#lu dai

Lü Dai was from Hailing county in Guangling commandery, Xu province. As a young man, he held office in the local commandery, but when the north erupted in chaos during the early 190s, he fled south to avoid the troubles. He lived as a civilian in the south for about a decade, attempting to avoid the difficulties of the time. He did not join Sun Ce or any of the other southern warlords. When Sun Quan took control of the government in 200, though, Lü Dai decided to join him. He applied for a job at the local office and became a minor official in Wu county.

Shortly after taking power, Sun Quan made a tour of his territory to inspect local administration and ensure that everything was going smoothly. During this tour, he looked in on Lü Dai’s administration and was quite impressed to find that Lü Dai’s affairs were in perfect order. Sun Quan decided to promote Lü Dai for his good work, making him Magistrate of Yuyao. There, Lü Dai recruited from among the strongest men of the local populace and gathered more than 1,000 soldiers for Sun Quan’s service. At the time, Sun Quan claimed the title Grand Administrator of Kuaiji, and as the Magistrate of Yuyao, this made Lü Dai one of his personal subordinates.

Around 205, two bandit leaders named Lü Ge and Qin Lang began a rebellion in the five eastern counties of Kuaiji. Sun Quan assigned Jiang Qin to suppress the rebellion, and he also made Lü Dai a colonel in order to assist in the campaign. The campaign was brief and successful. They captured the rebel leaders and pacified the counties, and Sun Quan promoted Lü Dai to be a General of the Interior.

For the next several years, Lü Dai remained Sun Quan’s close confidant in Kuaiji. In 211, Sun Quan made Lü Dai the head of an embassy he intended to send to Zhang Lu in Hanzhong. He hoped that by allying with Zhang Lu, Sun Quan would be able to open up a new front in the war against Cao Cao. All told, Lü Dai was given command of 2,000 soldiers and officials for this mission. Unfortunately for Lü Dai, this came to nothing. Zhang Lu was suspicious of Sun Quan’s forces, so he barred the roads against him. Lü Dai could not get through, and when Sun Quan learned that Zhang Lu was unwilling to discuss matters with them, he called Lü Dai to return.

In 215, Lü Dai was given another chance to prove himself. Having been betrayed by Liu Bei, Sun Quan ordered Lü Meng to take an army to seize the commanderies of Changsha, Guiyang, and Lingling. Lü Dai was assigned to this mission as one of Lü Meng’s subordinates. They captured the three commanderies without difficulty, though Lingling was returned to Liu Bei as part of a peace agreement. Shortly after this, there was a rebellion among the southeastern counties, where some officials refused to accept Sun Quan’s authority over the region. Lü Dai led his forces to deal with the situation. He easily surrounded the rebels at Yinshan and crushed them, pacifying the region. Lü Dai then remained in Changsha to deal with any further rebellions or additional operations against Guan Yu. Shortly after this, another rebellion broke out among Liu Bei’s loyalists, led by men named Wu Dang and Yuan Long. Lu Su led a force to destroy Wu Dang at Youxian, while Lü Dai was sent to handle Yuan Long, in Luling. Both easily attained victory, and as a reward, Lü Dai was made Grand Administrator of the newly constituted Luling commandery.

Lü Dai kept peace in Luling for the next few years, but he received a major promotion in 220, when he was made Inspector of Jiao province. The situation in Jiao was complicated. During the Han dynasty’s fall, Jiaozhi’s Grand Administratrator Shi Xie assumed control over the region. Though he never named himself as an Inspector of Governor, he appointed his siblings and relatives as the administrators of the other commanderies and ruled the territory. Though several warlords attempted to send Inspectors to claim the region, Shi Xie drove them all away. In 210, though, he surrendered to Sun Quan, at which point Bu Zhi was made Inspector of Jiao. For the next decade, Sun Quan’s control over Jiao was light, as he could not push Shi Xie too far. In 220, Sun Quan had other tasks for Bu Zhi, so he had Lü Dai replace him.

When he arrived in Jiao, Lü Dai found that it was quite a troubled place, full of corruption, bandits, and rebellious tribes. He pacified one rebel named Gao Liang by offering him a good position in his own administration. Elsewhere, some of the local tribes attacked Weijun county in Yulin. Lü Dai led his army there and easily destroyed them. After that, a rebel named Wang Jin gathered some power in Guiyang, then attacked south, raiding northern Nanhai. Lü Dai once again led his forces to the troubled region and destroyed the rebels. Sun Quan was duly impressed with his achievements and made him General Who Calms the south, with plenipotentiary authority. Lü Dai was also enfeoffed for his work.

In 226, an opportunity presented itself for Sun Quan to tighten his hold on Jiao when Shi Xie passed away. Rather than appointing his son Shi Hui as the new Grand Administrator of Jiaozhi, Sun Quan appointed him to Jiuzhen commandery instead, sending a colonel named Chen Shi to replace Shi Xie in Jiaozhi. Though Shi Hui was also made a general to placate him, he was furious over this decision. At this point, Lü Dai suggested a rearrangement of the region to account for natural barriers and better registration of the population. He suggested that the three southern commanderies of Rinan, Jiuzhen, and Jiaozhi remain as as Jiao province under the command of a new inspector named Dai Liang.  The eastern commanderies of Yulin, Hepu, Cangwu, and Nanhai would become the new Guang province, under Lü Dai’s command. Sun Quan thought it was a wise proposal and agreed.

However, the situation with Shi Hui worsened and he revolted. He declared himself Grand Administrator of Jiaozhi and gathered soldiers to repel Chen Shi and Dai Liang. They were driven out of Jiao and forced to shelter in Hepu. Lü Dai obtained permission from Sun Quan to launch a counterattack. Some of his officials objected, fearing that the Shi family’s power was too great to be contested. Lü Dai agreed that if Shi Hui had time to gather his forces, the situation would be hopeless. Thus, he intended to attack quickly and by surprise. With just 3,000 men, he began to march day and night to attack Jiaozhi unexpectedly. He passed through Hepu, where he was joined by Dai Liang and Chen Shi. From there, he boarded ships and sailed to Jiaozhi.

In Jiaozhi, Shi Hui did not endear himself to the locals. One of his subordinates protested the rebellion, so Shi Hui killed him. This led the man’s brother to raise a rebellion against Shi Hui and attack the capital. Though Shi Hui was able to drive them away, it showed that many of the common folk were opposed to him.

When he arrived in Jiaozhi, Lü Dai sought to bring a quick end to the rebellion. One of his subordinates was Shi Hui’s cousin, Shi Kuang. Lü Dai gave him a nice appointment and sent him to speak with his cousins, asking them to surrender. Shi Kuang met with Shi Hui and his six brothers, discussing the matter with them. Faced with a lack of support in his own territory and frightened by Lü Dai’s sudden arrival, Shi Hui agreed to surrender. When he came to submit, though, Lü Dai executed him along with his brothers, thinking that they would never remain loyal. The commentator Sun Sheng heavily criticizes Lü Dai for what he perceives as great cruelty.

Shi Hui’s death was not the end of the rebellion, though. Two of his officials - Gan Li and Huan Zhi - continued to rebel and attacked Lü Dai’s army. However, they were no match for Lü Dai. He struck back and easily destroyed them. Because Jiuzhen was also in revolt, Lü Dai then marched south and pacified the commandery, putting an end to the strife. As a result of Lü Dai’s campaigns, Sun Quan now had complete control over Jiao, of which he had been largely a figurehead before. After this, Sun Quan decided that the Jiao-Guang split wasn’t really necessary, so he abolished Guang province and merged the region back into one. Lü Dai once again became Inspector of Jiao.

South of Jiao were several foreign kingdoms: Funan, Linyi, and Tangming, in the northern areas of present-day Indochina. Lü Dai sent emissaries to these kingdoms, and word of his military feats in Jiao spread. The kings of Funan, Linyi, and Tangming were impressed and submitted to Sun Quan, becoming tribute states of Wu. Sun Quan was greatly pleased by Lü Dai’s work and promoted him to be General Who Guards the South and increased his enfeoffment. It is worthy of some note that while in Jiao, Lü Dai maintained a good relationship with the great scholar Yu Fan, who was banished to the region due to his extremely abrasive personality. Lü Dai often consulted Yu Fan on matters, despite his exile, and relied upon him heavily.

Lü Dai spent the next few years keeping peace in Jiao, but in 230 Sun Quan decided that he was more needed elsewhere. At that time, there were serious problems with the Wuqi tribes in Wuling. These tribes had been enemies of Sun Quan’s for many years and even supported Liu Bei’s eastern campaign in 221/222. In recent years, they grew more intractable and rebellions, so by 230, Sun Quan decided to deal with the matter for good. Lü Dai was summoned to Changsha, where he and Pan Jun planned a campaign against the tribes from a base in Oukou.

The campaign was quite extensive, but not much is recorded about it. Starting in 231, Lü Dai and Pan Jun led an army of 50,000 into the region and spent the next several years fighting against the tribes. The campaign lasted until 234, when Pan Jun finally declared victory in the 11th month of the year. The Wu army suffered no serious setbacks in the campaign and defeated a great many rebels. Prior to this campaign, much of Wuling was occupied by the tribes who refused to accept Sun Quan’s authority, and their victory firmly consolidated Sun Quan’s power in the region. During this campaign, some of Wu’s future generals like Lü Ju and Zhu Yi first gained fame and serious military experience. Because of its far-reaching effects, this proved to be one of the more important campaigns of the time.

As soon as the campaign was concluded, though, the region was faced with another problem. Early in 235, an official named Li Huang revolted in Lü Dai’s old commandery of Luling. He was joined by a rebel in eastern Kuaiji named Sui Chun and another rebel in Nanhai named Luo Li. Sun Quan ordered Lü Dai to suppress them, with the aid of the generals Liu Zuan and Tang Zi. The campaign went quite well for Lü Dai and he easily crushed the rebels. For his achievements in this and the previous campaign, he was promoted to General of the Front. In an official edict, Sun Quan issued high praise for his works.

During the next couple of years, Lü Dai was distantly involved in Wu’s internal political conflicts. In particular, a corrupt official named Lü Yi slandered many important generals and caused great harm. The situation was so bad that Pan Jun went to the capital intending to outright murder Lü Yi with his bare hands, and he would have done so had Lü Yi not sensed danger and avoided their meeting. Eventually, Lü Yi’s corruption was exposed and he was executed. Lü Dai was one of those who was harmed by Lü Yi’s manipulations, and as a result a rift grew between him and Sun Quan, though it was not serious enough at that time that Lü Dai was anything less than loyal to Wu.

For many years, Pan Jun was one of Sun Quan’s most trusted subordinates, governing the civil and military affairs of Jing province along with Lu Xun and Zhuge Jin. Upon his death in 239, Lü Dai was promoted to take his place at Wuchang. At that point, Lü Dai was in his 80s, but he still had a strong body and sound mind. He still took care of matters personally and was extremely active in in the administration, and all were in awe of his vigor. Lü Dai, Lu Xun, and Zhuge Jin got along quite famously, and whenever anything good happened, each said that the others were the ones who deserved the credit. They were held  up by the people of Wu as an example of how ministers should work together.

Around the end of 239, Lü Dai was tasked with crushing yet another rebellion. It began in Linhe, where a local general named Liao Shi killed the Grand Administrator, called himself General Who Pacifies the South, and attacked the commanderies of Guiyang and Lingling. These three commanderies formed the southern border between Jing and Jiao, and if they fell into rebel hands, Jiao province would be all but severed from the rest of Wu, making this matter one of serious concern. As usual, Sun Quan chose Lü Dai to handle the matter. Sun Quan appointed him as Governor of Jing, an appointment that had fallen out of favor during the Three Kingdoms proper. This title gave him exceptional power over Jing to deal with the matter and indicated Sun Quan’s great trust in him. Lü Dai made a forced march to Linhe, where he campaigned against Liao Shi. During the campaign, he received reinforcements from some of Sun Quan’s other generals. The campaign against the rebels lasted for about a year, and by the end of 240, the three commanderies were once again pacified.

Events of Lü Dai’s life over the next five years or so are a bit unclear. As a general in Jing, he was likely a participant in the great campaign in 241, in which Zhu Ran attacked the city of Fan but was defeated by Sima Yi. He may have also been involved in Zhu Rans raid in Zuzhong in 246. For reasons that aren’t entirely clear, Lü Dai was involved in the machinations of the Crown Prince Affair, in a distant capacity. While his colleague Lu Xun was one of Sun He’s strongest supporters, Lü Dai was actually one of Sun Ba’s partisans. Fortunately for his own legacy, Lü Dai’s involvement with the whole affair was minor, limited to speaking out on Sun Ba’s behalf. He does not appear to have had any role in the deadly machinations of Sun Luban’s faction.

The year 246 saw a shift in power in Wu following Lu Xun’s death. Zhuge Ke was promoted to be Grand General and sent to Wuchang. Jing’s military administration was divided into Left and Right sections. Zhuge Ke was given control over the eastern half (the left section). Lü Dai was promoted to be Grand General of the First Army, a position of special significance in Wu. he was given control over western Jing (the right section). At this point, he was one of the four highest ranking men in Wu’s army, along with Zhu Ran, Quan Zong, and Zhuge Ke.

In 251, Sun Quan became badly ill. Since his heir, Sun Liang, was only a child, he sought a regent for him. Zhuge Ke was recommended, so Sun Quan summoned him to Jianye. Before Zhuge Ke left, Lü Dai spoke to him and stressed the importance of the regency. Zhuge Ke responded quite rudely, even mocking Lü Dai’s concern, before leaving. Though Zhuge Ke was given complete power over the government, Sun Quan appointed a small council of other prominent ministers to assist him in the regency. Of these men, Lü Dai was the most prominent. When Sun Quan passed away the next year, Zhuge Ke took power and issued various promotions. For the extraordinary services Lü Dai had rendered, he was made Grand Commander. At that point, Lü Dai was the highest ranking general in all of Wu, surpassed only by Zhuge Ke himself.

Around the end of the year and beginning of 253, Sima Shi issued a large invasion of Wu, and one of his primary targets was Wuchang, Lü Dai’s headquarters. Guanqiu Jian led the attack, and though he was a very accomplished general in his own right, Lü Dai was able to push him back. The two fought around Wuchang for a few weeks, and when Zhuge Ke destroyed the main Wei army at Lake Chao, Guanqiu Jian was forced to retreat.

Zhuge Ke was assassinated by Sun Jun at the end of 253, and his family was purged. Lü Dai appears to have had no part in this affair, as his position in Wuchang kept him distant from the capital. The new regime treated Lü Dai with the same respect as before, possibly due to his past association with Sun Ba’s faction. He remained in Wuchang to oversee the defense of Jing. Lü Dai outlived Sun Jun’s regime as well, and not even Sun Chen dared to move against him.

Lü Dai passed away on October 21 of 256, at the astounding age of 96. He was a vigorous and active man until the day he died and has served as the model for many other ministers throughout Chinese history. His son Lü Kai inherited his marquisate but did not have any accomplishments of note.

Aside from his impressive military record and great skill as a governor, Lü Dai was also praised for his many fine personal qualities. He was widely known as an honest, hard-working man who also possessed great generosity. He was also humble, frugal, and able to accept criticism without taking it personally, a quality that is astoundingly rare in any age. He was always attentive to his duties and never let his age prevent him from attending to matters personally. Unlike many of his day, Lü Dai cared nothing for ostentatious displays and liked to live simply. He generally worked well with others and did not compete for favor or glory.