Lu Ji (Gongji)

Lu Ji (188–219), courtesy name Gongji, was a scholar and official serving under the warlord Sun Quan in the late Eastern Han dynasty. He was also one of the 24 Filial Exemplars.

Lu Ji was from Wu County (吳縣), Wu Commandery (吳郡), which is in present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu. His father, Lu Kang, served as the Administrator (太守) of Lujiang Commandery (廬江郡) towards the end of the Eastern Han dynasty.

When Lu Ji was six years old, his father brought him to Jiujiang Commandery (九江郡) to visit Yuan Shu. Yuan Shu treated his guests to mandarin oranges. Lu Ji secretly took three oranges and hid them in his sleeve. When Lu Ji and his father were preparing to leave, the oranges suddenly rolled out of his sleeve. Yuan Shu said, "Young Man Lu, you came as a guest. Why did you hide the oranges?" Lu Ji knelt down and replied, "I want to bring them home for my mother." Yuan Shu was very impressed with Lu Ji. This incident is one of the 24 stories of filial piety in the Confucian classic The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars.

In the late 190s, after the warlord Sun Ce had conquered lands in the Wu region and established his domain there, he invited scholars such as Zhang Zhao, Zhang Hong and Qin Song to discuss with him on how to bring peace to the Han Empire. Lu Ji was among the scholars. As their seating positions were determined by their ages, Lu Ji took the furthest seat because he was the youngest. When they were talking about using military force to bring about peace, Lu Ji raised his voice and said, "In the past, when Guan Yiwu served as a chancellor under Duke Huan of Qi, the Duke was able to unite the various lords under his control and bring order to the Empire without resorting to military force. Confucius once said, 'If remoter people are not submissive, all the influences of civil culture and virtue are to be cultivated to attract them to be so.' Those who are present at this discussion speak of only using military force, and nothing about promoting civil culture and virtue. I, Ji, may be young and ignorant, but I don't feel at ease (after hearing what you've said)." Zhang Zhao and the others were very surprised by Lu Ji's response.

Lu Ji had a majestic appearance and was known for being very well read in various fields, including astronomy, calendar science and mathematics. He was also a friend of other scholars such as Yu Fan and Pang Tong, who were much older than him.

In 200 CE, Sun Ce died and was succeeded by his younger brother, Sun Quan. After Sun Quan took control of the Wu lands, he recruited Lu Ji to serve as a zoucaoyuan (奏曹掾; a minor official in a bureau) under him. Lu Ji subsequently served as the Administrator (太守) of Yulin Commandery (鬱林郡; around present-day Guiping, Guangxi). He was also promoted to Lieutenant-General (偏將軍) and placed in command of 2,000 troops. However, Lu Ji did not aspire to be an official, because he not only had physical disabilities, but also because he was actually interested in scholarly pursuits. Nevertheless, throughout his career, he never gave up on academics even though he was busy with military affairs. He created the Hun Tian Tu (渾天圖) and annotated the Yi Jing and Taixuanjing, and his works were spread around later.

When Lu Ji sensed that his death was imminent, he wrote, "During the Han dynasty, there lived Lu Ji, a man from Wu Commandery who had lofty ambitions. When he was young, he read the Classic of Poetry and Book of Documents. When he reached adulthood, he was already very familiar with the Classic of Rites and Yi Jing. He received orders to lead a military campaign to the south, but was struck by illness. How unfortunate his life was! He died with regrets and sorrow!" He also wrote, "About more than 60 years from now, vehicles will be able to travel on the same roads, and books will be written in the same script. It is unfortunate that I will not be able to witness that." He died at the age of 32 (by East Asian age reckoning).

Lu Ji was a second cousin-uncle of Lu Xun, but he was born about five years later than Lu Xun. His father, Lu Kang (Lu Xun's granduncle), raised Lu Xun, who was orphaned at a young age. After Lu Kang's death, Lu Xun became the new head of the family because he was older than Lu Ji, even though Lu Ji was one generation older than him.

Lu Ji had two sons and a daughter. His elder son, Lu Hong (陸宏), served as the South Commandant (南部都尉) of Kuaiji Commandery in Eastern Wu. His younger son, Lu Rui (陸叡), was a Changshui Colonel (長水校尉). Lu Ji's daughter, Lu Yusheng (陸鬱生), was born in Yulin Commandery. Her name was inspired by her place of birth because "Yusheng" means "born in Yu(lin)". She married Zhang Wen's younger brother Zhang Bai (張白). As Lu Ji died early, his three children – who were still very young when their father died – were adopted and raised by Lu Xun's younger brother Lu Mao.

Chen Shou, who wrote Lu Ji's biography in the Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi), appraised Lu as such, "Lu Ji's contributions to Yang Xiong's Taixuanjing were equivalent to Zuo Qiuming's contributions to Confucius's Spring and Autumn Annals and Zhuangzi's contributions to Laozi's Daodejing. When such a great talent like him who was capable of doing better tasks was sent to defend the southern border, his life was ruined!"

Pang Tong once described Lu Ji as "a horse which cannot run fast but has strong willpower".

A verse from The Twenty-four Filial Exemplars in Lu Ji's honour reads,

Filial piety is in human nature,
Most rare in a six-year-old boy.
He hid three oranges in his sleeve, as a gift for his Mother,
Just a token to repay her kindness without end.

Lu Ji appeared briefly in chapter 43 of the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms. He was one of the Wu scholars who debated with Zhuge Liang over Sun Quan's decision to ally with Liu Bei against Cao Cao before the Battle of Red Cliffs. Lu Ji argued, "Even though Cao Cao controls the Emperor and holds sway over the lords, he is still a descendant of the chancellor Cao Shen. Liu Bei may be a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan, but there is no proof for this. As far as we see, he is no more than a straw mat weaver and shoe seller. How can he compete with Cao Cao?" Zhuge Liang replied, "Aren't you the 'Young Man Lu' who hid oranges in his sleeve at Yuan Shu's house? Please sit down and listen to me. Since Cao Cao is a descendant of Chancellor Cao, he is therefore a subject of the Han Empire. However, he monopolises state power and bullies the Emperor. This is a disgrace to his ancestor. He is not only a villain of the Han Empire, but also a miscreant of the Cao family! Liu Bei is a member of the imperial clan. His Majesty the Emperor checked the family records and granted him a title. How can you say there is no proof? Emperor Gaozu started off as a minor patrol officer, but yet he became an Emperor eventually. What is disgraceful about weaving straw mats and selling shoes? Your opinions are those of a child. You're not fit to speak with learned men!" Lu Ji remained silent.

Yu Rongguang portrayed Lu Ji in The Legend of Incorruptible Stone (廉石传奇), a 2011 Chinese television series loosely based on Lu Ji's life. It is aimed at promoting anti-corruption in governments.