Chapter 27: An Invitation from the Magistrate

The next day, at ten in the morning.

"Commander!" Hu Dayong burst through the door. "The Magistrate has sent an invitation!"

"The Magistrate?" Lin Chuan paused, confused. "What does he want with me?"

"Who cares!" Hu Dayong said gleefully. "There’s bound to be a feast."

"Hungry for wine again? Then you go!"

"Oh, come on, Commander! He specifically named you in the invitation. I’m just a squad leader—what would I do there?"

"I’m busy... I’m not going."

"Oh..." Hu Dayong turned to leave.

"Wait!" Lin Chuan called him back, thinking it over. The Magistrate wouldn't send an invitation without a reason. He must have learned that Tielin Fortress had been upgraded to a garrison station and wanted to curry favor. After all, a Company Commander and a Magistrate both held the seventh rank. Since he was the local official in charge of the county... perhaps he could squeeze some funds or supplies out of him to provide a little subsidy for Tielin Fortress.

"I’ll go! You come with me."

"Really? Why?"

"Aren't you happy about a free meal?"

"Happy! I'm absolutely thrilled!"

***

Half an hour later, the scent of wine wafted from the magistrate’s reception hall.

"I have long admired your reputation, Commander Lin!" Magistrate Qin’s face crinkled into a smile as he led them inside.

Lin Chuan glanced at the table—steamed shad and braised bear paws were served, and even the wine pots were made of silver. He smiled calmly and said, "The Magistrate is busy with a thousand tasks. I am but a rough soldier; how could I deserve such generous hospitality?"

"Not at all, not at all..." Magistrate Qin paused, holding his hand, and chuckled. "I should have invited you over long ago, but I have been so incredibly busy... Come, come, sit at the head of the table."

Lin Chuan and Hu Dayong took their seats.

"Judging by your accent, Commander, are you a local?" Magistrate Qin picked up a piece of steamed shad and placed it on Lin Chuan’s plate.

"In response to the Magistrate, I am indeed from Willow Village in this county." Lin Chuan waved his hand modestly. "I studied for a few years in my youth, but failed to achieve any academic rank, so I had to enlist to make a living."

"Extraordinary!" Magistrate Qin exclaimed in surprise. "I had no idea such a man of both literary and martial talent was hidden within my jurisdiction!"

Lin Chuan smiled without saying a word.

"Tell me, Commander, are you married?"

"My family arranged a childhood betrothal for me..."

"A childhood betrothal... well, that’s not necessarily set in stone..." Magistrate Qin laughed and gestured toward a faint silhouette behind the screen. "My daughter, Qin Yanqiu, is sixteen. She has a passing knowledge of the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. I wonder if you..."

Hu Dayong, who had been gnawing on a pig’s trotter with his cheeks bulging, choked at these words. He let out a loud "gulp" and hurriedly wiped his mouth with his sleeve.

Lin Chuan’s wine cup wobbled. He felt a bit dazed. Was the Magistrate... trying to set him up with his own daughter? Before he could recover, Magistrate Qin called out to the screen: "Yanqiu, aren't you coming out to offer the guest a drink?"

The silhouette behind the screen hesitated, then finally stepped out, walking with small, delicate steps.

Lin Chuan looked up. The young woman had an oval face, phoenix eyes, and a small cinnabar mole between her brows, making her skin look white as snow. Yet, her lips were tightly pressed, and her eyes were cold as frost. She clearly knew what her father was planning, and every step she took was filled with resentment.

"Greetings, Commander." Qin Yanqiu bowed, her voice as clear and cold as an icy spring. She poured the wine, then set the pot on the table with a sharp *thud*.

Magistrate Qin’s face crinkled with a smile. "My daughter has a stubborn temper, Commander. Please, don't take offense."

"Father," Qin Yanqiu said suddenly, "I am feeling unwell. I would like to withdraw."

"How rude!" Magistrate Qin feigned anger, though he patted the back of her hand gently under his sleeve. "The Commander is an honored guest. How can you be so impolite?"

Lin Chuan set down his cup and spoke in a clear voice: "Magistrate, please do not chide the young lady. I am a coarse man; I fear I have frightened her."

Qin Yanqiu looked at him, a flicker of surprise in her phoenix eyes.

Magistrate Qin laughed heartily. "You misunderstand, Commander! Yanqiu has studied the 'Precepts for Women' since she was young; she knows the rules of etiquette best. Oh, by the way, you are a scholar, aren't you? Do you know the origin of the name 'Yanqiu'?"

"Yanqiu..." Lin Chuan pondered for a moment. "'Yan' refers to the inkstone, a vital tool for a scholar, evoking the image of 'a pen moving to stir wind and rain.' 'Qiu' refers to the deep, clear autumn water, secretly echoing the sentiment of 'a heart of ice in a jade pot.' By naming your daughter this way, Magistrate, you clearly hope for her to be both talented and virtuous—as enduring as an inkstone and as pure and clear as autumn water."

When he finished, Qin Yanqiu froze. The look she gave him held even more surprise.

"A profound insight, Commander." Qin Yanqiu bowed, her tone softening. "It was my rudeness just now; I hope the Commander will be magnanimous."

Lin Chuan stood to return the courtesy: "It is of no consequence."

After Qin Yanqiu withdrew, the ink-wash bamboo on the screen swayed, blurring into a hazy green in the candlelight.

Magistrate Qin leaned in close to Lin Chuan. "What does the Commander think of my daughter? While she may not be a peerless beauty, she is..."

"Your kindness is overwhelming, Magistrate. I am truly unworthy." Lin Chuan shifted half an inch back, maintaining his composure. "However, my late father passed away early, and this betrothal was a deathbed request. I dare not betray his wishes."

"What a pity!" The Magistrate shook his head and sighed, then suddenly changed the subject. "But you were promoted three ranks on your very first day of service, and General Chen holds you in such high regard. Surely you will be more than a mere Company Commander in the future? You are destined to wear crimson armor and become a great general guarding the frontier!"

*So that’s it,* Lin Chuan realized.

He and Magistrate Qin both held the seventh rank. If he were just an ordinary garrison commander with no real power, the Magistrate wouldn't have given him a second glance. But a frontier garrison commander was different. Especially since Tielin Fortress had just been upgraded to a garrison station, giving him jurisdiction over at least five fortified outposts and the authority to requisition grain. Even if those outposts weren't fully established yet, the power was real. The Magistrate naturally wanted to cozy up to him. Furthermore, the talk of marriage was just a probe to test his relationship with General Chen.

*This old fox,* Lin Chuan thought, *he really knows how to calculate.*

Lin Chuan feigned ignorance. "You are too kind, Magistrate. By the way, since you invited me here today, is there something you need?"

Magistrate Qin stroked his goatee and smiled. "To be honest... I do have a troublesome matter, and I was hoping Commander Lin could help!"

"Please, speak freely."

"Bandits have been rampant in the Qingyang Mountains lately; they even raided official grain shipments! I wonder, Commander Lin... would you be willing to uphold justice for the people of this county and eliminate these outlaws?"

Bandits? The Qingyang Mountains? Lin Chuan was stunned. The mountains were sixty or seventy miles away; there was no reason for a mere fort commander like him to be involved.

"If there are bandits, why doesn't the Magistrate dispatch troops to wipe them out?"

"It’s a long story..." Magistrate Qin shook his head. "The terrain of the Qingyang Mountains is treacherous and easy to defend but hard to attack. Last month, I sent thirty local militia, and they couldn't even get past the 'Thin Strip of Sky' pass before being shot into hedgehogs by arrows!"

"Why not ask the provincial government for troops?" Lin Chuan asked, frowning.

After arriving at Tielin Fortress, Lin Chuan had studied the *Regulations on Provincial Garrison and Defense*. The Great Qian military system was strict. As the government’s direct armed force, the provincial troops were charged with the triple duty of "defending territory, suppressing internal rebellion, and protecting canal transport." It was explicitly stated that "all banditry within the jurisdiction of the prefecture must be suppressed by troops within three days of reporting; those who delay will be dealt with according to military law."

The Qingyang Mountains were a critical throat of Qing Province, and a thousand-man provincial garrison was usually stationed nearby. Let alone bandits raiding grain, even if a hunter accidentally wandered into a restricted area, the garrison would normally be expected to patrol it.

Lin Chuan caught a glimpse of panic on the Magistrate’s face and continued unhurriedly: "As far as I know, the Second Guard of the Qing Province garrison is in Baiyang Town, only thirty miles from the Qingyang Mountains. By law, once you report the banditry, the provincial office should immediately dispatch troops..."

"This..." The smile on Magistrate Qin’s face stiffened.

His secretary suddenly coughed twice. "You see, Commander, the provincial troops are... currently busy escorting the canal silver!"

"Yes, yes, escorting the canal silver." Magistrate Qin grabbed his cup and took a gulp. "Besides, those soldiers are oily. Without a thousand or eight hundred taels of silver, they wouldn't dream of wading into this muddy water."

Watching their clumsy performance, Lin Chuan chuckled inwardly. There was definitely something fishy going on. Otherwise, why would they ignore the nearby provincial troops and try to pull him, a small commander, into the mess?