Cao Cao (155 – 220) was one of the outstanding politicians and military leaders of the late Eastern Han and Three Kingdoms periods.
Compared to the two monarchs Liu Bei and Sun Quan, Cao Cao had a more favorable starting point.
Throughout his life, Cao Cao was famous for his intelligence and cunning, had strategic skills, and even achieved many great achievements, but in the end, when he died, Cao Cao could not complete his dream of unifying the country.
Many opinions believe that Cao Cao could completely unify the world if he did not make these two unfortunate mistakes.
So, who are these two people and why did a skeptical person like Cao Cao relax his guard?
The first person who deserved to be killed that Cao Cao let go was Liu Bei.
During the process of establishing his career, Cao Cao had to take refuge in Cao Cao’s military camp.
However, Cao Cao was not the type to easily forgive someone he suspected.
But fortunately, Liu Bei proved to be very calm, wise and humble when answering the questions and situations raised by Cao Cao.
In particular, when Cao Cao suddenly called Liu Bei a hero, although Liu Bei was startled and dropped his spoon and chopsticks, he quickly used the sound of thunder to cover it up.
It was because of Liu Bei’s skillful concealment that Cao Cao was more cautious.
As a result, Liu Bei’s forces not only caused a lot of trouble and trouble but also became Cao Cao’s biggest enemy in the war for the world.
For example, the Sun – Liu alliance defeating Cao Cao in the battle of Xich Bich (208) prevented this monarch from expanding the scope of power to the South, and at the same time missed the opportunity to unify the world.
In addition, in the battle of Tuong Duong – Phan Thanh (year 219), without the indirect impact of the Eastern Wu faction in influencing the outcome of the battle, Liu Bei would have been able to suppress Cao Cao.
This shows how big a mistake Cao Cao made in the past.
Cao Cao’s second mistake in his life was not killing Sima Yi.
The reason Cao Cao did not kill Sima Yi while he was still alive was because at that time Sima Yi only held a minor official position and did not hold military power, so he was not much of a threat to the Cao family.
However, before his death, Cao Cao carefully instructed his son Cao Pi: `Sima Y is not the type of person who accepts being a servant, he will definitely interfere in my family’s affairs.`
However, Cao Pi and Sima Yi had a good relationship.
Just ask, instead of telling Cao Pi to be wary of Sima Yi, Cao Cao directly killed this strong-minded man. How could the Sima family later grow strong and threaten the world under Cao Wei’s family?
Unexpectedly, Sima Yi spent his entire life patiently serving three generations of the Cao family, including Cao Cao, Cao Pi, and Cao Rui. Only at the end of his life did he truly reveal his ambition for power.
Unexpectedly, at the age of 70, Sima Yi took over the power of Cao Wei, thereby transferring power to his two sons, Sima Su and Sima Zhao, while also creating a premise for his grandson, Sima Yan, to usurp the throne.
Article reference sources: Sohu, Sina, Baidu
