Classic traditional story: What is Cao Cao's ambition behind the ancient poem "Looking at the Sea at Jieshi"?

This poem was written by Cao Cao in the 12th year of Jian 'an (2007) when he led an army to northern expedition to Wuhuan, passing through Jieshi Mountain in Changli County, Hebei Province. The Romance of the Three Kingdoms describes this expedition as follows: Guo Jia persuaded Cao Cao to tirelessly go to Wuhuan to destroy the remnants of Yuan Shao's two sons and stabilize the north, but in the end Guo Jia himself died on Cao Cao's trip to the north.

There is little difference between this description of romance and historical facts. This campaign can be regarded as the final work of the 200-year battle of Guandu. After seven years of war, Cao Cao completely pacified the land in Zhao Yan, Hebei Province, and unified the northern part of China except the northwest and Hanzhong. After pacifying Hebei, Cao Cao ruled Yecheng for a long time, and summer night was also the most important center of literary and artistic activities in China for a long time. Need to rehabilitate the former rulers of Hebei, Han Fu and Yuan Shao. They may not be good at strategic struggle, but the result of developing and managing Hebei is excellent.

Cao Cao's career at the age of 52 reached its peak at this time. After that, whether it was Battle of Red Cliffs after conquering Jingzhou or Hanzhong after pacifying Liangzhou, Cao Cao made major strategic and tactical mistakes, lost the opportunity to unify the whole country, and formed a tripartite confrontation situation in the past century.

But at least at this moment, Cao Cao must be proud to see the hope of reunifying the whole country. At this point, Cao Cao must have begun to think about the direction and way out of this country. The rebellion at the end of the Han Dynasty was closely related to the rigidity and collapse of the Confucian classics ideology in the Han Dynasty. From the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, China's economy, society, politics, culture and other aspects began to rebuild, and it has been constantly changing and evolving for hundreds of years. Cao Cao and his Cao Wei Group are undoubtedly very important initiators and participants in this process.

By the way, the mystery of Yu Xun's death is actually rooted in the differences between Cao Cao and Yu Xun on the national line, not just their loyalty to the Han Dynasty.

Cao Cao lived in an era when Confucian classics collapsed in the Han Dynasty, and it was also an era when aristocratic giants rose. Scholar-bureaucrat culture developed a style of pursuing elegance and individuality, which was later called "Wei-Jin romance". This style can be said to originate from Jian 'an literature led by Cao Cao and his son, and this poem can also be said to be a reflection.

This poem was originally the first chapter of Cao Cao's Yuefu group poem "Out of Xiamen", which praised the scenery and human feelings of Hebei and Cao Cao's lofty aspirations. The name of "Watching the Sea" was added by later generations, and another famous poem "Although Returning to Life" is the fourth chapter of this group of poems. (See Baidu for the whole poem)

Han Yuefu was originally used by the imperial court and the government to collect folk and literati poems and make them into music. After a great deal of collection and arrangement, Yuefu poems were classified into various categories, and Yuefu poems developed into a standardized and large-scale poetic style.

Cao Cao himself should have had the edification experience of court Yuefu. His father, Cao Song, was adopted by Cao Teng, a frequent servant among the big eunuchs, and Cao Song was appointed as a captain of one of the three public officials by buying an official. Cao Cao 19 years old first entered the officialdom, worked as a lieutenant in the north of Luoyang, and had a lot of contacts with princes and nobles in Beijing.

Cao Cao wrote Yuefu poems many times in his life and made corresponding changes, which also promoted Yuefu poems from official literature to literati creation to a certain extent.

52-year-old Cao Cao is a peak. At this point, his practice of his own line reached a climax. This route was after the collapse of Confucian Classics ideology in Han Dynasty, and Cao Cao abandoned the traditional Confucian route and took legalism as the body. He is almost invincible at this point.

But that's all. In the process of struggling and rebuilding the country, his legalist line and political skills have repeatedly suffered setbacks. Therefore, after that, he never had such a strong heart and spirit to write a trip to the sun and the moon, if it is unexpected. There are also poems such as "An old horse crouches, aiming at a thousand miles".

Especially Yuefu poems, with music. At that time, chimes were often used. The sound was loud and far away, and the atmosphere was thin. With such a poem, it will certainly stir people's hearts. CCTV's old version of "The History of the Three Kingdoms" was adapted from another Yuefu poem by Cao Cao, with a short lyric, which was sung by Yang Hongji. I've always liked it.