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Zhu Bolin: Difference between revisions
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He still had currency with some of his former allies, he could still bribe people with money from secret stashes he had managed to hide. While to all appearances he was a lowly gardener, he had built a network of eunuchs working and reporting news and whispers back to him; be it what concubines and prostitutes were the ministers having sex with to who was stealing food from the kitchens. In 1668 the Xiaodan emperor carried out a purge of the court, sweeping many of Zhu Bolin's strongest detractors to their deaths. The former admiral was plucked again from obscurity and restored to his old responsibilities. Zhu Bolin carried out his own purge of his enemies and fair weather friends, one of the first to go was the High Gardener under whom he had served in the [[Imperial Lemon Grove]]; the man was reportedly thrown down a well. Several officials who had betrayed him by taking bribes from him but refusing to help him were found strangled or stabbed in empty corridors of the palace. Once more historians of the time put the blame for the murders squarely on the 'Bloody Dwarf' but it is just as likely that they were the result of different factional struggles or other unrelated reasons. | He still had currency with some of his former allies, he could still bribe people with money from secret stashes he had managed to hide. While to all appearances he was a lowly gardener, he had built a network of eunuchs working and reporting news and whispers back to him; be it what concubines and prostitutes were the ministers having sex with to who was stealing food from the kitchens. In 1668 the Xiaodan emperor carried out a purge of the court, sweeping many of Zhu Bolin's strongest detractors to their deaths. The former admiral was plucked again from obscurity and restored to his old responsibilities. Zhu Bolin carried out his own purge of his enemies and fair weather friends, one of the first to go was the High Gardener under whom he had served in the [[Imperial Lemon Grove]]; the man was reportedly thrown down a well. Several officials who had betrayed him by taking bribes from him but refusing to help him were found strangled or stabbed in empty corridors of the palace. Once more historians of the time put the blame for the murders squarely on the 'Bloody Dwarf' but it is just as likely that they were the result of different factional struggles or other unrelated reasons. | ||
===War of the Eastern Crag=== | ===War of the Eastern Crag=== | ||
The naval skills of the Child Admiral were soon called upon when a slave rebellion erupted in eastern [[Stenza|Yaoyuan]] that threatened to cut the territory controlled by the Qian colonies in half. In response Zhu's restored fleet ferried an army of fifty thousand men to [[Peratra]] within two months. Judging that a display of courageous resolve would help his battered reputation much, he opted to leave his fleet anchored safely in the northern coast and lead his crews to fight on land alongside the army. The commander of the army, the Marquis of Shenbao disliked the dwarf but since they belonged to separate military arms, he had no authority to order Zhu Bolin and his forces away. The war against the Arakan coalition was fought deep in the jungles of the [[Peratra]]n interior against elusive foes who also had access to a small arsenal of firearms probably procured from [[Farmandie]] or [[Burgundie]]. Under the harsh jungle conditions, the authority of Marquis Shenbao was constantly challenged by Zhu Bolin who more deviously preserved his own troops in most engagements. Zhu's more extreme tactics also found echo with the common soldiery; he proposed starting massive fires to force the enemy to escape into the open. | The naval skills of the Child Admiral were soon called upon when a slave rebellion erupted in eastern [[Stenza|Yaoyuan]] that threatened to cut the territory controlled by the Qian colonies in half. In response Zhu's restored fleet ferried an army of fifty thousand men to [[Peratra]] within two months. Judging that a display of courageous resolve would help his battered reputation much, he opted to leave his fleet anchored safely in the northern coast and lead his crews to fight on land alongside the army. The commander of the army, the Marquis of Shenbao disliked the dwarf but since they belonged to separate military arms, he had no authority to order Zhu Bolin and his forces away. The war against the Arakan coalition was fought deep in the jungles of the [[Peratra]]n interior against elusive foes who also had access to a small arsenal of firearms probably procured from [[Farmandie]] or [[Burgundie]]. Under the harsh jungle conditions, the authority of Marquis Shenbao was constantly challenged by Zhu Bolin who more deviously preserved his own troops in most engagements. Zhu's more extreme tactics also found echo with the common soldiery; he proposed starting massive fires to force the enemy to escape into the open and taking whole villages hostage to force the enemy to surrender. Things came to a head during a military conference where according to sources the Marquis insulted Zhu Bolin's physical stature and threw an orange at him, the admiral in turn pulled a flintlock pistol from his coat and shot the Marquis on the head. With this murderous interaction, Zhu Bolin asserted his claim to lead the entire army, seemingly no one opposed this development as chronicles of the rest of the war mention the dwarf as being in command of Qian forces. | ||
===Later life=== | ===Later life=== | ||
[[Category:Daxia]] | [[Category:Daxia]] | ||
[[Category:Dwarfs]] | [[Category:Dwarfs]] | ||