Lu Kang, a renowned general of the late Eastern Wu state, was appointed Colonel of Ardent Military Action at the age of twenty, taking command of the five thousand troops left by his father, Lu Xun. In 264 AD, when Sun Hao ascended the throne as ruler of Eastern Wu, the thirty-eight-year-old Lu Kang became Grand General Who Guards the Army. At that time, the Eastern Wu court was extremely corrupt. Sun Hao was licentious and cruel, maintaining a harem of several thousand women and plundering from the common people. He also arbitrarily executed people using brutal punishments such as flaying faces and gouging out eyes. Lu Kang was deeply dissatisfied with Sun Hao's actions and repeatedly submitted memorials urging him to strengthen external defenses and improve internal governance to enhance the state's strength. In one memorial, he listed as many as sixteen urgent matters requiring immediate attention. However, Sun Hao completely ignored his advice.
In 272 AD, Bu Chan, the Wu general guarding Xiling, surrendered to the Jin dynasty. Upon learning this, Lu Kang immediately led his army to campaign against Bu Chan. Knowing that the Jin forces would certainly come to Bu Chan's aid, Lu Kang ordered both soldiers and civilians to construct a solid wall encircling Xiling. His subordinate generals repeatedly requested to attack Xiling directly, but Lu Kang consistently refused. Only after the fortifications were completed did the Jin army arrive to assist Bu Chan. Lu Kang then led his troops to defeat the Jin reinforcements, and subsequently launched a fierce assault on Xiling. He quickly breached the city and executed the rebel general Bu Chan. At this time, Yang Hu, the Jin dynasty's General of Chariots and Cavalry, was garrisoned at Xiangyang.
Seeing that Lu Kang was both a capable attacker and defender, Yang Hu realized that defeating Eastern Wu would not be easy. Therefore, he adopted a conciliatory strategy towards Wu: when his subordinates captured children from Wu, he ordered them released; when his troops harvested crops from Wu territory during campaigns, he sent silk and cloth as compensation; and when game animals already wounded by Wu hunters were caught, he returned them to Wu. Lu Kang understood Yang Hu's intentions and treated the Jin forces with the same attitude. The two men frequently exchanged envoys, demonstrating mutual goodwill. As a result, peace briefly prevailed along certain sections of the Wu-Jin border. When Sun Hao heard about this peaceful situation at the border, he was very displeased and sent someone to reprimand Lu Kang. Lu Kang replied, "Even a single village or county cannot do without trust and righteousness—how much more a great nation? If I did not act this way, it would only highlight Yang Hu's virtue and power, causing him no harm." Sun Hao had no rebuttal, but he still intended to launch a military campaign against Jin.
Seeing that his army was constantly being mobilized, exhausting the people, Lu Kang submitted another memorial to Sun Hao: "Now, instead of pursuing policies to enrich the state and strengthen the military, intensifying agricultural production, stockpiling grain, enabling talented individuals to contribute, ensuring all levels of government do not neglect their duties, enforcing a clear promotion system to motivate officials, carefully administering punishments to warn the people, instructing officials with morality, and comforting the populace with benevolence, the court instead allows its generals to pursue personal fame, exhausting all military resources, persisting in warfare without end. The wealth consumed amounts to tens of thousands of units, and the soldiers are utterly worn out. In this way, the enemy is not weakened, while we ourselves are as if suffering from a severe illness." Lu Kang also solemnly pointed out that the strengths of Wu and Jin were unequal; even if a campaign were victorious today, the gains would not outweigh the losses. Therefore, military actions should cease, strength should be accumulated, and the right opportunity awaited." However, Sun Hao refused to heed any of Lu Kang's loyal counsel. Later, after Lu Kang's death, the Jin army launched an invasion of Eastern Wu, sailing downstream along the Yangtze River with irresistible force. Eastern Wu was ultimately conquered and destroyed by Jin.