Marquis Yangwu, Xue Lu, hailed from Xuejia Island in Jiaodong. His father, Master Xue, was poor and worked as a cowherd for a local landlord. While grazing cattle on a desolate patch of land owned by the landlord, Master Xue witnessed a snake and a rabbit locked in a fierce struggle amidst the tall grass. Astonished by the sight, he approached the landlord and requested the barren land be granted to him. The landlord agreed, and Master Xue promptly erected a thatched hut there.

Years later, as Xue’s wife was in labor, a torrential downpour lashed the land. Two military commanders, dispatched on a sea mission, sought shelter in the hut. They observed crows and magpies gathered on the roof, diligently spreading their wings to overlap and block every spot where the rain leaked through—a truly startling sight. Soon after, Master Xue emerged to greet the guests. The commanders inquired, "What was the master doing just now?" Master Xue replied, "My wife is giving birth, and I was tending to her." They asked, "Is it a boy or a girl?" Master Xue answered, "A boy."

The commanders grew even more astonished. "Your young son is destined for great prominence in the future," they declared. "If not, why would two military commanders appear precisely at his birth to guard his entrance?" With this, they sighed and departed.

By the time Marquis Yangwu grew up, he was dishevelled, constantly snot-nosed, and decidedly slow-witted. Every family on Xuejia Island was a military household, tilling the land in times of peace and taking up arms for campaigns. That year, it was Master Xue’s turn to fulfill the military levy, serving garrison duty in Liaoyang. The Marquis’s elder brother, being the firstborn, was naturally expected to enlist, which left him deeply morose.

The Marquis was only eighteen that year, still simple-minded and unable to secure a wife. He approached his brother, saying, "Big Brother is constantly troubled; I suspect it is due to this impending military service." His brother confirmed this. The Marquis smiled, "This matter is easily settled. If Big Brother will grant me the household maid as my wife, I will serve in the army in your stead."

The elder brother was overjoyed and immediately held a wedding for his younger brother. True to his word, after the marriage, the Marquis immediately set off with his wife toward Liaoyang. After trekking for several li in a downpour, the couple took refuge under a stone cliff by the roadside. The rain soon ceased, and they continued their journey. After only a few steps, rocks tumbled from the cliff above, and two ferocious tigers suddenly leaped out from an unseen location, swiftly closing in on the couple. The tigers seemed to press close against their bodies before vanishing instantly.

From that moment onward, Marquis Yangwu displayed extraordinary valor and commanding presence. He later earned a noble title through accumulated military achievements, which became hereditary.

Time flew on into the Tianqi and Chongzhen eras. The first Marquis Yangwu had long passed away, and the title had been passed down through generations, eventually reaching a certain Duke. This Duke had no sons, and upon his deathbed, he left behind a posthumous child—though the sex was unknown—so the title was temporarily entrusted to a collateral relative to manage.

By the custom of the time, whenever the wife of a hereditary noble was pregnant, the court had to be informed so that the imperial midwives could be dispatched to attend her until the child was delivered. A year later, the Lady gave birth to a girl. Her abdomen still showed signs of movement, suggesting twins. However, the second child stubbornly refused to emerge, and fifteen years passed, during which several batches of midwives came and went, before a boy was finally born.

According to the primogeniture system, the young boy was unquestionably entitled to inherit the Marquisate of Yangwu. However, the collateral line, clinging greedily to power, refused to relinquish it, spreading rumors that the child was not the Duke’s biological offspring. Officials arrested the midwives and interrogated them; despite exhausting all forms of torture, the midwives staunchly maintained their story: the child was indeed the flesh and blood of the Xue lineage.

With the facts laid bare, the court rendered an impartial decision, and the child successfully inherited the title.