cao Cao). Cheng Yu passed away: Cheng Yu was one of several great counselors under Cao Cao. When Chen Shou evaluated the great counselors under Cao Cao, he said this, ""Cheng Yu, Guo Jia, Dong Zhao, Liu Ye, and Jiang Jicai made strategies. Although he is a great scholar in the world, his virtues in governing the Qing Dynasty are different from those of Xun You, and it is his ethics to plan and predict. "It can be seen that at least in Chen Shou's eyes, Cheng Yu is the leader of Cao Cao's five great counselors, and he praises him as a genius. Cheng Yu's shortcoming is that he has a violent temper and often offends others when interacting with others. Therefore, someone once falsely accused Cheng Yu of treason to Cao Cao. However, Cao Cao didn't believe it at all and opposed him and treated him even more favorably. In 220, Cao Pi made the 80-year-old Cheng Yu the Marquis of Anxiang. Soon after, when he was about to make him the Third Duke, Cheng Yu died of illness, and Cao Pi shed tears. He was posthumously awarded the title of General of Chariots and Cavalry, and later had the honor of being enshrined in Cao Cao's temple. Talents of the end of the Shu Kingdom: 220 was a very sad year for the Shu Han. In this year, the Shu Han not only lost the strategic location of Jingzhou, but also lost its territory. Generals Guan Yu, Huang Zhong, and Liu Bei's first adviser Fazheng passed away: Guan Yu was definitely a first-class general in the Three Kingdoms era, and a first-class talent with both civil and military skills. He was also Liu Bei's most trusted brother. It's a pity. This year, Guan Yu was defeated by Soochow and killed. Guan Yu's life story was well known and his achievements were brilliant. However, the loss of Jingzhou and Guan Yu's killing also became the biggest turning point in the strategic development of Shu. This incident directly led to the Shu-Wu alliance. The rupture led to the defeat of Yiling of the Shu Kingdom and the death of Liu Bei, which directly reduced the strength of the Shu Kingdom by nearly half, created huge difficulties for the subsequent development of the Shu Kingdom, and directly messed up Zhuge Liang's setting when he was young. "Longzhong versus" strategy. Huang Zhong, one of the Five Tiger Generals, died of illness: Huang Zhong was an important general in the Shu Kingdom. After surrendering to Liu Bei, he became one of the Five Tiger Generals of the Shu Han Dynasty. When Liu Bei captured Yizhou, Huang Zhong He and Zhuoying led troops from Jiameng to march towards Liu Zhang. In the battle, Huang Zhong bravely defeated the three armies and fought all the way to Fucheng. Later, he followed Liu Bei to capture Mianzhu and surrendered Li Yan, Fei Shi and others. After taking Chengdu, Liu Bei Huang Zhong was granted the title of general against the captives. Huang Zhong's most glorious achievement was in the 24th year of Jian'an (219), when he killed Cao Cao's general Xia Houyuan at Dingjun Mountain and helped Liu Bei win Hanzhong. Huang Zhong became the queen of Hanzhong. Unfortunately, Huang Zhong died of illness the next year, which undoubtedly caused a huge loss to Liu Bei's promising career.
Fa Zheng, the first counselor of the Shu Han Dynasty, passed away: Fa Zheng was one of the important counselors in the later period of Liu Bei's reign. Liu Bei was able to capture Yizhou, and Fa Zheng made a great contribution. After Liu Bei occupied Yizhou, Fa Zheng was appointed as the prefect of Shu County and General Yangwu. During this period, Fazheng, together with General Zhuge Liang, General Zhaowen, General Zuo Xicao and Liu Ba, and General Xingye Li Yan, formulated the "Shu Ke", which effectively stabilized the new situation of Shu Han. Another major achievement of Fazheng was to help Liu Bei capture Hanzhong in a plan, which brought Liu Bei's career to its peak. At that time, Liu Bei's power included most of Jingzhou, as well as Yizhou and Hanzhong, and could almost rival Cao Cao. It is a pity that Fa Zheng died of illness the second year after taking Hanzhong, at the age of only 45. Fazheng's death made Liu Bei very sad, and he was posthumously named Yihou. He was the only minister with a posthumous title in Liu Bei's era. Chen Shou praised Fazheng for his good use of cunning tactics, and his talents were comparable to those of Cheng Yu and Guo Jia under Cao Cao. "Xianzhu Zhuan" says: Zhuge Liang is the leader, and Fa Zheng is the mastermind. Fa Zheng was 5 years older than Zhuge Liang. Although they had different temperaments, they both focused on public affairs and their cooperation was relatively harmonious. At that time, Zhuge Liang was mainly responsible for the government affairs in the rear and ensuring the supply of money and food. Fa Zheng often accompanied the army on expeditions. Responsible for planning military operations. After Liu Bei's defeat at Yiling, Zhuge Liang lamented: "If the law and filial piety are upright, then the Lord can be controlled and not go eastward; if he resumes his eastward journey, there will be no danger." "It can be seen that the death of Fazheng had a huge impact on Liu Bei! Talents lost in Soochow: 220 was also a year of relatively large loss of talents for Soochow. In this year, the famous Soochow generals Lu Meng and Gan Ning , Jiang Qin and others died. Lü Meng, the governor, had a very high status in Soochow at that time and was a military commander that Sun Quan relied heavily on. After the deaths of Zhou Yu and Lu Su, Lü Meng became an important military commander in Soochow and was replaced by Sun Quan. He was granted the titles of Zuohujun, General Huwei, and Grand Governor. Lü Meng participated in many wars in Soochow and fought with Wei and Shu. Especially in the 24th year of Jian'an (219), Lü Meng used the strategy of crossing the river in white to capture Jingzhou and kill him. Unfortunately, the 42-year-old Lu Meng died of illness in the next year. There is no record of the specific disease. Some later generations speculated that he died of the plague. Another possibility is that Gan Ning and Jiang Qin died due to overwork and illness: Gan Ning was a famous general in Dongwu and the governor of Xiling. After surrendering to General Sun Quan, Gan Ning guarded Xiling and captured Zhu Guang. The rest of them attacked Cao's camp at night and made great achievements. Sun Quan once said: "" Mengde has Zhang Liao, and Gan Xingba alone is enough to rival him. "He was a man of justice and wealth, and won the support of his soldiers. He was praised by Chen Shou as ""the tiger minister of Jiangbiao"". He also died of illness in 220. Jiang Qin was also a famous general in Soochow. He was named the general of the Dang bandits and led the Ruxu governor. He paid homage to the Right Protector of the Army, resigned from the lawsuit, and was praised by Chen Shou as "Jiang Biao's Tiger Minister". After the crusade against Guan Yu was completed, Jiang Qin died of illness on the way back to the army.
Reference materials: "Three Kingdoms" and "Zi Zhi Tong Jian"