Wu Jing (Han Dynasty) - Biography

Biography

Wu Jing was born in Wu County (吳縣) in Wu commandery (吳郡; commandery capital in present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu) but he grew up in Qiantang (錢唐; in present-day Hangzhou, Zhejiang). He lost his parents at a young age so he lived with his elder sister, Lady Wu. Lady Wu later married the general Sun Jian, and Wu Jing became a subordinate of his brother-in-law.

Wu Jing participated in some battles under Sun Jian's banner and was commissioned as a Cavalry Commandant (騎都尉) for his efforts. Sun Jian was later killed in action at the Battle of Xiangyang in 191 against Liu Biao's forces. Sometime in the early 190s, Wu Jing was appointed by the warlord Yuan Shu as the Administrator (太守) of Danyang commandery (丹楊郡; commandery in present-day Xuancheng, Anhui), and was sent to attack and seize the commandery from its previous Administrator, Zhou Xin. Wu Jing was at Qu'e (曲阿; in present-day Danyang, Jiangsu) at that time and had not moved to Danyang commandery yet. Sun Jian's eldest son, Sun Ce, brought along his family and followers, including Sun He (孫河) and Lü Fan, to join Wu Jing in Qu'e. Wu Jing combined forces with his nephew to attack the bandits led by Zu Lang in Jing County (涇縣) and drove the bandits away.

Wu Jing later came under attack by the warlord Liu Yao so he headed north to join Yuan Shu. Yuan Shu appointed him as "General of the Household Who Inspects the Army" (督軍中郎將) and ordered him and Sun Ce's cousin Sun Ben to lead an army to attack Liu Yao's generals Fan Neng and Yu Mi at Hengjiang (橫江). Wu Jing and Sun Ben also defeated Ze Rong and Xue Li at Moling (秣陵; present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu).

Starting in 194, Sun Ce borrowed troops from Yuan Shu and embarked on a series of conquests in the Jiangdong region, attacking territories under the control of warlords such as Liu Yao, Yan Baihu and Wang Lang. When Sun Ce was trapped in Niuzhu (牛渚), Wu Jing came to his nephew's rescue and he captured all the enemies. Wu Jing participated in Sun Ce's campaign against Liu Yao in 195. When Liu Yao fled to Yuzhang commandery (豫章郡; commandery capital in present-day Nanchang, Jiangxi) after his defeat, Sun Ce sent Wu Jing and Sun Ben to Shouchun commandery (壽春郡; commandery capital in present-day Shou County, Lu'an, Anhui) to report his victory to Yuan Shu. Concurrently, Yuan Shu was fighting with another warlord Liu Bei for control over Xu Province, so he appointed Wu Jing as the Administrator of Guangling (廣陵; in present-day Jiangsu).

Around late 196 or early 197, Yuan Shu revealed his intention to declare himself Emperor - an act perceived as treason against the reigning Emperor Xian of the Eastern Han Dynasty. Sun Ce wrote to Yuan Shu and attempted to dissuade the latter from doing so, but was ignored. When Yuan Shu later did proclaim himself Emperor, Sun Ce broke ties with him to avoid any association with the pretender. Sun Ce then sent a messenger to inform Wu Jing, who immediately left Guangling and brought his men to Jiangdong to join his nephew. Sun Ce reassigned Wu Jing as the Administrator of Danyang. The Han imperial court subsequently despatched Wang Pu (王誧), a Consultant (議郎), as an envoy to Jiangdong, bestowing the title of "General Who Spreads Martial Might" (揚武將軍) on Wu Jing and approving his governorship of Danyang.

Wu Jing died in office in 203 during the reign of Emperor Xian.