Dong Zhuo Dong Zhuo ( died 22 May 192 ) , Zhongying , was a politician and warlord who lived in the late Eastern Han Dynasty . He seized control of the capital Luoyang in 189 when it was in a state of turmoil following the death of Emperor Ling and a clash between the eunuch faction and some court officials led by General - in - Chief He Jin . Dong Zhuo subsequently deposed Emperor Shao and instated Emperor Xian . Dong Zhuo rose to power in the Han imperial court and ruled the nation with tyranny and cruelty for a brief period of time . The following year , a coalition of regional officials and warlords launched a punitive campaign against Dong , forcing him to move the capital to Chang ' an . Dong Zhuo was assassinated in 192 by his foster son Lü Bu as part of a plot orchestrated by Interior Minister Wang Yun . Early life . Dong Zhuo was born in Lintao , Longxi Commandery ( present - day Min County , Gansu ) and was said to be a chivalrous youth who was excellent in horseback archery in his early days . He travelled around the Qiang region and befriended many men of gallantry . When he grew up , he returned and started farming in the countryside , where he incidentally excavated a blade , which had obscure inscription fading from it which said " slash the kings like logging . " When he took the sabre to the famed scholar Cai Yong for appraisal , the latter asserted to him that it was the blade of the Hegemon - King of Western Chu , Xiang Yu . As a physically adept man with a good background , Dong became an imperial guard , and joined Zhang Huan ' s campaign against Qiang rebels in Bing Province as a Major . He was rewarded with 9 , 000 rolls of fine silk for his performance , all of which he distributed to his colleagues and subordinates . Dong was sent to quell the Yellow Turban Rebellion in the early 180s after a few subsequent promotions but he was defeated by the rebels and demoted . When the tribes of Qiang and Hu rebelled with local gentries Han Sui and Bian Zhang in Liang Province , Dong was reinstated as Knight General and sent to suppress the rebels . During a battle with the Qiang tribes , who were the strongest participants amongst the rebels , Dong Zhuo ' s army was outnumbered and a river sealed his retreat route . To prevent his army from being routed by the enemy , Dong ordered his troops to dam the river and pretend to fish in the reservoir formed . He sent his men to cross the drained lower stream and break the dam in order to thwart any subsequent pursuits by the enemy . Despite failing the campaign , Dong ' s unit was the only unscathed unit of the Han forces . Dong Zhuo was henceforth promoted to General of the Van and Inspector of Bing Province . However , he refused to accept his new post as he was unwilling to leave his troops and subordinates back in Liang Province . Realizing the Han authority was declining from its failure in subjugating the Qiang tribe , Dong focused on building his power in Liang . At the time , a Han military officer , Sun Jian , suggested to his superior that Dong ' s arrogance and insubordination to the court warranted a death sentence , but his advice was not heeded . Rise to power . Following the death of Emperor Ling in 189 , General - in - Chief He Jin ordered Dong Zhuo to lead troops into Luoyang to aid him in eliminating the eunuch faction . Before Dong ' s arrival , He Jin was assassinated by the eunuchs and the capital city fell into a state of turmoil . The eunuchs took Emperor Shao hostage and fled from Luoyang . Dong Zhuo ' s army intercepted the eunuchs and brought the emperor back to the palace . At the same time , He Jin ' s half brother , General of Chariots and Cavalry He Miao ( 何苗 ) , was killed by his subordinates after they accused him of colluding with the eunuchs . He Jin and He Miao ' s forces were without a leader and came under Dong Zhuo ' s command when the latter led his ferocious Liang Province troops into the city . Dong also instigated Lü Bu to kill the latter ' s foster father and Imperial Commandant of Capital Guards , Ding Yuan , when the Commandant disagreed on his proposal to replace Emperor Shao with a younger Liu Xie . Lü then became Dong ' s adopted son and trusted aide , and assisted Dong to take total control of the imperial capital of Luoyang . At the onset of his arrival to Luoyang , the powerful gentries and eastern warlords did not wish to see Dong becoming influential , and Dong was aware of that and told his generals to lead troops out of the city at night and re - enter through the front - gate at noon . Thus , the lords perceived Dong as possessing a sizeable army and dared not make a move , and Dong was able to grab power using a series of plots deemed unjust in most Confucians ' eyes . In 190 , Dong deposed Emperor Shao and replaced him with the Prince of Chenliu , who became known as Emperor Xian . Dong declared himself Chancellor and monopolized state power . He was given special permission to carry his sword to the Imperial Court while others were forbidden to do so . This privilege had not been granted to any state official since Xiao He in Emperor Gaozu ' s time . The Chancellor was also allowed to enter the court without removing his footwear . " Records of the Three Kingdoms " recorded an incident in which Dong Zhuo led his troops to Luoyang ( 洛陽城 ) and ordered them to kill all the male inhabitants and loot the city , under the pretext of eliminating a rebel army . It was said that Dong Zhuo even slept on the emperor ' s bed and had sex with palace maids . Coalition against Dong Zhuo . Initial stage . In the same year , regional officials and warlords around the country formed a coalition force and launched a punitive campaign against Dong Zhuo . In response , he sent a detachment to intercept the coalition vanguard led by Sun Jian , and ordered his son - in - law , Niu Fu , to develop the fortress of Mei , where Niu stored 30 years of food supply . After his subordinates , Hua Xiong , Hu Zhen , and Lu Bu , were defeated by Sun Jian at Yangren , Dong Zhuo sent an eloquent Li Jue to propose a marriage between Sun ' s son and Dong ' s daughter , the lobbyist promised Sun Jian that the country could be split between the two families . But the vanguard general rebutted Li Jue strongly , and made further preparation to attack Luoyang . Thus , Dong evacuated everyone in Luoyang and moved them to the new capital city of Chang ' an ( present - day Xi ' an ) in the west . Before the relocation , Dong ordered his troops to excavate the tombs of the late Han emperors for treasures and sent his men to seize valuables from the wealthier residents in Luoyang , as well as burn down the palaces and anything that might be useful to the allied forces . Then , the chancellor assembled his forces in the city and personally led them to ambush the approaching army . When Sun Jian advanced to the imperial graveyard , he was intercepted by Dong , who had been awaiting him . However , Dong Zhuo was unable to suppress his archrival , and was routed during the combat . He then ordered Lu Bu to lead a cavalry force back to the city to halt Sun ' s progress before he took flight for Frog Pond ( 黽池 ) . Lu Bu and his knights had gotten back to Luoyang before Sun Jian arrived , but they were unable to hold the eastern third gate ( 宣陽城門 ) when the latter attacked , and a fight inside the city was ensured , wherein Lu Bu was defeated once more . Final stage . After their capture of Luoyang , the allied forces found nothing but a scene of ruins , so they retreated back and awaited further development . Dong Zhuo then sent his skilled generals , Li Jue , Guo Si , and Zhang Ji to the frontline against the eastern warlords . At the time the alliance was having internal conflicts and did not focus on fighting them , so the senior imperial officer , Zhu Jun could only ask his old friend , Tao Qian to give him a hand in a futile effort to fight the forces of Dong . Tao , despite having a general alliance with Dong , indeed sent 3 , 000 elite danyang troops to Zhu to battle Dong forces at Zhongmu , where Zhu was totally crushed . Li and his comrades then performed raids around area of Chenliu and Yingchuan , wherein Cao Cao and the likes were unable to stop them , and many residents there were hijacked and enslaved . The soldiers of the coalition were quite terrified by the creative and insane treatment Dong designed for them , if captured : he would have the captives tied up with fat - soaked clothes , and started a fire from their foot ; as the captives ' heads were unbound , he could enjoy the scream and facial expressions from them , however , such hobby was not shared by most of the educated imperial officials . Since the warlords were far from able to stop him separately , Dong Zhuo ' s autocracy started to stabilize in the new capital . Two months after he moved the capital , Dong Zhuo revived and held the title of Grand Master , an antiquated title once reinvigorated by Wang Mang , but was scrapped in Eastern Han . He also appointed his younger brother Dong Min as General of the Left , and gave official posts to several of his kin . Dong Zhuo had also been constantly building up his personal castle in Mei county near Chang ' an , where he thought he could outlive the coalition even if the latter worked together again and waged war on him . He also threw lavish banquets , during which savage tortures would be performed on captured enemies as entertainment : he would first cut their tongue so they wouldn ' t make much noise for the following operations , which were the severing of limbs and removal of eyeballs . The operations required professional skill because the betrayers would remain conscious when they were thrown into boiling oil . Now , a literal " meat - ball " would be rolling around the center of the banquet for all to observe . Dong was quite comfortable with his " masterpiece " and enjoyed his meal as usual , while the other audience was said to have experienced a high degree of discomfort . Dong would also dish out cruel punishments to his political enemies ; when he was in Luoyang , he wiped out the entire Yuan clan within the city , because Yuan Shao was the leader of the coalition against him . Within two years , thousands of public servants were wrongly accused and executed , and numerous commoners were kidnapped or killed under his tyrannical rule . In order to purchase materials for further development of his invincible Mei citadel , he also had bronze statues and bells melted and recast into coins , which flooded the market and caused serious inflation , rendering the coin currency useless . His venomous policies had greatly reduced Han authority and raised resentment among most gentries and commoners of the time ( while the Liang armies adored him like a god ) . Downfall and death . Dong Zhuo was fully aware that his provocative actions and reckless behavior had aroused the anger of many , and he was at a high risk of being assassinated by enemies , so he ordered his strongest warrior and adopted son , Lü Bu as a personal bodyguard , who shadowed him most of the time . When Dong threw a temper , he would hurl a halberd at Lü Bu who would dodge the weapon every time , and Dong ' s anger would quickly subside . Nonetheless , Lü bore a furtive displeasure for his adoptive father for that . Besides , as Lü had access to Dong ' s residence , he had been having an amorous affair with one of Dong ' s chambermaids , and the couple were constantly in fear of being discovered . In 192 , with encouragement from Interior Minister Wang Yun , Lü Bu made his decision to kill Dong Zhuo . One morning , Lü greeted Dong at the palace gate with a dozen trusted men led by Cavalry Captain Li Su . Li stepped forward and stabbed Dong . Dong cried out for Lü Bu to save him , but Lü merely answered , " This is an imperial order , " after which he delivered a fatal blow to Dong . It was recorded that Dong ' s corpse was left on the streets for people to enjoy the sight of a lit corpse : The official guarding the corpse lit a wick on Dong ' s navel ( belly ) and it burned for days with the corpse ' s fats as fuel . But a special provision stating anyone who went forth to collect the body would be killed . However , three officials including the famous Cai Yong still challenged the order and were executed . Meanwhile , all the affiliates of Dong clan were put to death , including Dong ' s 90 - year - old mother , who screamed for her amnesty . Legacy . After Dong Zhuo ' s death , several of his loyalists , such as Li Jue , Guo Si , Zhang Ji and Fan Chou , escaped on the belief that their allegiance to him would be considered as treason . Wang Yun , who had taken control of the government , heard their appeal for pardon and said , " Of all those who should be forgiven , they are the exceptions . " The four then planned to relinquish their positions and go into hiding . However , an advisor named Jia Xu suggested they should take this opportunity to launch a strike at Chang ' an since the Liang faction was actually unscathed . The four then roused several - thousand hardcore followers to attack Chang ' an . Wang sent Xu Rong and Hu Zhen ( former members of the Liang faction ) to fight the Liang force en route , but Xu was killed in the first encounter and Hu led his troops to join the rebels and the size of the rebel force was inflated to 100 , 000 when they surrounded the capital . Lu Bu attempted to break the siege , but was defeated outside the city gate , thus Chang ' an fell into the hands of Dong Zhuo ' s followers and Emperor Xian was taken hostage . State power fell into the hands of the Liang faction once again . In fiction . " Romance of the Three Kingdoms " , a 14th - century historical novel by Luo Guanzhong , was a romanticization of the events that occurred before and during the Three Kingdoms era . Because the real - life Dong Zhuo was already much of a cruel and treacherous character , the novel probably could do little more to accentuate that treachery and cruelty . It did , however , on two occasions deviate from the history . Dong Zhuo and the three sworn brothers . Dong Zhuo first appeared as early as late in Chapter 1 . Being sent to quell the Yellow Turban Rebellion , Dong Zhuo was defeated by the rebel leader Zhang Jiao and the battle was turning into a rout . The three newly sworn brothers , Liu Bei , Guan Yu and Zhang Fei , happened to be nearby . They then led their forces out to Dong Zhuo ' s rescue . Suddenly met with this new opposition , the rebels were swept off their feet and had to retreat . After returning to camp , Dong Zhuo asked the three brothers what offices they currently held . And they replied that they held none . Dong Zhuo harrumphed and then ignored them . This angered Zhang Fei so much that he grabbed his sword and wanted to kill Dong Zhuo . He was however stopped by his two brothers , who suggested taking their service elsewhere . Thus was Dong Zhuo ' s life spared and the three brothers went their own way . Dong Zhuo and Diaochan . Perhaps the most popular story about Dong Zhuo was the fictional love triangle involving Dong Zhuo , Lü Bu and Diaochan , which eventually led to the death of Dong Zhuo in the hands of his own adoptive son , Lü Bu . After Dong Zhuo moved the capital to the more strategically sound Chang ' an , Interior Minister Wang Yun started to contemplate a plot to assassinate the tyrant by using the petite Diaochan , a song girl who was brought up in his household but whom he had been treating like his own daughter , to plant the seed of dissension between Dong Zhuo and Lü Bu . Inviting Lü Bu over one night , Wang Yun asked Diaochan to serve wine to the guest . Lü Bu was immediately seized by the girl ' s beauty . Well aware of this , Wang Yun then promised to marry Diaochan to the mighty warrior . A few days later , however , Wang Yun laid a feast for Dong Zhuo and repeated the feat . Like Lü Bu , Dong Zhuo could not lift his eyes off Diaochan , who also displayed her prowess in song and dance . Dong Zhuo then brought Diaochan home and made her his concubine . When Lü Bu heard about this early the next morning , he headed for Dong Zhuo ' s bedroom and peeped in through the window . There he saw Diaochan sitting up grooming her hair while Dong Zhuo was still asleep . Aware of Lü Bu ' s presence , Diaochan put up a sorrowful expression and pretended to wipe tears off her eyes with a handkerchief . A similar incident recurred about a month later , but this time Dong Zhuo woke up in time to see Lü Bu staring fixedly at Diaochan . Lü Bu was then thrown out and forbidden to come into the house . Then one day , while Dong Zhuo was holding a conversation with Emperor Xian , Lü Bu stole to his foster father ' s residence and met with Diaochan in the Fengyi Pavilion ( 鳳儀亭 ) . Weeping , Diaochan pled with Lü Bu to rescue her from Dong Zhuo . Placing his halberd aside , Lü Bu held Diaochan in his arms and comforted her with words . Right then , Dong Zhuo returned to find the duo in the pavilion . The startled Lü Bu turned to flee . Dong Zhuo grabbed the halberd and gave chase . Being too slow , Dong Zhuo could not catch up with the agile Lü Bu . He then hurled the halberd at Lü Bu but the latter fended it off and got away . After the incident , Lü Bu became increasingly displeased with Dong Zhuo . The displeasure was further inflamed by Wang Yun , who suggested subtly that Lü Bu kill Dong Zhuo . Lü Bu was eventually persuaded . The conspirators sent Li Su to fetch Dong Zhuo from his castle in Meiwu ( 郿塢 ) under the pretense that the emperor intended to abdicate the throne to the warlord . The overjoyed Dong Zhuo then came to the palace gate , where his troops were barred from entering . As Dong Zhuo ' s carriage neared the palace building , soldiers loyal to Wang Yun escorted Dong Zhuo to the trap they set . Then suddenly a general stabbed Dong Zhuo . Injured only in the arms , Dong Zhuo then cried out for Lü Bu to save him . Lü Bu walked over and impaled Dong Zhuo ' s throat with his halberd , proclaiming , " I have an imperial decree to slay the rebel ! "