Ringmaster Te

Te is the Ringmaster for the Silken Wings Circus. While Li Merit handles much of the logistics and day-to-day problem solving, the final decisions for the circus rest with the Ringmaster. While he may not be able to command obedience from all members of the circus, due to artistic temperaments, he is the circus's primary public face and its official leader.

During the show, Te does not merely introduce circus acts; he acts as a guide to the audience for a unique entertainment experience. Te is a consummate showman, yet always in support of someone else. He can make a mediocre act seem marvelous, and Silken Wings has no mediocre acts. On the rare occasion when there is a technical snag, Te is remarkably adept at improvisation, reconfiguring the performance schedule on the fly, making the transition appear seamless to the audience while simultaneously subtly informing the various acts of the revised schedule.

When making official pronouncements, he has a powerful, resonant bass voice that can be heard at great distance.

Ringmaster Te barely survived a vicious zombie attack in the northern wasteland. Ever the devoted servant of the circus, the first thing he did upon regaining consciousness was to hire on all the displaced sailors as circus members. The second thing he did was to locate and hire a translator for barbarian tongues (Qin Yanyu).

He was unable to perform his duties or travel safely for about ten days, but has recovered sufficiently that he was able to introduce acts at their last performance in Daizhou (although Li Merit insisted that Te be seated while doing so, in a chair borne aloft by several hardy roustabouts).