Xilin

Overview

Xilin was a member of the Lijia clan of the Plain Yellow Banner during the early Qing Dynasty. Volume 33 of the officially compiled *Comprehensive Genealogy of the Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners* records that Lijia Heluo's grandsons, Sahacha and Cunzhu, served as Assistant Ministers, while Yixitai served as a Defense Commander. His great-grandson, Shuangxi, served as Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guard at the time of compilation, and Yongshan served as a Principal. The concluding remarks state that their ancestral home was in Lijia Heluo and that they submitted to the Qing Dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty. The title and concluding remarks together provide background information for this short passage.

An Assistant Minister was a bureau-level administrative position in the government, while a Principal handled corresponding administrative and clerical affairs. A Defense Commander was a military officer in the banner system, with the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guard assisting in leading the guards and carrying out military duties. Although civil and military positions are listed under the same family entry, they cannot be interchanged or uniformly referred to as military officers; the word "Deputy" should also be retained.

Grandsons and great-grandsons belong to different generations. Shuangxi's current position corresponds to the period of the original compilation, without specifying the year of office; the list of contemporaries is insufficient to confirm that they were brothers. The Plain Yellow Banner indicates affiliation with one of the Eight Banners, which differs from their ancestral home. Li Jia and Luo Diwang, the Ministry of Civil Service and the Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guard are pending verification, and Xilin's official record will not be supplemented based on the positions of his descendants.