Cao Teng

Historical Record

Cao Teng, styled Jixing, was a man of Qiao in the state of Pei. His father, Cao Jie, styled Yuanwei, was known in his hometown for benevolence and generosity. Cao Teng was the fourth among the brothers, with three elder brothers: Boxing, Zhongxing, and Shuxing. From childhood he was selected into the palace, serving as an attendant of the Yellow Gate. In the first year of Yongning, Empress Dowager Deng issued an edict ordering the Director of the Yellow Gate to select one young, mild, and prudent attendant of the Yellow Gate to accompany the Crown Prince in his studies. Cao Teng, fitting the requirements, was chosen, and won the Crown Prince's affection; the food and rewards the prince gave him were unlike those given to others.^[1]

After Emperor Shun ascended the throne, Cao Teng was appointed Minor Attendant of the Yellow Gate, and later promoted to Regular Palace Attendant and Grand Steward. He served in the palace for more than thirty years, through four reigns, without ever committing a fault. Cao Teng was generous in temperament, glad to recommend the worthy and able, and never claimed credit or grew arrogant. The talents he recommended—such as Yu Fang of Chenliu, Bian Shao, Yan Gu and Zhang Wen of Nanyang, Zhang Huan of Hongnong, and Tangxi Dian of Yingchuan—all rose to the rank of the highest ministers, yet he never boasted of this.^[1]

On one occasion, the Administrator of Shu Commandery paid his respects to Cao Teng through an accounting clerk. When the Inspector of Yi Province, Zhong Hao, was conducting inspections at Hanguguan, he discovered this letter and memorialized the throne, accusing Cao Teng of "an inner minister forming outside connections," conduct that was improper, and requesting that he be dismissed and punished. However, the emperor held that the letter had been sent in from outside and was not initiated by Cao Teng, and so did not punish him. Cao Teng cared nothing about the matter; on the contrary, he often praised Zhong Hao, holding that he could act impartially and uphold the propriety between ruler and minister. Later Zhong Hao rose to Minister Over the Masses, and once said to others: "That I can stand today among the highest ministers is entirely due to the kindness of Attendant Cao." Cao Teng's conduct was mostly of this sort.^[1]

After Emperor Huan ascended the throne, mindful that Cao Teng was an old minister of the former emperors and conspicuous in loyalty and filial piety, he enfeoffed him as Marquis of Feiting and granted him the additional rank of Specially Advanced. After Cao Teng died, his adopted son Cao Song inherited his rank. Cao Song rose to Grand Commandant, but his birth father's identity was unclear, and the histories do not record it in detail. According to the Continued Book of Han, Cao Song, styled Jugao, was sincere and prudent in character, complete in both loyalty and filial piety. In the time of Emperor Ling he was promoted to Grand Minister of Agriculture and Grand Herald, and later succeeded Cui Lie as Grand Commandant. In the third year of Taihe of Wei, Cao Teng was posthumously honored as Emperor Gao; in the first year of Huangchu, Cao Song was posthumously honored as the Grand Emperor.^[1]

In the Novel

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Cao Teng's image is presented mainly indirectly, through the background introductions of his adopted son Cao Song and his grandson Cao Cao. At the opening of the novel, in describing Cao Cao's origins, it is clearly stated that Cao Cao's father Cao Song was originally surnamed Xiahou, and that because he was the adopted son of the Regular Palace Attendant Cao Teng, he took the surname Cao.^[2] This setting directly links Cao Cao's family origins to the eunuch Cao Teng, emphasizing the background of the Cao family rising to prominence through eunuch power. The novel does not narrate Cao Teng's own specific deeds, but treats him as the key figure behind the origin of the Cao family's surname, laying the groundwork for Cao Cao's image as a "treacherous hero." This treatment makes Cao Teng more of a symbolic presence in the novel, representing the impact of eunuch domination at the end of the Han on the structure of the great gentry clans.

In the novel, Cao Cao's uncle once complained to Cao Song that Cao Cao was idle and dissolute, and Cao Song reproached Cao Cao. Cao Cao, however, devised a scheme: he feigned a stroke and collapsed, deceiving Cao Song, and counter-accused his uncle of "speaking nonsense" because he had "lost affection," so that Cao Song thereafter no longer believed his uncle's complaints about Cao Cao and let Cao Cao indulge himself freely.^[2] Although this episode has nothing to do with Cao Teng himself, through Cao Song's indulgence of Cao Cao it indirectly reflects the possible negligence or indulgence in raising children on the part of Cao Song, the adopted son of the eunuch Cao Teng, and so indirectly shapes Cao Cao's free and undisciplined upbringing in his early years, laying the foundation for his later character as a "treacherous hero of a chaotic age."

Key Relationships

* Cao Song (adopted son): The adopted son of Cao Teng, who rose to Grand Commandant. The historical record describes Cao Song as "sincere and prudent in nature, loyal and filial wherever he was."^[1] The novel emphasizes that Cao Song took the surname Cao because of Cao Teng, and was the father of Cao Cao.^[2]
* Cao Cao (adopted grandson): The adopted grandson of Cao Teng and son of Cao Song. The novel clearly states that Cao Cao's surname derives from Cao Teng's adoption relationship.^[2]
* The Xiahou family (affinal/blood relation): The historical record notes the claim that Cao Song was a son of the Xiahou family and an uncle of Xiahou Dun.^[1] The novel also adopts this claim, saying that Cao Song was "originally surnamed Xiahou."^[2]
* Emperors Huan, Shun, and others (ruler-minister): Cao Teng served four emperors in the palace, including Emperor Shun and Emperor Huan, long holding key posts such as Regular Palace Attendant and Grand Steward.^[1]
* Yu Fang, Bian Shao, Yan Gu, Zhang Wen, Zhang Huan, Tangxi Dian (those he recommended): Cao Teng was glad to advance the worthy and able, and once recommended these men, who later all rose to the rank of the highest ministers.^[1]
* Zhong Hao (political opponent / one he praised): The Inspector of Yi Province, Zhong Hao, once impeached Cao Teng for "an inner minister forming outside connections," but Cao Teng cared nothing for it and on the contrary praised Zhong Hao for acting impartially.^[1]

Signature Scenes

* Companion to the Crown Prince in study: In his youth, because of his mildness and prudence, Cao Teng was chosen by Empress Dowager Deng to accompany the Crown Prince in his studies, and won the prince's affection, the food and rewards he received being unlike those of others.^[1] This experience laid the foundation for his later advancement in the palace.
* Recommending the worthy and able: During his more than thirty years of service in the palace, Cao Teng was known for being "glad to advance the worthy and able, never harming anyone." The men he recommended—Yu Fang, Bian Shao, Yan Gu, Zhang Wen, Zhang Huan, Tangxi Dian, and others—all rose to the highest ministerial ranks, yet Cao Teng never claimed credit or grew arrogant.^[1] This reflects his generous character and his skill in judging men.
* Forgiving Zhong Hao: The Inspector of Yi Province, Zhong Hao, once impeached Cao Teng over an official matter, but Cao Teng not only bore him no grudge over it but on the contrary praised Zhong Hao for "observing the propriety of serving one's superior," showing his magnanimity and breadth of spirit. Zhong Hao later became Minister Over the Masses and also acknowledged that it was due to Cao Teng's kindness.^[1]
* The origin of Cao Cao's surname: In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Cao Teng, as the adoptive father of Cao Song, is the source of the Cao family's surname. The opening of the novel states plainly that "Cao Cao's father Cao Song was originally surnamed Xiahou; because he was the adopted son of the Regular Palace Attendant Cao Teng, he took the surname Cao."^[2] Although this is not a specific action of Cao Teng himself, it is his most important "mark" in the novel, directly affecting the background and identity of the protagonist Cao Cao.