Historically, the political struggles in ancient times can be described as very complicated, especially under the feudal dynasty where the imperial power was supreme, and all kinds of open and secret struggles emerged one after another. During the Cao Wei period, there were also many political struggles, such as the famous "Gaopingling Incident". And the reason why the Gao Pingling Revolution was able to succeed was naturally indispensable to Cao Shuang's trust and relaxation of vigilance. Why was Cao Shuang so careless? In fact, Cao Shuang did not blindly believe in Sima Yi, but had his own deep meaning.
First, Cao Shuang couldn't grasp Sima Yi's handle
After Cao Rong died of illness, Cao Shuang and Sima Yi assisted Cao Fang together to manage the government. During this period of time, Cao Shuang was not in a hurry to get rid of Sima Yi, which naturally had his deep meaning. First of all, Cao Shuang is very clear about his identity and status, although he has a heavy army, he is not an orthodox imperial relative, while Sima Yi is a relative of the Han family, and his status is much higher than himself. If Sima Yi is blindly eliminated, it will inevitably attract public anger, and then the civil and military forces of the Manchu Dynasty will oppose him, and attack him on the grounds of "autocratic usurpation".
It's not that Cao Shuang didn't want to get rid of Sima Yi, but he couldn't grasp the other party's handle. At that time, Sima Yi only wanted to preserve the family, and was not interested in government politics, so he would definitely not give Cao Shuang a chance. Therefore, after Cao Shuang took power, Sima Yi did not make any changes, he has always been Taoguang and obscure, and advised Cao Shuang not to easily launch the battle of Shu.
Second, Cao Shuang needs the support of the scholars
Cao Shuang is not without dissent, on the contrary, he has always had the intention of usurping the throne. At that time, Emperor Wei Ming had died, and Cao Fang was still just a child, so Cao Shuang felt that the time was ripe to take the opportunity to ascend to the throne. However, if you want to successfully usurp the throne, it is not a simple matter, in that feudal society, the so-called imperial succession Zen concession system is not a sincere Zen concession system, but requires the full support of the clan heroes.
When Sima Yi was in the air, Cao Shuang thought of winning over the powerful clan. At that time, Cao Wei was in its heyday, the country was strong, the war had subsided, and the people began to live and work in peace and contentment. And the powerful members of the clan naturally began to enjoy the glory and wealth, and lived a very prosperous life. Under such circumstances, they have no aversion to the current regime, and to a certain extent, they will help to maintain the current regime.
Cao Shuang did not purge the Sima family, but began to vigorously promote the descendants of the Sima family, and was very fond of them. In his view, this will strengthen his position in power and will allow him to rely on them against other opposition forces in the future.
In the political struggle at that time, there were no so-called "loyal and good generals" and "treacherous villains", and everyone had their own interests and choices. In the Cao Wei regime, both strategists and generals needed a very keen sense of political smell and wisdom to make the right choice in the face of interests and survival.