Han Dynasty General's Dream of Conquering the West

In the spring of the twenty-fifth year of Jian'an, Cao Cao was nominally the Prime Minister of the Eastern Han Dynasty and King of Wei, but was actually the supreme ruler of northern China. Although he had not yet proclaimed himself emperor, he was already "positioned above the princes and kings", holding the emperor's banner, wearing a twelve-pin crown, and riding a gold-rooted chariot. Since the first year of Jian'an (196), when he welcomed the emperor and moved the capital to Xu County, he had "held the emperor to command the princes" for twenty-four years and laid the foundation of Cao Wei's regime with his own hands. But in his later years, he saw with his own eyes that the advisers of that time withered - Xun Yu "died out of worry" because he opposed the promulgation of the throne in the 17th year of Jian'an (212). Xun You, Cheng Yu, Guo Jia and other generation of advisers had passed away before him.