Sun Kuang was the fourth and youngest son of the warlord Sun Jian and his wife Lady Wu. Little is known about his life. When he was around the age of 19, he was nominated as a xiaolian and maocai (茂才) to join the civil service. However, he never held any offices and died in his early 20s.[3]
Sun Jian was killed in action at the Battle of Xiangyang in 191 and was succeeded by his eldest son, Sun Ce. The Wei Shu recorded that Sun Ce, who should rightfully inherit his father's title "Marquis of Wucheng" (烏程侯), declined to accept the title and offered it to Sun Kuang instead.[4][5] Between 194 and 199, Sun Ce embarked on a series of conquests in the Jiangdong region and established his power base there. Around the time, the warlord Cao Cao, who controlled the Han central government and the figurehead Han ruler, Emperor Xian, became wary of Sun Ce's growing influence in the south, so he sought to establish marital ties with Sun. Cao Cao's son, Cao Zhang, married a daughter of Sun Ben, a cousin of Sun Ce, while Cao Cao's niece married Sun Kuang.[6]
Discrepancies in historical records
The Jiang Biao Zhuan recorded that Sun Kuang served under his second brother, Sun Quan (Sun Ce's successor), as General of the Household Who Solidifies Martial Might (定武中郎將). He fought in the Wu army at the Battle of Dongkou of 222–223 against Wei invading forces commanded by Cao Xiu. During the battle, he ordered the Wu general Lü Fan to set fire, but accidentally destroyed a large portion of the Wu army's supplies, resulting in a shortage. Lü Fan immediately sent Sun Kuang back to the Wu capital. Sun Quan was furious with his younger brother and he punished his brother by forcing him to change his family name to "Ding" (丁) and placing him under permanent house arrest.[7]
Pei Songzhi, who annotated Sun Kuang's biography in the Sanguozhi, commented that the Jiang Biao Zhuan account contradicted the original claim in the Sanguozhi that Sun Kuang did not hold any offices before his death because the Jiang Biao Zhuan stated that Sun Kuang was appointed as a general. Besides, the Battle of Dongkou took place in 222–223, about 31 years after Sun Jian's death, so if Sun Kuang died in his early 20s (as mentioned in the Sanguozhi), he could not have possibly lived until 222. Pei believed that the "Sun Kuang" mentioned in the Jiang Biao Zhuan was actually Sun Lang, a younger half-brother of Sun Kuang, after he compared the Jiang Biao Zhuan account with records from the San Chao Lu and the Zhilin.[8]
Sun Kuang's son, Sun Tai (孫泰), was born to Cao Cao's niece (whom Sun Kuang married), and served as a Colonel of Changshui (長水校尉) under his uncle, Sun Quan. In 234, he participated in the Battle of Hefei against Wu's rival state Wei, but was killed by a stray arrow in the midst of battle.[9]
Sun Tai's son, Sun Xiu (孫秀), served as General of the Vanguard (前將軍) and Area Commander of Xiakou (夏口督) during the reign of the fourth and last Wu emperor, Sun Hao (a grandson of Sun Quan). Sun Hao considered Sun Xiu a threat because Sun Xiu was a member of the imperial clan and wielded military power. In 270, Sun Hao sent an officer, He Ding (何定), to lead 5,000 troops to Xiakou for a hunting expedition. Sun Xiu suspected that Sun Hao had sent He Ding to Xiakou to kill him, so he brought along his family and bodyguards, numbering a few hundred people in total, and defected to Wu's rival state, the Jin dynasty. The Jin emperor Sima Yan received Sun Xiu warmly and appointed him as General of Agile Cavalry (驃騎將軍) and enfeoffed him as the Duke of Kuaiji (會稽公).[10] Sun Hao was furious with Sun Xiu's betrayal so he banished him from the Sun clan and announced that Sun Xiu had changed his family name to "Li" (厲).[11] In 280, Sun Hao surrendered to invading forces from Jin, bringing an end to the Wu regime. Many Jin officials went to congratulate Sima Yan, but Sun Xiu claimed that he was ill and remained at home. He faced his native land in the south and lamented the fall of Wu. The Jin imperial court praised him for that.[12] After the fall of Wu, Sun Xiu was demoted from General of Agile Cavalry to General Who Calms Waves (伏波將軍) but was still allowed to have his own administrative office. He died sometime in the Yongning era (301–303) of the reign of Emperor Hui (Sima Yan's son and successor). Sun Xiu's son, Sun Jian (孫儉), continued serving in the Jin government as an Official Who Concurrently Serves in the Palace (給事中).[13]
de Crespigny, Rafe (1990). Generals of the South: the foundation and early history of the Three Kingdoms state of Wu. Canberra: Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University. ISBN0-7315-0901-3.
