The videos I watched became popular in ancient times

When Cao Shuang was young, he was cautious and steady in character. In addition, he was a member of the royal family, so he had a very good relationship with Cao Rui, who was also a relative of the Cao family.

After Cao Rui ascended the throne, Cao Shuang, as Cao Rui's brother, was entrusted with important tasks and was loved by Cao Rui.

During the fifth year of Taihe reign of Emperor Ming of Wei, his father Cao Zhen died, and Cao Shuang inherited his father's title of Marquis of Zhaoling.

In the third year of Jingchu of Emperor Ming of Wei, Cao Rui was critically ill, and Cao Shuang and Sima Yi were appointed as ministers to take care of him.

After Cao Fang ascended the throne, Cao Shuang was promoted to Shizhong and renamed Wu'an Hou, and he became extremely powerful for a time.

At the beginning of Cao Shuang's appointment as regent, he was able to discuss state affairs with Sima Yi, but due to his growing personal ambitions and other factors, he gradually began to sideline the other regent in the court.

Sima Yi was powerful and arbitrary in government affairs. He insisted on sending troops to conquer Shu, which greatly depleted the national strength. He also took advantage of his position to become arrogant and conceited.

In the tenth year of the Zhengshi reign of Emperor Shao of Wei, Sima Yi launched the Gaopingling coup and removed Cao Shuang from his post as general.

In the tenth year of Zhengshi, Cao Shuang was convicted of treason and sentenced to extermination of his three clans, and died in Luoyang.

"Cao Shuang was born in Luoyang, the capital of the Cao Wei regime, and his ancestral home was Qiao County, Pei State."

"Cao Shuang was born into the Cao Wei clan. His father was Cao Zhen, a minister of the royal family during the reigns of Emperor Wen of Wei and Emperor Ming of Wei. Therefore, Cao Shuang had frequent access to the palace since he was young. In addition, he was modest and steady when he was young, so he had a good relationship with Emperor Ming of Wei, Cao Rui, the crown prince of Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi."

"After Cao Rui succeeded to the throne, he appointed Cao Shuang as a minister of imperial guards, later he was transferred to the position of captain of the city gate, promoted to the position of imperial guards, and later he was transferred to the position of general of the military guards, becoming a member of the royal family whom Cao Rui favored very much."

"In the fifth year of Taihe, Cao Shuang's father Cao Zhen passed away, and Cao Shuang inherited the title of Marquis of Zhaoling."

"In the third year of Jingchu, Emperor Ming of Wei, Cao Rui, was seriously ill, and he appointed Cao Shuang as the general, in charge of many military affairs inside and outside the court, and also as the recorder of the Shangshu affairs;"

"Entrust Crown Prince Cao Fang to Cao Shuang and Sima Yi, and order them to assist the eight-year-old young master."

"After Cao Fang succeeded to the throne, he appointed Cao Shuang as his minister, changed his title to Marquis of Wu'an, granted him a fief of 12,000 households, and granted him a sword and shoes to enter the palace, making him an important and powerful official."

"During the period when Cao Shuang was assisting the government, in order to win the support of the people, under the leadership of Xiahou Xuan, a reform was carried out in the Cao Wei regime, which was called the "Zhengshi Reform."

"In the beginning, Cao Shuang and others tried to reform the nine-rank system, administrative hierarchy and redundant official documents in the Cao Wei regime through the "Zhengshi Reform". However, in the process of implementation, a series of measures did not touch upon the real contradictions and there was a lack of reform for the sake of reform, so it was not successful."

"In addition to the ineffectiveness in reform, the contradictions between the Cao group and the Sima group also intensified during the process of assisting the government."

"After being entrusted with assisting the government, Cao Shuang changed his initially modest and prudent character and gradually became authoritarian and arrogant."

"At first, Cao Shuang treated Sima Yi like a father and consulted with him on everything. But soon, Cao Shuang followed the advice of his trusted confidant Ding Mi, and publicly respected Sima Yi as the Grand Tutor, but secretly plotted to seize Sima Yi's real power."

"Later, he appointed his close associates, including the 'Three Dogs of Taichung' Ding Mi, He Yan, Deng Yang, Li Sheng, and Bi Gui, to high positions, and appointed his younger brother Cao Xi as the commander of the Central Army, to share command of the Imperial Guards with him, and his other younger brothers were also appointed to official positions."

"The appointment of relatives and friends made Sima Yi's power increasingly marginal. Later, Cao Shuang almost acted arbitrarily and hardly asked Sima Yi about anything. This directly led to a direct conflict between the two sides later."

"After taking power, Cao Shuang tried to gain fame through military achievements. At that time, Sima Yi's status and qualifications in the Cao Wei military were much higher than Cao Shuang's,"

"In order to help Cao Shuang establish his military reputation, Deng Yang, one of Cao Shuang's confidants, suggested that Cao Shuang lead his army to attack Shu Han. Cao Shuang followed his advice and in the fifth year of Zhengshi, he went west to Chang'an and led 60,000 to 70,000 soldiers into Shu from Luogu. This battle was called the Battle of Xingshi."

"Because of the conflict between Cao Shuang and Sima Yi's group, the military action against Shu lost the possibility of getting Sima Yi's full support from the beginning. After the war started,"

"The Cao Wei army lacked logistical supplies. In addition, the Shu army general Wang Ping took the lead in defending the mountains beforehand, and then the Shu Han general Fei Yi led his army to provide support, making it impossible for Cao Shuang to advance under the attack of the Shu army."

"Military officer Yang Wei and General Xiahou Xuan persuaded Cao Shuang to withdraw his troops, so Cao Shuang led his troops to withdraw, but they were still pursued by the Shu army and suffered heavy losses."

Li Bai: A 70-year-old man, facing a middle-aged man with the dual attributes of "royal family + powerful official", swore a solemn oath to the river, saying that he would guarantee to spare his life.

As a result, the strong man believed it easily and surrendered obediently.

However, such a scene actually took place in Gaoping Mausoleum in 249 AD. As a member of the Cao Wei royal family, a great general, and holding a large number of troops,
Moreover, Cao Shuang, who was traveling with Emperor Cao Fang and "held the emperor's power", actually believed the "old thief" Sima Yi, who was in his seventies, so casually.

However, the result of trusting others so credulously is the tragic end of one's own death and the annihilation of one's entire family.

Cao Shuang accompanied Emperor Cao Fang to leave Luoyang, the capital of Cao Wei, and went to Gaoping Mausoleum to pay homage to their ancestors.

Sima Yi, who had been in retirement for many years but had already made plans in secret, took the opportunity to start a rebellion. He brought the brothers Sima Shi and Sima Zhao and his own "old subordinates" and launched a coup with 3,000 privately raised warriors as the backbone. The coup is known in history as the "Gaopingling Incident."

However, Cao Shuang, who held the military power, did not take any countermeasures in panic. In the end, Sima Yi swore an oath on the Luo River.
He vowed to only dismiss him from office and never pursue the matter again, and easily made Cao Shuang surrender. This child's play palace coup ended with Sima Yi's easy victory.

As a result, Cao Shuang not only died himself, but also suffered the tragic fate of having his three clans exterminated.

Luo River, also known as Luoshui, is a tributary of the Yellow River. It originates in Shaanxi, flows through Luoyang, Henan, and finally flows into the Yellow River in Gongyi, Henan. It is about 440 kilometers long. In terms of its basin area and length, it is not outstanding in China, which has countless large rivers.

But after all, "it's not the depth of the water that matters, but the presence of a dragon makes it magical." When it comes to history and culture, the Luo River has a transcendent status, even divinity.

The history of Luoshui is long and can be traced back to ancient times. It is said that Fuxi, the emperor of mankind, lived in the Heluo area for a long time and was inspired by the "Hetu" to draw the Eight Diagrams, which is the famous legend of "Hetu Luoshu".

Fuxi's daughter drowned in the Luo River and turned into the Goddess of Luo River. Later generations all paid homage to her. For example, one of Cao Zhi's representative works is the famous "Ode to the Goddess of Luo River".

It is precisely because of the sacredness of Luo River that the ancients revered it very much. Swearing on the Luo River was like swearing on the gods.

Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Liu Xiu, once did this. Back then, Liu Xiu and Zhu Yu had a grudge against each other for killing their brother. When Liu Xiu led his army to besiege Zhu Yu,
Although he had no way to escape, he did not dare to surrender, for fear of Liu Xiu's revenge. As a result, Liu Xiu immediately swore an oath on the Luo River, indicating that he would not hold him accountable for his past.

As a result, Liu Xiu really kept his promise. Not only did he not pursue his responsibility, but he also gave him a high position and generous salary, and did not settle accounts with him later. The famous Emperor Guangwu did not dare to break the oath of Luoshui, which shows that the ancients, especially these emperors and generals, still regarded gods and oaths as sacred.

Therefore, Cao Shuang's belief in Sima Yi's oath at Luoshui was not a brainless act, but a natural understanding in the cultural atmosphere at that time.

After all, in Cao Shuang's view, even Emperor Guangwu of Han did not dare to violate the Luoshui Oath, so do you, Sima Yi, dare to break your promise?
"Sima Yi was sidelined in the court and avoided Cao Shuang on the pretext of illness. Cao Shuang and his followers became more unscrupulous and took things by force."

"Cao Shuang himself became more and more indulged in pleasure, and his behavior was close to that of the emperor. He had countless food, carriages, clothes, precious toys, and a house full of wives and concubines."

"But Cao Shuang was not satisfied with this. He even secretly took away the talented people left by Emperor Ming from the palace, stole the imperial guards and imperial music instruments from the palace to decorate his own room, and drank and had fun with his close ministers in the room every day."

"Cao Shuang's brother Cao Xi was very worried when he saw that Cao Shuang was arrogant and extravagant. He tried to persuade Cao Shuang many times, but Cao Shuang not only did not listen, but even expressed his dissatisfaction with Cao Xi."

"Cao Shuang's close ministers were also very arrogant. How Yan seized the land of Luoyang and Yewang Diannong as his own property and stole official property. Officials did not dare to disobey, while upright ministers such as Lu Yu and Fu Gu who raised objections were dismissed from office."

"In the tenth year of Zhengshi, a coup d'état broke out in the Cao Wei regime over the struggle for the center of power, which is known in history as the Gaopingling Incident."

"During the period of Cao Shuang's dictatorship, Sima Yi pretended to be ill and did not attend court, secretly plotting to seize military power. When Cao Shuang's confidant Li Sheng visited him, he pretended to be ill and did not go out in order to paralyze Cao Shuang's attention."

"Cao Shuang and Cao Xi had left Luoyang for fun many times. Huan Fan, who was then the Minister of Agriculture, advised the two Caos not to leave Luoyang at the same time, lest someone take the opportunity to stage a coup in Luoyang to seize power."

"But Cao Shuang did not take Huan Fan's advice seriously. In the tenth year of Zhengshi, Cao Fang and Cao Shuang went to Gaoping Mausoleum to pay homage to Emperor Ming of Wei. At this time, Sima Yi, who had been dormant in the court for a long time, decided to launch a coup in the capital when Cao Shuang and his brothers left Luoyang."

"After the coup, Sima Yi claimed that Cao Shuang intended to usurp the throne, and falsely claimed to be following the Queen Mother's order to depose Cao Shuang, blockade Luoyang City, and occupy the military camp of the imperial guards led by Cao Shuang."

"The imperial edict of abolition was delivered to Cao Shuang. Upon hearing the news, Cao Shuang did not dare to hand over the imperial edict to Cao Fang. He decided to keep Cao Fang in Yishui and prepared to station troops for self-defense."

"In the court, Chen Tai, Yin Damu and others followed Sima Yi's orders to go to Gaoping Mausoleum to persuade Cao Shuang to surrender. At the same time, they persuaded Cao Shuang and his brothers not to leave the capital, the Minister of Agriculture Huan Fan."

"He personally went to Gaoping Mausoleum to urge Cao Shuang to bring the emperor to Xuchang, and in the name of recruiting soldiers to fight the king, he gathered troops to fight back against Sima Yi's group."

"But Cao Shuang eventually surrendered to Sima Yi and chose to return to Luoyang with Cao Fang."

"After the coup, Cao Shuang and his brother were dismissed from their posts and returned to their mansion as marquises. Sima Yi placed them under house arrest and built a tall building at the fourth corner of Cao Shuang's mansion to monitor them day and night."

"But during the interrogation, Huangmen Zhang Dang confessed that Cao Shuang and He Yan and others intended to rebel. Cao's family, the "Three Dogs of Taichung" and other close officials were sentenced to death. The married aunts and sisters of Cao Shuang's family were also implicated."

"After this incident, the Cao clan was almost extinct. Later, because of Cao Zhen's meritorious service, Jiang Ji did not want his descendants to be extinct, so he proposed to confer Cao Zhen's grandson Cao Xi as the Marquis of Xinchangting to preserve descendants for Cao Zhen's family."

"This coup and the genocide of the Cao family that resulted from it had a significant impact on the process of power transition in the Cao Wei regime."

"With this coup, Sima Yi eliminated the power of the Cao clan, led by Cao Shuang, in the court."

"Since then, the Cao clan has basically withdrawn from the political center, and the Sima clan has taken control of the Cao Wei government."

Su Shi: In the stereotype, Cao Shuang has always been an image of a royal family member with no ability and intelligence.

However, the historical Cao Shuang was not so stereotyped.

After serving as a minister entrusted with the care of the young emperor together with Sima Yi, the young Cao Shuang immediately began his actions step by step.

On the one hand, he pretended to be respectful and humble towards Sima Yi, while on the other hand, he was quietly cutting off Sima Yi's power and authority.

He persuaded Emperor Cao Fang to honor Sima Yi as Grand Tutor, allowing him to be one of the "Three Dukes" but lose real power.

Cao Shuang did not spare Sima Yi's "small circle members", such as Sima Yi's confidant Jiang Ji, who was in charge of the imperial guards.

It was under Cao Shuang's manipulation that he was promoted to the high position of Grand Marshal, and was one of the Three Dukes on the same level as Sima Yi, but his command of the imperial guards was taken away.

This method of boiling a frog in warm water made Sima Yi's side suffer a lot.

On the other hand, Cao Shuang was also stepping up efforts to build up his own power.

First of all, he vigorously promoted and made use of the descendants of the Cao Wei royal family. For example, Zhao Xi was appointed as the Central Commander, Zhao Xun as the General of the Wuwei Army, Zhao Yan as the Palace Attendant, and so on, completely gaining control of the power of the imperial guards.

Secondly, some so-called celebrities, such as He Yan, were also appointed to the important position of Shangshu by Cao Shuang. It can be said that he cultivated a group of his own people in both civil and military officials, thus squeezing out Sima Yi's power.

Faced with the aggressive Cao Shuang, Sima Yi chose to stay in seclusion and bide his time, and even resorted to a double act with his wife Zhang Chunhua to pretend to be sick in order to avoid Cao Shuang's edge.

From this it is not difficult to see that Cao Shuang still possessed certain political strategies and skills, and his ability to exercise power was also at a certain level.

After Sima Yi fell into a disadvantageous position, Cao Shuang took sole control of the government. According to historical records, "he monopolized government affairs, and his brothers jointly controlled the imperial guards. He established many close cliques and changed the system many times."
It can be said that Cao Shuang was at the peak of his power at this time, and because of his status as a member of the royal family, he had more confidence.
To some extent, it can be said that there are certain similarities between him and Dorgon, the "Emperor's Father and Regent" of the Qing Dynasty more than a thousand years later.

However, compared with Dorgon, who held tight control over the government until his death, Cao Shuang, the "old senior", was not on the same level at all.

In essence, Cao Shuang was still a pampered member of the royal family. As the beloved son of the former general and grand marshal Cao Zhen, he was born with a golden key. He had a paved road ahead of him from birth and won at the starting point.

The most serious shortcoming of Cao Shuang, who grew up in such an environment, was his lack of experience and serious lack of experience in political struggles, especially the ability and experience to deal with complex situations, especially large-scale events.

And his opponent is Sima Lao, an extremely experienced and vicious thief in both politics and war. They are totally unequal. (End of this chapter)