Cao Song

Cao Song (died 193), courtesy name Jugao, was an official who lived during the Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the foster son of the eunuch Cao Teng and the father of the warlord Cao Cao, who rose to prominence in the final years of Eastern Han and laid the foundation of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period. Cao Song was posthumously honoured as "Emperor Tai" ("Grand Emperor") by his grandson Cao Pi in 220 when the latter ended the Han dynasty and founded the Cao Wei regime.

Cao Song was known to be honest, sincere and of good moral conduct. He served as the Colonel-Director of Retainers (司隸校尉) in the Han imperial court. During the reign of Emperor Ling, he served consecutively as the Minister of Finance (大司農) and Minister Herald (大鴻臚) before replacing Cui Lie (崔烈) as the Grand Commandant (太尉). However, it was alleged that Cao Song obtained the post of Grand Commandant by bribing eunuchs, who were deeply trusted by the emperor. Another account stated that Cao Song purchased those official posts because Emperor Ling introduced a practice of selling political offices for money.

Around 193, Cao Song retired and attempted to return to his hometown in Qiao County (譙縣; present-day Bozhou, Anhui). Along the way, he was murdered while passing through Langya State (琅玡國; present-day Linyi, Shandong) in Xu Province. At the same time, Cao Song's eldest son, the warlord Cao Cao, had established a base in Yan Province (covering present-day southwestern Shandong and eastern Henan).

There are three different accounts of Cao Song's death:

All accounts agree that Cao Cao held Tao Qian responsible for the murder of his father regardless of the degree of Tao Qian's involvement in the incident. This led to Cao Cao launching an invasion on Xu Province between 193 and 194 to punish Tao Qian for his role in Cao Song's death.

In 220, Cao Cao's son and successor, Cao Pi, ended the Eastern Han dynasty and established the state of Cao Wei, marking the start of the Three Kingdoms period. Cao Pi granted his grandfather the posthumous title "Emperor Tai" ("Grand Emperor") on 13 December.

Cao Song's family background is a mystery. Chen Shou wrote in the Sanguozhi that Cao Song's origin could not be determined. The Cao Man Zhuan (曹瞞傳) and the Shiyu (世語), two sources used by Pei Songzhi in his annotations to the Sanguozhi, mentioned that Cao Song's original family name was Xiahou (夏侯) and that he was an uncle of Xiahou Dun. Therefore, Cao Cao and Xiahou Dun were cousins.

The Qing dynasty scholar He Zhuo (何焯; 1661–1722) refuted the claim in the Cao Man Zhuan and Shiyu that Cao Song was from the Xiahou clan and dismissed it as a rumour started by people from Eastern Wu, a state founded by Cao Cao's rival, Sun Quan. This was because Xiahou Dun's son Xiahou Mao married Cao Cao's daughter Princess Qinghe (清河公主), and Xiahou Yuan's son Xiahou Heng (夏侯衡) married Cao Cao's niece, so the Xiahous and Caos could not have shared the same lineage.