A few years later, after Deng Dang died, Zhang Zhao recommended Lü Meng to replace Deng Dang, so Lü Meng was appointed as a Major of a Separate Command (). In the year 200, after Sun Ce was assassinated, his younger brother Sun Quan succeeded him as the warlord ruling the territories in the Jiangdong region. Sun Quan planned to reorganise his army by merging small units into larger garrisons. When Lü Meng heard about it, he collected funds to purchase elaborately designed armour for his troops. When Sun Quan came to inspect Lü Meng's unit, he was so impressed that he placed more soldiers under Lü Meng's command, thus saving Lü Meng's troops from being merged into another unit.