Zhuge Ke - Career During Sun Quan's Reign

Career During Sun Quan's Reign

After Eastern Wu's founding emperor Sun Quan created his son Sun Deng as crown prince in 221, he set up a staff for the crown prince consisting of the sons of the key officials or other well-known young members of the administration. The four most prominent ones were Zhuge, Zhang Zhao's son Zhang Xiu (張休), Gu Yong's grandson Gu Tan, and Chen Wu's son Chen Biao. Sun Deng treated them as friends, not as subordinates, and they grew up together and served as Sun Deng's advisors. When Sun Deng had his secretary Hu Zong (胡綜) write a commentary about his advisors in 229, Hu wrote that Zhuge was the most intelligent and skillful of his generation. While this was true, he also quickly developed a reputation for being reckless, a characteristic that both his father Zhuge Jin and his uncle Zhuge Liang repeatedly rebuked him about. On one occasion, Zhuge Jin observed, "This child will either bring great honor to my household or destroy it."

By 234, Zhuge Ke was serving as a commander of the capital guards, and he submitted a plan to Sun Quan to suppress the indigenous Baiyue people of the important Danyang Commandery (in present-day Xuancheng, Anhui), who had not submitted to Eastern Wu authorities and were pillaging the Han people -- a plan that most senior officials, including Zhuge Jin, considered reckless and costly. Zhuge Ke, however, insisted that his plan would be successful, so Sun Quan commissioned him as the governor of Danyang and gave him full powers to implement his plan. Once he arrived, he requested the four neighboring commanderies to seal their borders and did not combat the Yue; then, when the rice became ready for harvest, he had the rice harvested quickly and then gathered up, away from the pillaging Yue. The Yue were starved into submission, and as soon as they submitted, he treated them with kindness. By 237, Danyang was entirely under Eastern Wu authorities' control and became a productive commandery for manpower and supplies. Sun Quan was impressed and granted Zhuge Ke the title of a marquess.

In 243, Zhuge planned a major attack on the Cao Wei city of Shouchun, and he put his army in an attack posture. However, when the prominent Cao Wei general Sima Yi arrived and prepared to attack Zhuge, rather than allowing Zhuge to face the much more experienced Sima in battle, Sun Quan ordered that Zhuge withdraw. Still, among the people, Zhuge became renowned for being willing to stand against Sima. Lu Xun, however, became concerned about Zhuge's recklessness and wrote him in rebuke. Knowing that he had to submit to the senior Lu Xun, Zhuge wrote back and apologized. After Lu's death in 245, Sun commissioned Zhuge to take over Lu's key post at Wuchang (in present-day Ezhou, Hubei).

In 251, as Sun Quan neared death, he sought a regent for his young son and heir, Sun Liang. His personal assistant Sun Jun recommended Zhuge, and it was also the sentiment of the people that Zhuge was the most capable. Sun Quan was concerned about Zhuge's arrogance and overly high opinion of himself, but at Sun Jun's urging commissioned him to be regent, summoning him back from Wuchang. As Zhuge departed Wuchang, the senior general Lü Dai, knowing Zhuge's recklessness, told him, "What you will be doing is difficult. Before you do anything, think ten times." Zhuge, rather than showing his earlier submission to Lu Xun, responded irreverently to Lü, "When Ji Wenzi (季文子, a student of Confucius) thought three times before acting, Confucius told him, 'Only think twice.' Now you, sir, told me to think ten times. Is it not that you are calling me stupid?" Lü was unable to respond, and the people at the time thought that Lü did speak inappropriately, but later historians pointed to this incident as a sign of Zhuge's ever growing arrogance and recklessness. Indeed, after Sun named him regent and ordered that all important matters be decided by Zhuge first (except matters of life and death) and made all other officials bow to Zhuge, Zhuge became even more arrogant.

After Sun Quan's death in 252, Sun Liang succeeded him, and Zhuge served as regent, as Sun Quan willed.