Qi Zhuyin

Hua Xiangyi (Stepmother)

*“She was like the sudden onslaught of rainstorm that gave her opponents a jolt. It’s her usual practice to cut down foes with one blow to strike fear in the heart of others, so that when they faced her in battle, they will not help but be frightened.”*

**Qi Zhuyin** (戚竹音) is the Commander-in-chief of Qidong’s Garrison Troops of the Five Commanderies. She is Qi Shiyu’s only daughter of lawful birth. She is also one of Da Zhou’s Four Great Generals and is widely known as Wind Guiding the Scorching Plains.

## Appearance

*“She was dressed light in an overcoat and an old outer robe while carrying a long sword on her back. If one were to look at just her appearance, then she could have been merely an ordinary woman in the martial fraternity. It was only after the wind passed that her face crystallized into a surprisingly lovely face.”*

Qi Zhuyin is described as tall and slender with narrow shoulders. Despite her physique, she has no problems carrying an executioner’s blade. Since she’s frequently on horseback, her hair is usually tied up with little to no accessories. She has an imposing aura, yet is very charming when she smiles, and has facial features that resemble her late mother.

## Personality

Qi Zhuyin is known for being an unrestrained person, mostly because of her intimidating behavior during her frequent visits to Qudu when demanding military payments and collecting debt. She is known to be fierce even outside of the battlefield. In the Qi Clan’s household, she is not well-liked by her father’s concubines due to her strict treatment of them regarding financial and household accounts. She dislikes beating around the bush and prefers to confront problems head-on. Despite her reputation, she’s quite popular and respected in Qudu because of her position as the Commander-in-chief.

Although she doesn’t care much for political affairs, Qi Zhuyin values loyalty and duty. Her actions are always to the benefit of Qidong’s reputation. She doesn’t follow orders from the capital blindly and doesn’t deploy troops without a second thought. Qi Zhuyin is also a fair leader and greatly values her generals. She’s generous even when she doesn’t have much and even uses her personal savings to give financial aid to Lu Guangbai and the Bianjun Commandery. Among the Four Great Generals, she is said to be the most suitable to be a commander-in-chief.

## Background

Qi Zhuyin is described as having natural talent as a general, but she has also worked hard for her position and had to go through countless struggles, especially as a female general.

Qi Shiyu didn’t have any sons of lawful birth, with Qi Zhuyin being his only child from his principal wife as well as his only daughter. Since he didn’t find any of his sons of common birth worthy to pass on his title to, he decided to assign Qi Zhuyin to the Cangjun Commandery Garrison Troops to train her. However, she didn’t fit in and was only treated with respect due to being Qi Shiyu’s daughter. She insisted on being transferred to the Bianjun Commandery to train under Lu Pingyan, the Earl of Biansha.

Soon, Qi Zhuyin was promoted to squad commander. However, no one was willing to be under her command. A soldier told her it was because she couldn’t wield an executioner’s blade. This was an answer to mock her, since no one in the Bianjun Commandery used these heavy blades. Qi Zhuyin, unwilling to acknowledge that she's being treated differently as a woman, took that answer seriously and decided to use an executioner’s blade to prove her worth.

Qi Zhuyin rose to prominence after she went back to the Cangjun Commandery and saved Qi Shiyu who was trapped in the east side of Biansha camps. None of his sons stepped up to save him, but Qi Zhuyin did and rode nonstop to employ reinforcements from the Chijun Commandery, Bianjun Commandery, and the Suotian Pass Garrison Troops. Aided by the wind, she set fire to the Biansha camps and led the soldiers to save Qi Shiyu. Since then, she has been known as Wind Guiding the Scorching Plains. Qi Shiyu then passed her the commander seal and she became the Commander-in-chief of the Qidong Garrison Troops.

## References

1. ↑ Chapter 205
2. ↑ Chapter 97
3. ↑ Chapter 117
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chapter 190