I know, I know, I said I should be talking more about the political dynamics of Wú and Shǔ after talking about Wèi too many times, but we’re hitting a sort of anniversary of a certain incident in Wèi that I’d like to talk about a little.
The Shìshuō Xīnyǔ records an certain anecdote (a variant version is also present in the annals of Sīmǎ Yì in Jìn shū 1):
Wáng Dǎo and Wēn Jiào together met with Emperor Míng [Sīmǎ Shào]. The Emperor asked Wēn of how his ancestors had obtained the empire. Wēn did not answer. Shortly after Wáng said: “Wén Jiāo is young and not yet well versed in it, I will explain it to Your Majesty.” Wáng then narrated how King Xuān [Sīmǎ Yì] began the enterprise, executing and exterminating famed clans, favoring and cultivating his own supporters, reaching to the end of King Wén [Sīmǎ Zhāo] and the Incident of the Duke of Gāoguì xiāng. Emperor Míng heard this, and burying his face in his seat said: “If it is as you say, how can our reign last long?”1
What exactly was the Incident of the Duke of Gāoguì xiāng that caused Jìn Emperor Míng such distress as to cry aloud asking how the reign of the Sīmǎ family’s Jìn empire could endure long?
Background
The Duke of Gāoguì xiāng (“High and Noble village”) was Cáo Máo, son of the prince Cáo Lín, grandson of the Emperor Wén, Cáo Pī, and great-grandson of the Emperor Wǔ, Cáo Cāo. He was born on Wèi's Zhèngshǐ Second Year Ninth Moon Yǐwèi, or 241 November 15th in the modern calendar.2
Almost three years earlier, on 239 January 22, the Emperor Míng, Cáo Ruì, eldest son of Cáo Pī, had died and been succeeded by an adopted son, Cáo Fāng, at the time aged eight. The child Emperor was entrusted to the guardianship of a distant kinsman of the Imperial family, Cáo Shǎung, with the senior statesman Sīmǎ Yì as Shuǎng’s assistant.3 At the beginning of 243, Cáo Fāng, now about twelve, underwent the formal ceremony to mark the transition to manhood, and around 247, Sīmǎ Yì, now about seventy, seemed to retire.
In 249, Sīmǎ Yì with his sons Shī and Zhāo led secretly raised private troops in a sudden surprise attack on the capital while the Emperor Cáo Fāng and the regent Cáo Shuǎng were away on a visit to the tomb of Cáo Ruì. Persuaded by false promises that the coup only sought to remove his political power, Cáo Shuǎng surrendered, and four days later he was executed along with all his clan, as were at least seven other great clans of Shuǎng’s supporters and associates.4 Cáo Fāng, at the time around eighteen, fell under Sīmǎ Yì’s control, and thereafter political power over the Wèi empire was held by the Sīmǎ family. In 251, Sīmǎ Yì further had all members of the Imperial Cáo family relocated to the city of Yè, where they were kept under house arrest.5
Sīmǎ Yì died in 251, but the Sīmǎ led faction was sufficiently entrenched to enforce a succession of Yì's eldest son Shī to Yì’s former offices and power over the Imperial Court. But there were, however, signs of discontent with the situation. Previously in 249, when Cáo Shuǎng and his followers were exterminated, Shuǎng's younger cousin Xiàhóu Xuán was stripped of his military authority as chief commander of the western front and recalled to the capital to be kept under watch by the Sīmǎ group. Reportedly after returning from the west, Xiàhóu Xuán avoided interacting with others and did not take wives and concubines6 (perhaps to prevent incriminating others, and perhaps to avoid having any wives and children who would die with him in a clan extermination). However, his very presence still became a rallying point for those in opposition to Sīmǎ Shī's usurpation of power, and around 253, the young Emperor Cáo Fāng together with a closely trusted senior official Lǐ Fēng and the father of Cáo Fāng's empress, Zhāng Qī, plotted to assassinate Sīmǎ Shī and replace him with Xiàhóu Xuán. Early in 254, the plot was discovered. Sīmǎ Shī had the Lǐ, Zhāng, and Xiàhóu clans exterminated, and later that same year he deposed Cáo Fāng.7
With Cáo Fāng removed, a new Emperor of Wèi would have to be selected, and Sīmǎ Shī at first wished to enthrone Cáo Jù, a son of Cáo Cāo and reportedly the eldest surviving member of the Imperial clan, probably in his mid fifties.8 This move was perhaps intended to dis-empower the Dowager-Empress: by precedent, the Dowager-Empress could exert great authority over young child Emperors due to the nominal mother-son relationship, and previous instances of removing one Emperor and enthroning another had involved claiming the authority of the Dowager, in analogy to a mother disowning one son and adopting another son. Dowager Guō, widow of Cáo Ruì, had been forced by Sīmǎ Shī to depose Cáo Fāng, but she was able to draw the line at the nomination of Cáo Jù by pointing out that if Sīmǎ Shī were to enthrone Cáo Ruì’s uncle, it would leave Cáo Ruì (and by extension herself) without a legal heir, which one might note would undermine the very authority Shī had usurped in order to depose Fāng. Despite Sīmǎ Shī’s fierce opposition, he could not overthrow precedent, one that he had himself abused, so easily. Dowager Guō was thus able to push for her own choice for Cáo Fāng's replacement as Cáo Ruì’s adopted son.9 As the official document issued under the Dowager’s name recorded:
Gāoguì village Duke [Cáo] Máo has the capacity for great achievement.10
A Submerged Dragon
Cáo Máo, Duke of Gāoguì village, at the time about thirteen, was escorted from Yè to the capital at Luòyáng, but despite his youth, he was already noted for his intelligence and early maturity. At his arrival, he showed great humility and deference to the Court officials, and by one account the officials were all pleased by his enthronement. An Imperial Order was issued in humble language, expressing apprehension over the heavy responsibilities that the young Emperor had found placed upon him.11
After a Court meeting, Sīmǎ Shī privately asked the opinions of a close associate Zhōng Huì, who had a reputation for skill in appraising men, on the new Emperor.12 Huì reportedly replied:
Talented as Chén Sī [Cáo Zhí], Martial like Tàizǔ [Cáo Cāo].13
The military officer Shí Bāo during a visit to Court reportedly also highly praised the new Emperor as “Wèi Wǔ [Cáo Cāo] born again.” It is said that all who heard this appraisal broke out into a sweat in anxiety over what that might mean for the future ambitions of the Sīmǎ clan.14
In early 255, regional officers Guànqiū Jiǎn and others issued a public denunciation of Sīmǎ Shī and raised troops against him.15 Though ill, Sīmǎ Shī was persuaded that the danger was sufficiently serious to personally lead the campaign against them, and though Jiǎn and the others were defeated, Shī was fatally weakened and died during the return journey. His younger brother Sīmǎ Zhāo was hurriedly summoned to take over Shī’s former command over the Imperial armies. At this stage, the young Emperor attempted to use the brief opening to reassert his own authority, issuing orders for Sīmǎ Zhāo to remain garrisoned in the southeast and the Imperial armies to return separately. Zhāo openly defied these orders by leading the armies back to the capital and camping them outside the city until the Court capitulated and approved his claims to succeed his brother’s offices.16
But even after this defeat, Gāoguì continued to show signs of intending to eventually rule in his own right. He was as active a ruler as a puppet child Emperor could be, seeking out support from members of the Court wherever it could be found. He regularly met with influential Court figures in intellectual discussions and debates, where he continued to demonstrate both intelligence and humility. He also actively sought the tutelage of famed and influential scholars Wáng Xiàng and Zhèng Xiǎotóng on the ways of inspiring loyalty and establishing governance.
All these are recorded in Sān Guó zhì 4 in perhaps surprising detail. Transcripts from a visit to the Imperial University are included, portraying Gāoguì as both very concerned with political theory but also knowledgeable and independently minded enough to defeat the University professors with difficult questions and in debate. Quotations from Gāoguì’s Imperial Orders express great sorrow and sympathy for the soldiers lost at the disastrous defeat at Táoxī. Chén Shòu and others evidently felt it very important to illustrate Gāoguì’s personality and character, that he took his position seriously and felt strongly that he must restore the glory of Wèi, his humility and sympathy for the sacrifices of his subjects, his studiousness and talent, and his great intelligence.17
Though not recorded in the Standard Histories, extant writings by literary and art critics of later times report that Gāoguì was also a talented poet (identified as the creator of the nine syllable poem format),18 calligrapher, and painter,19 though rather tragically none of his work has survived. Chén Shòu’s appraisal in the Sān Guó zhì does at least comment that Gāoguì’s cultural talents were perhaps reminiscent of his grandfather the Emperor Wén ("Cultured" or "Literary").20
During this time (especially in 258, see below), there were numerous reports of dragon sightings across the Wèi Empire, all of them yellow or blue-green, all of them in wells. In modern times, it is easy to dismiss such reports as supernatural, but in those times, such reports reflected beliefs in the connection between nature and humanity. In other words, these reports signaled opinions on contemporary political situations. The young Emperor himself made comment on the situation: “The dragon is the ruler’s influence. Above it is not in the heavens, below it is not in the fields, but repeatedly it is subdued in wells; it is not an auspicious omen.” Therefore he made a poem about submerged dragons, in analogy to his own situation. Reportedly, Sīmǎ Zhāo discovered this poem and hated it.21
As later commentators would note, in the Five Phases metaphysics of the time, yellow earth was associated with Wèi, while blue-green wood was subdued by the white metal associated with Wèi’s future successor Jìn. Reports of yellow and blue-green dragons trapped in wells were omens of Wèi’s downfall.22
At the same time as all these submerged dragons were being reported, Sīmǎ Shī and later Sīmǎ Zhāo had been increasing their power, with a symbolic advance in rank or bestowal of a special honor occurring almost every year, the only major exception being the year spent fighting Zhūgě Dàn’s uprising. The most frequent reporting of dragons trapped in wells occurred in 258, when it was first proposed that Sīmǎ Zhāo be advanced to Duke and receive the Nine Bestowments, in the aftermath of the destruction of Zhūgě Dàn.23
Wèi's Gānlù Fifth Year First Moon Yǐyǒu, the first day of the new calendar year, 260 January 30th, the sun was eclipsed. The associated divination of this omen reads: “An eclipse on a Yǐyǒu: ruler is weak and minister is strong, the marshal [Sīmǎ] commands troops, rebels and attacks his king.”24
At some unspecified time, Gāoguì’s teacher and personal attendant Zhèng Xiǎotóng happened to have a meeting with Sīmǎ Zhāo. During the meeting, Zhāo went to the lavatory and returned, but had forgotten to put away a confidential document. When Zhāo returned, he asked Xiǎotóng if he had read it. Xiǎotóng said he had not, but Zhāo was suspicious, and therefore poisoned and killed Xiǎotóng.25
In the Fourth Moon, Sīmǎ Zhāo was finally advanced in rank to Duke of Jìn, with the Nine Bestowments, the most important milestone for his path to usurpation. With this move, it was obvious to all what Sīmǎ Zhāo’s intentions were, for the title of nobility and honorary bestowals would give Sīmǎ Zhāo his own source of political legitimacy independent of his formal title as a Wèi government official. Small wonder that the previous proposal for this move in 258 had met with such controversy, with debates going on for nearly a month and the honors offered by the Imperial Court and “declined” by Sīmǎ Zhāo back and forth nine times,26 with a whole year of repeated submerged dragon sighting reports.
If Gāoguì had perhaps hoped to leverage his own younger age to out-wait Sīmǎ Zhāo’s usurpation of power, then the rise to Duke of Jìn meant that Gāoguì was out of time.
Around the beginning of the Fifth Moon, the military officer Shí Bāo met the young Emperor for a private audience, and spoke the whole day. On learning of this, Sīmǎ Zhāo was afraid and summoned Shí Bāo to ask him what he had discussed. Shí Bāo replied that the Emperor “was no ordinary man.”27
A few days later, on Wèi’s Gānlù Fifth Year Fifth Moon Jǐchǒu, or 260 June 2nd, the Duke of Gāoguì xiàng died, aged twenty years.28
How to Get Away with Regicide
It’s simple really: Control the Narrative.
A public statement was issued at Gāoguì’s death, under the name of the Dowager Guō. It read:
Because I lack virtue, the family affairs encountered misfortune. In the past I chose to enthrone the King of Dōnghǎi's son [Cáo] Máo to serve as Emperor Míng's successor, observing that he enjoyed writing and perusing official documents, and hoped he could be successful, but by nature he was cruel and ruthless, and day and moon this grew more extreme. I repeatedly scolded him, and his wrath increased, and so he created shamefully rebellious and unprincipled words to slander me, and so estranged our two Palaces. His words cannot be tolerated to be heard, and are not to be recorded among Heaven and Earth. I then secretly sent an Order to tell the General-in-Chief that he could not support the Ancestral Temple, and that I feared he would overturn the State Altars, so that when I died I would have no face to meet the former Emperor [Cáo Ruì]. The General-in-Chief [Sīmǎ Zhāo] always had sympathy for his youth and said that his heart would be corrected to the good and should be rigorously instructed. But this boy's hatred and evil was such that his conduct became more extreme, and he lifted a crossbow and from afar shot at my palace, hoping to strike me in the neck, and I personally saw the arrow land in front of me. I said to the General-in-Chief that I could not but depose him, and we argued back and forth several tens of times. This boy discovered this, and knowing his crimes were heavy, plotted to murder his parent and to rebel, bribing those around me, ordering them to when I took medicine, secretly take advantage to poison me, and he repeatedly had such plans. The plot was discovered and failed, and so he wished to take the opportunity to raise troops and enter the West Palace to kill me, and then go out and capture the General-in-Chief, and called the Attendant Internal Wáng Shěn, Cavalier Regular Attendant Wáng Yè, and Secretariat Documenter Wáng Jīng, took out from his chest a yellow silk Imperial Order and showed it, saying that today he would put it into effect. I was in grave danger, more unstable than a pile of eggs. I am but an old widow, and how can overly begrudge my remaining life? But to fail the former Emperor's remaining wishes and let the State Altars be overturned would be too painful and that is all. Relying on the spirits of the Ancestral Temple, [Wáng] Shěn and [Wáng] Yè at once hurried to inform the General-in-Chief, and so we were forewarned and alert, yet this boy still commanded his attendants to set out from Yúnlóng ['Cloud Dragon'] Gate, thundering war drums, personally wielding blade and with his attendants and guards together entered the battle lines, and was on the front lines killed. This boy was both rebellious and without principle, and also brought on himself great disaster, and doubles the grief in my heart that cannot be spoken of. In the past the Hàn's King of Chāngyì for his crimes was deposed to commoner, and so for this boy also it is appropriate to by a commoner's Rites bury him. Now inside and outside all will know of this boy's conduct. Also Secretariat Documenter Wáng Jīng was a vicious and insolent traitor, thus arrest [Wáng] Jīng and his family members and have all sent to the Minister of Justice.29
What Probably Actually Happened
Most people reading the historiography and getting used to the previous narrations and descriptions of Gāoguì would probably be taken aback by the rather abrupt change in portrayal in the statement about his death. Well, the base text of the Sān Guó zhì, compiled and published in the early years of Jìn, cannot discuss the incident in much detail and so only quotes the Dowager’s official statement. More detailed narratives must be pieced together from other sources.30
Wèi’s Gānlù Fifth Year Fifth Moon Wùzǐ, or 260 June 1st, Gāoguì gathered his closest followers to capture Língyún tower in the Palace Complex, where they secured the armor and weapons stored there as part of their plan to find an opportunity to attack Sīmǎ Zhāo, but due to rain, the Emperor’s followers persuaded him to delay mobilization to another day.
Sometime during that same night, Gāoguì met with three trusted personal attendants Wáng Jīng, Wáng Shěn, and Wáng Yè, to recruit them to his plan. By one account, Wáng Jīng attempted to dissuade Gāoguì, warning that Sīmǎ Zhāo and his followers had already been in power for many years, that the Imperial Guard was lacking in personnel and equipment, and that any move would only lead to disaster.
But Gāoguì replied:
It is already decided. Even if I die, what is left to fear? All the more when death is not certain.31
As Gāoguì returned to the inner chambers to speak with the Dowager, Wáng Shěn and Wáng Yè immediately fled to report the plan to Sīmǎ Zhāo. They called on Wáng Jīng to go with them, but Wáng Jīng believed it disgraceful to personally betray the Emperor and remained behind, letting Wáng Shěn and Wáng Yè explain his wish to remain righteous to Sīmǎ Zhāo.
The next day, June 2nd, Sīmǎ Zhāo, fore-warned by Wáng Shěn and Wáng Yè, sent his forces to attack the Palace. By one account, there was torrential rain, and lightning and thunder,32 but with Sīmǎ Zhāo’s troops entering the Palace, Gāoguì had little choice but to mobilize.
A few years earlier in 258, a similar event had happened in Wú. The young Emperor Sūn Liàng had also plotted to remove his overly powerful regent Sūn Chēn, but the plot leaked and Chēn led his troops to surround the Palace. Upon learning of this, Sūn Liàng grabbed his bow and mounted his horse, calling on his followers to follow him in breaking through, but his closest followers and his wet nurse pulled him back.33
This did not happen in Wèi. When Gāoguì asked his men to follow him on what they all must have known would be a suicidal charge, they went with him. With that personal following of only a few hundred, Gāoguì mounted a chariot and led them against the armies of the capital controlled by Sīmǎ Zhāo.
At least two armies, one led by Sīmǎ Zhāo’s younger brother Sīmǎ Zhòu and the other by Sīmǎ Zhāo’s trusted officer Jiǎ Chōng, were able to enter the Palace complex from the outside. A third army led by Sīmǎ Zhāo’s younger brother Sīmǎ Gàn attempted to enter the Palace through the most direct route of the southern watchtower gates, but were blocked by the officials Mǎn Chángwǔ and Sūn Yòu and others, who pointed out this was a serious violation of protocol: none were permitted to enter the Palace by the watchtower gates. Sīmǎ Gàn’s army was instead redirected to use the east side gate, and therefore they arrived too late.34
Gāoguì’s forces encountered Sīmǎ Zhòu’s army first, at the Carriage-Stopping Gate within the complex, but as Gāoguì’s followers shouted at Sīmǎ Zhòu and his men for daring to oppose their Emperor, Zhòu’s forces dispersed. Gāoguì’s army then reached the Southern Watchtower, right at the edge of the Palace complex, where they were attacked by Jiǎ Chōng’s army, presumably entering by the Watchtower Gates. Gāoguì personally wielded sword together with his men.
The above map35 illustrates the relative locations of the major locations involved. Gāoguì had set his arsenal at Língyún tower on the north side of the complex. On the day of the incident he set out through Yúnlóng gate and continued further south, encountering Sīmǎ Zhòu’s army at the Stopping Carriages Gate. After driving away Zhòu’s forces, he continued south toward the south Watchtower Gates, where he was attacked by Jiǎ Chōng’s forces, the last obstacle before they could hope to break through and escape the Palace, to seek any and all who might join their cause.
It was not until I was introduced to this map that I fully appreciated an often overlooked detail: the Incident occurred entirely inside the Palace complex, with Sīmǎ Zhāo’s forces entering from the outside. The official narratives in Sān Guó zhì and its annotations and especially in the Jìn shū do their best to push an appearance of Gāoguì leading his troops outside the Palace to attack Sīmǎ Zhāo’s office, rather than Sīmǎ Zhāo’s armies entering the Palace to attack Gāoguì. The version recorded in the Jìn shū in particular rather misleadingly refers to Sīmǎ Zhāo’s troops as “the Chancellor’s Office’s troops,” which, though technically correct, encourages the impression that the incident was occurring as an attack on Sīmǎ Zhāo’s office with Sīmǎ Zhāo simply defending himself, instead of occuring at the Palace, with Sīmǎ Zhāo’s troops as the attackers and Gāoguì’s forces desperately trying to break through and escape to let all the city know what was really happening. Even today, Sīmǎ Zhāo’s careful control of the narrative continues to influence readers of the historiography in subtle ways.
At the South Watchtower, the edge of the Palace complex, with the Emperor’s forces were on the verge of breaking through and escaping, Jiǎ Chōng’s forces wished to retreat. Chōng’s subordinate officer Chéng Jì said: “The situation is critical! What do we do?” Jiǎ Chōng replied: “The Duke of Jìn raised you all precisely for today! In today’s affairs, there is nothing to ask about.” Chéng Jì therefore took up a spear and charged ahead, stabbing Gāoguì in the chest, and the blade pierced out the back. And there Gāoguì died.36
Aftermath
History does not explicitly record what happened to the several hundred attendants that followed their Emperor into battle, but it would probably be reasonable to assume that they were all exterminated with their Emperor.37
Reportedly upon hearing of exactly how Gāoguì had died, Sīmǎ Zhāo threw himself upon the ground and cried: “What will the world say of me?” (my emphasis added). One might suspect that he was more disturbed by how difficult it would be to “cover up” the politically damaging incident than by the actual death of his political enemy. He summoned his associates to plan their next move. Chén Tài, one of Sīmǎ Zhāo’s oldest friends, refused to attend the meeting. When he was at last forced to go, and Sīmǎ Zhāo asked what to do, Chén Tài replied: “Execute Jiǎ Chōng to apologize to the world.” When Sīmǎ Zhāo said: “Think of something less extreme,” Chén Tài replied: “I can only think of something more extreme.” Chén Tài died soon afterward. By one account, he had fallen ill in resentment.38 By another, he had killed himself.39
For refusing to report on Gāoguì personally, Wáng Jīng had shown insufficient loyalty to Sīmǎ Zhāo. He and his clan were exterminated. By one account, at their arrest, Wáng Jīng apologized to his mother, who laughed and said: “Of men who does not die? Formerly, that I did not stop you, was because I feared that you would not find your place. To share a fate like this, what regret is to be had?”40
When Sīmǎ Zhāo asked his brother Gàn why he had arrived too late, Gàn reported what had happened. For delaying Sīmǎ Gàn’s entry into the palace, Mǎn Chángwǔ and Sūn Yòu were arrested. Mǎn Chángwǔ died during the torture of “interrogation.”41 Sīmǎ Zhāo wished to kill Sūn Yòu and exterminate his clan, but he was successfully persuaded against it by Xún Xù, and so Sūn Yòu was only reduced to a commoner.42
However, Sīmǎ Zhāo’s anger about the situation proved to have been somewhat overblown. The incident proved surprisingly easy to handle. All he had to do was Control the Narrative. Immediately, a series of public orders and petitions were issued respectively by the “Dowager” and by Sīmǎ Zhāo, carefully designed save Sīmǎ Zhāo’s political standing.
First, the “Dowager” issued the statement denouncing Gāoguì as a traitor to Wèi (the statement quoted above), accusing him of planning matricide and rebellion, stating that she had only been saved by Sīmǎ Zhāo’s timely intervention, and that due to Gāoguì’s incredible evil and horrific crimes, “she” was ordering that he be reduced to a commoner and buried as such (Oh, and go kill Wáng Jīng and his entire family too for being accessories to the crime).
Next, Sīmǎ Zhāo, portraying himself as the Emperor’s loyal defender, petitioned the “Dowager” to instead bury Gāoguì following the rites due to a prince. The “Dowager” then issued an order accepting this, though she continued to emphasize Gāoguì’s evil and praise Sīmǎ Zhāo’s magnanimity.43
On June 4th, Gāoguì was buried. The escort chariots were few and did not set up banners (hint: that’s not a prince’s burial ceremony). The commoners said to one another: “That is Heaven’s Son who was murdered the day before yesterday,” and facing one another they wept, unable to control their grief.44
Sīmǎ Zhāo and his followers next petitioned the “Dowager” to follow precedent and upgrade her “Orders” (lìng) to “Imperial Orders” (zhào) in the interim until the next Emperor could be selected, which the “Dowager” approved. With this, Sīmǎ Zhāo could now issue Imperial Orders without even needing an Emperor. Sīmǎ Zhāo then retroactively declined the “offered” title of Duke of Jìn and the Nine Bestowments (thus allowing Jìn shū to very misleadingly write that he “refused and did not accept”45 the offered honors before mentioning the Incident instead of after). The “Dowager” issued a public “Imperial Order” praising his humility, so that all could see and join in the admiration.
Instead of Jiǎ Chōng, blame was placed on Chéng Jì. Sīmǎ Zhāo again publicly petitioned that Chéng Jì be punished with clan extermination for regicide. The “Dowager” issued an Imperial Order stating that, considering Gāoguì’s great evil, Chéng Jì had in fact committed no great crimes, but due to Sīmǎ Zhāo’s sincerity, “she” would approve Zhāo’s petition.
By one account, Chéng Jì and his brothers would not accept the punishment, and climbed to the roof unclothed, obscenely shouting in rage. They were shot from below, and so died.46
Wáng Shěn, Wáng Yè, and Jiǎ Chōng were all rewarded heavily for their “loyal” services to “Wèi.”47
There is not, to my knowledge, many major historians who have spent much time wondering if the Dowager Guō was perhaps not very involved in all those statements and Imperial Orders being issued in her name. Considering that several accounts of the Incident claim that Gāoguì had consulted her on his plans to oppose Sīmǎ Zhāo, and that it was reportedly by her meddling that Gāoguì had been enthroned in the first place, it seems strange that Sīmǎ Zhāo and his group would have trusted the Dowager to play along in their careful narrative crafting post-Incident. Certainly it would have been far safer to simply forge all the Imperial Orders themselves, and then simply force the Dowager to sign off on them (or even just pretend she signed off on them; they really only need to stamp them with her Dowager-Empress’s Seal), especially with how high the political stakes had become.
It is perhaps also worth noting that the selected replacement for Gāoguì, Cáo Huàn, was technically in the same generation as Cáo Ruì (both were grandsons of Cáo Cāo) and should not have been a viable candidate to be Cáo Ruì’s “adopted son,”48 the very objection that the Dowager had previously cited in her bid to enthrone Gāoguì.
In 263, armies led by Zhōng Huì and Dèng Ài conquered Shǔ in the southwest, thus finally giving Sīmǎ Zhāo sufficient achievement to retake title as Duke of Jìn and the Nine Bestowments after a certain Incident had forced a delay of three years.49 After Sīmǎ Zhāo died in 265 and his son Yán accepted the abdication of Wèi to ascend as Emperor of Jìn, Zhāo was posthumously given Imperial title, and historiography would ever after glorify Sīmǎ Zhāo for his great achievements, particularly for his destruction of rebels such as Zhūgě Dàn and the Shǔ regime of Liú Shàn in the southwest.
Yet amid all the praises within the carefully crafted narrative of Sīmǎ Zhāo as Wèi's greatest and most loyal servant, innocent victim of the evil Gāoguì’s insane attack without cause, rescued by the loyal actions of Wáng Shěn and Wáng Yè, there remains one small and rather forgettable comment in his canonical appraisal in Jìn shū, that only an unqualified fool with absolutely no credentials to be talking about history would get incredibly fixated on:
Although he suppressed rebels, in the end he was a regicide.50
Shìshuō Xīnyǔ 33.7: 王導、溫嶠俱見明帝,帝問溫前世所以得天下之由。溫未荅。頃,王曰:「溫嶠年少未諳,臣為陛下陳之。」王迺具敘宣王創業之始,誅夷名族,寵樹同己。及文王之末,高貴鄉公事。明帝聞之,覆面著床曰:「若如公言,祚安得長!」
See Sān Guó zhì (SGZ) 4 and 20 for information on the lineage and Wèi’s Imperial Cáo family. Cáo Máo's birth date is preserved from an annotation to SGZ 4: 惟正始三年九月辛未朔,二十五日乙未直成,予生。Note that the “Third Year” in the received text must be a transcription error for “Second Year,” in order for the dates and the moons to match, and also to match with Cáo Máo’s recorded age at death.
SGZ 3. For Cáo Shuǎng see SGZ 9, for Sīmǎ Yì see Jìn shū JS 1.
See SGZ 9 for an account of the bloody purge.
JS 1: 悉錄魏諸王公置于鄴,命有司監察,不得交關。
Annotated to SGZ 9: 魏略曰:玄自從西還,不交人事,不蓄華妍。
For Xiàhóu Xuán, Lǐ Fēng, Zhāng Qī, and the failed plot, see SGZ 9.
JS 2: 以年,則皇室之長。See SGZ 20 for Cáo Jù. Though the exact year of Jù’s birth is not recorded, he was the full younger brother of Cáo Chōng, who was born about 196, which helps set an estimate.
See the annotations to SGZ 4 concerning the removal of Cáo Fāng.
SGZ 4: 高貴鄉公髦有大成之量
SGZ 4.
For Zhōng Huì see SGZ 28. A English language study of Zhōng Huì is also available here.
Annotated to SGZ 4: 「才同陳思,武類太祖。」
JS 44: 正元初,石苞來朝,盛稱高貴鄉公,以為魏武更生。時聞者流汗沾背,表懼禍作,頻稱疾歸下舍,故免於大難。
For Guànqiū Jiǎn and his uprising against Sīmǎ Shī, see SGZ 28. Guànqiū Jiǎn had been a personal friend of the late Emperor Cáo Ruì, and in attached annotations the historian Xí Zuòchǐ comments his belief that Jiǎn was moved by personal loyalty to Cáo Ruì after the removal of Ruì’s adopted son Fāng.
JS 2, SGZ 4, SGZ 28.
SGZ 4.
Sòng dynasty scholar Yán Yǔ in Cānglàng shīhuà writes “The Nine Syllable [form] arose from the Duke of Gāoguì xiāng.” 九言起於高貴鄉公。
As an example, Táng dynasty scholar and art historian Zhāng Yànyuǎn 張彥遠 writes that Gāoguì was skilled in painting and calligraphy, and that “Cáo Máo's [painting] legacy alone dominates the Wèi era.” 曹髦之跡,獨高魏代。
SGZ 4: 高貴公才慧夙成,好問尚辭,蓋亦文帝之風流也。
Annotated to SGZ 4: 漢晉春秋曰:是時龍仍見,咸以為吉祥。帝曰:「龍者,君德也。上不在天,下不在田,而數屈於井,非嘉兆也。」仍作潛龍之詩以自諷,司馬文王見而惡之。The original poem is not extant, but a reconstruction by a later poet is given in Sānguó Yǎnyì.
JS 29: 魏明帝青龍元年正月甲申,青龍見郟之摩陂井中。凡瑞興非時,則為妖孽,況困于井,非嘉祥矣。魏以改年,非也。干寶曰:「自明帝,終魏世,青龍、黃龍見者,皆其主興廢之應也。魏土運,青木色,而不勝于金。黃得位,青失位之象也。青龍多見者,君德國運內相克伐也。故高貴鄉公卒敗于兵。」案劉向說,龍貴象而困井中,諸侯將有幽執之禍也。魏世,龍莫不在井,此居上者逼制之應。高貴鄉公著潛龍詩,即此旨也。
See SGZ 4 and JS 2 for the almost annual promotions or honor bestowal. See SGZ 28 for Zhūgě Dàn. SGZ 4 explicitly states: 是歲,青龍、黃龍仍見頓丘、冠軍、陽夏縣界井中。
JS 12: 五年正月乙酉朔,日有蝕之。京房易占曰:「日蝕乙酉,君弱臣強。司馬將兵,反征其王。」五月,有成濟之變。
Annotated to SGZ 4: 魏氏春秋曰:小同詣司馬文王,文王有密疏,未之屏也。如廁還,謂之曰:「卿見吾疏乎?」對曰:「否。」文王猶疑而鴆之,卒。
SGZ 4: 夏五月,命大將軍司馬文王為相國,封晉公,食邑八郡,加之九錫,文王前後九讓乃止。
Annotated to SGZ 4: 甘露中入朝,當還,辭高貴鄉公,留中盡日。文王遣人要令過。文王問苞:「何淹留也?」苞曰:「非常人也。」明日發至滎陽,數日而難作。
SGZ 4: 五月己丑,高貴鄉公卒,年二十。
SGZ 4. Translation stolen from The Annals of Wei.
Mostly in the annotations to SGZ 4, added by Péi Sōngzhī during the Southern Dynasty Sòng, and in JS 2, compiled and published during Táng. Note that some of source texts contradict one another in the details in the source texts.
Annotated to SGZ 4: 「行之決矣。正使死,何所懼?況不必死邪!」
Annotated to SGZ 4: 時暴雨雷霆,晦冥。
Annotated to SGZ 64: 綝夜發嚴兵廢亮,比明,兵已圍宮。亮大怒,上馬,帶鞬執弓欲出,曰:「孤大皇帝之適子,在位已五年,誰敢不從者?」侍中近臣及乳母共牽攀止之,乃不得出。
For Mǎn Chángwǔ’s role, see the annotations to SGZ 26: 高貴鄉公之難,以掾守閶闔掖門,司馬文王弟安陽亭侯幹欲入。幹妃,偉妹也。長武謂幹曰:「此門近,公且來,無有入者,可從東掖門。」幹遂從之。 For Sūn Yòu’s role see JS 39: 高貴鄉公欲為變時,大將軍掾孫佑等守閶闔門。帝弟安陽侯榦聞難欲入,佑謂榦曰:「未有入者,可從東掖門。」
钱国祥. 中国古代汉唐都城形制的演进——由曹魏太极殿谈唐长安城形制的渊源[J]. 中原文物, 2016(4):34-46.
From JS 2 and the annotations to SGZ 4.
Had they been spared, one might expect the history records to have made special note of it to use as proof of Sīmǎ Zhāo’s magnanimity, as was the case in the records of Sīmǎ Zhāo rejecting proposals for a mass execution of Wú prisoners of war captured after the destruction of Zhūgě Dàn. Note that although the Wú prisoners were spared, Zhūgě Dàn’s own personal following of several hundred troops were all executed.
Annotations to SGZ 22: 干寶晉紀曰:高貴鄉公之殺,司馬文王會朝臣謀其故。太常陳泰不至,使其舅荀顗召之。顗至,告以可否。泰曰:「世之論者,以泰方於舅,今舅不如泰也。」子弟內外咸共逼之,垂涕而入。王待之曲室,謂曰:「玄伯,卿何以處我?」對曰:「誅賈充以謝天下。」文王曰:「為我更思其次。」泰曰:「泰言惟有進於此,不知其次。」文王乃不更言。魏氏春秋曰:帝之崩也,太傅司馬孚、尚書右僕射陳泰枕帝尸於股,號哭盡哀。時大將軍入于禁中,泰見之悲慟,大將軍亦對之泣,謂曰:「玄伯,其如我何?」泰曰:「獨有斬賈充,少可以謝天下耳。」大將軍久之曰:「卿更思其他。」泰曰:「豈可使泰復發後言。」遂嘔血薨。
Hàn Jìn Chūnqiū: 於是召百官議其事。昭垂涕問陳泰曰:「何以居我?」泰曰:「公光輔數世,功蓋天下,謂當並跡古人,垂美於後。一旦有弑君之事,不亦惜乎!速斬賈充,猶可以自明也。」昭曰:「公閭不可得殺也,卿更思餘計。」泰厲聲曰:「意唯有進於此耳,餘無足委者也。」歸而自殺。
Annotated to SGZ 9: 漢晉春秋曰:經被收,辭母。母顏色不變,笑而應曰:「人誰不死?往所以不止汝者,恐不得其所也。以此并命,何恨之有哉?」
Annotated to SGZ 26: 文王問幹入何遲,幹言其故。參軍王羨亦不得入,恨之。既而羨因王左右啟王,滿掾斷門不內人,宜推劾。壽春之役,偉從文王至許,以疾不進。子從,求還省疾,事定乃從歸,由此內見恨。收長武考死杖下,偉免為庶人。
JS 39: 及榦至,帝遲之,榦以狀白,帝欲族誅佑。勖諫曰:「孫佑不納安陽,誠宜深責。然事有逆順,用刑不可以喜怒為輕重。今成倅刑止其身,佑乃族誅,恐義士私議。」乃免佑為庶人。
Excerpts from all these documents are preserved in SGZ 4.
Annotated to SGZ 4: 漢晉春秋曰:丁卯,葬高貴鄉公于洛陽西北三十里瀍澗之濱。下車數乘,不設旌旐,百姓相聚而觀之,曰:「是前日所殺天子也。」或掩面而泣,悲不自勝。臣松之以為若但下車數乘,不設旌旐,何以為王禮葬乎?斯蓋惡之過言,所謂不如是之甚者。 Note that Dīngmǎo must be a mistake for Xīnmǎo. Péi Sōngzhī’s comment expresses a belief the account must be mistaken, because few escort chariots without banners cannot possibly be considered burial rites of a prince. However, I would argue that the account must certainly be accurate: two days is not nearly enough time to prepare all the necessary equipment for a princely burial. The only possible alternative would be that Gāoguì’s death had already been planned months in advance, which certainly is not possible. Unless…
JS 2: 景元元年夏四月,天子復命帝爵秩如前,又讓不受。
Annotated to SGZ 4: 魏氏春秋曰:成濟兄弟不即伏罪,袒而升屋,醜言悖慢;自下射之,乃殪。
See JS 39 and 40.
SGZ 4 and SGZ 20. Cáo Huàn was the son of Cáo Yǔ and grandson of Cáo Cāo. He was however about fourteen at his enthronement; Cáo Yǔ was probably around the same age as his nephew Cáo Ruì, an often seen quirk when some men continue to have children over a long period of time.
See JS 2, SGZ 4, SGZ 28.
JS 2: 太祖無外,靈關靜氛。反雖討賊,終為弒君。