Meet the Person #
Lü Bu held an early post in Bing Province, where Ding Yuan appointed him chief clerk. After Dong Zhuo induced him to kill Ding Yuan, he appointed Lü Bu Cavalry Commandant and they swore to be father and son. Lü Bu later plotted with Wang Yun and others to kill Dong Zhuo. Office, oath, and killing are different layers, not simultaneous states.
After Chang'an fell, Lü Bu sought refuge with Yuan Shu but was rejected, then went to Yuan Shao and jointly attacked Zhang Yan. Yuan Shao later grew wary; Lü Bu left and joined Zhang Yang. This page does not count a rejected request for refuge as an established subordinate relationship.
Zhang Miao, Chen Gong, and others welcomed Lü Bu as Governor of Yan Province, where he confronted Cao Cao. After setbacks he fled east to Liu Bei and later seized Xiapi. Liu Bei in turn briefly joined Lü Bu and stationed at Xiaopei. Their dealings changed and recurred over time, and cannot be reduced to permanent friendship or one-way subordination.
In Jian'an 3, Cao Cao besieged Xiapi. Lü Bu's generals lost loyalty; he was bound and executed, and Chen Gong and Gao Shun were also killed. These events remain in his biography; the manner of death is not a personal-relationship label.
Approximate sequence, not a timeline drawn to scale.
Limits of the Evidence #
The same person across different periods. Sworn fatherhood is not blood kinship; Diaochan, the three heroes fighting Lü Bu, and an unestablished marriage connection are not added.
People and Relationships #
- Dong ZhuoLü Bu → Dong Zhuo: former subordinate generalSanguozhi, Volume 7, Lü Bu and Zang Hong Biographies ↗
Related Deeds and Periods
Dong Zhuo appointed Lü Bu Cavalry Commandant, later promoted him to General of the Household, and often assigned him as a bodyguard. They are also recorded as swearing to be father and son, not blood relatives. Their later break and Dong Zhuo's killing are listed separately in the biography.
- Yuan ShaoLü Bu → Yuan Shao: formerly a dependent followerSanguozhi, Volume 7, Lü Bu and Zang Hong Biographies ↗
Related Deeds and Periods
Lü Bu went north to Yuan Shao and jointly attacked Zhang Yan, then left when Yuan Shao grew wary. This was a terminated period of dependence, not a lifelong alliance.
- Zhang LiaoZhang Liao → Lü Bu: former subordinate generalSanguozhi, Volume 17, Zhang–Yue–Yu–Zhang–Xu Biographies ↗
Related Deeds and Periods
Zhang Liao's main biography explicitly records that after Dong Zhuo's fall he brought his troops under Lü Bu and followed him east to Xu Province; he joined Cao Cao only after Xiapi fell.
- Chen GongChen Gong → Lü Bu: subordinate generalSanguozhi, Volume 7, Lü Bu and Zang Hong Biographies ↗
Related Deeds and Periods
After welcoming Lü Bu, Chen Gong followed him in Yan and Xu and remained in his camp during the defense of Xiapi. Service under Cao Cao belongs to an earlier phase.
- Zhang MiaoZhang Miao — Lü Bu: allies (Yan Province)Sanguozhi, Volume 7, Lü Bu and Zang Hong Biographies ↗
Related Deeds and Periods
Zhang Miao and Lü Bu clasped hands and swore an oath; later Zhang Miao, Chen Gong, and others welcomed him as Governor of Yan Province. This line is limited to their cooperation in Yan.
Related Historical Events (Not Personal Relationships) #
In This Book #
Specific chapters in which each figure appears will be cross-checked after QA of Shiji Sanguo's final manuscript; they are not filled in ahead of time.
Cite This Page
Shiji Sanguo website, “Lü Bu,” data version 2026-09-29.13, updated 2026-09-29.
https://shijisanguo.com/ai/people/lu-bu/
When citing a specific claim, also identify its original source, whether it comes from the main text or a quoted annotation, and your access date. The # beside each section heading links to that passage. This site's synthesis is not the original text of an ancient work.