Lü Meng
Went from a mere soldier to "no longer Ameng of Wu," and crossed the river in white robes to seize Jing Province.
Life
Ameng of Wu
Lü Meng joined the army as a youth and was known for his courage, but he did not read. When Sun Quan urged him to study, he applied himself diligently. Later, after talking with him, Lu Su marveled that he was "no longer Ameng of Wu," and he replied, "When a scholar has been away for three days, one should look at him with new eyes" (from the Jiangbiao Zhuan as quoted in Pei Songzhi's annotations).
Succeeded Lu Su
He fought under Zhou Yu at the Battle of Red Cliffs and resisted Cao Cao at Ruxu. After Lu Su died in 217, he took over Eastern Wu's military affairs on the Jingzhou front and advocated seizing Jingzhou.
Crossed the river in white robes
In 219, when Guan Yu attacked Fancheng to the north, Lü Meng feigned illness to lull Guan Yu, had his soldiers disguise themselves as merchants, crossed the river in white robes and took Jiangling and Gong'an by surprise. He also reassured the families of Guan Yu's men, causing the morale of Guan Yu's army to collapse. At the end of that year he fell gravely ill, and he died the following year.
Legacy
Lü Meng is the classic example of "learning later in life changing one's fate"; his seizure of Jingzhou gave Eastern Wu the middle Yangtze and fixed the shape of the Three Kingdoms.
Major works & achievements
- Crossed the river in white robes to seize Jing Province
Did you know? The idiom "to rub one's eyes and look anew" comes from his story.
Key dates
- 208Fought in the Battle of Red Cliffs
- 214Took Wancheng
- 217Succeeded Lu Su in guarding Lukou
- 219Crossed the river in white robes; seized Jingzhou by surprise
- 220Died of illness