by Shuyouryo » Mon Jun 10, 2013 2:50 pm
Neither Lü Bu or Liu Bei is a traitor to me - but both were famous turncoats.
Lü Bu has betrayed Dong Zhuo and Ding Yuan and took into service of many of Cao Cao's turncoats, Lü Bu later took Xuzhou from Liu Bei while he was out on campaign when Zhang Fei beat/killed Cao Bao. Lü Bu's decision accept Liu Bei's surrender would eventually prove his undoing as Liu Bei would leave his service after an altercation between their forces and return with troops loaned from Cao Cao.
[Historically, Liu Bei first left Gongsun Zan's service to take over Xuzhou as an independant warlord, although he maintained the Xuzhou/Youzhou/Yuzhou alliance at least until Yuan Shu attacked him.]
Liu Bei turn against Lü Bu with Cao Cao after the defeat of Yuan Shu, and sortly after turned on his former benefector in a failed assasination attempt, at which time he slew Che Zhou, Governor of Xuzhou and took his place, but Cao Cao would personally lead a force out to defeat Liu Bei personally, and Liu Bei sought refuge with Yuan Shao. After a few unsuccessful battles, he abandons Yuan Shao after locating his retainers and re-establishes himself in Runan. Much later, he formed an alliance with Liu Zhang with the sole intention of taking over his province.
Honestly however, pretty much most of the warlords have been turncoats at one point or other (more the longer they lived and stayed in power).
The greatest traitors of the era to me are Zhang Chun, Yuan Shu and Cao Pi, both of which took the title "Emperor" the last founding a 40+ year dynasty.