Ding Yuan (simplified: 丁原, traditional: 丁原, pinyin: Dīng Yuán), courtesy name Jianyang (建阳), was Inspector of Bing Province (并州) when He Jin summoned regional forces to the capital in 189 to pressure the eunuchs. Ding Yuan entered Luoyang with Lü Bu, whom he had raised and appointed as his chief officer. After He Jin was killed and Dong Zhuo seized control, Dong Zhuo wanted to remove Ding Yuan, who opposed him. Dong Zhuo bribed Lü Bu to kill Ding Yuan and defect. Lü Bu did so and took Ding Yuan’s troops; he then served Dong Zhuo. Ding Yuan’s death removed a major obstacle to Dong Zhuo’s dominance and made Lü Bu’s name synonymous with betrayal in later tradition.
Legacy
Ding Yuan is remembered chiefly as Lü Bu’s first victim: the man who had treated Lü Bu as a son was killed by him for advancement. The episode is a key moment in the Romance and the histories, illustrating the fragility of loyalty in the warlord era.