Cao Zhi (Chinese: 曹植 192 – 232) was a Chinese poet during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms period. His poetry style, greatly revered during the Jin Dynasty and Southern and Northern Dynasties, came to be known as the jian'an style.
Cao Zhi was also the son of the powerful warlord Cao Cao. Together with his elder brother Cao Pi, they were the strongest contestants for their father's position. Cao Pi eventually succeeded Cao Cao in 220 and within a year declared himself the first emperor of the Kingdom of Wei. Like many powerful families, tension among brothers was high. In his later life, Cao Zhi was not allowed to meddle in politics, despite his many petitions to seek office.
