Lou Xuan

Historical Record

Lou Xuan, courtesy name Chengxian, was a native of Qi County in Pei Commandery. His recorded deeds belong mainly to the Eastern Wu period. During the reign of Sun Xiu, Lou Xuan once served as Imperial Inspector of Agriculture^[1].

After Sun Hao ascended the throne, Lou Xuan's official career took an important turn. Together with Wang Fan, Guo Zhuo, Wan Yu, and others, he was appointed a Cavalier Attendant-in-Ordinary. He was then sent out to the provinces to serve as Administrator of Kuaiji. After completing this provincial post, Lou Xuan was recalled to the central government to serve as Grand Minister of Agriculture^[1].

Under Sun Hao, the officials overseeing the inner palace were usually drawn from those close to the emperor. Wan Yu advised Sun Hao that these intimate and important posts should be filled with men of worth and ability. Sun Hao adopted this counsel and ordered the relevant offices to seek out loyal and incorruptible men to fill them. In this context, Lou Xuan was chosen to serve as the Palace Guard Commandant in charge of the forbidden palace, responsible for affairs within the throne hall^[1].

In office Lou Xuan displayed an upright, loyal, and devoted character. He stood guard bearing a sword, leading by his own example, strictly observing the law, and directing all others to act according to it. In dealing with Sun Hao, Lou Xuan spoke bluntly and directly, offering his opinions without evasion, which offended Sun Hao on many occasions and gradually earned him reproach and displeasure^[1].

In the end, Lou Xuan was falsely accused over an incident. Someone reported that when he and He Shao met, the two had stopped to whisper to each other and laughed together, using this to slander the government. On learning of it, Sun Hao issued an edict interrogating and rebuking Lou Xuan, and sent him to Guangzhou^[1]. The sources do not clearly record Lou Xuan's fate in Guangzhou, but his banishment there implies the end of his political career.

In the Novel

In the account of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Lou Xuan is cast as a tragic figure who dared to remonstrate frankly and who ultimately gave his life for loyalty and righteousness. The novel places Lou Xuan against the backdrop of the final years of the Eastern Wu regime, under the tyranny of Sun Hao^[2].

Chapter 120 of Romance of the Three Kingdoms describes how, during the years from the Jianheng era to the first year of the Fenghuang era, Sun Hao acted willfully and wantonly, exhausting his troops in endless warfare, until complaints arose from high and low alike. At this moment of crisis over the survival of the state, Lou Xuan, together with the Chancellor Wan Yu and the general Liu Ping, disregarded their own safety to remonstrate bluntly with the muddle-headed Sun Hao. Yet their loyal words grated on his ears and failed to move him, instead provoking his anger^[2].

The novel states clearly that Lou Xuan, Wan Yu, and Liu Ping were all put to death by Sun Hao for their frank remonstrance. The novel further dramatizes Sun Hao's cruelty, noting that over more than ten years he killed more than forty loyal ministers, and that on every outing he was escorted by fifty thousand armored cavalry, so that the assembled officials each feared for themselves and none dared to resist^[2].

Compared with the histories, the novel gives Lou Xuan's end a clear tragic treatment, portraying him as a victim of Sun Hao's tyranny. The sources only record that Lou Xuan was sent to Guangzhou and do not directly mention his being killed, whereas the novel states outright that he died at Sun Hao's hands, reinforcing his image as a loyal minister. In addition, the novel sets Lou Xuan alongside Wan Yu and Liu Ping as loyal ministers killed for frank remonstrance, fashioning a collective image of resistance to tyranny that has no basis in the histories.

Key Relationships

* Eastern Wu (serves): Lou Xuan served the Eastern Wu regime throughout his life. During Sun Xiu's reign he was Imperial Inspector of Agriculture; after Sun Hao ascended the throne, he successively held the posts of Cavalier Attendant-in-Ordinary, Administrator of Kuaiji, and Grand Minister of Agriculture, finally being appointed Palace Guard Commandant of the forbidden palace, responsible for affairs within the throne hall^[1].
* He Shao (friend_of): The sources record that Lou Xuan, having met He Shao and stopped to whisper and laugh together, was falsely accused of slandering the government, which ultimately led to his being interrogated by Sun Hao and sent to Guangzhou^[1]. This indicates a certain friendship between the two.
* Sun Hao (dies_in): Lou Xuan's career and fate were both closely tied to Sun Hao. Because his counsel was blunt and direct, he offended Sun Hao many times, and was finally falsely accused and sent to Guangzhou^[1]. The novel states outright that Lou Xuan was killed by Sun Hao for his frank remonstrance, becoming a victim of Sun Hao's tyranny^[2] (unique to the novel).
* Wan Yu, Liu Ping (colleagues): In the novel, Lou Xuan, together with the Chancellor Wan Yu and the general Liu Ping, remonstrated bluntly out of dissatisfaction with Sun Hao's tyranny, and in the end were all killed by Sun Hao together, jointly forming a group of loyal ministers resisting the tyrant^[2] (unique to the novel).

Signature Scenes

* Setting an Upright Example and Leading All to Act by the Law: While serving as Palace Guard Commandant of the forbidden palace, Lou Xuan was responsible for affairs within the throne hall. He led by his own example, strictly observing the law and directing all others to act according to it, displaying an image of integrity and devotion to duty^[1].
* Blunt Counsel That Repeatedly Crossed Sun Hao's Will: In facing Sun Hao, Lou Xuan dared to state his views frankly, even when such words would anger the emperor. This forthright character repeatedly drew Sun Hao's reproach and displeasure, foreshadowing his ultimate tragic fate^[1].
* Whispering and Laughing with He Shao and Being Falsely Accused: When Lou Xuan met He Shao, the two stopped to whisper and laugh together, yet for this he was falsely accused of slandering the government, and was finally interrogated and rebuked by Sun Hao's edict and sent to Guangzhou. This event became the turning point of Lou Xuan's political career and a mark of the unjust charge laid upon him^[1].
* Killed by Sun Hao for Frank Remonstrance: In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Lou Xuan, together with Wan Yu and Liu Ping, stepped forward to remonstrate bluntly when Sun Hao was exhausting his troops in war and acting willfully. Yet their loyal words, far from being adopted, angered Sun Hao, and in the end all three were killed by him. This scene is Lou Xuan's most tragic and signature end in the novel^[2] (unique to the novel).