At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, the world was in chaos, and Zhang Zhao fled to Jiangnan with the refugees. Sun Ce was loved and reused, and he worshipped Chang Shi and Fu Jun as commander in chief. Ministers in Wu Dong respected him very much and were deeply impressed by his talent. Even Mi Heng, who has always been proud, praised him. We often say that a person's reputation should not be too high, so it is easy to make the Lord afraid and suppress him. However, Sun Ce has not done so. On the contrary, he likes to compare Zhang to himself, just like Guan Zhong. It can be seen that Zhang Zhao's position in Wu is very high.
In 200 AD, before he died, Sun Ce entrusted his younger brother Sun Quan to Zhang Zhao, and told him that if Sun Quan could not undertake this important task, he would ask Zhang Zhao to take his place. Even the mountains and rivers at home can surrender, which shows that Sun Ce attaches great importance to Mr. Zhang. Sun Quan acceded to the throne when he was young. With the support of Zhang Zhao, Wu Dong grew bigger step by step and became an inseparable part of the tripartite confrontation among the three countries.
In addition to his political achievements, Zhang Zhao is also quite accomplished in literature. Zhang Zhao is proficient in Confucianism. At home in his later years, he made some comments on Zuo Zhuan and The Analects of Confucius. Zhang Zhao is also good at writing official script, and his calligraphy works were listed as the third book review by Zhang Huai, a calligrapher in the Tang Dynasty.
Zhang Zhao assisted Sun Ce and Sun Quan, the core figures of Wu Dong's two generations. He has made countless contributions to Wu Dong all his life, and is his father and decision-maker. The most noteworthy things in Zhang's life are his loyalty, honest and frank and unyielding character. Before Sun Quan ascended the throne, everyone listened to Zhang Zhao's advice, but when he became a big shot, he began to treat Zhang Zhao coldly.
At the beginning of the founding of Soochow, the prime minister was vacant, and all officials recommended Zhang Zhao, but Sun Quan just laughed and said that the position of prime minister was too complicated, fearing that Zhang Zhao would be tired. So I chose the unknown Gu Yong. Maybe we can compare Zhang Zhao with Gu Yong who got that position, and we will know why Zhang Zhao is not valued by Sun Quan.
Gu Yong is not as junior as Zhang Zhaoshallow, but he can serve as Prime Minister of Wu 19 years. His greatest advantage is his reticence. When I became prime minister, I didn't say anything to my family. For the military gains and losses, it is even more "self-meeting, not yet speaking." Sun Quan once praised him: "Gu Jun either doesn't open his mouth, but opening his mouth is right."
The picture comes from the internet.
However, Zhang Zhao is different. He always knows everything and talks about everything. Even immature opinions are eager to be published. It was intended to provide reference for his master, but many words were lost. When Gan Ning suggested that Sun Quan attack Huang Zu, he criticized him face to face, fearing that an unfavorable war would cause civil strife. As a result, World War I ended in a draw, which proved that his worries were unnecessary. Such a mistake is bound to leave a bad impression on Sun Quan. Zhang Zhao lost the trust of Sun Quan because he had no talent and no secrets.
Zhang spent his later years at home and died of natural causes in AD 236. He made his funeral simple and didn't change clothes in the coffin.