Sun Jiao

Historical Record

Sun Jiao, styled Shulang, was a younger cousin of Sun Quan. He first served as Colonel of the Protecting Army, commanding over two thousand soldiers. During Cao Cao's repeated incursions at Ruxukou, Sun Jiao engaged the enemy vigorously each time, and his troops were hailed as an elite force ^c:1380. For his battle merits, Sun Jiao was promoted to Protector-Commandant General Who Conquers Bandits, succeeding Cheng Pu in garrisoning Xiakou. After the deaths of Huang Gai and his elder cousin Sun Yu, Sun Jiao absorbed their troops as well. Sun Quan granted Sun Jiao Shaxian, Yundu, Nanxinshi, and Jingling as his fief, and allowed him to appoint his own senior officials ^c:1380.

Sun Jiao was by nature generous with wealth and fond of giving, skilled at making friends with men of all sorts, and was especially close to Zhuge Jin. He trusted Liu Jing of Lujiang, often discussing gains and losses with him; Li Yun of Jiangxia handled various affairs; and Wu Shuo of Guangling and Zhang Liang of Henan handled military matters. Sun Jiao treated all these men with wholehearted sincerity, so that they all gave their utmost ^c:1380.

Once, Sun Jiao's troops captured the families and beautiful women of Wei generals on the border, but Sun Jiao ordered their clothing changed and sent them back. He issued an order saying: "What we now seek to chastise is the Cao clan—what crime have their common people committed? From now on, the old and weak among them are not to be attacked." This act won the allegiance of many of the people in the Jianghuai region ^c:1380.

Sun Jiao once quarreled with Gan Ning over a trivial matter. Someone admonished Gan Ning, but Gan Ning said: "Subjects are all equal. Though the General Who Conquers Bandits is a lordly son, how can he domineer and insult others! Having met an enlightened lord, I should only exert my utmost to serve the state; I truly cannot bend to convention." When Sun Quan learned of this, he wrote a letter rebuking Sun Jiao ^c:1381. Upon receiving the letter, Sun Jiao submitted a memorial expressing his contrition and apology, reconciled with Gan Ning, and became his friend ^c:1382.

In the twenty-fourth year of Jian'an (219 CE), Lü Meng planned a surprise attack on Nan Commandery, and Sun Quan originally wished to make Sun Jiao and Lü Meng joint Left and Right Grand Supervisors. But Lü Meng admonished Sun Quan, saying: "If Your Majesty considers the General Who Conquers Bandits capable, then employ him; if you consider me capable, then employ me. In the past Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu served as Left and Right Supervisors in jointly attacking Jiangling—although matters were decided by Zhou Yu, Cheng Pu, presuming on being a veteran general and likewise a supervisor, fell out with Zhou Yu, nearly bringing disaster upon the state. This is a lesson right before our eyes." Sun Quan understood and apologized to Lü Meng, saying: "Let you be Grand Supervisor, and I will order Sun Jiao to serve as your support." Later Lü Meng successfully captured Guan Yu and pacified Jing Province, in which Sun Jiao also played an important part ^c:1382. That same year, Sun Jiao died. Recalling his merits, Sun Quan posthumously enfeoffed his son Sun Yin as Marquis of Danyang. After Sun Yin died without a son, his younger brother Sun Xi inherited the position. Sun Xi committed a crime while leading troops and took his own life, and the fief was abolished. Sun Jiao's younger brothers Sun Zi, Sun Mi, and Sun Yi all served as generals and were enfeoffed as marquises. Sun Zi once served as Supervisor of the Plumed Forest, and Sun Yi as Supervisor of the Unrivaled. Sun Zi was later killed by Teng Yin, while Sun Yi was killed by Sun Jun ^c:1382.

In the Novel

In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Sun Jiao appears very rarely, and his image differs markedly from the historical record. In the novel, Sun Jiao's first and only appearance is in Chapter 75, by which time Guan Yu had already withdrawn the greater part of Jing Province's troops to advance north on Fancheng. Sun Quan summoned Lü Meng to deliberate and proposed having Lü Meng, together with his own younger brother Sun Jiao, lead a great army to seize Jing Province ^c:1383. Here the novel makes Sun Jiao "the second son of Sun Quan's uncle Sun Jing" and gives his style as "Shuming," which differs from the historical record in which Sun Jiao's style was "Shulang" ^c:1380.

In responding to Sun Quan, Lü Meng again cited the old discord between Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu, stressing the principle that "one mountain cannot hold two tigers," and pointed out that Sun Jiao's kinship was closer than Cheng Pu's, fearing the two could not get along ^c:1383. This episode broadly accords with the historical record of Lü Meng admonishing Sun Quan not to make Sun Jiao his joint Left and Right Grand Supervisor, but the novel does not develop Sun Jiao's character or ability, presenting him merely as a foil for Lü Meng to highlight his own military talent and to avoid power conflict. The novel does not mention Sun Jiao's battle merits at Ruxukou, his generous and giving character, his quarrel with Gan Ning, or how he handled captives—the rich personal details found in the historical record. In the novel's narrative, Sun Jiao is more of an instrumental figure who enables Lü Meng's stratagem to be carried out, his personal image far less full than in the histories.

Key Relationships

* Sun Jing (parent_of): Sun Jiao was the son of Sun Jing ^c:1383 (novel only; the histories do not directly state the father-son relationship, but Sun Jiao was a younger cousin of Sun Quan).
* Sun Quan's Faction (serves): Sun Jiao was an important general under Sun Quan, serving the Sun-Wu regime, resisting Cao Cao at Ruxukou and taking part in the campaign for Jing Province ^c:1380.
* Zhuge Jin (friend_of): Sun Jiao was extremely close to Zhuge Jin, the two sharing a deep friendship ^c:1380.
* Gan Ning (rival_of): Sun Jiao once quarreled with Gan Ning over a trivial matter; later, through Sun Quan's mediation, the two resolved their conflict and became friends ^c:1381.
* Lü Meng (colleague/rival): Sun Quan once wished to make Sun Jiao a joint Grand Supervisor with Lü Meng, but Lü Meng, taking the old affair of Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu as a warning, advised Sun Quan to employ a single man, and in the end Lü Meng became Grand Supervisor with Sun Jiao as his support ^c:1382.
* Liu Jing, Li Yun, Wu Shuo, Zhang Liang (subordinates/confidants): Sun Jiao trusted and gave responsibility to them, entrusting them respectively with gains and losses, general affairs, and military matters ^c:1380.
* Sun Yin, Sun Xi, Sun Zi, Sun Mi, Sun Yi (children/siblings): Sun Jiao's descendants—Sun Yin and Sun Xi were his sons, and Sun Zi, Sun Mi, and Sun Yi were his younger brothers—all held important posts in the Sun-Wu regime ^c:1382.

Iconic Scenes

* Resisting Cao at Ruxukou: When Cao Cao repeatedly invaded Ruxukou, Sun Jiao led elite troops in vigorous engagement, displaying his military talent and loyal valor ^c:1380.
* Generous Treatment of Wei Captives: After capturing the families and beautiful women of Wei border officers, Sun Jiao not only did them no harm but changed their clothing and sent them back, ordering that the enemy's old and weak not be attacked—an act that displayed his benevolence and thereby won the allegiance of the people of Jianghuai ^c:1380.
* Quarrel and Reconciliation with Gan Ning: Sun Jiao once clashed with Gan Ning over a trivial matter; later, after a rebuke by letter from Sun Quan, Sun Jiao submitted a memorial of apology and became Gan Ning's friend, reflecting his readiness to correct his faults and Sun Quan's concern for relations among his generals ^c:1381.
* Lü Meng's Remonstrance Before the Jing Province Campaign: As Lü Meng planned the surprise seizure of Jing Province, Sun Quan once considered making Sun Jiao a joint Grand Supervisor with Lü Meng, but Lü Meng, citing the old affair of Zhou Yu and Cheng Pu, successfully persuaded Sun Quan to employ him alone, and Sun Jiao ultimately took part in the Jing Province campaign as support, contributing to the pacification of Jing Province ^c:1382. This scene also appears in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, but with the emphasis on Lü Meng's resourcefulness rather than Sun Jiao's personal performance ^c:1383.