Cao Yu

Historical Record

Cao Yu, courtesy name Pengzu, was a son of Emperor Wu of Wei, Cao Cao, his birth mother being Lady Huan. In the sixteenth year of Jian'an (211 CE), he was enfeoffed as Marquis of Duxiang. Thereafter his rank was changed several times, and in the twenty-second year of Jian'an (217 CE) he was changed to Marquis of Luyang. After Emperor Wen of Wei, Cao Pi, took the throne, Cao Yu's rank was raised accordingly. In the second year of Huangchu (221 CE), he was advanced in rank to duke; the next year, the third year of Huangchu (222 CE), he was enfeoffed as Prince of Xiapi. In the fifth year of Huangchu (224 CE), he was again changed to Prince of Shanfu County. By the sixth year of Taihe (232 CE), he was finally changed to Prince of Yan^[1].

Cao Yu had been close with Emperor Ming, Cao Rui, since childhood, and Cao Rui was quite fond of him and esteemed him. After Cao Rui took the throne, the favor and rewards he bestowed on Cao Yu far exceeded those given to the other princes. In the third year of Qinglong (235 CE), Cao Yu was summoned to court. In the first year of Jingchu (237 CE), he returned to Ye. In the summer of the second year of Jingchu (238 CE), Cao Yu was again summoned to the capital. In the twelfth month of that year, Emperor Ming Cao Rui fell gravely ill, his condition critical, and so appointed Cao Yu Grand General and charged him with arranging his final affairs^[1].

However, on the fourth day after accepting the appointment as Grand General, Cao Yu, deeply feeling the gravity of the responsibility, firmly declined. At the same time, the mind of Emperor Ming Cao Rui also changed, and in the end he relieved Cao Yu of the office of Grand General^[1]. According to the *Spring and Autumn of Han and Jin*, Cao Rui at first did indeed appoint the Prince of Yan, Cao Yu, as Grand General, planning to have him assist in governance together with the General Commander of the Army, Xiahou Xian, the General of the Martial Guard, Cao Shuang, the Commandant of the Encamped Cavalry, Cao Zhao, the General of Valiant Cavalry, Qin Lang, and others. However, the Director of the Secretariat, Liu Fang, and the Prefect, Sun Zi, who had long been at odds with Qin Lang and the others and feared future harm, secretly plotted to sow discord. At the time, Cao Yu was often at the emperor's side, and Liu Fang and Sun Zi found no opportunity. Only on the day jiashen, when Cao Rui's breathing was faint, did Cao Yu descend from the hall to confer with Cao Zhao on affairs and had not yet returned. At this point, only Cao Shuang was at the emperor's side. When Liu Fang learned of this, he immediately conferred with Sun Zi. Sun Zi at first hesitated, but Liu Fang held firm, and the two burst in for an audience with Cao Rui. Liu Fang wept and said, "Your Majesty's breath is faint; should something happen, to whom will you entrust the realm?" Cao Rui answered, "Have you not heard that the Prince of Yan is to be used?" Liu Fang then pointed out that the former emperor had a decree that princes of the blood should not assist in governance. Exaggerating, he claimed that Cao Zhao, Qin Lang, and the others had frolicked with the attendants while the emperor lay gravely ill, and that the Prince of Yan held troops facing south and forbade ministers from entering, like Shu Dao and Zhao Gao. He further emphasized that the imperial crown prince was young, that there were strong enemies without and popular grievance within, and that Your Majesty should not entrust the ancestral inheritance to "two or three ordinary gentlemen," endangering the altars of state. Cao Rui, hearing this, was enraged and asked who was fit. Liu Fang and Sun Zi seized the moment to recommend Cao Shuang to replace Cao Yu, and advised decreeing that the Lord of Sima (Sima Yi) also assist in governance. Cao Rui adopted their counsel. After Liu Fang and Sun Zi withdrew, Cao Zhao entered and, weeping, strenuously remonstrated, and Cao Rui thereupon ordered Cao Zhao to convey the command to halt. But just as Cao Zhao stepped out of the hall gate, Liu Fang and Sun Zi swiftly returned and again persuaded Cao Rui, who again heeded them. Liu Fang advised that an edict be drafted at once by the emperor's own hand; Cao Rui, too gravely ill to write, was approached by Liu Fang, who grasped the emperor's hand and forced it to write the edict. Liu Fang then took the edict and loudly proclaimed, "By edict, the Prince of Yan, Cao Yu, and the others are relieved of office and may not remain in the palace." And so Cao Yu, Cao Zhao, Xiahou Xian, Qin Lang, and the others embraced and wept, each returning to his residence^[2]. In the summer of the third year of Jingchu (239 CE), Cao Yu returned to Ye. During the Jingchu, Zhengyuan, and Jingyuan years, his fief was repeatedly increased, reaching a total of five thousand five hundred households. His son Cao Huan later entered the succession of the main line, becoming the Duke of Changdao Village^[1].

In the Novel

In *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, Cao Yu's image appears mainly in the chapter where Emperor Ming of Wei, Cao Rui, was gravely ill and entrusted his heir. The novel depicts Cao Rui in the palace, falling ill because Empress Mingdao demanded his life, his condition daily worsening. He ordered the Palace Attendant and Grand Master of Splendid Happiness, Liu Fang and Sun Zi, to manage the affairs of the Privy Bureau, and summoned the son of Emperor Wen, the Prince of Yan, Cao Yu, as Grand General to assist the crown prince Cao Fang in regency^[3].

Differing from history, where Cao Yu was appointed Grand General but then relieved, the novel emphasizes Cao Yu's character traits. The book describes him as "respectful, frugal, and gentle, unwilling to take on such a great charge, and firmly declining"^[3]. This description accords with the histories' record that "Cao Yu firmly and resolutely declined," but the novel treats it as Cao Yu's voluntary declining, rather than his being framed and relieved by Liu Fang, Sun Zi, and others, simplifying the complex political struggle.

Subsequently, Cao Rui asked Liu Fang and Sun Zi who among the clan was fit for great responsibility. Liu Fang and Sun Zi, having received favor from Cao Zhen, recommended Cao Zhen's son Cao Shuang. They further advised that if Cao Shuang were to be employed, the Prince of Yan, Cao Yu, must be sent back to his fief. Cao Rui heeded their counsel. Liu Fang and Sun Zi thereupon bore Cao Rui's edict and admonished the Prince of Yan, Cao Yu, ordering him to return to his fief that very day and not to enter the court without an edict. Hearing this, the Prince of Yan, Cao Yu, departed in tears^[3]. In the novel, Cao Yu's departure appears more passive and helpless, and it does not mention the historical detail of Liu Fang and Sun Zi "forcing the emperor's hand to write the edict," but directly presents the episode of Cao Yu being dismissed and sent back, highlighting his respectful, frugal, gentle character and disinclination to contend for power.

Key Relationships

* Cao Wei (serves): Cao Yu, as a son of Cao Cao and an uncle of Cao Rui, served throughout his life as a kinsman prince of the Cao Wei regime, and was once entrusted by Emperor Ming Cao Rui with the grave charge of assisting the heir; though in the end he could not assist in governance, his identity was ever closely tied to Cao Wei^[1].
* Lady Huan (kin_of): Lady Huan was Cao Yu's birth mother and one of Cao Cao's concubines. This blood relationship established Cao Yu's standing among the Cao Wei kinsmen^[1].
* Cao Rui (kin_of): Cao Rui was Cao Yu's nephew, namely Emperor Ming of Wei. During his reign Cao Rui was close with Cao Yu, fond of him from childhood, and after taking the throne doted on him all the more, even considering making him a minister entrusted with the heir when he was gravely ill^[1]. In *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, Cao Rui's trust in and entrustment to Cao Yu is also reflected^[3].
* Cao Shuang (rival): In the affair of Cao Rui entrusting his heir, Cao Shuang was the key figure who directly replaced Cao Yu as regent minister. In history, Liu Fang and Sun Zi, for their own benefit, framed Cao Yu and strongly recommended Cao Shuang, so that Cao Shuang ultimately grasped great power^[2]. In *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, Cao Shuang's rise also came after Cao Yu "firmly declined," brought about by the recommendation of Liu Fang and Sun Zi^[3].
* Liu Fang, Sun Zi (antagonists): These two secretariat ministers played a crucial role in the affair of Cao Rui entrusting his heir. Out of self-interest, they exploited Cao Rui's grave illness to sow discord between Cao Rui and kinsmen princes such as Cao Yu, ultimately succeeding in prompting Cao Rui to dismiss Cao Yu and use Cao Shuang to assist in governance instead, with a decisive effect on Cao Yu's political fate^[2].

Iconic Scenes

* Emperor Ming's Deathbed Entrustment and the Declining of the Grand Generalship: This is the most iconic event of Cao Yu's life. When Emperor Ming of Wei, Cao Rui, was gravely ill, he once appointed Cao Yu Grand General and charged him with assisting the young ruler. However, Cao Yu, deeply feeling the gravity of the responsibility, firmly declined. Then, with the intervention of Liu Fang and Sun Zi, Cao Rui changed his mind and relieved Cao Yu of office, using Cao Shuang to assist in governance instead^[1]. In *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, this scene is depicted as Cao Yu being "respectful, frugal, and gentle, unwilling to take on such a great charge, and firmly declining," and finally dissuaded by Liu Fang and Sun Zi and sent back to his fief^[3]. This event displays not only Cao Yu's respectful, frugal, gentle character but also the complex political struggle and power infighting of the later Cao Wei period.

* Liu Fang and Sun Zi Force the Emperor's Hand to Alter the Edict: According to the *Spring and Autumn of Han and Jin*, when Cao Rui was gravely ill and his breath faint, Liu Fang and Sun Zi, to achieve their aim of squeezing out Cao Yu and propping up Cao Shuang, did not shrink from extreme measures. When Cao Rui, too gravely ill to write the edict, was unable to do so, Liu Fang actually "got up onto the bed and grasped the emperor's hand to force it to write," composing the edict relieving Cao Yu and the others^[2]. Although this scene does not appear directly in *Romance of the Three Kingdoms*, it profoundly reveals the intrigue and political maneuvering behind Cao Yu's dismissal and highlights the key role of Liu Fang and Sun Zi in this affair. Through this event Cao Yu lost the opportunity to assist in governance, but also avoided being drawn into the later power struggle between Cao Shuang and Sima Yi—and perhaps for this reason was able to meet a good end.