Cao Cao Builds the Wei Power Structure

The Jingzhou dispute had only been paused. Sun Quan and Liu Bei had stepped back because Cao Cao was still pressing from the north.

Now the story returns to Cao Cao.

He did not immediately take the imperial throne. Instead, he moved step by step until he stood below the emperor in name, but above every minister in power.

The Copper Bird Terrace

After Cao Cao defeated the Yuan brothers and took control of the north, he spent more and more time building up Ye.

Later tradition says that a bronze sparrow was found under the ground near Ye. Ministers treated it as an auspicious sign. Cao Cao was pleased and ordered the Copper Bird Terrace to be built by the Zhang River.

Poets and later storytellers gave the terrace extra color. Du Mu famously imagined that if the east wind had not helped Zhou Yu at Red Cliffs, the two Qiao sisters of Jiangdong might have been locked deep inside the Copper Bird Terrace.

But in late Han politics, the terrace mattered less as romance and more as a signal. Ye was becoming the center of Cao Cao's Wei state.

Why Cao Cao Hesitated

Cao Cao's officers knew his achievements were enormous. Some wanted him to go further and replace the Han.

Cao Cao had reasons to wait.

Sun Quan and Liu Bei already called him a Han traitor. If he became emperor too early, he would give them the perfect banner.

He also still held Emperor Xian. As long as the Han emperor remained in his hands, Cao Cao could issue orders under the old dynasty's name. That cover was still useful.

To calm public debate, Cao Cao issued the "Order Declining the Counties and Clarifying My Ambition." He reviewed his career and presented himself as a man who had acted to stabilize the realm, not to steal the throne.

Yet his actual power did not retreat.

In 212, Emperor Xian granted him privileges that placed him close to the highest rank of power: he could enter court without being called by personal name, without hurrying, and with sword and shoes.

The Han court was still there. But Wei was rising inside it.

Xun Yu's Death

That same year, Cao Cao prepared to campaign against Sun Quan.

Dong Zhao used the moment to urge him to accept the rank of duke. The argument was simple: no minister had saved the state with such merit, so Cao Cao should accept a rank matching his achievement.

Xun Yu opposed it.

Xun Yu had followed Cao Cao because he believed Cao Cao could restore order under the Han. Becoming Duke of Wei would cross a political line.

Cao Cao was displeased.

During the eastern campaign, Xun Yu fell ill at Shouchun and remained there. Later stories connected his death with an empty food box sent by Cao Cao, as if Cao Cao had hinted that Xun Yu should end his life.

The story is hard to verify. It may be legend, misunderstanding, or later explanation.

But after Xun Yu died, one of the strongest moral restraints inside Cao Cao's camp was gone.

The Empress Was Removed

As Cao Cao rose, Emperor Xian's position grew more desperate.

After the failed Girdle Edict plot, Dong Cheng was killed and Consort Dong, who was pregnant, was also executed.

Empress Fu feared Cao Cao and wrote to her father Fu Wan, describing how the emperor was being pressured. Years later, Cao Cao learned of the letter.

He ordered her seal taken away and sent Hua Xin with troops into the palace.

Empress Fu hid in a wall chamber but was dragged out. She passed Emperor Xian barefoot and disheveled, asking him for help. The emperor could only say that he did not even know how long his own life would last.

Empress Fu died in confinement. Her two sons were poisoned. Many members of the Fu clan were killed.

Cao Cao then placed his own daughters in the palace. One became empress. Two others became imperial consorts.

Cao Cao was now the emperor's father-in-law. The outer court was controlled by Cao Cao, and the inner palace was tied to the Cao family.

King of Wei and the Heir

In 216, Cao Cao advanced from Duke of Wei to King of Wei.

The next year, he received more imperial-style ritual privileges. The distance between Wei and the imperial house kept shrinking.

But one problem remained.

Who would inherit Wei?

Cao Pi was the legitimate eldest son. He read widely, wrote poetry, practiced riding and swordsmanship, and knew how to behave carefully.

Cao Zhi was more dazzling. He could write beautifully from a young age and was deeply loved by Cao Cao. Later tradition connected him with the phrase "eight dou of talent."

The two brothers had factions around them. Cao Zhi had Ding Yi and Yang Xiu. Cao Pi often asked Jia Xu how to protect his position.

Jia Xu's advice was plain: behave like a proper son, be diligent morning and night, and do not make mistakes.

Cao Pi followed it.

When Cao Cao asked Jia Xu whom he should choose, Jia Xu stayed silent. Pressed for an answer, he said he was thinking of Yuan Shao and Liu Biao. Both had ruined their houses through succession disputes.

Cao Cao understood.

Cao Zhi then damaged himself. One time he became drunk, opened the Sima Gate without permission, and drove along the imperial road reserved for Cao Cao.

Talent was not enough. Wei needed an heir who could hold the state together.

In 217, Cao Pi became heir to the King of Wei.

Cao Cao still did not become emperor. But the ranks, rituals, palace ties, and succession were now in place. If destiny belonged to him, he once said, he would be like King Wen of Zhou, the ruler who prepared the way for his son.

The final step would be left for Cao Pi.

Next, the story turns east. Sun Quan will attack Hefei and meet Zhang Liao.