Lu Xun (183 – 19 March 245),

courtesy name A courtesy name (), also known as a style name, is a name bestowed upon one at adulthood in addition to one's given name. This practice is a tradition in the East Asian cultural sphere, including China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam.Ulrich Theo ...

Boyan, also sometimes referred to as Lu Yi, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of

Eastern Wu Wu (Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' <

Eastern Han Chinese

: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in hi ...

during the

Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and was followed by the West ...

period of China. He started his career as an official under the warlord

Sun Quan Sun Quan (, Chinese: 孫權) (183 – 21 May 252), courtesy name Zhongmou (), posthumously known as Emperor Da of Wu, was the founder of the Eastern Wu dynasty, one of the Three Kingdoms of China. He inherited control of the warlord regime ...

in the 200s during the late

Eastern Han dynasty The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Emperor Gaozu of Han, Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by th ...

and steadily rising through the ranks. In 219, he assisted Sun Quan's general

Lü Meng Lü Meng () (178 – January or February 220), courtesy name Ziming, was a Chinese military general and politician who served under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Early in his career, he fought in several batt ...

in an invasion of

Jing Province Jingzhou or Jing Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China referenced in Chinese historical texts such as the '' Tribute of Yu'', ''Erya'' and '' Rites of Zhou''. Jingzhou became an administrative division during the reign of Empe ...

, which led to the defeat and death of

Liu Bei Liu Bei (, ; ; 161 – 10 June 223), courtesy name Xuande (), was a warlord in the late Eastern Han dynasty who founded the state of Shu Han in the Three Kingdoms period and became its first ruler. Although he was a distant relative of the ...

's general

Guan Yu Guan Yu (; ), courtesy name Yunchang, was a Chinese military general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. Along with Zhang Fei, he shared a brotherly relationship with Liu Bei and accompanied him on ...

. In 222, he served as the field commander of the Wu army in the

Battle of Xiaoting The Battle of Xiaoting (猇亭之戰), also known as the Battle of Yiling and the Battle of Yiling and Xiaoting, was fought between the state of Shu and the state of Wu, between the years 221 and 222 in the early Three Kingdoms period of Chin ...

against Liu Bei's forces and scored a decisive victory over the enemy. Lu Xun reached the pinnacle of his career after this battle as Sun Quan regarded him more highly, promoted him to higher positions and bestowed upon him unprecedented honours. Throughout the middle and the later parts of his career, Lu Xun oversaw and managed both civil and military affairs in Wu while participating in some battles against Wu's rival state,

Wei Wei or WEI may refer to: States * Wey (state) (衛, 1040–209 BC), Wei in pinyin, but spelled Wey to distinguish from the bigger Wei of the Warring States * Wei (state) (魏, 403–225 BC), one of the seven major states of the Warring States per ...

, from time to time. In his final years, Lu Xun was drawn into a succession struggle between Sun Quan's sons and fell out of Sun Quan's favour as a consequence. He managed to retain his appointment as Imperial Chancellor – an office he assumed in 244 – but died a year later in frustration. Lu Xun's role in the Wu government was likened to that of a '' custos morum'' as he believed firmly in and upheld

Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...

principles and practices. On the one hand, he provided constant and timely advice to Sun Quan to exercise benevolence and consider the welfare of the people. On the other hand, he vehemently objected to Sun Quan's idea of replacing his legitimate heir apparent in favour of a younger son.

Family background

Lu Xun's original given name was "Yi" (), hence he was sometimes referred to as "Lu Yi" in older historical records. He was born in a family of high social status in Wu County,

Wu Commandery Wu Commandery was a commandery of imperial China. It covers parts of the contemporary Northern Zhejiang and Southern Jiangsu. The capital of Wu commandery was Wu (today's Suzhou). Major counties of Wu commandery include Wu (county), Yuhang cou ...

, which is present-day

Suzhou Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trad ...

Jiangsu Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with it ...

. His grandfather Lu Yu () and father Lu Jun () served as officials in the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...

of the

.(陸氏世頌曰：遜祖紆，字叔盤，敏淑有思學，守城門校尉。父駿，字季才，淳懿信厚，為邦族所懷，官至九江都尉。) ''Lu Shi Shisong'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. The Lu clan, which he was from, was one of the four most influential clans in Wu Commandery and also in the Jiangdong region at the time. As he was orphaned at a young age, Lu Xun was raised by his granduncle, Lu Kang（陸康）, who served as the Administrator () of Lujiang Commandery () under the Han government. Lu Kang was originally on friendly terms with the warlord

Yuan Shu Yuan Shu () (died July or August 199), courtesy name Gonglu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. He rose to prominence following the collapse of the Han central government in 189 ...

, but relations between them soured after Lu Kang broke ties with Yuan Shu when the latter declared himself emperor – an act deemed treasonous against the Han emperor. When Lu Kang heard that Yuan Shu was planning to attack Lujiang Commandery, he immediately sent Lu Xun and his relatives back to Wu Commandery for their safety. After Lu Kang died from illness during the siege of Lujiang, Lu Xun became the new head of the Lu family because he was older than Lu Ji (Lu Kang's son) in terms of age,(陸遜字伯言，吳郡吳人也。本名議，世江東大族。 ... 遜少孤，隨從祖廬江太守康在官。袁術與康有隙，將攻康，康遣遜及親戚還吳。遜年長於康子績數歲，為之綱紀門戶。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. even though Lu Ji（陸績） was one generation older than him.

Early career

As a county-level official

In the early 200s, when Lu Xun was 20 years old, he came to serve the warlord

, who was nominally a subject of the Han emperor, but had full autonomy in governing the territories in Jiangdong he inherited from his elder brother,

Sun Ce Sun Ce () () (175–200), courtesy name Bofu, was a Chinese military general, politician, and warlord who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He was the eldest child of Sun Jian, who was killed during the Battle of Xiangyang when ...

. Lu Xun started his career as a minor officer in Sun Quan's office. He later became a Foreman Clerk in the East and West Bureaus () and the Tuntian Commandant of Haichang (海昌屯田都尉; jurisdiction in present-day

Haining () is a county-level city in Zhejiang Province, China, and under the jurisdiction of Jiaxing. It is in the south side of Yangtze River Delta, and in the north of Zhejiang. It is to the southwest of central Shanghai, and east of Hangzhou, the p ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Ji ...

), before he was appointed as a county-level official. When the county was plagued by consecutive years of drought, Lu Xun opened up the granaries and distributed food supplies to the people, and promoted agriculture. The people benefited from his policies. At the time, there were many households in Wu,

Kuaiji Shaoxing (; ) is a prefecture-level city on the southern shore of Hangzhou Bay in northeastern Zhejiang province, China. It was formerly known as Kuaiji and Shanyin and abbreviated in Chinese as (''Yuè'') from the area's former inhabitants. ...

, and Danyang () commanderies who were hiding from the government because they wanted to evade taxes and conscription. Lu Xun had them tracked down, registered and resettled. Some able-bodied young men were drafted for military service while others were recruited for agricultural labour.(孫權為將軍，遜年二十一，始仕幕府，歷東西曹令史，出為海昌屯田都尉，并領縣事。 ... 縣連年亢旱，遜開倉穀以振貧民，勸督農桑，百姓蒙賴。時吳、會稽、丹楊多有伏匿，遜陳便宜，乞與募焉。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Eliminating bandit forces

Early in his career, Lu Xun joined Sun Quan's forces in eliminating bandits in the Jiangdong territories who had been terrorising the region for years and posed serious threats to Sun Quan's administration. He organised a militia to attack the bandits led by Pan Lin () in

Kuaiji Commandery Kuaiji Commandery (Chinese: t , s , p ''Kuàijī Jùn''), formerly romanized as K'uai-chi Commandery, was a former commandery of China in the area of Hangzhou Bay. When first established, its capital was at Wu (present- ...

, passing through treacherous territory and pacifying those who stood in his way. The number of troops under his command increased to over 2,000. When another bandit chief, You Tu (), caused trouble in

Poyang County Poyang County is a county under the administration of Shangrao city in the northeast of Jiangxi Province of the People's Republic of China, bordering Anhui Province to the north. It is located on the eastern side of Lake Poyang. History The a ...

, Lu Xun led an army to attack the bandits and achieved success. He was commissioned as Colonel Who Establishes Might () and ordered to garrison at

Lipu County Lipu () is a county-level city in the northeast of Guangxi, China. It is under the administration of Guilin City, the downtown of which is to the north. Lipu has a population of 370,000 (2002). It covers an area of 1759 square kilometers. The s ...

.(會稽山賊大帥潘臨，舊為所在毒害，歷年不禽。遜以手下召兵，討治深險，所向皆服，部曲已有二千餘人。鄱陽賊帥尤突作亂，復往討之，拜定威校尉，軍屯利浦。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun once advised Sun Quan to eliminate local bandit forces in Jiangdong first because they would hinder him in his aims to achieve supremacy over China. Sun Quan heeded Lu Xun's words and appointed him as a Commandant of the Right Section () under him. Fei Zhan (), a bandit chief in Danyang Commandery, had received an official appointment from

Cao Cao Cao Cao () (; 155 – 15 March 220), courtesy name Mengde (), was a Chinese statesman, warlord and poet. He was the penultimate grand chancellor of the Eastern Han dynasty, and he amassed immense power in the dynasty's final years. As one o ...

, a leading warlord who was also the ''de facto'' head of the Han government. Cao Cao had secretly instructed Fei Zhan to instigate the

Shanyue The Shanyue (山越) were an ancient conglomeration of upland Yue hill tribes living in what is today the mountainous regions of Southern China and Northern Vietnam during the Han dynasty. Since the Southern part of China was not yet controlle ...

tribes in Jiangdong to cause trouble for Sun Quan. In response, Sun Quan sent Lu Xun to attack Fei Zhan. Lu Xun had a much smaller army as compared to Fei Zhan, but he deceived the enemy into thinking that he had more troops. He prepared more flags and banners, spread out his war drums, ordered his men to sneak into the valleys at night and beat the drums loudly, so as to create an illusion of an overwhelming army. He emerged victorious over Fei Zhan.(... 數訪世務，遜建議曰：「方今英雄棊跱，豺狼闚望，克敵寧亂，非衆不濟。而山寇舊惡，依阻深地。夫腹心未平，難以圖遠，可大部伍，取其精銳。」權納其策，以為帳下右部督。 ... 會丹楊賊帥費棧受曹公印綬，扇動山越，為作內應，權遣遜討棧。棧支黨多而往兵少，遜乃益施牙幢，分布鼓角，夜潛山谷間，鼓譟而前，應時破散。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun sent his troops into the three commanderies in eastern Jiangdong, where he drafted many able-bodied young men for military service while the less physically fit ones were recruited for agricultural labour. He drafted tens of thousands of soldiers in total. He also cleared the region of opposing forces before returning to a garrison at

Wuhu Wuhu () is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Anhui province, China. Sitting on the southeast bank of the Yangtze River, Wuhu borders Xuancheng to the southeast, Chizhou and Tongling to the southwest, Hefei city to the northwest, Ma' ...

.(遂部伍東三郡，彊者為兵，羸者補戶，得精卒數萬人，宿惡盪除，所過肅清，還屯蕪湖。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Conflict with Chunyu Shi

Chunyu Shi (), the Administrator of

, once accused Lu Xun of oppressing and disturbing the common people. When Lu Xun travelled to

to meet Sun Quan and explain himself, he praised Chunyu Shi for being an excellent civil official. Sun Quan was puzzled so he asked Lu Xun, "Chunyu Shi made accusations against you, yet you praise him. Why?" Lu Xun replied, "Chunyu Shi was concerned about the people's welfare when he made accusations against me. If I rebuked him, I'll be violating my principles. This is something I won't do." Sun Quan said, "This is something a person with good morals will do and something which ordinary people aren't capable of doing."(會稽太守淳于式表遜枉取民人，愁擾所在。遜後詣都，言次，稱式佳吏，權曰：「式白君而君薦之，何也？」遜對曰：「式意欲養民，是以白遜。若遜復毀式以亂聖聽，不可長也。」權曰：「此誠長者之事，顧人不能為耳。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Invasion of Jing Province

Planning for the invasion

Around 215, about six years after the

Battle of Red Cliffs The Battle of Red Cliffs, also known as the Battle of Chibi, was a decisive naval battle in the winter of AD 208–209 at the end of the Han dynasty, about twelve years prior to the beginning of the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history ...

had territorial disputes with his ally,

, over southern

. Tensions between them nearly escalated to the point of armed conflict. However, after tense negotiations between

Lu Su Lu Su (172–217), courtesy name Zijing, was a Chinese military general and politician serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty. In the year 200, when Sun Quan had just taken over the reins of power, his adviser Zh ...

(Sun Quan's representative) and

(Liu Bei's representative), both sides eventually agreed to divide southern Jing Province between their respective domains along the

Xiang River The Xiang River is the chief river of the Lake Dongting drainage system of the middle Yangtze, the largest river in Hunan Province, China. It is the 2nd largest tributary (after Min River) in terms of surface runoff, the 5th largest tribut ...

.(備遂割湘水為界，於是罷軍。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 54. Guan Yu guarded Liu Bei's territories in southern Jing Province while

was in charge of Sun Quan's.(魯肅卒，蒙西屯陸口，肅軍人馬萬餘盡以屬蒙。又拜漢昌太守，食下雋、劉陽、漢昌、州陵。與關羽分土接境，知羽驍雄，有并兼心，且居國上流，其勢難乆。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 54. In 219, Lü Meng came up with a plan to help Sun Quan seize control of Liu Bei's territories in Jing Province. He pretended to be sick and asked for permission to return to Jianye to seek medical treatment. Sun Quan played along by pretending to approve his request. Lu Xun went to visit Lü Meng and said, "Guan Yu is near the border. How can we remain far behind the border and not worry about having to guard against him?" Lü Meng replied, "What you've said is true, but I'm seriously ill now." Lu Xun then said, "Guan Yu is proud of his own valour and he scorns others. He may have made great achievements, but he's overly conceited. Besides, he's heading north and he has never seen us a threat. When he knows you're sick, he'll definitely lower his defences. If we attack him when he lowers his guard, we can capture him. I came here to discuss with you a plan to attack him." Lü Meng replied, "Guan Yu is known for his bravery and ferocity in battle, and he's a formidable foe. Besides, he's in control of Jing Province. He governs with virtue and has made great accomplishments, while the morale of his army is at its peak. It won't be easy to defeat him."(呂蒙稱疾詣建業，遜往見之，謂曰：「關羽接境，如何遠下，後不當可憂也？」蒙曰：「誠如來言，然我病篤。」遜曰：「羽矜其驍氣，陵轢於人。始有大功，意驕志逸，但務北進，未嫌於我，有相聞病，必益無備。今出其不意，自可禽制。下見至尊，宜好為計。」蒙曰：「羽素勇猛，旣難為敵，且已據荊州，恩信大行，兼始有功，膽勢益盛，未易圖也。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Succeeding Lü Meng

When Lü Meng arrived in Jianye, Sun Quan asked him, "Who can replace you?" Lü Meng responded, "Lu Xun is careful and thoughtful. He has the ability to shoulder this important responsibility. Based on my observations of him, I believe he's capable of taking up greater responsibilities in the future. Besides, he's relatively unknown, so Guan Yu won't be wary of him. This can't be better. If he's appointed, our enemies will be unaware of our intentions, while we can assess our strengths better and seek an opportunity to launch the attack." Sun Quan followed Lü Meng's suggestion and commissioned Lu Xun as a Lieutenant-General () and Inspector of the Right Section () to replace Lü Meng in Jing Province.(蒙至都，權問：「誰可代卿者？」蒙對曰：「陸遜意思深長，才堪負重，觀其規慮，終可大任。而未有遠名，非羽所忌，無復是過。若用之，當令外自韜隱，內察形便，然後可克。」權乃召遜，拜偏將軍右部督代蒙。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. When Lu Xun arrived at Lukou (陸口; at Lushui Lake near present-day

Chibi Chibi most often refers to: * Chibi (style), a super-deformed style of Japanese-influenced caricature *Chibi, Hubei (赤壁 lit. Red Cliff), a county-level city in southeastern Hubei, China. Chibi may also refer to: Places * Chibi Subdistrict, ...

Hubei Hubei (; ; alternately Hupeh) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, and is part of the Central China region. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Dongting Lake. The p ...

) to assume his new office, he wrote to Guan Yu to flatter him: Later, after Guan Yu defeated Yu Jin at the

Battle of Fancheng The Battle of Fancheng or the Battle of Fan Castle was fought between the warlords Liu Bei and Cao Cao in 219 in the late Eastern Han dynasty. It is named after Fancheng in present-day Xiangyang, Hubei, a fortress that played a significant ro ...

, Lu Xun wrote a letter to Guan again to flatter him and put him off guard:

Invasion and pacification of Jing Province

Upon receiving the letters, Guan Yu saw that Lu Xun showed humility and expressed his desire to rely on him, so he felt at ease and lowered his guard. When Lu Xun heard about it, he wrote a report to Sun Quan and provided crucial details on how to defeat Guan Yu. Sun Quan secretly sent an army to invade Jing Province, with Lü Meng and Lu Xun leading the vanguard force. Lü Meng employed infiltration tactics to disable the watchtowers set up by Guan Yu along the

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ; ) is the longest river in Asia, the third-longest in the world, and the longest in the world to flow entirely within one country. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains (Tibetan Plateau) and flows ...

, rendering them unable to warn Guan Yu about Sun Quan's advances, and then swiftly conquered Guan Yu's key bases in Jing Province – Gong'an County and

Nan Commandery Nan Commandery ( zh, 南郡, "Southern Commandery") was a Chinese commandery that existed from the Warring States period to Tang dynasty. Its territories covered present-day central and western Hubei province, as well as parts of Chongqing. The seat ...

(南郡; around present-day

Jiangling County Jiangling () is a county in southern Hubei province, People's Republic of China. Administratively, it is under the jurisdiction of Jingzhou City. History The county name derived from the old name of Jingzhou. Liang dynasty Prince Xiao Yi 蕭繹 ( ...

). For his contributions to the successful conquest of Jing Province, Lu Xun was appointed as the Administrator () of Yidu Commandery (宜都郡; around present-day Yidu, Hubei), promoted to General Who Pacifies the Border (), and enfeoffed as the Marquis of Hua Village (). Fan You (), the previous Administrator of Yidu Commandery under Guan Yu, abandoned his post and fled, while the officials and tribal chiefs in the commandery surrendered to Lu Xun. Lu Xun ordered official seals to be carved from gold, silver or bronze, and presented to these officials and tribal chiefs. This took place in around January 220.(羽覽遜書，有謙下自託之意，意大安，無復所嫌。遜具啟形狀，陳其可禽之要。權乃潛軍而上，使遜與呂蒙為前部，至即克公安、南郡。 ... 遜徑進，領宜都太守，拜撫邊將軍，封華亭侯。備宜都太守樊友委郡走，諸城長吏及蠻夷君長皆降。遜請金銀銅印，以假授初附。是歲建安二十四年十一月也。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Even after Sun Quan's forces successfully conquered southern Jing Province, there were still some areas which were still controlled by

's forces or other hostile forces, so Lu Xun had to pacify those regions. He sent his subordinates Li Yi (), Xie Jing () and others to lead 3,000 troops to attack Liu Bei's officers Zhan Yan () and Chen Feng (). Li Yi led the naval forces while Xie Jing commanded the land army. They sealed the critical routes and defeated Zhan Yan and captured Chen Feng. They then attacked Deng Fu () and Guo Mu (), the Administrators of Fangling Commandery () and Nanxiang County () respectively, and defeated the enemy. Wen Bu () and Deng Kai (), two influential men in Zigui County, rallied thousands of local tribesmen to form an army to attack Lu Xun in the west. In response, Lu Xun sent Xie Jing to attack them. Wen Bu and Deng Kai were defeated and they fled west to the state of

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <

(遜遣將軍李異、謝旌等將三千人，攻蜀將詹晏、陳鳳。異將水軍，旌將步兵，斷絕險要，即破晏等，生降得鳳。又攻房陵太守鄧輔、南鄉太守郭睦，大破之。秭歸大姓文布、鄧凱等合夷兵數千人，首尾西方。遜復部旌討破布、凱。布、凱脫走，蜀以為將。遜令人誘之，布帥衆還降。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Aftermath

Throughout these campaigns in Jing Province, Lu Xun had killed, captured or recruited tens of thousands of enemies. In recognition of Lu Xun's efforts, Sun Quan promoted him to Right Protector-General (), General Who Guards the West (), and promoted him from a village marquis to a county marquis under the title "Marquis of Lou" ().(前後斬獲招納，凡數萬計。權以遜為右護軍、鎮西將軍，進封婁侯。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Sun Quan was very pleased with Lu Xun and wanted to specially honour him. However, even though Lu Xun already held the rank of a general and a marquis title, he still had to go through the standard protocol of receiving a recommendation from the chief administrating officer in his home province. Hence, Sun Quan ordered Lü Fan, the Governor of

Yang Province Yangzhou, Yangchow or Yang Province was one of the Nine Provinces of ancient China mentioned in historical texts such as the ''Tribute of Yu'', '' Erya'' and ''Rites of Zhou''. Name There are four different theories regarding the origin of the ...

, to "backdate" Lu Xun's service record by stating that he had previously employed Lu Xun as an aide-de-camp () and recommended him as a ''maocai'' ().(吳書曰：權嘉遜功德，欲殊顯之，雖為上將軍列侯，猶欲令歷本州舉命，乃使揚州牧呂範就辟別駕從事，舉茂才。) ''Wu Shu'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. At the time, there were many educated men in Jing Province who had either obtained positions in the civil service or were unemployed, so Lu Xun wrote a proposal to Sun Quan:(時荊州士人新還，仕進或未得所，遜上疏曰： ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Sun Quan accepted Lu Xun's proposal.(權敬納其言。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Battle of Xiaoting

Historical background

In late 220,

Cao Pi Cao Pi () ( – 29 June 226), courtesy name Zihuan, was the first emperor of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Cao Cao, a warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han dynasty, but the eldest s ...

forced Emperor Xian to abdicate the throne in his favour and ended the Han dynasty. He declared himself emperor and established the state of

Cao Wei Wei ( Hanzi: 魏; pinyin: ''Wèi'' <

Middle Chinese

: *''ŋjwei^C'' < Three Kingdoms The Three Kingdoms () from 220 to 280 AD was the tripartite division of China among the dynastic states of Cao Wei, Shu Han, and Eastern Wu. The Three Kingdoms period was preceded by the Eastern Han dynasty and was followed by the West ...

period. Two years later,

proclaimed himself emperor and established the state of

Shu Han Han (; 221–263), known in historiography as Shu Han ( ) or Ji Han ( "Junior Han"), or often shortened to Shu (; pinyin: ''shŭ'' <

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerai ...

king, King of Wu" (吳王). However, in late 222, he declared independence from the Cao Wei regime but retained his title "King of Wu".

Early stages

In early 222, Liu Bei personally led the Shu army to attack Sun Quan and retake his lost territories in southern

. Sun Quan appointed Lu Xun as Grand Chief Controller () and put him in command of 50,000 troops to resist the enemy, with

Zhu Ran Zhu Ran (182 – March or April 249), born Shi Ran, courtesy name Yifeng, was a Chinese military general of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Despite being a childhood friend of Wu's founding emperor, Sun Quan, h ...

Pan Zhang Pan Zhang (died 234), courtesy name Wengui, was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty of China. He continued serving in the state of Eastern Wu (founded by Sun Quan) during the Three Kingdoms ...

, Song Qian,

Han Dang Han Dang (died 227), courtesy name Yigong, was a military general serving under the warlord Sun Quan during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. He previously served under Sun Quan's predecessors – Sun Jian (Su ...

, Xu Sheng, Xianyu Dan (), Sun Huan and others serving as his subordinates. The Shu army passed through Wu Gorge (), Jianping () and Lianping () until they arrived on the outskirts of Yiling (夷陵; present-day

Yichang Yichang (), alternatively romanized as Ichang, is a prefecture-level city located in western Hubei province, China. It is the third largest city in the province after the capital, Wuhan and the prefecture-level city Xiangyang, by urban populati ...

), where they laid siege and built several camps. Liu Bei bribed the local tribes in Yiling with gold and silk to support him. He appointed Feng Xi（馮習） as his Chief Controller, Zhang Nan () as the vanguard, and Fu Kuang (), Zhao Rong (), Liao Chun () and Fu Rong as the controllers of the various divisions. He also sent Wu Ban to lead a few thousand men to construct camps on flat ground and provoke the Wu forces into attacking them.(黃武元年，劉備率大衆來向西界，權命遜為大都督、假節，督朱然、潘璋、宋謙、韓當、徐盛、鮮于丹、孫桓等五萬人拒之。 ... 備從巫峽、建平、連平、連圍至夷陵界，立數十屯，以金錦爵賞誘動諸夷，使將軍馮習為大督，張南為前部，輔匡、趙融、廖淳、傅肜等各為別督，先遣吳班將數千人於平地立營，欲以挑戰。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. When the Wu generals wanted to respond to the enemy's taunts, Lu Xun said, "This must be a trick. We should observe first."(諸將皆欲擊之，遜曰：「此必有譎，且觀之。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Earlier on, when the Shu army first arrived at Yiling, the Wu generals wanted to attack the enemy, but Lu Xun objected and said, "Liu Bei is leading an army east to attack us and his army's morale is very high. Besides, his forces are based in high and mountainous terrain, so it's difficult for us to attack them. Even if we manage to win, we cannot completely defeat them. If we suffer any setback, our morale will be greatly affected and this isn't a small issue. Now, we should raise our troops' morale and make plans while waiting for changes in the situation. If we're on plains and flat ground, we should be worrying about sustaining heavy losses in skirmishes and charges. However, since the enemy is on mountainous terrain, they can't carry out an all-out assault because they're sandwiched between wood and rocks. We should take advantage of this weakness of theirs." The Wu generals did not understand Lu Xun's reasoning and thought that he feared the enemy so they were very disgruntled with him.(吳書曰：諸將並欲迎擊備，遜以為不可，曰：「備舉軍東下，銳氣始盛，且乘高守險，難可卒攻，攻之縱下，猶難盡克，若有不利，損我大勢，非小故也。今但且獎厲將士，廣施方略，以觀其變。若此間是平原曠野，當恐有顛沛交馳之憂，今緣山行軍，勢不得展，自當罷於木石之間，徐制其弊耳。」諸將不解，以為遜畏之，各懷憤恨。) ''Wu Shu'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. When Liu Bei realised that his plan to lure Wu forces into attacking him had failed, he led the 8,000 troops out of the valley, where they had been waiting in ambush earlier. When Lu Xun heard about it, he told his subordinates, "The reason why I didn't follow your suggestions to attack the enemy is because I suspected there was something fishy about it."(備知其計不可，乃引伏兵八千，從谷中出。遜曰：「所以不聽諸君擊班者，揣之必有巧故也。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. He then wrote a report to Sun Quan:

Burning of the Shu camps

The Wu generals said, "We should have attacked Liu Bei in the initial stages. Now, he has advanced further in by 500-600 '' li'' and we have been locked in a stalemate for seven to eight months. He has reinforced all his crucial positions, so even if we attack them it will yield nothing." Lu Xun replied, "Liu Bei is cunning and experienced. In the initial stage, his army was very focused and its morale was very high, so we couldn't defeat them then. Now, however, since it has been quite some time, they are already weary, low on morale, and out of ideas. Now is the time for us to launch a multi-pronged assault on them."(諸將並曰：「攻備當在初，今乃令入五六百里，相銜持經七八月，其諸要害皆以固守，擊之必無利矣。」遜曰：「備是猾虜，更甞事多，其軍始集，思慮精專，未可干也。今住已乆，不得我便，兵疲意沮，計不復生，犄角此寇，正在今日。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun then targeted one enemy camp and attacked it but failed to capture it. The Wu officers complained, "We're sacrificing our soldiers' lives for nothing." Lu Xun replied, "I have devised a strategy for defeating the enemy." He then ordered his men to carry a pile of straw each and launch a fire attack on the enemy. Upon the commencement of the fire attack, Lu Xun led all the Wu units on an all-out assault on the Shu forces. The Shu generals Zhang Nan and Feng Xi, and the tribal king Shamoke (Liu Bei's ally) were killed in battle, while the Wu forces destroyed over 40 Shu camps.(乃先攻一營，不利。諸將皆曰：「空殺兵耳。」遜曰：「吾已曉破之之術。」乃勑各持一把茅，以火攻拔之。一爾勢成，通率諸軍同時俱攻，斬張南、馮習及胡王沙摩柯等首，破其四十餘營。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. The Shu officers Du Lu (), Liu Ning () and others surrendered when they saw they had no chance of escaping. Liu Bei and his remaining troops retreated to the Ma'an Hills (), where they continued to be fiercely assaulted by Wu forces from all directions. At the same time, landslides occurred at the Ma'an Hills and caused the Shu forces to suffer thousands of casualties. Liu Bei fled at night and ordered his men to pile up their armour and set them on fire to create barriers for the pursuing enemy. By the time Liu Bei reached the safety of Baidicheng, all his boats, military equipment and supplies had been captured by Wu forces. The dead bodies of Shu soldiers floated in the river and obstructed its flow. Liu Bei was extremely upset and furious with his defeat. He exclaimed, "Is it not the will of Heaven that I must be humiliated by Lu Xun?"(備將杜路、劉寧等窮逼請降。備升馬鞍山，陳兵自繞。遜督促諸軍四面蹙之，土崩瓦解，死者萬數。備因夜遁，驛人自擔，燒鐃鎧斷後，僅得入白帝城。其舟船器械，水步軍資，一時略盡，尸骸漂流，塞江而下。備大慙恚，曰：「吾乃為遜所折辱，豈非天邪！」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Incidents during the battle

During the preliminary stages of the Battle of Xiaoting, Sun Huan had led a separate force to attack the Shu vanguard force at Yidao () but ended up being besieged by the enemy. He requested for reinforcements from Lu Xun but was denied. The other Wu officers said, "General Sun is a relative of our lord. He's under siege, so shouldn't we help him?" Lu Xun replied, "He has the support of his men, his base is well defended, and he has sufficient supplies. There's nothing to worry about. When my plans are set in motion, even if we don't go to his aid, the siege on him will automatically be lifted." After the Wu victory, Sun Huan came to see Lu Xun and said, "Earlier on, I was indeed very resentful when you refused to help me. But now, after the victory, I see you have your own way of doing things."(初，孫桓別討備前鋒於夷道，為備所圍，求救於遜。遜曰：「未可。」諸將曰：「孫安東公族，見圍已困，柰何不救？」遜曰：「安東得士衆心，城牢糧足，無可憂也。待吾計展，欲不救安東，安東自解。」及方略大施，備果奔潰。桓後見遜曰：「前實怨不見救，定至今日，乃知調度自有方耳。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Many of the Wu officers who participated in the battle had either served in Wu since

's time or were relatives of the Sun family, so they viewed themselves highly and were unwilling to follow Lu Xun's orders. Lu Xun placed his sword on the desk and said,(當禦備時，諸將軍或是孫策時舊將，或公室貴戚，各自矜恃，不相聽從。遜案劒曰： ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. The Wu officers began to show greater respect towards Lu Xun after the Wu victory, which was largely due to his strategies.(及至破備，計多出遜，諸將乃服。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. When Sun Quan heard about this incident, he asked Lu Xun, "Why didn't you report to me about the generals refusing to follow your orders?"(權聞之，曰：「君何以初不啟諸將違節度者邪？」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun replied, Sun Quan laughed and praised Lu Xun. Lu Xun was promoted to General Who Assists the State (), appointed as Governor () of Jing Province, and had his marquis title changed to "Marquis of Jiangling" ().(權大笑稱善，加拜遜輔國將軍，領荊州牧，即改封江陵侯。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Aftermath

After Liu Bei had retreated to Baidicheng, Xu Sheng, Pan Zhang, Song Qian and other Wu generals suggested to attack Baidicheng and capture Liu Bei. When Sun Quan asked Lu Xun for his opinion, Lu, along with Zhu Ran and Luo Tong, said that when

amassed his forces and seemed like he was going to help Wu attack Shu, he was actually harbouring sinister intentions, so they should be cautious, abandon their pursuit of Liu Bei, and return to Wu. Not long later, Cao Pi led the

armies to invade Wu from three directions.(又備旣住白帝，徐盛、潘璋、宋謙等各競表言備必可禽，乞復攻之。權以問遜，遜與朱然、駱統以為曹丕大合士衆，外託助國討備，內實有姦心，謹決計輒還。無幾，魏軍果出，三方受敵也。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. When Liu Bei heard of the Wei invasion of Wu, he still had his armies and scouts on and around the border,

Zhuge Liang Zhuge Liang ( zh, t=諸葛亮 / 诸葛亮) (181 – September 234), courtesy name Kongming, was a Chinese statesman and military strategist. He was chancellor and later regent of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. He is ...

, Li Yan, Liu Yan,

Zhao Yun Zhao Yun ( ) (died 229), courtesy name Zilong (), was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and early Three Kingdoms period of China. Originally a subordinate of the northern warlord Gongsun Zan, Zhao Yun later came ...

and many other Han officials, even those who agreed with the campaign to reclaim Jing insisted on renewing the alliance of Wu. With both

Zhuge Jin Zhuge Jin (174 – July or August 241), courtesy name Ziyu, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty, Zhuge Jin started his career in ...

and Lu Xun offering peace in letters because of the threat of a Wei invasion with Sun Quan's refusal to send his son as a hostage, Liu finally agreed and wrote to Lu to not only renew the alliance but coordinate an attack against Wei: "The enemy (Wei) is at Jiangling now. If I launch another attack again, in your opinion, do you think I will succeed?"(吳錄曰：劉備聞魏軍大出，書與遜云：「賊今已在江陵，吾將復東，將軍謂其能然不？」) ''Wu Lu'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun replied: Liu Bei died in 223 and was succeeded by his son,

Liu Shan Liu Shan () (207–271), courtesy name Gongsi, was the second and last emperor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period. As he ascended the throne at the age of 16, Liu Shan was entrusted to the care of the Chancellor Zhuge ...

, as the emperor of Shu.

became Shu's head of government and he made peace with Wu and reestablished the Wu–Shu alliance against Wei. Sun Quan granted permission to Lu Xun to reply to Zhuge Liang on his behalf, and had a duplicate of his own official seal made and sent to Lu's office. Whenever Sun Quan wrote to Liu Shan and Zhuge Liang, he would allow Lu Xun to read the letters, make the appropriate modifications, stamp his official seal on them and have them delivered to Shu.(備尋病亡，子禪襲位，諸葛亮秉政，與權連和。時事所宜，權輒令遜語亮，并刻權印，以置遜所。權每與禪、亮書，常過示遜，輕重可否，有所不安，便令改定，以印封行之。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Battle of Shiting

In 228,

instructed Zhou Fang, the Administrator () of Poyang Commandery (), to pretend to defect to

Cao Xiu Cao Xiu (died 29 September 228?), courtesy name Wenlie, was a Chinese military general of the state of Cao Wei in the Three Kingdoms period of China. A distant younger relative of the warlord Cao Cao, Cao Xiu started his career in the late Ea ...

, the Grand Marshal () of

, and lure Wei forces to attack Wu. Cao Xiu fell for the ruse and led his armies to attack the Wu garrison at Wan County (皖縣; present-day Qianshan County,

Anhui Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze Riv ...

). Sun Quan granted Lu Xun a yellow ceremonial axe, appointed him as Grand Chief Controller () again, and put him in command of six Wu armies and the imperial guards to resist the Wei invaders.(七年，權使鄱陽太守周魴譎魏大司馬曹休，休果舉衆入皖，乃召遜假黃鉞，為大都督，逆休。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun thus had the authority to act on Sun Quan's behalf. Sun Quan even waved a ceremonial whip and ordered all his subjects to pay their respects to Lu Xun.(陸機為遜銘曰：魏大司馬曹休侵我北鄙，乃假公黃鉞，統御六師及中軍禁衞而攝行王事，主上執鞭，百司屈膝。) ''Lu Xun Ming'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.(吳錄曰：假遜黃鉞，吳王親執鞭以見之。) ''Wu Lu'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. When Cao Xiu realised he had been deceived by Zhou Fang, he felt humiliated but decided to continue the campaign anyway because he had superiority in numbers and his troops were well-trained. During the Battle of Shiting, Lu Xun remained in the central command, with

Zhu Huan Zhu Huan (177–238), courtesy name Xiumu, was a military general of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Although he started his career early under the warlord Sun Quan, he did not receive any important responsibil ...

and

Quan Cong Quan Cong (196–247 or 198–249), courtesy name Zihuang, was a Chinese military general of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in present-day Hangzhou towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty, Quan Co ...

leading the armies on his left and right flanks respectively. Their three armies advanced together and defeated Cao Xiu's forces lying in ambush and drove them further northward until Jiashi (). They killed and captured thousands of enemies and obtained much of the enemy's livestock, equipment and supplies. Cao Xiu died of illness after returning to Wei. Lu Xun and the victorious Wu forces returned to Wuchang (武昌; present-day

Ezhou Ezhou () is a prefecture-level city in eastern Hubei Province, China. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 1,079,353, of which 695,697 lived in the core Echeng District. The Ezhou - Huanggang built-up (''or metro'') area was home ...

), where Sun Quan held a grand reception for them. Sun Quan instructed his servants to shield Lu Xun with his imperial parasol when he entered or left the palace, and rewarded Lu Xun with many gifts. The honours Lu Xun received were unprecedented in his time. He moved to Xiling County (西陵縣; present-day

Xiling District Xiling () is a district of Yichang, Hubei, People's Republic of China. It includes the central part of Yichang's urban area, on the left (northwestern) bank of the Yangtze River. History In September 1949, the main part of the territory of modern ...

, Hubei) after that.(休旣覺知，恥見欺誘，自恃兵馬精多，遂交戰。遜自為中部，令朱桓、全琮為左右翼，三道俱進，果衝休伏兵，因驅走之，追亡逐北，徑至夾石，斬獲萬餘，牛馬騾驢車乘萬兩，軍資器械略盡。休還，疽發背死。 ... 諸軍振旅過武昌，權令左右以御蓋覆遜，入出殿門，凡所賜遜，皆御物上珍，於時莫與為比。遣還西陵。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Mid career

In 229, after

declared himself emperor and established the state of

Eastern Wu Wu (Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' <

Eastern Han Chinese

: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in hi ...

in Wuchang (武昌; present-day

), he appointed Lu Xun as Senior General-in-Chief () and Right Protector-General (). That year, Sun Quan embarked on an inspection tour of Jianye in the east, leaving behind his crown prince

Sun Deng Sun Deng (Wade–Giles: Sun Teng) is the name of: *Sun Deng (Xin dynasty) (died 26 AD), rebel leader *Sun Deng (Eastern Wu) Sun Deng (209 – May or June 241), courtesy name Zigao, was an imperial prince of the state of Eastern Wu during the Th ...

, his other sons, and some high-ranking officials in charge of Wuchang. Lu Xun was instructed to assist Sun Deng and oversee all civil and military affairs in

and three other commanderies.(黃龍元年，拜上大將軍、右都護。是歲，權東巡建業，留太子、皇子及尚書九官，徵遜輔太子，并掌荊州及豫章三郡事，董督軍國。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Treatment of Sun Lü and Sun Song, and criticism of Liu Yi

At the time, Sun Quan's second son Sun Lü, the Marquis of Jianchang, enjoyed watching duck fights so he had a small shed built in front of the main hall of his residence to stage duck fights. When Lu Xun heard about it, he reprimanded Sun Lü sternly, "Marquis, you should be spending time reading the classics and enriching yourself with knowledge. Why are you doing this?" Sun Lü immediately had the shed torn down. Sun Song (孫松;

Sun Yi Sun Yi (184–204), courtesy name Shubi, was Chinese military general and politician who was a younger brother of Sun Quan, the founding emperor of the state of Eastern Wu in the Three Kingdoms period of China. Life Sun Yi was the third son of ...

's son), the Colonel of Trainee Archers (), who was one of Sun Quan's favourite relatives, allowed his men to fool around in camp and did not maintain good military discipline. Lu Xun punished Sun Song's subordinates by having their heads shaved.(時建昌侯慮於堂前作鬬鴨欄，頗施小巧，遜正色曰：「君侯宜勤覽經典以自新益，用此何為？」慮即時毀徹之。 ... 射聲校尉松於公子中最親，戲兵不整，遜對之髠其職吏。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Xie Jing () admired Liu Yi's discourse on punishment before civility. Lu Xun chided Xie Jing, "The idea of civility before punishment has been long promulgated and espoused. Liu Yi is wrong when he distorted the teachings of ancient sages through his sly manipulation of words. You're serving in the Crown Prince's residence, so you should advocate the principles of benevolence and righteousness in order to promote moral virtues. Ideas (like Liu Yi's) should never be discussed again."(南陽謝景善劉廙先刑後禮之論，遜呵景曰：「禮之長於刑乆矣，廙以細辯而詭先聖之教，皆非也。君今侍東宮，宜遵仁義以彰德音，若彼之談，不須講也。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Memorial on current affairs

Even though Lu Xun was stationed far away from the Wu capital, he was still very concerned about his state. He once wrote a memorial on current affairs to Sun Quan:(遜雖身在外，乃心於國，上疏陳時事曰： ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Advising Sun Quan against the Yizhou and Zhuya campaigns

When Sun Quan was planning to send armies to conquer Yizhou (夷州; present-day

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...

) and Zhuya (朱崖; present-day

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...

), he asked Lu Xun for his opinion. Lu Xun wrote a memorial to Sun Quan, advising him against the campaigns:(權欲遣偏師取夷州及朱崖，皆以諮遜，遜上疏曰： ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Sun Quan ignored Lu Xun's advice and launched the campaigns. Lu Xun's predictions were right as the losses incurred by Wu in the conquests outweighed the gains.(權遂征夷州，得不補失。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Advising Sun Quan against the Liaodong campaign

In 237, the

Liaodong The Liaodong Peninsula (also Liaotung Peninsula, ) is a peninsula in southern Liaoning province in Northeast China, and makes up the southwestern coastal half of the Liaodong region. It is located between the mouths of the Daliao River (the ...

warlord Gongsun Yuan rebelled against Wu's rival state

and allied with Wu, but broke the alliance later. Sun Quan was angered and he wanted to personally lead an army to attack Liaodong. Lu Xun wrote another memorial to dissuade Sun Quan from the campaign:(及公孫淵背盟，權欲往征，遜上疏曰： ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Sun Quan heeded his advice.(權用納焉。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Xiangyang campaign

In 234, when Sun Quan led a 100,000 strong army to attack the Wei fortress of Xincheng at Hefei, he ordered Lu Xun and

to lead another 10,000 troops to attack the Wei city of

Xiangyang Xiangyang is a prefecture-level city in northwestern Hubei province, China and the second largest city in Hubei by population. It was known as Xiangfan from 1950 to 2010. The Han River runs through Xiangyang's centre and divides the city no ...

. Lu Xun sent a close aide, Han Bian (), to deliver a report to Sun Quan. On the journey back, Han Bian was captured by a Wei patrol. When Zhuge Jin received news of Han Bian's capture, he became fearful so he wrote to Lu Xun: "His Majesty has withdrawn his forces. The enemy has captured Han Bian and they know our situation. The rivers have dried up so we should make a hasty retreat." Lu Xun did not respond, and he instructed his men to plant turnips and peas, while he played

weiqi Go is an abstract strategy board game for two players in which the aim is to surround more territory than the opponent. The game was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago and is believed to be the oldest board game continuously played to ...

and other games with his officers as though nothing had happened. Zhuge Jin said, "Boyan possesses intelligence and strategy, he knows what he's doing." He came to see Lu Xun, who told him, "The enemy knows that His Majesty has withdrawn his forces, so they have no worries and will concentrate their attacks on us. Besides, they have already stationed troops at critical positions and are poised to strike. Hence, we should remain composed and calm our men, after which we will have a change of plans and prepare to withdraw. If we display signs of retreat now, the enemy will think that we are afraid and will definitely attack us, resulting in defeat for us."(嘉禾五年，權北征，使遜與諸葛瑾攻襄陽。遜遣親人韓扁齎表奉報，還，遇敵於沔中，鈔邏得扁。瑾聞之甚懼，書與遜云：「大駕已旋，賊得韓扁，具知吾闊狹。且水乾，宜當急去。」遜未荅，方催人種葑豆，與諸將弈棊射戲如常。瑾曰：「伯言多智略，其當有以。」自來見遜，遜曰：「賊知大駕以旋，無所復慼，得專力於吾。又已守要害之處，兵將意動，且當自定以安之，施設變術，然後出耳。今便示退，賊當謂吾怖，仍來相蹙，必敗之勢也。」) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun then secretly conveyed his plan to Zhuge Jin and ordered him to supervise the fleet of vessels on which they would sail back to Wu, while he gathered his troops and headed towards Xiangyang. The Wei forces had been wary of Lu Xun all this while so they immediately retreated back into the city when they saw Lu Xun's army approaching. Lu Xun organised his men in an orderly manner and instructed them to pretend to prepare for an attack on Xiangyang. By then, Zhuge Jin and the fleet had shown up, so Lu Xun and his forces progressively retreated to the vessels and left. The Wei forces in Xiangyang did not dare to make any move.(乃密與瑾立計，令瑾督舟船，遜悉上兵馬，以向襄陽城。敵素憚遜，遽還赴城。瑾便引船出，遜徐整部伍，張拓聲勢，步趨船，敵不敢干。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Raid in Shiyang

On their journey back to Wu, the fleet passed by Baiwei (), where Lu Xun announced that they would be getting off their vessels to go ashore for a hunting expedition. However, he actually gave secret orders to his subordinates Zhou Jun () and Zhang Liang () to lead their men to attack Xinshi (), Anlu () and Shiyang () counties in

Jiangxia Commandery Jiangxia Commandery ( zh, 江夏郡) was a Chinese commandery that existed from Han dynasty to Tang dynasty. Its territories were located in present-day eastern Hubei province. History Jiangxia Commandery was established during the reign of Emper ...

(). Outside Shiyang County, the common people were going about their daily activities in the marketplace when Zhou Jun and his men showed up. The people immediately packed up everything and attempted to rush to safety behind the city walls. The Wei soldiers in Shiyang wanted to close the city gates but the civilians were blocking the way, so they killed some people and forced the gates to be shut. Zhou Jun and his men killed and captured over 1,000 civilians in Shiyang. The captives were resettled in Wu. Lu Xun gave orders to his men, forbidding them from harassing the people. Those captives who had their families with them were given due attention and care while those who lost their loved ones during the raid were provided with food and clothing and treated well before they were sent home. Many people were so touched by Lu Xun's acts of kindness that they decided to move to Wu territory. When news of Lu Xun's kindness spread to the neighbouring regions, two Wei officers, Zhao Zhuo () and Fei Sheng (), and a tribal king, Meiyi (), led their followers to join Lu Xun. Lu Xun generously distributed rewards to them.(軍到白圍，託言住獵，潛遣將軍周峻、張梁等擊江夏新市、安陸、石陽，石陽市盛，峻等奄至，人皆捐物入城。城門噎不得關，敵乃自斫殺己民，然後得闔。斬首獲生，凡千餘人。 ... 其所生得，皆加營護，不令兵士干擾侵侮。將家屬來者，使就料視。若亡其妻子者，即給衣糧，厚加慰勞，發遣令還，或有感慕相攜而歸者。鄰境懷之，江夏功曹趙濯、弋陽備將斐生及夷王梅頤等，並帥支黨來附遜。遜傾財帛，周贍經恤。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Criticism

The historian

Pei Songzhi Pei Songzhi (372–451), courtesy name Shiqi, was a Chinese historian and politician who lived in the late Eastern Jin dynasty and Liu Song dynasty. His ancestral home was in Wenxi County, Shanxi, but he moved to the Jiangnan region late ...

, who annotated Lu Xun's biography in the ''

Records of the Three Kingdoms The ''Records or History of the Three Kingdoms'', also known by its Chinese name as the Sanguo Zhi, is a Chinese historical text which covers the history of the late Eastern Han dynasty (c. 184–220 AD) and the Three Kingdoms period (220� ...

'', condemned the raid on Shiyang County and said it was totally uncalled for. He commented: In response to Lu Xun's "acts of kindness" after the raid, Pei Songzhi remarked:

Later career

Eliminating Lu Shi

Lu Shi (), the Administrator () of the

-controlled Jiangxia Commandery (), often led his men to cause trouble at the border between Wu and Wei. When Lu Xun heard that Lu Shi could not get along with Wen Xiu (), a son of the veteran Wei general

Wen Ping Wen Ping ( third century), courtesy name Zhongye, was a military general who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty and Three Kingdoms period of China. During his tenure as a general under the warlord Cao Cao, he was credited with defeating ...

, he came up with a plan to stop Lu Shi. He pretended to have received a letter from Lu Shi and wrote a "reply" as such: "I can sense your sincerity and sorrow when you told me you have disagreements with Wen Xiu. You said both of you cannot exist together and you intend to defect to my side. I have delivered your letter to my lord and will gather my men to welcome you. You should make preparations soon and inform us of the date of your defection." He then left the "reply" letter at the border, where it was picked up by Lu Shi's men. When Lu Shi heard about it, he became afraid and immediately sent his family to the Wei capital

Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyan ...

. His subordinates became distrustful of him and eventually he was dismissed from office.(又魏江夏太守逯式兼領兵馬，頗作邊害，而與北舊將文聘子休宿不協。遜聞其然，即假作荅式書云：「得報懇惻，知與休乆結嫌隙，勢不兩存，欲來歸附，輒以密呈來書表聞，撰衆相迎。宜潛速嚴，更示定期。」以書置界上，式兵得書以見式，式惶懼，遂自送妻子還洛。由是吏士不復親附，遂以免罷。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Criticism

Commenting on this incident, the historian

wrote:

Suppressing rebellions in Wu

In 237, Zhou Zhi (), a General of the Household (), wanted to recruit soldiers from Poyang Commandery () so he sought Lu Xun's opinion. Lu Xun believed that the people in Poyang were very restless and should not be recruited for military service because they might rebel. Zhou Zhi ignored Lu Xun's advice and persisted. As Lu Xun predicted, the people in Poyang started a rebellion under the leadership of Wu Ju () and they killed Zhou Zhi and seized control of many counties. The people in the nearby Yuzhang () and Luling () commanderies had a history of being rebellious, so they responded to Wu Ju's call and joined the revolt. Lu Xun led his forces to suppress the rebellion and succeeded in forcing Wu Ju and the rebels to surrender. He recruited over 8,000 men into his army and pacified the three commanderies.(六年，中郎將周祗乞於鄱陽召募，事下問遜。遜以為此郡民易動難安，不可與召，恐致賊寇。而祗固陳取之，郡民吳遽等果作賊殺祗，攻沒諸縣。豫章、廬陵宿惡民，並應遽為寇。遜自聞，輒討即破，遽等相率降，遜料得精兵八千餘人，三郡平。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Incident of Lü Yi

At the time, Lü Yi, the supervisor of the audit bureau, was abusing his powers. Lu Xun and the Minister of Ceremonies (), Pan Jun, expressed their worries about Lü Yi's behaviour to Sun Quan, to the point of shedding tears. After Lü Yi's crimes were exposed later, Sun Quan had him executed and deeply regretted not listening to Lu Xun and Pan Jun.(時中書典校呂壹，竊弄權柄，擅作威福，遜與太常潘濬同心憂之，言至流涕。後權誅壹，深以自責，語在權傳。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Advice to Sun Quan on governance

Xie Yuan () and Xie Gong (), proposed implementing changes to policies to increase government revenue, so Sun Quan sought Lu Xun's opinion on this issue. Lu Xun argued,(時謝淵、謝厷等各陳便宜，欲興利改作，以事下遜。遜議曰： ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Chancellorship

Sometime between 27 January and 25 February 244, Lu Xun succeeded

Gu Yong Gu Yong (168 – November or December 243), courtesy name Yuantan, was a minister and the second Imperial Chancellor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the late Eastern Han dynasty in the Jiangdong ...

as the Imperial Chancellor () of Wu. Sun Quan's imperial edict read:(赤烏七年，代顧雍為丞相，詔曰： ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Role in the succession struggle

There were vacancies in the appointments available in the estates (or offices) of two of Sun Quan's sons: Sun He, the Crown Prince and Sun Ba, the Prince of Lu. Many officials nominated their relatives to fill up these positions in the hope of building connections with the princes. When

told Lu Xun about this, Lu Xun said that many of the nominated candidates were actually not up to standard. He argued that those officials were actually promoting nepotism and pursuing their own interests. He also worried that if those officials' relatives turned out to be incompetent, it could lead to serious problems in the administration. Lu Xun also foresaw that conflict was bound to break out between the two princes because they were equally influential and had their own factions supporting them. He believed that a power struggle between the princes would be detrimental to Eastern Wu's prosperity and stability. Quan Cong's son, Quan Ji (), became a close aide to Sun Ba and helped him in his fight against Sun He. Lu Xun wrote to Quan Cong to warn him: "If you don't learn from Ma Midi and choose to let (Quan) Ji have his way, you'll bring disaster upon yourself and your family." Quan Cong ignored Lu Xun's advice and their relationship became strained.(先是，二宮並闕，中外職司多遣子弟給侍。全琮報遜，遜以為子弟苟有才，不憂不用，不宜私出以要榮利；若其不佳，終為取禍。且聞二宮勢敵，必有彼此，此古人之厚忌也。琮子寄，果阿附魯王，輕為交構。遜書與琮曰：「卿不師日磾，而宿留阿寄，終為足下門戶致禍矣。」琮旣不納，更以致隙。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. When there were rumours that Sun He could no longer secure his position as Crown Prince, Lu Xun wrote a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of ...

to Sun Quan: "The Crown Prince is the legitimate heir apparent so he should have a foundation as solid as hard rock. The Prince of Lu is a

and a subject of the state, so he should receive less favours than the Crown Prince. If both of them know their places, Your Majesty and all your subjects will have peace. I humbly

kowtow A kowtow is the act of deep respect shown by prostration, that is, kneeling and bowing so low as to have one's head touching the ground. In Sinospheric culture, the kowtow is the highest sign of reverence. It was widely used to show reverenc ...

and beg Your Majesty, to the point of bleeding (from my forehead), to (re)consider this issue carefully." He wrote several memorials to Sun Quan and even requested to leave Wuchang (武昌; present-day

) and go to the capital to speak up on this problem. Sun Quan denied him permission. Lu Xun's maternal nephews Gu Tan, Gu Cheng () and Yao Xin (), who supported Sun He during the succession struggle, were sent into exile. Wu Can, the Crown Prince's Tutor (), who had been exchanging letters with Lu Xun, was imprisoned and later executed.(及太子有不安之議，遜上疏陳：「太子正統，宜有盤石之固，魯王藩臣，當使寵秩有差，彼此得所，上下獲安。謹叩頭流血以聞。」書三四上，及求詣都，欲口論適庶之分，以匡得失。旣不聽許，而遜外生顧譚、顧承、姚信，並以親附太子，枉見流徙。太子太傅吾粲坐數與遜交書，下獄死。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Death and aftermath

Sun Quan repeatedly sent emissaries to Wuchang (武昌; present-day

) to reprimand Lu Xun for interfering with the succession. Lu Xun died on 19 March 245 in anger and frustration at the age of 63 (by

East Asian age reckoning Countries in the East Asian cultural sphere (China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and their diasporas) have traditionally used specific methods of reckoning a person's numerical age based not on their birthday but the calendar year, and what age one is ...

). Lu Xun was a thrifty man. When he died, he left behind little or no wealth for his family. Sometime between 258 and 264, Sun Xiu, the third Wu emperor, awarded Lu Xun the

posthumous title A posthumous name is an honorary name given mostly to the notable dead in East Asian culture. It is predominantly practiced in East Asian countries such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Japan, and Thailand. Reflecting on the person's accomplishments o ...

"Marquis Zhao" (昭侯; literally "illustrious marquis").(權累遣中使責讓遜，遜憤恚致卒，時年六十三，家無餘財。 ... 孫休時，追謚遜曰昭侯。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. The succession struggle concluded in 250 – five years after Lu Xun's death – with Sun Quan deposing Sun He and replacing him with Sun Liang, and forcing Sun Ba to commit suicide. Many officials who were involved in the conflict (i.e., supported either Sun He or Sun Ba) met with unhappy ends.(權由是發怒，夫人憂死，而和寵稍損，懼於廢黜。 ... 譖毀旣行，太子以敗，霸亦賜死。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 59. In the winter of 251, about half a year before his death, Sun Quan regretted what he did to Lu Xun. When he was sending off Lu Xun's son Lu Kang back to Chaisang (), with tears in his eyes he told Lu Kang, "Previously, I believed slanderous rumours and failed to understand your father's well-meaning advice. I've let you down. I've burnt all the documents containing the allegations against your father so that nobody can ever see them."

Appraisal

When Ji Yan proposed introducing drastic reforms in the Wu administration (which included the dismissal of many officials he deemed incompetent), Lu Xun cautioned Sun Quan against that and accurately predicted that it would lead to problems. Lu Xun once told Zhuge Ke, "I respect those who are superior to me in status; I assist those who are subordinate to me. I see you behave arrogantly in front of those superior to you, and you belittle those subordinate to you. This isn't the way to build a stable career." In another incident, Yang Zhu () became famous in his youth, but Lu Xun predicted that he was doomed to failure, so he advised Yang Zhu's elder brother, Yang Mu (), to break ties with Yang Zhu. Lu Xun's prediction came true as Yang Zhu later got into trouble during the Sun He-Sun Ba succession struggle.(初，曁豔造營府之論，遜諫戒之，以為必禍。又謂諸葛恪曰：「在我前者，吾必奉之同升；在我下者，則扶持之。今觀君氣陵其上，意蔑乎下，非安德之基也。」又廣陵楊笁少獲聲名，而遜謂之終敗，勸笁兄穆令與別族。其先覩如此。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. The historian

Chen Shou Chen Shou (; 233–297), courtesy name Chengzuo (), was a Chinese historian, politician, and writer who lived during the Three Kingdoms period and Jin dynasty of China. Chen Shou is most known for his most celebrated work, the '' Records of ...

, who wrote Lu Xun's biography in the ''

'', commented on Lu Xun as such: "

was a hero of his time and many people feared him. Lu Xun, then in his prime years and relatively unknown, managed to defeat Liu Bei. Lu Xun's brilliant strategies, when combined with Sun Quan's recognition of his talent, resulted in the accomplishment of a great task. Lu Xun was loyal, honest and sincere. He died worrying about his state's future, and was perhaps an important pillar of his state."(評曰：劉備天下稱雄，一世所憚，陸遜春秋方壯，威名未著，摧而克之，罔不如志。予旣奇遜之謀略，又歎權之識才，所以濟大事也。及遜忠誠懇至，憂國亡身，庶幾社稷之臣矣。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58.

Family and relatives

Sometime after 216, when Lu Xun was commissioned as Colonel Who Establishes Might (). Under Sun Quan's arrangement, Lu Xun married the eldest daughter of Sun Quan's elder brother and predecessor

.(權以兄策女配遜， ...) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun's eldest son, Lu Yan (), died at a young age. Lu Xun's marquis title was inherited by his second son, Lu Kang (), who became a prominent general in

Eastern Wu Wu (Chinese: 吳; pinyin: ''Wú''; Middle Chinese *''ŋuo'' <

Eastern Han Chinese

: ''*ŋuɑ''), known in hi ...

during the reign of the last Wu emperor

Sun Hao Sun Hao (243 – January or February 284), courtesy name Yuanzong, originally named Sun Pengzu with the courtesy name Haozong, was the fourth and last emperor of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the son ...

. Lu Kang had six sons: Lu Yan (),

Lu Jing Lu Jing (250–280), courtesy name Shiren, was a Chinese military general and writer of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He was the second son of Lu Kang and a grandson of Lu Xun. Life Lu Jing's mother was Zh ...

(), Lu Xuan (), Lu Ji (), Lu Yun ()(長子延早夭，次子抗襲爵。 ... 秋遂卒，子晏嗣。晏及弟景、玄、機、雲分領抗兵。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. and Lu Dan ().(... 并收雲及弟耽，並伏法。 ... 及機之誅，三族無遺， ... 事亦並在晉書。) ''Ji Yun Biezhuan'' annotation in ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 58. Lu Xun's younger brother, Lu Mao, also served as an official in Eastern Wu.(陸瑁字子璋，丞相遜弟也。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 57. Lu Ji, a son of Lu Xun's granduncle Lu Kang (), was one of the 24 Filial Exemplars and served as an official under Sun Quan.(陸績字公紀，吳郡吳人也。父康，漢末為廬江太守。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 57.

Lu Kai Lu Kai (198 – December 269 or January 270), courtesy name Jingfeng, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. Born in the influential Lu clan of the Wu region towa ...

, a relative of Lu Xun, served as the ninth Imperial Chancellor of Eastern Wu.(陸凱字敬風，吳郡吳人，丞相遜族子也。) ''Sanguozhi'' vol. 61.

In ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''

Lu Xun appeared as a character in the historical novel ''

Romance of the Three Kingdoms ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' () is a 14th-century historical novel attributed to Luo Guanzhong. It is set in the turbulent years towards the end of the Han dynasty and the Three Kingdoms period in Chinese history, starting in 184 AD ...

'' by

Luo Guanzhong Luo Ben (c. 1330–1400, or c.1280–1360), better known by his courtesy name Guanzhong (Mandarin pronunciation: ), was a Chinese writer who lived during the Ming dynasty. He was also known by his pseudonym Huhai Sanren (). Luo was attri ...

, which romanticises the historical events before and during the

period. His most significant moment in the novel, apart from his role in the

, is a fictional encounter he had after the battle.''Sanguo Yanyi'' ch. 84.

In popular culture

Lu Xun is featured as a playable character in

Koei Koei Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game publisher, developer, and distributor founded in 1978. The company is known for its ''Dynasty Warriors'' games based on the novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', as well as simulation games based on p ...

's ''

Dynasty Warriors is a series of Japanese hack and slash action video games created by Omega Force and Koei (now is Koei Tecmo). The series is a spin-off of Koei's turn-based strategy ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'' series, based upon the Chinese novel o ...

'' video game series, as well as '' Warriors Orochi'', a crossover between ''Dynasty Warriors'' and '' Samurai Warriors''. He also appears in Koei's strategy game series ''

''. In the trading card game '' Magic: The Gathering'', there is a card called "Lu Xun, Scholar General" in the ''

Portal Three Kingdoms Portal often refers to: *Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel Portal may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Gaming * ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...

'' set. He was played by the actor Shao Feng in the 2010 Chinese television series

Notes

References

; Citations from the ''Sanguozhi'' * Chen, Shou (3rd century). ''

'' (''Sanguozhi''). ; Citations from annotations in the ''Sanguozhi'' * Pei, Songzhi (5th century). ''

Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms Annotations to Records of the Three Kingdoms () by Pei Songzhi (372-451) is an annotation completed in the 5th century of the 3rd century historical text ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', compiled by Chen Shou. After leaving his native land, Pei ...

'' (''Sanguozhi zhu''). ; Other sources * Fan, Ye (5th century). ''

Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Lat ...

'' (''Houhanshu''). * Luo, Guanzhong (14th century). ''

'' (''Sanguo Yanyi''). * Sima, Guang (1084). ''

Zizhi Tongjian ''Zizhi Tongjian'' () is a pioneering reference work in Chinese historiography, published in 1084 AD during the Northern Song dynasty in the form of a chronicle recording Chinese history from 403 BC to 959 AD, covering 16 dynast ...

''. * Sima, Qian (1st century BCE). ''

Records of the Grand Historian ''Records of the Grand Historian'', also known by its Chinese name ''Shiji'', is a monumental history of China that is the first of China's 24 dynastic histories. The ''Records'' was written in the early 1st century by the ancient Chinese his ...

'' (''Shi Ji''). {{DEFAULTSORT:Lu, Xun 183 births 245 deaths 3rd-century heads of government Chinese chancellors Eastern Wu generals Eastern Wu politicians Generals under Sun Quan Han dynasty generals from Jiangsu Han dynasty politicians from Jiangsu Officials under Sun Quan Political office-holders in Hubei Politicians from Suzhou Sun Ce and associates

Family background

Early career

As a county-level official

Eliminating bandit forces

Conflict with Chunyu Shi

Invasion of Jing Province

Planning for the invasion

Succeeding Lü Meng

Invasion and pacification of Jing Province

Aftermath

Battle of Xiaoting

Historical background

Early stages

Burning of the Shu camps

Incidents during the battle

Aftermath

Battle of Shiting

Mid career

Treatment of Sun Lü and Sun Song, and criticism of Liu Yi

Memorial on current affairs

Advising Sun Quan against the Yizhou and Zhuya campaigns

Advising Sun Quan against the Liaodong campaign

Xiangyang campaign

Raid in Shiyang

Criticism

Later career

Eliminating Lu Shi

Criticism

Suppressing rebellions in Wu

Incident of Lü Yi

Advice to Sun Quan on governance

Chancellorship

Role in the succession struggle

Death and aftermath

Appraisal

Family and relatives

In ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms''

In popular culture

See also

Notes

References