It is not known which year Qiao Lin was born,[REF] but it is known that his family was from Taiyuan.
Qiao later served as the magistrate of Nanguo County (南郭, in modern Nanchong, Sichuan), and later the military chief of staff under Zhang Xiancheng (張獻誠) the military governor of Shannan West Circuit (山南西道, headquartered in modern Hanzhong, Shaanxi) [REF].