The second branch of the Xu family was once a bondservant of the Imperial Household Department.
The head of the household was named Xu Lu. He held no official position in the Imperial Household Department, only possessing some family property. His ability to establish himself in the capital relied on his elder brother, Xu Fu, who worked in the Imperial Stables.
Xu Fu and Xu Lu lost their parents at a young age, and the two brothers separated their households, but they always kept in touch.
Thanks to Xu Fu's connections in the Imperial Stables, in the early years, all the daughters of Xu's second branch who reached the age of twelve were sent to the palace as slaves and maids, distributed throughout the Imperial Stables, serving in various places such as the flower room, embroidery room, laundry department, and the four storehouses.
Among them, the seventh daughter of the second branch of the Xu family, named Xu Lejin, was lucky enough to be assigned to serve in the Kunning Palace of Empress Hesheli at the time. For some reason, she became a first-class palace maid by Empress Hesheli's side.
The changes in the second branch of the Xu family also began at this time.
In the winter of the twelfth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, Xu Lejin was unexpectedly favored by the emperor and subsequently made a concubine, residing in the west wing of the Yikun Palace.
Initially, Consort Xu was not favored by the emperor. Emperor Kangxi bestowed the title upon her arbitrarily out of consideration for Empress Hesheli.
But six months later, everything was different.
Consort Xu was lucky; she became pregnant with twins and then gave birth to triplets, a boy and two princesses, which was an extraordinary joy in the palace at that time.
At this time, Emperor Kangxi became interested in Consort Xu.
Perhaps it was inappropriate for Xu, who had given birth to auspicious twins, to remain a concubine. However, given Xu's humble origins, Emperor Kangxi did not bestow upon her a higher rank. Instead, he elevated the status of the second branch of the Xu family and granted them a new surname.
From the Imperial Household Guards, they were promoted to the Manchu Bordered Yellow Banner and granted the surname Xumur.
Not long after, Consort Xu was conferred the title of Consort Yu.
It should be noted that in the imperial harem at that time, apart from the Niohuru and Tongjia clans who came from prominent Manchu families and enjoyed the status of imperial concubines, the other concubines were only concubines of lower rank. Xu Muer was promoted to the rank of Consort Yu, placing her above all the concubines of lower rank.
Kangxi sixteenth year
The head of the second branch of the Xu family and his eldest son, who were married out of wedlock, got into a quarrel and were exiled by Emperor Kangxi to the Mulan Hunting Ground in Shengjing to herd horses. The power of the second branch of the Xu family fell into the hands of the matriarch, Madam Xie.
At that time, Xu Lu, the head of the family, did not hold an official position, while Xie was granted the title of Fourth-Rank Lady.
After the Xu family was elevated to the Manchu banner system and granted a surname, the daughters who served in the palace returned home and were married off under the arrangement of Madam Xie. Although they did not marry into high-ranking families, they were still considered legitimate wives.
Among them, Xie's second daughter was betrothed to Prince Gong as a secondary consort.
A few years later, as Consort Yu in the palace was promoted to Imperial Concubine and then to Noble Consort, the Xu family's second branch outside the palace became increasingly prestigious. Not only did they have another daughter marry a prince as a secondary consort, but they also received betrothal arrangements from Emperor Kangxi and Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang.
Although the women of the Xu family's second branch are capable and hold positions in the palace and the inner quarters of high-ranking royal residences, they lack connections in the imperial court.
The second branch of the Xu family had a total of seven sons: five illegitimate sons and two legitimate sons. The two legitimate sons were still young and had many years before they could enter the court as officials, while Xu Fu and the older illegitimate son were incompetent.
Under these circumstances, the second branch of the Xu family could only lie low for the time being and focus on cultivating future generations.
A few years later, with the birth of twins by Consort Yu in the palace and her subsequent elevation to Imperial Noble Consort, the second branch of the Xu family also began to flourish. First, Xu Huaizhen, the eldest son of the second branch, ranked among the top ten in the imperial examinations and was personally selected by Emperor Kangxi as the Tan Hua Lang (third-ranked scholar). He then married the daughter of Duke Tao Sai, a high-ranking official.
Then came Xu Huainian, the illegitimate son raised by the Xie family since childhood, who passed the imperial examination and married the daughter of a general of the imperial clan...
The second branch of the Xu family began to prosper, and at the same time, Xu Fu passed away.
After their father passed away, Xu Huaizhen and Xu Huainian observed a three-year mourning period. They thought it would be difficult for them to return to their posts after the mourning period ended, but the court officials had forgotten that the second branch of the Xu family had a daughter who had secured her position as an Imperial Noble Consort in the palace.
Xu Huaizhen and Xu Huainian were soon reinstated.
A few years later, the Imperial Noble Consort ascended to the position of Empress, and Xu Huaizhen, as the Emperor's brother-in-law, was granted the title of First-Class Duke of Cheng'en.
From then on, Xu Muer, the second wife of the Xu family, became a rising star in the capital. Her sons and daughters of marriageable age were sought after by various prominent families. In the fifty-first year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, the Yonghe Emperor ascended the throne...
Emperor Yonghe was the grandson of the Xu family. Although the Xu family was not one of the eight great Manchu families at that time, it was still quite powerful.
During the reign of the Yonghe Emperor, the second branch of the Xu family produced several wives of princes and wives of imperial clan members.
...
Having discussed the second branch of the Xu family, let's now talk about the first branch.
Although the eldest branch of the Xu family did not receive the surname Xumur like the second branch in the end, they were eventually incorporated into the Manchu Plain Yellow Banner after Emperor Yonghe ascended the throne, becoming the Xujia clan.
In the eldest branch of the Xu family, Xu Fu was the head of the household.
Xu Fu was initially a steward in the Imperial Household Department's Stables. Because he had no daughters in his early years, he chose to send his niece to the palace to serve as a slave.
Of course, Xu Fu's original intention was to send his nieces to the palace, hoping that one of them would make a name for herself there, thus changing the Xu family's reputation and bringing unparalleled glory to the clan.
The turning point for the Xu family's eldest branch was also due to Consort Xu, who later became Empress Xiaoshuren, née Xu Muer.
Consort Xu in the palace gave birth to triplets, a boy and a girl, and was thus granted the title of Consort Yu. Xu Fu, as her uncle, also benefited from this honor; this was Xu Fu's second son, who was a widower who had lost his wife at a young age.
Under the arrangement of Consort Yu in the palace, Xu Fu's second son married Yingchun, a palace maid, as his second wife.
A few years later, because Consort Yu in the palace gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, and was promoted to Imperial Noble Consort, and because the Third Prince Yinling and the Eighth Princess were found to have a predestined affinity with the divine, the Xu family's eldest branch was transferred from the bondservant banner to the Plain Yellow Banner of the Han Army.
Thirty years after the Kangxi Emperor's reign.
The eldest son's granddaughter, Xu Lingyi, the daughter of Yingchun who was betrothed in the palace, was betrothed to Niohuru Aling'a.
Niohuru Aling'a was the legitimate son of the regent Ebilun.
Later, he inherited the title of First-Class Duke and became the Duke of Guoyi.
When Emperor Yonghe ascended the throne, the first thing he did was to elevate the Xu family's main branch to the Manchu Plain Yellow Banner. From then on, the Xu family's main branch completed its transformation from a bondservant family to a Manchu Plain Yellow Banner member.
The surname of the eldest branch of the Xu family was also changed from Xu to Xujia.
...
When you're poor, no one cares even in the bustling city; when you're rich, even distant relatives come to visit.
This is absolutely true. Ever since the second branch of the Xu family was elevated to the Manchu Bordered Yellow Banner, Xu Muershi, distant relatives who used to look down on the second branch of the Xu family have all come knocking on their door.
The same thing happened later when the eldest branch of the Xu family was incorporated into the Plain Yellow Banner of the Han Army.
When Emperor Yonghe ascended the throne, the eldest branch of the Xu family became part of the Manchu Plain Yellow Banner Xujia clan. Members of the Xu family beyond the fifth degree of kinship traveled great distances to send gifts to the eldest and second branches of the Xu family.
In addition, the unreliable illegitimate sons and daughters of the Xu family's first and second branches also began to tremble.
At that time, Xu Huaizhen, the head of the second branch of the Xu family, joined forces with the first branch of the Xu family and spent a long time rectifying the situation before suppressing those arrogant illegitimate sons and daughters.
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