Buliugu Li , more commonly known in historical accounts as his Chinese nameLu Li , Xianbei nickname Yili, formally Prince Jian of Pingyuan, was a high-level ethnic Xianbei official for the Chinese/Xianbei dynasty Northern Wei who served mostly during the reign of Emperor Wencheng. Buliugu Li's father Buliugu Qi was a general under Emperor Taiwu, whose accomplishments included inducing the uncles of the Xiongnu rebel Gai Wu to assassinate him and surrender in 446. Buliugu Li himself served in the imperial guard corps, and because Emperor Taiwu believed him to be faithful and careful, Emperor Taiwu created him the Viscount of Zhang'an, and later made him a minister in the southern regional administration of the imperial government. In 452, Emperor Taiwu was assassinated by the eunuchZong Ai, who made Emperor Taiwu's son Tuoba Yu the Prince of Nan'an emperor, but assassinated him later that year as well. Buliugu Li, along with Dugu Ni, Yuan He, and Baba Kehou, rose in a coup d'etat and overthrew Zong, making Tuoba Jun, the son of Emperor Taiwu's crown princeTuoba Huang, emperor. Because of this accomplishment, Emperor Wencheng trusted him greatly and created him the Prince of Pingyuan. He initially declined, stating that his father had accomplished much during Emperor Taiwu's reign and yet was not a prince, and he did not dare to take a title greater than his father's -- to which Emperor Wencheng reacted by creating his father a prince as well. He declined again, but Emperor Wencheng did not accept his refusal. Buliugu Li went unscathed during the internecine struggles between the high-level officials early in Emperor Wencheng's reign, and appeared to have been one of the victors in the struggles. Buliugu Li was said to favor literary studies, and he often taught students on the subject as well. He was also praised for his filial piety toward his father, and when Buliugu Qi died in 458, Buliugu Li mourned so greatly that he became ill. In 465, Emperor Wencheng died and was succeeded by his young son Emperor Xianwen, and the power soon fell into the hands of the official Yifu Hun, who soon killed a number of high-level officials, including Yang Baoping, Jia Airen the Duke of Pingyang, and Zhang Tiandu the Duke of Nanyang. At this time, because illness, Buliugu Li, who then carried the title of prime minister, was spending time at the springs in Dai Commandery. Yifu sent the official Qiumuling Duohou to summon Buliugu back to the capital Pingcheng in the name of the emperor. Instead, Qiumuling warned Buliugu that Yifu was violent and had no good intentions, and suggested that Buliugu should wait before returning to Pingcheng. Buliugu declined, stating that when one heard that the emperor had died, one must immediately attend to the funeral matters without fearing disaster, and therefore rushed back to Pingcheng. He immediately got into arguments with Yifu over Yifu's unlawful actions, and Yifu executed both him and Qiumuling. After Emperor Wencheng's wife Empress Dowager Feng in turn overthrew Yifu in 466, she buried Buliugu with honors near the imperial tombs. Buliugu Li had two wives, probably in succession rather than at the same time. The first wife was Lady Du or Duguhun, who bore him a son named Buliugu Dingguo, and the second was Lady Zhang, who bore him a son named Buliugu Rui. Both Buliugu Dingguo and Buliugu Rui later served in the imperial government.
