Lu Xun (183 – 19 March 245), courtesy name Boyan, also sometimes referred to as Lu Yi, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China. He started his career as an official under the warlord Sun Quan in the 200s during the late Eastern Han dynasty and steadily rose through the ranks. In 219, he assisted Sun Quan's general Lü Meng in an invasion of Jing Province, which led to the defeat and death of Liu Bei's general Guan Yu. In 222, he served as the field commander of the Wu army in the Battle of Xiaoting against Liu Bei's forces and scored a decisive victory over the opponent. 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 later parts of his career, Lu Xun oversaw both civil and military affairs in Wu while participating in battles against Wu's rival state, Wei, 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 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, which is present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu. His grandfather Lu Yu () and father Lu Jun () served as officials in the government of the Eastern Han dynasty. 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, 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, 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 Sun Quan, 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. 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, Zhejiang), 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, 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.