Cao Cao's cause of death

On February 2 1 day, AD 220, Wang Wei and Cao Cao of Han Dynasty held a funeral in the western suburbs of Yecheng. In the face of natural forces, a generation of strong people were forced to complete the last advance and retreat in life.

Cao Cao died in Luoyang on January 23rd at the age of 66. According to Zi Tongzhi Bamboo Slips, the title of the year was changed to "Yankang" earlier in the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty. But Cao Cao's health went from bad to worse. A week after Cao Cao's death, a solar eclipse occurred in the Central Plains. According to the legend at that time, Cao Cao "built the Imperial Palace, cut down the Dragon Palace and shed blood" in Luoyang. Cao Cao thought it was "unknown" and immediately fell ill. Before that, he had suffered from migraine for many years.

According to Cao Cao's self-report, his last wish before his death was "to make Hou a general of the West", and later he wrote on the tomb "Because Han is the tomb of Cao Hou, a general of the West". Before he died, Wang Wei was the actual controller of the Han Dynasty before the princes.

His body was transported to Yecheng, north of the Yellow River. The location of the cemetery was chosen by Cao Cao himself. As the ruler of the farming society, he showed respect for the land in his last words: "The burial of the ancient people must live in a barren land." Therefore, I chose Xiyuan of Dingximen Leopard Temple, my tomb guard, to build a tomb base in the highlands, and I will not seal the soil or plant trees for the time being. In particular, it is not allowed to occupy the fertile land of the people and destroy the burial customs of production, remember! Remember! His last words were undoubtedly sincere, because even the queen of Wei, Cao Cao, who was in his sixties, dragged his head to plow the fields.

After 1800 years of historical interval, we have been unable to restore the specific grand occasion of the funeral. The details recorded in the obituaries of Cao Pi and Cao Zhi brothers include: a tall funeral shed, neatly decorated with thin etiquette for Yu Bao's wandering car. The highest officials of the empire took a huge funeral procession, including mourning, elegy, advocacy, architecture, people, qu Gai and mediators (warriors with weapons and ceremonial ceremonies). Even Liu Xie, the 40-year-old Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty and the supreme leader of the reputation of imperial power, came from Xuchang.

According to records, all this happened "thirty miles west of Ye", which is now the boundary of Anyang County, Henan Province. The newly discovered Tomb of Cao Cao is estimated to be 28 miles away from Guye City. Is this the place where the grand funeral was held 0/800 years ago?

What is certain is that the young Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty cried in front of Cao Cao's coffin. The fall of this huge shadow made the puppet in the shadow even more afraid. Of course, perhaps Emperor Xian really shed tears because he was grateful for Cao Cao's contribution to this declining dynasty. In his defense summary statement for his life's political life, Cao Cao said arrogantly, "Let the monarch know what it is", "Let the country fight alone, I don't know how many people are kings, and how many people are kings"-this is indeed a fact.

But now the old man who protected himself and held himself hostage has passed away. Behind Liu Xie, followed by the new Wang Wei Cao Pi, who is six years younger than him, and his brothers. Cao Pi is the reaper of Liu Xie's throne. All this happened only nine months after Cao Cao's death.

Cao Pi is a person who is not good at controlling his feelings. When he learned that he was made king of Wei, he couldn't help laughing at Xin Pi's neck on the spot. Xin Xianying, the daughter of Xin Pi, judged that Wei regime was bound to be short-lived. After hearing the news of his father's death, Cao Pi burst into tears again and couldn't help it, so he was once again rejected by his middle-aged son Sima Fu: How can he be like an ordinary person?

The time of burial is determined by divination. Among the officials attending the funeral, there should be Liang Yu, the envoy of the State of Wu. Before Cao Cao died, it was Wu and Wei who had never had a honeymoon. Because of Guan Yu's death, Cao Sun was forced to form a short-term alliance. One month before Cao Cao died, he went to the Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty to recommend Sun Quan as a general in title of generals in ancient times, awarded Jeff, led Jingzhou as a shepherd, and made him the Hou of Nanchang. Sun Quan also wrote a letter to Cao Cao, advising him to obey his destiny and become emperor. At that time, Cao Cao smiled and showed Sun Quan's letter to Chen Qun and others, saying that this boy wanted to roast me on the fire. What is the "fire" that Cao Cao is most afraid of? In the view of Sima Guang in later generations, Cao Cao, who has the power to monopolize the world, is disloyal, but what he fears is his inner "consciousness". Cao Cao said, "If God wants me to be emperor, I'd better be Zhou Wenwang."

Does Cao Cao have an emperor dream in his heart? We can't be sure about this, but what is certain is that the actual controllers of this dynasty prefer to take "Qi Huan" or "Jinwen" as their own situation. He said: "Qi Huan and Jin Wen, who are so famous today, can still serve Zhou Shi with their great military potential. The Analects of Confucius said,' There are two thirds in the world to serve Yin, and Zhou Zhide can be described as the ultimate virtue', and the husband can roll with the punches. "

In Zi Tong Zhi Jian, Sima Guang commented that although politics was dirty at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the custom of loyalty and filial piety still existed. Why is the so-called "consciousness" so powerful that it makes the strongman Cao Cao retreat? Let's review the growth of Cao Cao again.

Governing the country and leveling the world: not greedy for fame, dealing with real disasters.

As a teenager, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao cooperated with gangs for a while, but most of them were just pranks. Cao Cao was born in a prominent family. His father and nominal grandfather are both important officials of the imperial court and have a good political voice. He and Yuan Shao, the "four generations, three publics", belong to the "children of quadrangles". He was valued by celebrities at that time since he was a child, and both Qiu and celebrity Xu Shao spoke highly of him. Qiao Xuan even said: "I am old, I would like to rely on my wife!" " "Obviously, this is one of his hopes to save the world.

This muddled life should be over soon. /kloc-At the age of 0/4, Xia Houdun, who was similar to Cao Cao, killed the person who insulted his teacher. Cao Cao accused his cousin of recklessness. Xia Houdun depressed, usually more reckless than his brother, also can't accuse yourself of recklessness.

Cao Cao later became an official, not afraid of being powerful, and became the uncle of Jian Shuo, the eunuch who broke the law in "Stick Kill". This is a widely circulated historical story.

There is no record in the history books about how Cao Cao improved his literary accomplishment when he was a teenager, but as a military attache, his literary talent was well known for some time, and he had his own place in the history of China literature. This may be attributed to that strange era. Mark Horrillo, the contemporary Roman emperor of Cao Cao, was also the "philosopher emperor" who immediately wrote Meditation, and was the main expositor of Stoic philosophy.

Cao Cao in his youth was full of literati temperament. He wrote many times to speak for the eunuch's sworn enemies, Dou Wu and Chen Fan. Eunuchs may lose their heads when they are in power. Cao Cao recalled in his later "Let Counties Know Their Stories" that "being a county magistrate, being good at politics and religion, and establishing a reputation" should be the ideal of Cao Cao when he was young.

Like Mark Horillo, Cao Cao also faced a declining empire. He was soon completely disappointed in the politicians. "When I go back to my hometown at four o'clock, I want to build a fine house in the east of the bridge. I want to study in autumn and winter, shoot in winter and spring, seek the land under the mountain, and want to cover the water with mud. I will never make guests come and go." Cao Cao quickly resigned from public office and shut himself up at home.

In AD 184, Cao Cao came back because of the Yellow Scarf Uprising. After Dong Zhuo came to power, Cao Cao showed his political cleanliness. Rejected Xiao Qi, a captain recommended by Dong Zhuo, changed his name and surname, and fled back to his hometown.

At that time, his best friend Xia Houdun saved a group of people in his hometown of Liu Chen. Later, Cao Cao took part in the battle of 18 road for Dong Zhuo as a "hot-blooded youth". Cao Cao, who is in his thirties, is one of the few impassioned people in the allied army composed of political veterans and speculators:

"Today's soldiers move with righteousness, doubt but not advance, lose the hope of the world, and steal for the shame of kings!"

But no one paid attention to Cao Cao's indignation, including those who later accused him of being a Han thief. Cao Cao led his troops to attack the west and was defeated by Dong Zhuo. But for Cao Hong, he almost lost his life. On the way to escape defeat, the soldiers mutinied. "Mao Yijian killed dozens of people, and the rest were invincible, so he won the camp."

The history books did not explain Cao Cao's "political journey" after his defeat. But his "warm-blooded youth" magnanimous history ends here. After that, he presented a treacherous and cold image of professional politicians.

Death: I want to publicize my heart and let others know.

In June of the 23rd year of Jian 'an (2 18), Cao Cao had a premonition that death was coming. He put forward several principles of his mausoleum: he must live in a barren land; Because height is the foundation, not a seal, nor a tree; Those who are listed as heroes should accompany Shouling.

After that, for more than a year, Cao Cao was exhausted and ill, and went to the west to levy Liu Bei, but he returned in vain. This is the last battle he personally participated in. Just as the battle of Guandu laid his foundation and Battle of Red Cliffs laid the territory of the Three Kingdoms, the final battle of Hanzhong decided the western boundary between Cao and Liu.

The year before Cao Cao's death, that is, the twenty-four years of Jian 'an, was a year of repeated wars and defeats in the history of Wei. Coss was besieged and Xia was killed, so it was impossible to save Coss from drowning. Fortunately, Huang Xu's removal of Coss gave this year's war a bright tail. Cao Cao dragged his sick body seven miles out of the city to meet Huang Xu who returned from victory.

In the busy year, Cao Cao sealed Queen Bian. Four months before her death, she obtained the formal inheritance right. Queen Bian was born a prostitute and was accepted as a concubine by Cao Cao at the age of 25. Mrs. Bian has been taking care of Cao Cao's family affairs since she left angrily. Mrs. Bian even set up a kindergarten-like support group. Cao Zhixiong, Cao Zhen and other younger generations of Cao Shi, including the youngest son of other ministers, were raised by Mrs. Bian. Cao Cao once told Mrs. Bian that all the children in the team should be treated equally.

Cao Cao, who killed countless people, exposed his gentle side at the last moment of his life. On his deathbed, he once nagged, "I've thought about it for a long time, and few people are sorry." But if I die and meet my son (Cao Ang) in the underworld, if he asks me,' Where is my mother?' What will I say to answer! "

Cao Cao's original wife had no children, and another wife of Cao Cao, Liu, died after giving birth to Cao Ang and Qinghe princess royal. Cao Ang was raised by Mrs. Ding, and her mother and son had deep feelings. Cao Cao called Zhang Xiu's aunt to sleep in Wancheng, which angered Zhang Xiu. Cao Ang died in the mutiny to protect Cao Cao. Mrs. Ding was sad and angry. She cried all day and said, "Kill my son and never study again!" " "Then I ran back to my parents' house.

A few days later, Cao Cao missed Ding Furen and took the initiative to go to his father-in-law's house to find him. Ding Furen was weaving, ignoring Cao Cao. Cao Cao went straight behind Mrs. Ding, patted Ding on the shoulder and said softly, "Come back by car with me!" " Ding Furen didn't look back or talk to Cao Cao. Cao Cao accompanied him carefully for a long time, but still saw his wife ignore him and withdrew. Arrived at the door, still reluctant. I cried again. "Are you sure you don't want to go back?" Ding Furen still ignored him, so Cao Cao had to say, "What a trick!" Disappointed.

The warmth of Cao Cao before his death is also reflected in the mourning for his youngest son, Cao Gan. Cao was only five years old when he died. So Cao Cao gave a special order to Cao Pi: "This son lost his mother at the age of three and his father at the age of five to make you tired." Because of this legacy, Cao Pi later treated Cao Gan as a "big brother like a father".

But this warmth is accompanied by cruel political strangulation. After Cao Pi's political status was established, in order to weaken Cao Zhi's influence, Cao Cao first looked for an opportunity to get rid of Yang Xiu, Cao Zhi's confidant, and then took a series of symbolic measures to crack down on Cao Zhi. Cao Zhi's wife died because she wore gorgeous clothes to Tongquetai.

Behind him: a peerless hero, cruel and cunning.

Cao Cao's last reputation was the simple burial he advocated. In his last words, he challenged the ancient funeral ceremony on the grounds that "the world is not yet stable and does not respect the past".

"After my death, if you hold a big suit, you can't stay. Baiguan in the temple, the sound of fifteen, immediately after the burial; Those who put soldiers on the chariot are not allowed to leave the chariot department; There is a division, and each rate is the location. He was buried in Xishan, Ye Zhi, very close to Ximen Bao Temple, and there was no treasure. "

Don't throw away your clothes before you die. They should be packed in four boxes in spring, summer, autumn and winter, telling you that "nothing can be given away."

Cao Cao was thrifty and not gorgeous all his life, which was seen in history books. Shu Wei said that Cao Cao's harem seldom wore gorgeous clothes, and his shoes were all the same color. If the curtain screen is broken, it will be repaired and continue to be used. His frugality before his death and simple burial after his death should be in the same strain.

Yan Kejun, a Qing Dynasty man, once incorporated Cao Cao's warning to wives and concubines into the Inner Ring Order, asking them to dress simply. He even said that the gorgeous shoes I brought back from Jingzhou (when I conquered Liu Biao) have been distributed to you, so you can wear them. Never learn to do it. The Inner Ring Order was mostly written by Cao Cao in his later years, so it was regarded as his will together with the Legacy Order.

In the "Legacy Order", Cao Cao said nothing about the great cause of the world, but arranged some trivial matters. For example, maids and geisha are usually hardworking. After I die, let them live in Tongquetai, don't treat them badly. Divide the rest of the incense and don't use it as a sacrifice to avoid wasting it. The women in every room are very free and can learn to knit shoes and sell them. This even aroused the resentment of later generations such as Su Dongpo. But after many years, these details have made modern people feel cordial.

But from the perspective of economics, it is hard to say that Cao Cao's frugality as a politician has nothing to do with the depression of people's livelihood caused by the Three Kingdoms War. In the era of hunger, military expenditure is the first. Mark Horrillo, the contemporary Roman emperor of Cao Cao, even sold the crown jewels in order to collect military expenses.

However, if we think about the acres of mulberry fields left by Zhuge Liang, we will find that this is a kind of tolerance that politicians had in the face of wealth at that time.

Looking back today, people will find that the image of Cao Cao has been blurred and distorted by 1800, so that it is impossible to distinguish clearly. In middle school history textbooks, Cao Cao is called "strategist, politician and writer", but what kind of person is he after these big titles? "Shu Wei" emphasized his military talent, saying that he "used his division in the March, relying on the laws of Sun and Wu, but because of wonders, he won the battle with the enemy and became like a god" and "prepared hundreds of words"; When commenting on the reflection, Pei Songzhi highlighted Cao Cao's versatility, saying that he was "brilliant and unique" and could "shoot birds and bow animals with his hands". He once shot and killed sixty-three pheasants in a hunting; At the same time, "I don't give up my books, I talk about martial arts during the day, I want to be classic at night, I have to pay for climbing mountains, I have to write new poems, and I have to orchestral." The biography of Cao Zang depicts the image of Cao Cao's daily life for us: "Mao is a person who is good at losing weight, good at music, advocating Excellence and often staying in the evening." When he told a joke to a guest, he bumped his head with joy and got soup on his turban. Easy-going and happy Cao Cao also has a very dangerous side. If any of his subordinates intend to hit him, he will be jealous and kill him as an excuse. An old enemy knelt before him and asked for forgiveness, but Cao Cao said, "Kneeling can cure evil!" " Then kill it. Pei Songzhi summed it up in four words when commenting on "The History of the Three Kingdoms": "The cruelty became deception".

Compared with other aspects of image and character, "cruelty and treachery" became the main understanding of Cao Cao in later generations. No matter how versatile, diligent and easygoing Cao Cao is, and how he calls himself "Qi Huan" and "Jinwen", with the spread of folk literature works such as The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, his image has solidified on the face of a villain.

This is undoubtedly Cao Cao's greatest fear. After he succeeded in becoming the actual controller of the country, he devoted himself to reducing his fears: he dared not give up military power, "fearing that others would hurt him if he left the army"; He cut down the food city in order to "share the blame and reduce the responsibility of loneliness"; Before he died, he made a "simple burial" arrangement for himself, and showed the world his mind of pursuing sages for the last time. He once explained his greatest fear in Let the County Know the Truth, but this fear has completely become a reality behind him.