In the autumn of the world's troubles, it is easy to appear young heroes; and in the long run of peace, those who have changed from young people to old age are not so easy to let young people stand out. "Old adults hold heavy" often accuse people of "less than more things", relying on old experience to do things often refuse to trust young people, "new students" is a derogatory term, "no hair on the mouth" has also become the basis for not being able to do big things.
But Eastern Wu in the Three Kingdoms period proved eloquently that young people played a major role. This is probably because it was a special period of three points and endless conquest.
Sun Quan had four generals under him, who played an extremely important role in establishing and consolidating the eastern Wu regime, namely Zhou Yu, Lu Su, Lü Meng, and Lu Xun.
These four generals were not very old when they made meritorious achievements. Zhou Yu was only twenty-four years old when he was a general in Jianwei; Lu Su was only about thirty years old when he joined Sun Quan's staff; Lü Meng was thirty-one years old at the time of the Battle of Chibi; Lu Xunchu served under Sun Quan's curtain, and he was even younger, but only twenty-one years old.
Sun Quan's subordinates were not without veteran generals, such as Cheng Pu, Huang Gai, Zhu Zhi, and Han Dang, all of whom were old subordinates promoted by Sun Jian, who could fight good battles; but in addition to continuing to give play to the talents of these veteran generals, Sun Quan also promoted a new group of young and promising figures, so that they could stand alone, resist strong enemies, and succeed.
It is difficult to know people, and it is even more difficult to know people and be able to use them. When Cao Cao's 800,000-strong army, with its superiority and sharpness, really suppressed the Yangtze River, the internal pedestals of Eastern Wu were one after another, timid and afraid of things, those who tried to protect their families, and those who tried to surrender, all advocated surrender. If Sun Quan had not held the determination to "break the cauldron and sink the boat" and "fight a battle against the waters," he would have been shaken left and right, nor would he have been able to listen to the advice of Zhou Yu and Lu Su of the main war faction; even if he had listened to their advice and did not have the courage to know how to make good use of others, he would not have resolutely promoted Zhou Yu to be the governor of the capital and thus achieved military merit.
The appointment of Lu Xun is also an example. When Liu Bei personally led a large army and swore revenge for Jingzhou, the situation in Eastern Wu was also serious. At that time, Sun Quan's subordinates were not without figures, such as Zhu Ran, Pan Zhang, Han Dang, Xu Sheng, Sun Huan, etc., they were either veteran generals of Sun Ce's era, or noble relatives of Sun Quan's own family, or Sun Quan's old friends in the early years, all of whom had certain military achievements; but Sun Quan promoted Lu Xun to be the governor of the capital and let Lu Xun lead them to fight. The Battle of Yiling destroyed Liu Bei's "army of the fallen country" and created a remarkable battle in the history of war in which the few defeated the masses. This also shows that Sun Quan is wise in employing people.
It is important that those at the top can know and employ people, but it is also very important that those at the bottom can unite as one. Several generals of Eastern Wu, although they were still young and middle-aged, were able to not be jealous of talent, not to exclude each other, and not to attack others to elevate themselves, which was also an important factor in Eastern Wu's ability to defeat a strong enemy.
Lu Su was recommended by Zhou Yu to Sun Quan. At that time, Lu Su's friend Liu Ziyang wrote to Lu Su to persuade him to defect to Zheng Bao, a place with more than 10,000 troops in Chaohu Lake. Lu Su was planning to go, and Zhou Yu knew about it, so he kept Lu Su and introduced him to Sun Quan. Sun Quan had a conversation with him, which was very speculative. Unexpectedly, Zhang Zhao denigrated Lu Su, saying that he was "humble and insufficient, young and careless" and could not be used. Sun Quan did not listen to Zhang Zhao's words. Later, Zhou Yu fell ill, and when he was dying, he wrote to Sun Quan, saying, "Lu Su is loyal and loyal, and he can take the place of Yu." Sun Quan did not hesitate, that is, Bai Lusu was made a general of Fenwu and Dai Yu led the troops.
Lü Meng was a warrior by birth, did not know how to write, and although he had military achievements, Lu Su still did not pay attention to him. Later, in a conversation with Lü Meng, Lü Meng made five plans for him to deal with Guan Yu, which greatly surprised Lu Su, praised him as "non-fu Wuxia Amon", and immediately became friends. After Lu Su's death, Lü Meng commanded the army and horses on behalf of Lu Su, which may also be Lu Su's idea.
Lü Meng attacked Jingzhou, and soon fell seriously ill and returned to Jianye. Sun Quan asked him, "Who can take over your post?" Lü Meng immediately elected Lu Xun and said, "The meaning is deep and long, only then can it bear the weight, and judging by its rules, it can be a big responsibility." Lu Xun was later able to defeat Liu Bei's army, and his merits were outstanding, which was naturally related to Lü Meng's recommendation. These commanders can really be described as "knowing people and doing good job". However, if it is not to be humble in ordinary times, pay attention to unity, and attach importance to the overall situation, it is impossible to find real talents. Naturally, Sun Quan's ability to accept the suggestions of his subordinates with an open mind, and the letting go of the appointment of the successor, is an important factor.
So, how old was Sun Quan during the Battle of Chibi? Maybe you don't believe it, he's only twenty-seven.