When Lü Meng returned to Xunyang County, he heard that some bandits were causing trouble in Luling Commandery (廬陵郡; southwest of present-day Ji'an, Jiangxi), and that many of Sun Quan's officers had been unsuccessful in defeating the bandits. Sun Quan remarked: "A hundred birds of prey are not comparable to one osprey." He then ordered Lü Meng to attack the bandits. Lü Meng achieved success and killed the bandit chiefs but released the others and allowed them to revert to normal civilian life.