Bu Er Sa Hai

Overview

Bursahai was a member of the Hesheli clan of the Manchu Plain Red Banner during the early Qing Dynasty, and the second son of Bayindali Zharguqi. Volume Nine of the official clan genealogy of the Qianlong era, *The General Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*, records that he participated in the invasion of the Central Plains as a military officer, and was awarded the title of Yunqiwei for his merits. He was promoted to Third-Class Light Cavalry Captain three times by imperial decree, and successively served as Vice Minister of War and Deputy Commander-in-Chief. His hereditary title was inherited by his son, Liulibu.

Military officer was a junior officer in the Imperial Guard, while Deputy Commander-in-Chief was a high-ranking military officer in the Banner system; Vice Minister of War was the deputy head of a central military administration department. Yunqiwei and Light Cavalry Captain were hereditary titles, belonging to a different system from actual battalion and departmental officials. The original record only noted military achievements and imperial decrees; all later titles cannot be considered as newly added military merits.

When his grandson, Linzhuyu, inherited the title, the imperial decree was revoked, and he returned to Yunqiwei, subsequently serving as Deputy Commander-in-Chief. His great-grandson Xi Deshen served as Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works in Shengjing; his great-great-grandson Ji Anbu served as Censor; He Tai served as Reader-in-Waiting in the Grand Secretariat; and Bai Tai served as First-Class Guard. The Ministry of Works in Shengjing belonged to the secondary capital's administrative system. The Censor was involved in oversight, and the Guard belonged to the prefectural guard system; each should be assigned according to their name and lineage. The exact form of Lin Zhuyu's name, his lineage, and the terms of office for each official still need to be verified from the original inscription. The succession of official positions is not presumed to be based on father-son inheritance.