Lu Kai, courtesy name Jingfeng, was a Chinese military general and politician of the state of Eastern Wu during the Three Kingdoms period of China.
31 Facts About Lu Kai
1.
2.
Lu Kai was from Wu County, Wu Commandery, which is present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu.
3.
Lu Kai was a relative of Lu Xun, the third Imperial Chancellor of Eastern Wu.
4.
Lu Kai started his career around the time Sun Quan established the independent state of Eastern Wu in 222 near the beginning of the Three Kingdoms period.
5.
Lu Kai first served as the Chief of Yongxing County and later as the Chief of Zhuji County, before he was commissioned as a Commandant Who Establishes Martial Might and given command of troops.
6.
Lu Kai led Wu forces to attack Zhuya and succeeded in conquering it for Wu.
7.
In 255, during the reign of the second Wu emperor Sun Liang, Lu Kai led Wu forces to attack bandits led by Chen Bi in Lingling Commandery and succeeded in eliminating Chen Bi and the bandits.
8.
Lu Kai was then promoted to Lieutenant-General and appointed as the Area Commander of Baqiu, in addition to being enfeoffed as a Marquis of a Chief District.
9.
Lu Kai was reassigned to serve as the Area Commander of the Right Section of Wuchang.
10.
Lu Kai elevated Lu Kai from the status of a district marquis to a county marquis under the title "Marquis of Jiaxing".
11.
Around this time, Lu Kai wrote a memorial to Sun Hao to dissuade him from relocating the imperial capital, and to advise him to rule with benevolence.
12.
However, Lu Kai remained unfazed and continued to perform his duties in a professional and impartial manner.
13.
Lu Kai continued to show his sincerity and loyalty towards Sun Hao by being candid and not mincing his words whenever he gave advice to the emperor.
14.
The Wu Lu recorded that Lu Kai had instructed his son Lu Yi to secretly contact Liu Ping and ask him to join their plot.
15.
When Lu Kai became critically ill in 269, Sun Hao sent Dong Chao, the Prefect of the Palace Writers, to visit Lu Kai and hear his last words.
16.
Lu Kai should be assigned to somewhere away from the Imperial Capital; he shouldn't be entrusted with state affairs.
17.
Lu Kai started his career as a Gentleman of the Yellow Gate before enlisting in the Wu army and rising through the ranks to become a Lieutenant-General.
18.
Lu Kai will make a brilliant military commander; even Lu Su could not have been better than him.
19.
When Lu Kai was still alive, he was known for being outspoken and critical of Sun Hao, and for defying the emperor's will on a number of occasions.
20.
Second, Lu Kai's relative Lu Kang was a senior general guarding the border between Eastern Wu and the Jin dynasty, so Sun Hao did not want to antagonise Lu Kang by harming Lu Kai.
21.
Therefore, even though Sun Hao deeply resented Lu Kai, he tolerated Lu Kai all these years.
22.
Lu Kai had a younger brother, Lu Yin, who served as a military general in Eastern Wu.
23.
Lu Kai personally visited hermits and recruited them to serve under him, sought advice from people of a wide range of backgrounds, and regularly toured places to see how his people are doing.
24.
Lu Kai theorised that Lu Kai most probably wrote the memorial but did not present it to Sun Hao and kept it hidden until he finally decided to show it to Dong Chao before his death.
25.
Lu Kai is an important pillar of society and just like the Longfeng of Wu.
26.
Lu Kai was a family servant in the past, but now he has made it into the Imperial Palace.
27.
Lu Kai has received favours greater than he could ask for, and held positions higher than those suited for someone of his ability.
28.
Lu Kai arranged for single men to get married, provided clothing to those who did not have sufficient clothing, and arranged proper burials for people whose remains were abandoned.
29.
Lu Kai never wore expensive clothes, had no extravagant structures in the palace, and owned no elaborately designed possessions.
30.
Lu Kai appointed them as officials according to their abilities, and assessed them based on how well they performed in office.
31.
Lu Kai wrote the first memorial to urge Sun Hao to mend his ways when he foresaw that Sun Hao would meet his downfall because of his cruelty and extravagance.