Cao Cao had a total of 25 sons, namely Cao Pi, Cao Zhang, Cao Zhi, Cao Xiong, Cao Ang, Cao Shuo, Cao Chong, Cao Ju, Cao Yu, Cao Lin, Cao Gun, Cao Yue, Cao Jun, Cao Ju, Cao Gan, Cao Shang, Cao Biao, Cao Qin, Cao Cheng, Cao Zheng, Cao Jing, Cao Jun, Cao Ji, Cao Hui, and Cao Mao.
Cao Cao had many wives and concubines throughout his life, with thirteen famous people and twenty-five children. Among them, he gave birth to Cao Pi, Cao Zhang, Cao Zhi, and Cao Xiong with the Bian family, Cao Ang and Cao Shuo with Lady Liu, Cao Chong, Cao Ju, and Cao Yu with Huan Fu, Cao Lin and Cao Gun with Du Fu, Cao Yue and Cao Jun with Qin Fu, Cao Ju with Yin Fu, Cao Gan with Wang Zhaoyi, Cao Shang, Cao Biao, and Cao Qin with Sun Ji, Cao Cheng, Cao Zheng, and Cao Jing with Li Ji, and Cao Jun, Cao Ji, Cao Ji, Cao Hui, and Cao Mao with Zhou Ji, Liu Ji, Song Ji, and Zhao Ji respectively.
Among these twenty-five sons, eight died early, namely: except for Cao Xiong, Cao Shuo, Cao Ju, Cao Shang, Cao Qin, Cao Jing, Cao Ji, and Cao Cheng. Except for the eldest son Cao Ang, who was shot dead by stray arrows to protect his father Cao Cao during the Battle of Wancheng, the other sixteen were all granted the title of Marquis.
In 220 AD, Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi, forced Emperor Xian of Han to abdicate. Cao Zhang was appointed as the Prince of Rencheng, Cao Zhi as the Prince of Chen, Cao Ju as the Prince of Pengcheng, Cao Yu as the Prince of Yan, Cao Lin as the Prince of Pei, Cao Gun as the Prince of Zhongshan, Cao Yue as the Marquis of Xixiang, Cao Jun as the Prince of Chenliu, Cao Gan as the Prince of Zhao, Cao Zheng as the Marquis of Mei, Cao Jun as the Marquis of Fan, Cao Hui as the Prince of Dongping, and Cao Mao as the Prince of Quyang. Cao Biao, the son of Cao Cao and Sun Ji, was granted the title of King of Chu in 232 AD but was executed for his rebellion against the Grand Commandant Wang Lingmou.
It is worth mentioning that Cao Chong, the son of Cao Cao and Lady Huan, was born with intelligence, benevolence, and uniqueness. He was deeply loved by Cao Cao and had the intention of inheriting. But fate did not follow people’s wishes, and Cao Chong passed away at the age of thirteen.
Among Cao Cao’s many sons, the famous ones that still need to be remembered today are Emperor Wen of Wei Cao Pi, the seven step poet Cao Zhi, and the famous elephant prodigy Cao Chong. Chairman Mao Zedong also had high evaluations of Cao Cao, Cao Pi, and Cao Zhi.
1、 Cao Pi, who inherited his father’s legacy
Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi, was the second son of Cao Cao and the Bian family. In the struggle for the throne, it can be said that one has been meticulously planning. After Cao Cao’s death, Cao Pi forced Cao Zhi to write the “Seven Step Poem”. At that time, Cao Pi used the excuse that Cao Zhi was “drunk and disrespectful to envoys” and wanted to punish him. Cao Pi said, “You and I are brothers in love, but we are rulers and ministers in morality. How dare you disregard etiquette based on your talent? When the former king was alive, you often boasted about your writings to others, and I suspect that you had someone else write them for you. Now I limit you to write a poem within seven steps. If you can do it, you will be spared from death.
Otherwise, you will be punished severely and will not be spared.” In anger, Cao Zhi wrote the “Seven Step Poem”, which is a masterpiece of the ages. Not only that, Cao Pi also seized the military power of his brother Cao Zhang and secured the position of King of Wei. Furthermore, Emperor Xian of Han was forced to abdicate and change the country’s name to Wei, becoming the founding emperor of Wei and the first monarch to declare himself emperor among the Three Kingdoms. After calling himself younger brother, when Liu Bei attacked Wu, Cao Pi saw that Liu Bei was going to fail, but he did not listen to the advice of his advisors Jia Xu and Liu Ye. He insisted on sitting on the mountain and watching the tiger fight. Afterwards, he rose up again to attack Wu, but was defeated by Xu Sheng’s fire attack. After returning to Luoyang, Cao Pi fell seriously ill at the age of forty.
Like Cao Zhi, Cao Pi also had a passion for writing articles, poetry, and songs, and achieved great success in all of them. Together with his father Cao Cao and younger brother Cao Zhi, they are known as the “Three Caos”. Cao Pi has written over a hundred articles, and his book “Dian Lun: Essays” holds an important position in the history of literary criticism.
Cao Pi’s works are recorded in 23 volumes in the “Annals of Classics” section of the “Book of Sui”, as well as 5 volumes in “Dian Lun” and 3 volumes in “Lie Yi Zhuan”.
2、 Cao Zhi, with profound literary achievements
Cao Zhi was the third son born to Cao Cao and the Bian family, and can be described as highly talented, knowledgeable, and well remembered. First, he was favored by Cao Cao and wanted to establish a crown prince. Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi, succeeded to the throne, and Cao Zhi was greatly envied by his brother Cao Pi. He repeatedly suspected Cao Zhi and wanted to kill him. One day, before calling Cao Zhijin, Cao Pi asked his younger brother to write a poem within seven steps,
otherwise he would be executed for deceiving the emperor. Cao Zhi knew that his brother Cao Pi was determined to harm him, so he suppressed his grief and anger and wrote a poem within seven steps. This is the famous “Seven Step Poem” in history: Boil beans and hold them as soup, and beat black beans for juice. Osmanthus burns under the pot, and beans cry in the pot. Originally from the same root, why is it too urgent to boil together?
After the death of Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Rui, the son of Cao Pi, passed away. Cao Zhi, who was full of ambition, repeatedly wrote letters hoping to be appointed but failed. In the end, he died of depression at the age of 41.
Cao Zhi has a profound literary foundation and has made many innovative developments in poetry and art. Especially in the creation of five character poetry, he made significant contributions and holds an important position in literary history. According to historical records, Cao Zhi compiled a collection of 78 works called “Qian Lu” during his lifetime. After his death, Emperor Ming Cao Rui compiled over a hundred works for him.
His main works and poems are numerous, such as “Danxia Block the Sun”, “Flying Dragon”, “Xielu Xing”, “Weihan Xing”, “Shou Jie”, “Yu Zhang Xing Er Song”, “Duckweed Chapter”, “Yetian Huang Que Xing Er Song”, “Men Have Wanli Ke”, “Mount Taishan Liang Fu Xing”, “Lament Song Xing”, “Holy Emperor Chapter”, “Ganoderma lucidum Chapter”, “Da Wei Chapter”, “Jingwei Chapter”, “Meng Dong Chapter”, “When Wanting to Visit South Mountain”, “Mingdu Chapter”, “Beauty Chapter”, “White Horse Chapter” “,” Ascension Two “and so on. But the most famous work is undoubtedly “Ode to the Goddess of Luo”.
The original name of Cao Zhi’s “Ode to the Goddess of Luo” was “Ode to Gan Zhen”. Why was it originally named ‘Gan Zhen Fu’? It is said to involve a complex relationship between Cao Zhi and the concubine Zhen of Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi.
According to the biography of Empress Zhen of Wen Zhao, Zhen was a native of Wuji in Zhongshan and the daughter of Empress Zhen Yi, the magistrate of Shangcai. During the Jian’an period, she married Yuan Xi, the son of Yuan Shao. In the seventh year of Emperor Xian of the Eastern Han Dynasty, during the Battle of Guandu, Yuan Shao was defeated and died of illness. Cao Cao took the opportunity to send troops, and Zhen became a prisoner of Cao’s army, then married Cao Pi as his wife.
Legend has it that Cao Zhi was able to write poetry and prose at the age of ten, earning Cao Cao’s admiration. But at that time, Cao Cao was determined to achieve hegemony, and Cao Pi also held official positions. Cao Zhi was still young and had a quiet nature, not fond of war. Therefore, he spent time with Empress Zhen of Cao Pi and developed feelings for her over time. After Cao Pi succeeded to the throne, she conferred the title of Empress Zhen upon her, but later died tragically after being instigated by Empress Guo. After Zhen’s death, Cao Pi gave Cao Zhi the jade carved gold belt pillow left by Zhen. Cao Zhi saw things and thought of people, so he wrote “Gan Zhen Fu”. A few years later, Cao Rui, the son of Cao Pi and Zhen Shi, succeeded to the throne because Emperor Ming of Wei felt that the name of “Gan Zhen Fu” was inappropriate, so he changed it to “Luo Shen Fu”.
3、 Cao Chong, who possesses exceptional intelligence
Cao Chong was naturally intelligent from a young age, and at the age of five or six, his intelligence was similar to that of an adult. According to legend, Sun Quan gave Cao Cao an elephant. Cao Cao wanted to know the weight of the elephant and asked his subordinates all over, but couldn’t come up with a way to weigh it. Cao Chong said that as long as the elephant is put into the boat, the location of the water mark is recorded, and then an object of the same weight is weighed and placed in the boat, the weight of the elephant can be known. Cao Cao was very happy and weighed the elephant according to his method. This is the famous story of ‘Cao Chong Weighs an Elephant’ in history.
Cao Chong was known for his benevolence, innate nature, beautiful appearance, and exceptional charm. He often used his wisdom and status to accomplish great things that saved lives. Once, when Cao Cao’s saddle was bitten by a mouse in the warehouse, the officials guarding the warehouse believed that he would definitely die. They discussed tying themselves up to surrender, but were still afraid of the death penalty. When Cao Chong found out, he took a knife and broke his clothes, which looked like they had been bitten by a mouse. Cao Cao then asked Cao Zhi, and he said, ‘People in the world think that clothes bitten by mice are unlucky for their owners. Now my clothes have also been bitten, so…’ Worry. “Cao Cao said,” It’s nonsense, don’t worry. When Cao Cao heard about the incident of the saddle being bitten, he smiled and said, ‘My son’s clothes were all bitten by him, let alone the saddle hanging on the pillar.’. There was no pursuit of this matter.
Cao Cao was cunning and dominant throughout his life, and heroes and heroes have their own opinions. Afterwards, Cao Pi, Cao Zhi, and Cao Chong each had their own strengths. But it is rare for a father and son of four to be both famous figures in history and have been passed down to this day.