272 Beijing Opera Performers - Dong Zhuo - Number 45

Dong Zhuo

Beijing Opera - "Fengyi Pavilion"

Dong Zhuo with a watery white full face plays a part in the list-opera "Fengyi Pavilion." Regarded as perhaps the worst villain by many. Although he had a part in helping to suppress the Yellow Scarves Rebellion, he was an ungrateful scorn who did not offer a word of thanks to Zhang Fei who rescued him on the battlefield from the Yellow Scarves. Thereafter he was able to escape punishment for his incompetence in suppressing the Yellow Scarves through bribery with the corrupted eunuchs in the court.

He Jin's summoning of warlords to the capital to assist in eliminating the eunuchs is a disaster as it marks the start of Dong Zhuo's blatant tyranny. With the death of He Jin, the imperial court has a power vacuum that Dong Zhuo wasted no time to seize. Impressed by Emperor Xian's wits on the outskirts of the capital, Dong Zhuo swooped in swiftly to consolidate his power by dethroning Emperor Shao and installing his personal choice, Prince of Chenliu - Emperor Xian upon reaching the capital.

Shortly after, Dong Zhuo managed to turn his most feared enemy Lu Bu into his right hand man with the famed stead, the Red Hare. With Lu Bu by his side, Dong Zhuo grew even bolder in his tyrannical ways. When Cao Cao fled back to Chenliu to organize a coalition army to dispose Dong Zhuo after his failed assassination, many warlords responded and led their armies to confront Dong Zhuo.