Abstract: Cao Cao is an outstanding politician, strategist and writer in history. He unified the Central Plains and practiced the system of reclaiming farmland, which made certain contributions to social development and territorial consolidation. However, under the influence of orthodoxy, Cao Cao wrote him as a traitor who usurped the Han Dynasty in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms and on the stage of traditional Chinese opera. There are different opinions about Cao Cao. There should be a difference between Cao Cao in history and Cao Cao in literary works. There is no such thing as "reversing the case". People's views have always been different, and there is no need for unification, and it is impossible to unify.
Keywords: history, Cao Cao's novels and dramas, Cao Cao's evaluation
About Cao Cao, there are biographies of him in the history books such as the History of the Later Han Dynasty and the History of the Three Kingdoms. He is a clever and talented man, who has done many great things in his life. However, due to the wide spread of the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms among the people, people regard Cao Cao in the novel as the historical Cao Cao, and when it comes to Cao Cao, they think that he is a treacherous, cunning and insidious figure. This is very inappropriate. In my opinion, to study the annals of the Three Kingdoms or the novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, we should first distinguish Cao Cao in history from Cao Cao on the stage of novels and operas, and return his true colors of history.
Cao Cao in history
Cao Cao is an accomplished politician, strategist and writer in history. Because of his family background and the era in which he lived, he decided to achieve something.
Cao Teng, Cao Cao's grandfather, was a eunuch when he was Emperor Huan of the Han Dynasty, and his official position was "to serve Chang Changqiu in order to pay his dues". His father Song is Teng's adopted son, and the official is Qiu. Cao Cao was born in such an official family since childhood, and he is bound to receive a good education. In addition, "be less alert and have the right to count (1)". Although he is willful and dissolute, he does not pay attention to moral cultivation and learning, and also shows his intelligence and ability to do things. Therefore, Qiao Xuan, a native of Liang, commented on him: "The world will be in chaos, and those who are doomed cannot help, and those who can be safe are in the king!" (2) "Cao Cao was recommended as Xiaolian at the age of twenty and became a Langguan. Later, he was appointed North Commandant of Luoyang County, promoted to Dunqiu County Magistrate, and was recruited into the DPRK to grant Lang. From this point of view, Cao Cao's youth was a prosperous time, and he rose to the top of the world. He successfully entered the imperial court from a local official, which gave him the opportunity to gain greater state power.
Cao Cao was born in troubled times, which provided him with the opportunity to start a career. The first is the Yellow Scarf Uprising in Yuan Di and the last years of Emperor Han Ling. At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the rule of the feudal dynasty was in jeopardy. The revolutionary torrent of the Yellow turban insurrectionary made the Liu Dynasty unstoppable. So local governors had to be dispatched to suppress the peasant movement, and Cao Cao was appointed as a captain riding a horse to crusade against the peasant rebels in Yingchuan. Later, he was promoted to Jinan. From then on, the feudal lords from all walks of life occupied one side and stood on their own feet as kings. Dong Zhuo entered Beijing, abolished the younger emperor, established the Han emperor, and the capital Luoyang was chaotic. Cao Cao and Yuan Shao joined forces with various governors to crusade against Dong Zhuo. Although Dong Zhuo was removed, Yuan Shao, Yuan Shu, Gongsun Zan and Lyu3 bu4 in the north have formed some powerful governors and occupied one side. Cao Cao sold the property here, recruited volunteers and gradually expanded his power. Later, in the process of encirclement and suppression of the Yellow Scarf Army, more than 300,000 soldiers were reduced and their elite was incorporated into the so-called "Qingzhou Army". Plus the support of his brothers Coss, Cao Hong, Xia, Xiahou () and so on; Yu Xun, Cheng Yu, Jia Xu and others made suggestions and wiped out the remaining Yellow Scarf Army. Defeated the separatist forces such as Lu Bu, Tao Qian, Zhang Miao and Zhang Xiu, and gradually gained powerful armed forces, becoming an important political group that ruled the north during the Three Kingdoms period. Cao Cao's victory in the separatist armed struggle was based on an enlightened political struggle. First of all, Cao Cao realized the important role of feudal emperors in political struggle while carrying out armed struggle. Encouraged by Xun and Cheng Yu, Cao Cao sent Cao Hong to the west to meet Xian Di. After Cao Cao entered Luoyang, he personally appeared before Xian Di. He was promoted to General Town East, appointed Fei Houting, recorded history and always led state affairs. Cao Cao moved the capital to Xuchang. From then on, he had an excuse to give orders and a deterrent among the princes. This is what people call "seizing the emperor to make the princes", which is also one of the important reasons why Cao Cao Can gained the upper hand in the separatist regime.
Secondly, as a politician, Cao Cao understands and cares about (at least thinks of) people's sufferings. Years of war have seriously damaged production, coupled with natural disasters, such as "there are many Russians, and there is no way to distribute food", and there is even no place to raise military food for war. Cao Cao adopted the suggestions of Zhao Zuo, Han Hao and others to cultivate land. Loans for plowing cattle and cultivated land provided to farmers are divided into six official cows and four private cows. The purpose of reclaiming farmland is mainly to meet the needs of military food, but also to solve the livelihood of some farmers who have no cattle and no fields. The land reclamation tax is paid directly to officials, which also avoids the exploitation of landlords, and the rations will not be entirely borne by farmers. Ensuring the army's food is not only beneficial to the war, but also reduces the arbitrary plunder of the army, which is beneficial to the people in any case. At the same time, Cao cares about the sufferings of the people. After defeating Yuan Shao, he ordered: "Hebei suffers from Yuan's difficulties, which makes it not to rent taxes this year!" Because of the war, the people were exempted from rent tax for one year. Cao Cao also specially stipulated: "From the item, the number of conscripts, or in case of epidemic, officials died, family members were dissatisfied, and the people were displaced. Why are benevolent people happy? " I have to do this. So that the families of the deceased can't survive without a legacy, the county officials have no worries, and the chief sympathizes, so that I mean (3) "The government provides them with food, and the chief should visit them often. In terms of treating the people, Cao Cao also ordered that "all women who have reached the age of 70 and have no husband or son, are under the age of 12, have no parents or brothers, are blind, lose their labor force, have no wife, children, father, brothers or property, and the state will support them for life." "Command counties to advocate and attach importance to the study of literature and classics and school construction. 500 counties should set up academic officers to select outstanding local children for education. (4) "No matter what the conditions and implementation were at that time, Cao Cao's policy of developing production, caring for people's sufferings and developing education was very enlightened and progressive among the feudal ruling class, and it will certainly be supported by the people.
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms was collected by Luo Guanzhong, a great writer in the Ming Dynasty, according to the popular scripts at that time. This paper mainly introduces the ambition of competing for the world in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. The story is interwoven by Wei, Shu and Wu, and is the main body of the story. Therefore, the author praised the main figures of Shu Han, including Liu Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Zhuge Liang, and the main role of Zhong Wei.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms is one of China's four fantastic books (Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Water Margin, Journey to the West, Jin Ping Mei) and one of Zhang Hui's novels. Therefore, it occupies a very important position in the history of China literature and has received a lot of comments. Among them, there are many stories that make many people applaud, including: visiting the thatched cottage, borrowing an arrow from a straw boat, scaring Zhong Da away from death, etc., among which I am most interested.
1. "Go through five customs and kill six generals": At that time, Guan Yu had to give in to Cao Jun to protect his two sisters-in-law and nephew. However, although Guan Yu was in Cao Ying's camp, he always missed his eldest brother and asked about his whereabouts until one day Guan Yu finally knew that his eldest brother was in Yuan Shao's place in Hebei. He quickly took the knife, rode across the horse, and escorted the two eldest sisters-in-law and their accompanying wives. When he arrived at Dongling Pass, he insisted on going to Kong Xiu. Guan Yu was furious and split Kong Xiu in two, and the news spread to Luoyang. Although Luoyang Shoujiang Han Fu and Meng Yuan discussed countermeasures, Guan Yu's opponents were both hacked to death by Guan Yu. In this way, Guan Yulian broke five levels and killed six commanders before crossing the Yellow River. Although he felt a little ashamed of Cao Cao, he just wanted to see his eldest brother as soon as possible, and there was nothing he could do after killing so many people.
Second, "Savior Lu": At this time, although Liu Bei had doubts about Liu Biao's invitation, he had to go. So, Liu Bei took Zhao Yun across Lu and headed for Xiangyang. Cai Mao pretends to be very respectful. The next morning, officials from 42 counties in Jingxiang County began to attend the "Harvest Festival" hosted by Liu Bei instead of Liu Biao, and Zhao Yun followed very carefully. So, Liu Bei immediately set foot on Lu and fled to Ximen. Unexpectedly, he walked several miles. There is a deep and fast river ahead. At this point, Liu Bei had to step into the torrent. At this moment, Liu Bei murmured, "Dear Lu, you must save me!" Lu seemed to understand what he said and jumped up, which made Liu Bei out of danger.
These two stories inspired me. It made me feel the loyalty of Guan Gong. Even if the eldest brother is at the ends of the earth, as long as there is news, I will send my two sisters-in-law safely to my eldest brother, leaving my life and death behind and putting the safety of my two sisters-in-law first;
(2) It makes me feel that people can't just focus on appearance and feel bad and abandon it, just like Lu. Even if he can resist the master, Liu Bei doesn't care. Perhaps Ma Lu was moved by Liu Bei's kindness. So in the master's most critical moment, he saved his life.
After reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms, I felt the profoundness of China's literature and the author's writing ability. Luo Guanzhong vividly described Guan Yu's integrity, Zhang Fei's frankness, Zhuge Liang's loyalty and Cao Cao's treachery. , so that readers and the story are integrated, with the climax of the story ups and downs. Because The Romance of the Three Kingdoms belongs to Zhang Hui's novel, the story is continuous, which makes people want to read it all the time. And it won't be boring. The story is well arranged and exciting, which makes people feel deeply immersed, as if they were in the troubled times at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms not only had symbolic function at that time, but also carried out institutional innovation, which was one of the models for studying novels in Ming and Qing Dynasties. So The Romance of the Three Kingdoms is really a good book worth reading again. Every time you read it, you will feel more.
2 "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" after reading
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms describes the rise and fall of the Three Kingdoms, which has gone through five periods: the Yellow Scarf Uprising, the Dong Zhuo Uprising, the separatist regime (Guandu Battle, Battle of Red Cliffs), the tripartite confrontation among the three realms, and the return of the three realms to Jin.
The Yellow Scarf Uprising began in Taoyuan. After the Yellow turban insurrectionary uprising, the Eastern Han government counterattacked, Liu Bei, Cao Cao and other heroes appeared, and the Eastern Han regime was about to perish.
Dong Zhuo's Rebellion tells the story of Dong Zhuo's rescue from He Jin's struggle with ten courtiers to Shao Di's escape from Beijing before and after he entered Beijing. After Dong Zhuo entered Beijing, he bought Lu Bu, abolished Shao Di, established Xian Di, monopolized power, and practiced tyranny, forcing the allied forces to cut Dong Zhuo. Although the allied forces failed later, Dong Zhuo was finally killed by Lu Bu.
After the death of Dong Zhuo, the princes in the Central Plains were leaderless. In order to expand their territory, they were mainly divided into three war zones, namely Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan in the north, the rise of Sun Ce in Jiangdong, and the war between Cao Cao, Liu Bei, Lu Bu and Yuan Shu in the Central Plains.
After that, I won't elaborate on the three points in the world, and the world belongs to gold. The most important thing is to talk about my own understanding and views on the romance of the Three Kingdoms.
In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Cao Cao is my favorite. Although Liu Bei was written as a traitor in order to highlight his righteousness, his military talent has not been obliterated. During the years of crusade against the West, he occupied a large area of land north of the Yangtze River, and even ethnic minorities surrendered to him. He is the most talented of the three monarchs, and Wei is also the most powerful of the three. He laid the foundation of Wei, and later Jin was able to enter Wei.
The thirst for talents is also a place worthy of appreciation for Cao Cao. In order to select more talents, Cao Cao broke the standard of appointing officials according to feudal virtue and the rank of his younger brothers, and put forward the employment policy of "meritocracy". In the spring of 2 10 A.D., Cao Cao summed up the historical experience at the beginning of the stage, and thought that since ancient times, there was no one who was the founding emperor and the king of Zhongxing without talents to rule the world together, and talents often did not leave the hutong. This is by no means an opportunity, but a search and visit by those in power. In view of this, Cao Cao pointed out that now the world is undecided, and it is the moment to be thirsty for talents. He hopes that people around him will not consider their origins and help him find and recommend those who are born in poverty and buried. In AD 2 14 and 2 17, Cao Cao issued a talent-seeking order twice, repeatedly emphasizing his "meritocracy" policy in employing people. He asked personnel departments at all levels and local officials not to pursue perfection when selecting talents, even if they have such shortcomings, as long as they are truly talented. After some efforts, Cao Wei concentrated a large number of talents. For a time, all localities and regions. Advisers are like rain. For talented people, Cao forgot the past. For example, Chen Lin, who was originally a subordinate of Yuan Shao, once drafted a campaign for Yuan Shao, cursing Cao Caozu for three generations. After Yuan Shao's defeat, Chen Lin defected to Cao Cao. Cao Cao asked him, "You wrote to Yuan Shao before, and a person scolded me. Why did you scold my ancestors for three generations? Chen Lin hurriedly.
Cao Cao's success is not only because of his outstanding talent and good at recruiting talents, but also because of his broad mind. After the fiasco in Chibi, Cao Cao did not feel helpless, but smiled and said, "Today's North is still under my control". San Xiao showed optimism about the setbacks. Cao Cao is also a person who is very interested in literature. He likes to write poems. Even if the war is imminent, his interest will not change. Many of his poems are music.