Preljub appears in sources in 1344, taking part in the Serbian conquest of Macedonia during the Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347.

[1] In May 1344, he led a Serbian army in the Battle of Stephaniana against the Emirate of Aydin, allies of the Byzantine emperor John VI Kantakouzenos.

[3] Several earlier scholars have stated that Preljub also controlled parts of Epirus, including the city of Ioannina, but recent research regards this as unlikely, and most likely the result of additions or mistakes in later sources.

[4] In 1350, John VI Kantakouzenos took advantage of Dušan's absence in a campaign against Bosnia, and attempted to recover his lost provinces in Macedonia and Thessaly.

[6] His widow, Irina Nemanjić, a daughter of Dushan, and their son Thomas, soon faced an invasion by Nikephoros Orsini, the former Despot of Epirus.