Cao Cao of the Three Kingdoms Period
2 min readCao Cao
Cao Cao was born in Pei Guo Jiao Zhou ，the present Bo County n Anhui Province.He was known as a famous politician，strategist and a great poet during the Three Kingdoms Period.
Cao Cao started his military career at the age of twenty.
In the process of cracking down the Yellow Turbans Uprising at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty（25-220 AD），he built up his force.After the rebellion，the Eastern Han only reigned in name and the country fell apart into three confronting forces of Cao Cao，Liu Bei and Sun Quan.Cao Cao out stripped the other two.
In 196AD，Cao Cao had the Eastern Han capital relocated from Luo Yang to Xuchang ，（both in present Henan Province）.He proclaimed himself the prime minister and made the puppet emperor his trump card.After several decisive battles with local forces in the north，he unified the region north of the Yellow River.
Thenceforward，Cao Cao targeted at major forces in the south.In order to fight back Cao Cao，the southern regimes of Liu Bei and Sun Quan allied together.Quickly，the Battle ofChibi broke out.Cao Cao was badly defeated and had to drawback to the north desperately.Since then，Cao Cao had neverstepped across the Yellow River until the time of his son.
In the north，Cao Cao had vast land cultivated by the garrison troops and ordered the construction of many irrigation projects.He set the governmental monopoly on the salt and iron commodities.In politics，he practiced merits system.Allthis contributed to the restoration of social economy.Meanwhile，he made accomplishments in poetry.Together with his two sons，they opened a new era in the history of Chinese literature.Cao Cao died of heavy headache at the age of sixty-five.
In Peking Operas，Cao Cao is usually described as a twofolded figure.On the one hand，he is a remarkable politician，a capable general and a talented poet.But on the other hand，people call him a traitor or even a usurper of the Han while they boast Liu Bei’s virtues because Liu Bei is a descendent ofthe Han Clan.This is the absurd idea that the emperor is of the dragon’s blood stock.
In order to expose Cao Cao’s treachery behaviors，people invent a lot of stories telling his cruelty，slyness and suspiciousness.Although these may not be Cao Cao’s deeds，they are repeatedly applied by later Chinese rulers.His motto is“I’d rather wrong others than being wronged by others”.
There are so many stories like this about Cao Cao that people even use his name to mean a bad and cunning person in Chinese.
