The author thinks that Cao Cao is the greatest figure in the history of the Three Kingdoms. Although a Romance of the Three Kingdoms portrays Cao Cao as a treacherous villain, we can look at other historical documents, such as The History of the Three Kingdoms, The History of the Later Han Dynasty, Zi Zhi Tong Jian and so on. And all the comments on Cao Cao are more positive than negative. In the Three Kingdoms, Cao Cao said: Cao Gong is "the most understanding", and when he succeeds, he is "the magic of giving and trading". The unique strategy of the Koreans and Bai has been given official materials, each for his own sake, and he does not forget the old evils. They have been fighting against the army for more than ten years, but they never put down their books. They are bound to be endowed when they climb high, and they are better at cursive Go. Live frugally and don't pay attention to clothes. Discuss with others, laughing and laughing. Honor and reward, do not hesitate to spend money; Nothing can be done, nothing can be done. This is the unique style of first-class politicians, military strategists and writers. I imagine that in the era of Jin Ge's iron horse, one is not from a noble family (Sun Jian after Sun Wu), nor is it from the royal family (the so-called emperor's son Liu Bei), nor is it a noble family (the Yuan brothers), but only the offspring of the eunuch's adopted son, and the family is just some money. In troubled times, he stood up and stabbed Dong Zhuo (Wu Weiluo) to death, relying on his personal charm to stand on his own feet in troubled times, and then he had a clear strategy, entered the capital, relied on the emperor to make friends with princes, unified the north, and achieved great things.

From ancient times to the present, people who scold Cao Cao have only two excuses: First, Xu Shao of Runan once commented that Cao Cao was a capable minister in charge of the world and a traitor in troubled times. In that case, Cao Cao is certainly a traitor in the troubled times of the Three Kingdoms. Besides, Cao Cao himself said: I would rather lose the world than lose me. This is conclusive evidence of the treacherous man, so all just people in the world take it as the basis and regard Cao Cao as an unjust person; In fact, Xu Shao's original words are: a minister who manages the country well is a hero in troubled times. Later opponents, especially Sun Sheng, the chronicler of Wei Chunqiu, turned the protagonist into a traitor for the purpose of belittling Wei Yangshu. I'm surprised that there are still many people in history who agree with Sun Sheng's book. Even Sima Qian chose many chapters and materials when he wrote Zi Zhi Tong Jian. Including this sentence. ) there is a word difference. Alas, sometimes, a person is destroyed by one sentence, and Cao Cao is like this.

Second, support the emperor to make the princes. In some people's eyes, the son of heaven is the biggest person in the world, and the affairs of the son of heaven are the affairs of the world. There is not a saying: the world belongs to the emperor; The world, is the land of the king, the land of command, and the minister of the king? It doesn't matter whether the son of heaven has the ability or not. As his subjects, you must listen to him. If you want to live, you can live If you want to die, you must die and die with gratitude. Cao Cao, on the other hand, dared to hold the emperor as a minister, hold a sword to the court, and regard the emperor as a puppet. Of course, it is a big violation. So Cao Cao became an unfaithful and unfilial traitor. He should go to eighteen hells and never turn over.

Of course, many people (many people still think so) don't think so now: Cao Cao was born in the late Eastern Han Dynasty, the people were poor and farmers revolted frequently. There is little true love between people, but it is of great use. As a person who wants to survive in troubled times and make a difference, vigilance is very important. Although Cao Cao has gone too far (history says he is suspicious) and has the saying that "it is better to die than to die" (even this statement can't find historical basis), it is also forced by the situation. How many people in the world don't think so? Only Cao Cao dares to speak out. The reason why Cao Cao formed such a character was also caused by being fooled. The author prefers Cao Cao as a real villain to Liu Bei as a hypocrite.

As for relying on the emperor to make the princes, it is only a strategic move of Cao Cao. The author imagines that if he was born in that kind of troubled times, he would rather choose to be a hegemon and achieve something than place his hopes on a corrupt and incompetent government. Besides, as Cao Cao said, if it weren't for the emperor to be a vassal, I don't know how many people in the Central Plains at that time dominated and proclaimed themselves emperor, and when the world would be in chaos. The history of the whole three countries is about one hundred years, but the real turmoil is only twenty or thirty years before and after. After that, although it was divided into three countries, the people's lives were still relatively stable. On the other hand, during the famous Southern and Northern Dynasties and the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period in China's history, domestic turmoil lasted for more than a hundred years, and wars continued, even worse than during the Three Kingdoms period. In fact, in the early days of the Three Kingdoms, the princes dominated, and the domestic turmoil was far more chaotic than in the Warring States period. Without Cao Cao's emperor as his ministers, this turbulent situation could not be controlled. Therefore, it is not only not a crime for Cao Cao to hold the emperor to make the princes, but also to make contributions to the people.

At the same time, as a vassal overlord, Cao Cao's domineering attitude is unprecedented, but he is very aggressive. Cao Cao is a famous literary master in the history of China. Not to mention the achievements of his own poems and songs, we can see that he promoted the great national integration and adopted a series of heavy-text policies to return Wenxi to Khan, which were unmatched by other overlords in the Three Kingdoms period. Even if he was killed, Zhuge Liang, a famous young hero in history, and Zhou Yu, who is known as the ancient Zhou Lang, left several poems. Except for killing several literati (such as Kong Rong) for political reasons, Cao Cao was extremely tolerant of the gentry and never persecuted the literati, otherwise there would be no seven scholars in Jian 'an. He killed Kong Rong and others because they hindered their political ambitions, not because they were too loyal to the emperor, but because they could not tolerate him. Political struggle is a life-and-death struggle. Is this bloody political repression only done by Cao Cao in history? Not to mention things that are too far away, that is, political repression in the history of one or two hundred years in modern times, do we know little? I'm afraid these struggles are more cruel than Cao Cao's. Why are you so hard on Cao Cao? On the contrary, Cao Cao is very fond of and tolerant of talented people. The love for Guan Yu and Zhao Yun, the necessity to kill Chen Gong, and the sadness of killing the giant hand all show Cao Cao's love for talents. Those who oppose Cao Cao say that he is all putting on airs. However, many people in history, such as Yuan Shao, Zhang Lu and Sun Quan, could not make such posturing. Liu Bei cried at that time, and I believe people can see it now. Moreover, in the era of Zhuge Liang, I am afraid that there are countless talents who can stay in Sichuan.

The author will talk about Cao Cao's great sin, which is also the most discussed throughout the ages: holding the emperor to make the princes. For thousands of years, there has been the biggest controversy about whether it is right or wrong for Cao Cao to hold the emperor to make the princes. Especially in modern times, there are many discussions. The author has done some statistics, and there are few for it and many against it.

Here, let's review the situation before and after the introduction of Cao Cao policy. At that time, Emperor Xian of Han passed by Dong Zhuo and took him to Chang 'an. Later, he was robbed by Li Jue and Guo Si. He was finally rescued by Han Xian and Yang Feng, but he was already scared. At that time, the Han dynasty was devastated and the classics were lost. Even the emperor's face was ignored. When Xian Di was brought back to Luoyang by Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty and Yang Feng, people were starving to death. At this time, Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty first thought of Lu Bu. He issued a letter, named Lu Bu General Pingtung and Taohou, and asked Lu Bu to go to Qin Wang to protect the frame. However, Lu Bu was also hungry and unable to do so, so he wrote back to Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty, saying that he would go if he found food. Xian Di, I'm starving until you find food. Just when there was no way out, the messenger sent to find Lu Bu told Emperor Xiandi that there was a man named Cao Cao, who was very capable. Try to find him. Emperor Xian of the Han Dynasty wouldn't let go of a straw, so he immediately wrote a letter to Cao Cao and Zhao Shu. When Cao Cao was in Xuchang, he discussed with his advisers whether to welcome Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty. Many people are not interested in this. Some people think that Luoyang Shoujiang Han Xian and Yang Feng contributed to the Han Dynasty, which is difficult to control. Only Yu Xun, Cao Cao's main counselor, advocated welcoming Han Xiandi. He said, "In the past, Jin Wengong accepted King Xiang of Zhou, and his ministers followed him. Emperor Gaozu was the righteous emperor, and the world belonged to him. The son of heaven was covered with dust, and the general advocated the volunteers, but he was disturbed by Shandong and did not go far. Today, when I was driving around, I was in Tokyo. Honest people had the idea of saving their roots, and the people of Zhao Min felt the sadness of the elderly. Therefore, when you serve the Lord, you will obey others. Grasp the public to serve the world, roughly; Fu is handsome and virtuous. What can a quartet do, even though it has an inverse cross section? Han Xian, Yang Feng, have fun! If you decide from time to time, it will make the protagonist feel at ease, even if you worry later, it will be normal. " Therefore, Cao Cao made the biggest decision in his life, and it was also a decision that made future generations argue endlessly: welcome the Han emperor to Xuchang and hold the emperor to make the princes. In fact, Yu Xun was a man loyal to the Han Dynasty. He encouraged Cao Cao to welcome Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty, not for Cao Cao's sake, but just to turn the corner and help the Han Dynasty. He wanted to borrow Cao Cao's hand to help the Han Dynasty. He sincerely hopes that Cao can help the world and revitalize the Han Dynasty. He cited three reasons for welcoming Xian Di, namely, "obeying the wishes of the Lord, serving the world impartially, and helping Hongyi to be handsome". Later, when Cao Cao forced Emperor Xiandi of Han Dynasty to stand on his own feet as "lord protector", Yu Xun also openly opposed it, saying, "Cao Gong originally set out to attack, be loyal and honest, and keep the concession. Gentleman's love can't be physical. "

In fact, the Han Dynasty at that time had no appeal, and people thought that the Han Dynasty was "exhausted" and had long been unbearable. As Guo Tu and Chun Yuqiong said, "The Han tomb is late, and it has been a long time. Isn't it difficult to revitalize now? " But Cao Cao doesn't think so. At that time, he really wanted to be a famous minister. He probably thought that the Han Dynasty was orthodox no matter how dangerous it was. Cao Cao is still a scholar's temperament and a scholar-bureaucrat's thought in his bones. Now that you have decided to meet the emperor, Cao Cao immediately ordered Cao Hong to lead troops. It's a pity that Cao Hong's soldiers were blocked by Yuan Shao. I can't get in touch with the emperor. As Cao Cao sighed, a guy named Dong Zhao had already taken a fancy to Cao Cao, so he wrote a very respectful letter to Yang Feng in the name of Cao Cao without saying hello, expressing his determination to be loyal to the monarch. This Yang is fighting for power with Han Xian. When he received the letter, he was ecstatic. He immediately sent someone to contact Cao Cao to speak well of Cao Cao in front of the emperor and Dong Cheng. The emperor was very happy to hear that. You are hungry. Can you be unhappy when someone delivers food? ), immediately sealed the general Cao Cao, and asked Dong Cheng to personally welcome Cao Cao to defect and accompany him. All right. Now Cao finds it justified to be emperor. With a lot of rations, Cao Cao met the emperor, and naturally everyone was happy. Cao Cao's later job was to ask Emperor Xian of Han to move to Xuchang on the pretext that Luoyang was too far away from his base area. Emperor Xian of Han totally agreed with this point. Luoyang doesn't even have a decent house. When the courtiers were summoned, a group of soldiers climbed up the wall and watched the emperor have a meeting, just like playing a monkey. But Yang Feng objected. No matter how stupid he was, he knew that he had to listen to Cao Cao on his turf. After the objection was invalid, Yang Feng decided to fight, but unfortunately he couldn't. Huang Xu, his subordinate general, voted for Cao Cao, and Yang Feng had to escape by himself. After Emperor Xian of Han arrived in Xuchang, he could finally live in a good house, have a full meal, "establish the state system of ancestral temples" and then put on music. Cao Cao did not follow Dong Zhuo's example of "holding a sword to the court and worshiping the unknown". As usual, he knelt down to Emperor Xiandi, and Emperor Xiandi was naturally more proud. He immediately made Cao Cao a general and sealed Wu Pinghou. At this time, the relationship between the two is still very good. The real bad relationship will be three years later. Now Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty is still satisfied.

When Emperor Xian of Han cooperated with Cao Cao and was blocked, who was blocked. Those little warlords still have to listen to the emperor. Sun Tzu said, "So the soldiers attacked the enemy, then attacked the enemy, and then attacked the city." During the four years from the first year of Jian 'an to the beginning of the fifth year of Jian 'an, Cao Cao made full use of the political advantage of relying on the emperor as a vassal and began to merge with various small groups around him. Cao Cao's bad luck is that of Yuan Shao. This guy, Han Xiandi also had this idea when he was down and out, and it was the first idea. Jushou said to Yuan Shao: "Today, the country is thick, and the soldiers are attached to Qiang Bing, and the hands of the west are welcome, that is, the palace is the imperial capital, the emperor is the emperor, and the livestock and horses are not in court. Who can resist! " This is a blatant proposal to make the emperor a vassal. But Guo Tu and Chun Yuqiong disagreed: "The Han Tomb has been built for a long time. Isn't it difficult to revive now? And heroes rise up, according to each state and county, and even disciples get together, and there are thousands of tricks. The so-called Qin lost its deer and won its king first. Today, I welcome the son of heaven, and I often feel it. If I follow it, my strength will become lighter. If I violate it, I will refuse my life. This is not a good plan. " Everyone knows that Yuan Shao is a swing and the most indecisive person. Well, now that Cao Cao has done this, Yuan Shao is unhappy. If you dare to do something I don't do, I will definitely not give you good fruit to eat. So, when I didn't know that guy gave me an idea to make Emperor Han Xian call Yuan Shao A Qiu, Yuan Shao was so angry that he swore. It is said that the emperor was held hostage by the emperor in order to let his ministers settle in Cao Cao's body, which is a longevity. From then on, the world began to say that Cao Cao held the emperor to make the princes. Knowing that there was nothing he could do, Cao Cao quickly gave his general to Yuan Shao and asked the emperor to make him a Lord. It's embarrassing enough. But Yuan Shao accepted the title of general, because he wouldn't let Cao do it, but he refused Ye Hou, and I don't know why.

Emperor Xian of Han certainly understood the trick. In fact, he just doesn't understand, and those so-called loyal ministers around him will let him understand. These Dong Chengzhi people, I think they must be very dissatisfied with Cao Cao. Why? It's simple. They looked down upon Cao Cao. You are a descendant of eunuchs. Why are you so angry? Cao Cao, who is capable, certainly looks down on these guys who can't do things for nothing. Well, with the saying that Yuan Shao and Cao Cao held the emperor to make the princes, and with the encouragement of these loyal ministers, Emperor Xian of Han was unhappy. Isn't there a saying: promote rice and retaliate with rice. You gave me a liter of rice and didn't let me starve to death. I am very grateful to you. You are my benefactor. But if you give me a bucket of rice, you can give more. If you don't continue to pay more, then you are the enemy. Well, now Cao Cao is beginning to suffer. For this so-called emperor and court, Cao Cao paid a lot of financial, human and material resources, which was not only thankless, but also very resentful. In the eyes of Emperor Xian of Han Dynasty and those loyal ministers who had nothing to do, since you Cao Cao provided me with these grains and used them to restore laws and regulations, you should be more rational, give up your rights completely and give them all to me. As for you, you have done so much. You can go, retire or die automatically, but don't tell me what to do. Of course, Cao Cao understands, but how can he be assured to give his rights to such a group of useless people who know nothing? It's like beating Shui Piao for nothing. So he just wouldn't let go. In this way, Emperor Xian of Han tried to kill him many times, and then soon. But Cao won't let someone kill himself. He must kill those people. Well, murder, coupled with literati's exaggeration, has been circulated as an emperor for thousands of years. This is the basis of discussion against Cao Cao being an emperor and a vassal.

What about those who agree? In addition to Cao Cao's little benefits in the early days, the author thinks that the most important thing is that Cao Cao's policy of relying on the emperor to make the vassal not good for himself, but really benefits the people in the Central Plains. Because no matter how you argue, one fact is obvious, that is, without the emperor Cao Cao as a minister, the Han Dynasty would have been finished long ago. (Emperor Xian will probably starve to death in Luoyang. If so, what will happen to Cao Cao? ) I really don't know how many people want to be emperors and how many people want to dominate. Just like Zhang Lu's generation said that the Han Dynasty was still there, how dare Ann claim to be the emperor? Gongsun Du and his son, who have dominated Liaodong for decades, dare not call themselves emperors. Only Yuan Shu, an uneducated guy, can truly be called the emperor. Liu Beitai wanted to be emperor so much that he dared not move until Xelloss proclaimed himself emperor. As we all know, if more people really call themselves emperors, people's lives will be more affected. Because everyone can be emperor, you have your policies and I have my methods. That goes back to the Warring States period. Of course, the words will not be confused, but what about the economy? Money is naturally chaotic, and social order is gone. With more frequent wars, the chaos in the Central Plains will be even more unbearable. The history of the Three Kingdoms will also be rewritten. Therefore, the author strongly supports Cao Cao's efforts to make the emperor, because he has brought benefits to the people. It's a pity that Cao Cao paid a thousand years' blame for this.

Well, these so-called literati are just the words of those in power. How can they look at things from the standpoint of ordinary people? And Luo Guanzhong, who really turned black and white, made people who should be grateful to Cao Cao hate his guts. At that time, people could not write and there was no drama. Of course, they cannot leave their gratitude. But in Qingzhou at that time, the people in Youzhou were very happy when they heard that Cao Cao had killed Yuan Shao and his son. This is why I like Cao Cao.

In fact, no one could understand Cao Cao in the social situation at that time. Because his thoughts have transcended that era, the so-called high and low. Cao Cao known to later generations is nothing more than Cao Cao written by literati. Scholars, especially those in ancient times, who dare to speak well of Cao Cao under the brainwashing of loyalty to the monarch? Nature is a parrot, and I am also a cloud. I will demote Cao Cao again and again, even to eighteen levels of hell. If I can't demote him any more, let Cao Cao suffer there. I cry for Cao Cao.