Provincial administration and water management
Lin, courtesy name Shaomu, came from Houguan in Fujian and obtained the jinshi degree in 1811. After work in the Hanlin Academy, he served in several provinces, dealing with salt administration, legal cases, flood control and relief. His appointments included responsibility for the eastern Yellow River administration and the governorship of Jiangsu.
The Draft History of the Qing records dredging on the Liu and Baimao waterways, with gates and embankments intended to manage drainage and tidal sediment. It also describes using public works to provide employment during distress. Engineering, food reserves and taxation were connected responsibilities in his career before the Guangdong confrontation.
Opium suppression and information about foreign states
Appointed imperial commissioner in 1838, Lin went to Guangdong to suppress the opium trade. Working with Deng Tingzhen and naval commander Guan Tianpei, he secured the surrender of large stocks and supervised their destruction at Humen in 1839. He also strengthened coastal defences and demanded guarantees against further imports.
During this period he organized translations of foreign books and newspapers, including material assembled as Sizhou Zhi and Huashi Yiyan. Information about other states accompanied his efforts to manage trade and defence. As war expanded in 1840 and British forces applied pressure farther north, the Qing court replaced the officials responsible in Guangdong and removed Lin from office.
Exile and later appointments
In 1841 Lin was sentenced to exile in Ili. On the journey he was ordered to assist with a Yellow River breach before continuing west. In Xinjiang he took part in inspecting water sources, canals and land reclamation within the Qing system of frontier administration and military agriculture.
Recalled from 1845, he subsequently served in the northwest and became governor-general of Yunnan and Guizhou. After retiring because of illness, he received a further assignment to Guangxi in 1850 but died at Puning in Guangdong on the journey. His career thus extended across provincial construction, maritime conflict, frontier settlement and internal military affairs.