Chao Tié

Chao Tié is the Leader of the country of Zao. He was born on March 22nd, 1845 (56 years old) in Tiéba to the then Duke Linbi Tié and his wife Ai Tié.

Early Life (1845-1877)
He was raised in Tiéba, the capital of the Tié House, and had a great education in martial arts, diplomacy, politics, strategy, war, but also mathematics, poetry, literature, and art. He also had Western Artopan teachers that taught him to speak Anglernian and Carrisian. When he was 11, his father was executed by Aurissossite  and  Carrisian troops after the siege of Jiuli, and his mother ruled in his place.

Despite being exposed to Western Artopan teachings, Chao had a great disdain for West Artopans and colonialism, who had killed his father. He dreamed of uniting Zao and bringing it to the modern age, to compete on a global stage with West Artopans.

At the age of 16, in 1861, he became Duke of House Tié, like his father and grandfaher before him. Under his rule, House Tié became by far the richest and most prosperous House in the country, due to his encouragement of early industrialization, his creation of Tié Minerals in 1867, and his oversight of the building of the first railway in Zao, linking Minaï and Tiéba.

He also took advantage of the fact that his House was too far north to be profitable for the West Artopans, so he was left alone by them. During this time, he ruled House Tié as a functionally independent nation. As he was richer and more powerful than the puppet emperor, he did not obey his orders and did whatever he wanted.

Role in the Revolution
Chao Tié had, since a child, hated the terms of the Silk Treaty and his emperor, Jin Hulin, who cooperated with the West Artopan occupiers. He knew that the people of Zao were oppressed by this rule, and was dismayed that all attempts at revolt were smashed by foreign troops. But, in 1876, the West Artopans pulled out, deeming that it was too costly to keep troops in Zao.

Chao Tié, along with other House leaders, plotted to arm peasants and have them rise up against the emperor. They succeeded, and immediately after, the Revolution started. Peasants and citizens rose up against Jin Hulin's rule, and Tié wanted to get involved. He drove his armies south and conquered Minunkaï, Bei, and then headed south towards the capital. Xhonghi was being defended by the last of the Imperial units. The Revolutionaries were being defeated when the Tié armies finally arrived, and Chao Tié took the capital, practically ending Imperial presence in the mainland, in June 1877.

Chao Tié was the only House Leader to get personally involved in the war, as the other Houses waited until the Revolution's success to make their support public. For this, he was hailed as a hero in all of Zao, especially in Xhonghi.

Chao Tié considered running for Leader, but the Culdisan did not wish it so. They did not want him to become too powerful. Thus, he returned to Tiéba, where he lived peacefully for years.

Involvement in politics
After the Revolution, Chao Tié led a peaceful life in The North, occasionally fighting off raids from the Desiao. He gained an interest in the desert during these years, and in 1893 he sent Chang Lou-Cek on an expedition to explore it.

After the election of Ji Zipin in 1882 following Saoli Ji's death, Chao Tié grew displeased at Ji Zipin's management of the Anti-Clan War. When House Giujan was destroyed by the Yeman Ren Clan, Tié sent an open letter to the Leader asking him to dedicate more resources to fighting the Clan, but the letter was left unanswered.

This angered Chao Tié, but he could not do anything yet. He decided that he would dedicate his life to unifying Zao, no matter how long it took. At the Culdisan meeting in 1893 (which would be the last Culdisan meeting) he convinced the leaders of the Major Houses that he should become Minister of the Economy, and Ji Zipin had no choice but to comply. He was also granted the city of Minunkaï and its surrounding areas.

Over the next years, Tié managed to extend his influence on Zao, notably when he was made Leader of House Fujinhù after the former leader died without heir (it is suspected that both he and his heir were poisoned on Tié's orders).

At the Leader elections of 1898, he made a surprise run just a week before the election, and won with 61% of the vote thanks to his huge popularity, and to Ji Zipin's mishandling of the Simunwan blockade.