But then, you expanded. As had happened in China, you made yourselves indispensable, and you were often the center of palace intrigue. In fact, few people in the Ottoman Empire were as wealthy and important as many of you were. Way to turn lemons into lemonade. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought up lemons. Best wishes, John Green. This system eventually broke down as the Janissaries, who had guns, lobbied to be allowed to have families.