Preface
During the Three Kingdoms period, there were many heroes and strategists, among which Lu Xun could be described as a strategist with outstanding military achievements. With Sun Quan's 40-year friendship with monarchs and ministers, he has a unique reputation on the battlefield, repeatedly performed miraculous feats, and made great achievements for Eastern Wu. However, fate played a cruel joke on him, and in the end, he was cornered and died.
So, what was the reason for Lu Xun's tragic end? How did the friendship between him and Sun Quan evolve? What kind of sadness and bitterness were hidden under the glorious military exploits?
Sun Ce's iron-blooded Jiangdong Lu Xun family suffered
At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the world was in turmoil, and the heroes rose together. In the corner of Jiangdong, Sun Ce, a young man from the grassroots, relied on his extraordinary wisdom and courage to expand the territory, and finally established his own foundation in this rich land. However, his rise to prominence was built on ruthless iron-blooded rule.
At that time, the Jiangdong clan was deeply rooted and the family was prominent, and they were unwilling to tolerate the birth of a grassroots upstart. With their wealth and connections, these families were deeply rooted in Jiangdong and were Sun Ce's most difficult opponents.
In order to consolidate his dominance, Sun Ce had to sacrifice an extreme measure - to completely suppress the Jiangdong family, and some were even exterminated. In this turmoil, the Lu Xun family could not escape the doom, and the pillar of the family, Lu Kang, was killed, and the whole family was on the verge of annihilation.
Although this iron-blooded method can quickly eliminate dissidents, it will inevitably cause public anger. Sun Ce's approach is undoubtedly using violent means to exchange stability, and although this approach will work in the short term, it will inevitably lead to more destabilizing factors in the long run.
What happened to the Lu Xun family also shows that Sun Ce's ruling methods are too extreme and can easily trigger a backlash. Although this approach can temporarily strengthen its position, it may not escape the fate of destruction in the end.
Lu Xun took refuge in Sun Quan and gained trust with his governance achievements
In the face of Sun's iron-fisted rule, the Lu Xun family was originally hostile. But Lu Xun, who was wise enough to protect himself, soon realized that instead of confrontation, there was no way out, so he should take the opportunity to rise again. So, after Sun Ce's death, he resolutely took refuge in Sun Quan and became Sun Quan's staff.
At the beginning, Lu Xun was only sent to serve at the grassroots level. But with his extraordinary wisdom and talent, he showed his skills in Haichang County and brought this barren land back to life.
He cultivated farmland on a large scale to store grain; when drought struck, he opened warehouses to help the poor; and he also encouraged the local people to develop agricultural production, thus greatly improving the organization, management, and social production level of the government.
Soon, Lu Xun established a prestige in the local area. This governance achievement not only allowed him to establish a good image in the eyes of Sun Quan, but also laid a solid foundation for his future rise.
Lu Xun's approach can be said to be a typical vote. At that time, the contradiction between the Sun clan and the Jiangdong clan had not been completely resolved, and Lu Xun wisely chose to take refuge in Sun Quan.
Through his outstanding performance at the grassroots level, he not only gained Sun Quan's trust, but also won himself a chance to rise again. This kind of flexible adaptability and super political sense is undoubtedly the key to Lu Xun's success.
Lu Xun shined militarily and defeated strong enemies one after another
With his outstanding performance in Haichang, Lu Xun gained Sun Quan's trust and began to be reused. In military affairs, he shined even more, successively defeating strong enemies such as Fei Zhan, Guan Yu and Liu Bei, and made great contributions to Sun Wu.
In the face of Fei Zhan's uprising, Lu Xun used suspicious tactics to break up the opponent's defense. This ingenious use of tactics not only reflects Lu Xun's military talent, but also fully demonstrates his resourcefulness.
Dealing with Guan Yu, he adopted more subtle psychological tactics, making this famous Shu Han general fall into the quagmire of complacency. As for Liu Bei's battle of Yiling, Lu Xun even used a natural art of war, skillfully consuming the sharp energy of the Shu army, and finally made them return exhausted in the summer heat.
These victories not only made Lu Xun famous militarily, but also greatly strengthened Sun Quan's trust in him. In Sun Quan's view, Lu Xun, who has such outstanding military talents, is undoubtedly a reliable assistant. For Lu Xun, these brilliant achievements also laid a solid foundation for his future political status.
Lu Xun's status was rising day by day and began to influence the government
The meritorious Lu Xun's status was rising day by day, and he was finally appointed as the prime minister, integrating military and political power, and could be described as a very popular minister. However, at this time, he began to forget his original intention and became arrogant and arrogant.
He wrote to Sun Quan, demanding that "the state of affairs be relaxed and the interest rate should be relaxed" to alleviate the exploitation of the people; he also opposed Sun Quan's foreign conquest and advocated "limiting the river to protect itself." It seems to be advocating benevolent government, but in fact it is restricting imperial power and conniving at the development of the Jiangdong clan.
Lu Xun has already begun to move the anti-guest mentality. He seems to have forgotten his original intention of joining Sun Quan, and began to try to use his position and influence to contain and balance Sun Quan's power.
This behavior is undoubtedly challenging Sun Quan's authority. As the king of a country, Sun Quan naturally would not tolerate such an arrogant behavior of his subordinates. In Lu Xun's view, his merits and status were enough to compete with Sun Quan, but he obviously underestimated Sun Quan's determination and means.
The battle for the heir sparked a conflict, and Sun Quan suppressed it
The battle for the heir became the key to Sun Quan's reversal of the situation. Sun Quan was a little disappointed in the crown prince Sun He, because Sun He had been completely assimilated by Lu Xun's Confucianism, and if he was allowed to succeed to the throne and entrusted to Lu Xun, it would be tantamount to giving up the imperial power. As a result, Sun Quan began to support the fourth son, Sun Ba, the king of Lu, which triggered the "Second Palace Dispute".
This battle for the heir is not only a battle for the throne, but also a contest between Sun Quan and the Jiangdong clan. Sun Quan clearly realized that if Lu Xun and others were allowed to grasp the power of the crown prince, then they could use Confucianism to limit the imperial power and eventually control the government.
Therefore, Sun Quan had to suppress the Jiangdong clan in order to consolidate his dominance. With the help of the heir dispute, Sun Quan began to purge the power of the Jiangdong clan. Lu Xun's henchmen were exiled or executed, and the Jiangdong clan soon lost the strength to resist.
Seeing his colleagues killed one by one, Lu Xun realized that his future would not be optimistic, and finally died in anger. This power struggle not only took Lu Xun's life, but also completely destroyed the power of the Jiangdong clan, clearing the way for Sun Quan to consolidate his rule.
epilogue
From an obscure grassroots, to the final extremely popular minister, and then to being forced to die, Lu Xun's life trajectory can be described as ups and downs and confusing.
Only by understanding the division between monarchs and ministers can we avoid repeating Lu Xun's mistakes and make steady progress on the road of life. Game of Thrones is often ruthless, and even the best talent will inevitably be swallowed up by the vortex of power.
Therefore, we must always be vigilant and not be carried away by the glory in front of us, but wisely grasp our position and be cautious in the game of power in order to finally gain a foothold in this sinister world.