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Xu Baoguang was originally from Changzhou in [[Jiangsu province]]. His ''[[Chinese names|zi]]'' (J: ''[[Japanese names|azana]]'') was Liang xuan. He passed the [[Chinese imperial examinations]] in [[1712]] and became a member of the [[Hanlin Academy]].

Xu Baoguang was originally from Changzhou in [[Jiangsu province]]. His ''[[Chinese names|zi]]'' (J: ''[[Japanese names|azana]]'') was Liang xuan. He passed the [[Chinese imperial examinations]] in [[1712]] and became a member of the [[Hanlin Academy]].

Seven years later, in 1719, he served as deputy envoy on a mission to the Ryûkyû Kingdom to perform the official investiture of King [[Sho Kei|Shô Kei]]. The lead envoy was named Haibao<!--海宝-->. The envoys stayed in Ryûkyû for eight months, the longest any Chinese mission ever remained in the islands.<ref name=hendrick>Katrien Hendrick, ''The Origins of Banana-Fibre Cloth in the Ryukyus, Japan'', Leuven University Press (2007), 54.</ref> The official report and record of the journey compiled by Xu Baoguang in [[1721]], entitled ''Zhongshan chuanxin lu'' (J: ''[[Chuzan denshin roku|Chûzan denshin roku]]''), quickly came to be regarded as one of the chief sources on Ryûkyû, and remains an important historical document today. The text describes the journey to Ryûkyû, various rituals and ceremonies including the investiture ceremony and formal banquets, as well as the topography, political structures, customs, and language of Ryûkyû. Its diagrams of the maritime distances between [[Fuzhou]] and [[Naha]], and between Naha and various other locations in the Ryûkyû Islands, may be the earliest extant such record.<ref name=hendrick/>  

Seven years later, in 1719, he served as deputy envoy on a mission to the Ryûkyû Kingdom to perform the official investiture of King [[Sho Kei|Shô Kei]]. The lead envoy was named Haibao<!--海宝-->. The envoys stayed in Ryûkyû for eight months, the longest any Chinese mission ever remained in the islands.<ref name=hendrick>Katrien Hendrick, ''The Origins of Banana-Fibre Cloth in the Ryukyus, Japan'', Leuven University Press (2007), 54.</ref> This mission saw the first ever performances of ''[[kumi odori]]''. In addition, a dispute broke out between the Chinese party and Ryukyuan officials, led by [[Sai On]] and [[Tei Junsoku]]. The kingdom had gathered only 500 ''[[currency|kan]]'' of silver to purchase goods brought from China for trade, but the mission unexpectedly brought 2,000 ''kan'' worth of goods, including jades, spices, porcelains, clocks, antiques, and scrolls of calligraphy and painting by famous artists of the [[Song Dynasty|Song]], [[Ming Dynasty|Ming]], and [[Qing Dynasty|Qing dynasties]]. In the end, Sai On negotiated a settlement, paying 600 ''kan'' for all of the goods<ref>Ch'en, Ta-Tuan. "Investiture of Liu-Ch'iu Kings in the Ch'ing Period." in Fairbank, John King (ed.) ''The Chinese World Order''. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1968. pp135-164.</ref>. The 1719 mission also included 600 additional people, including cartographers who set out to map the archipelago.<ref>Schottenhammer, Angela. "The East Asian maritime world, 1400-1800: Its fabrics of power and dynamics of exchanges - China and her neighbors." in Schottenhammer (ed.) ''The East Asian maritime world, 1400-1800: Its fabrics of power and dynamics of exchanges''. Harrassowitz Verlag, 2007. p46.</ref>

 

The official report and record of the journey compiled by Xu Baoguang in [[1721]], entitled ''Zhongshan chuanxin lu'' (J: ''[[Chuzan denshin roku|Chûzan denshin roku]]''), quickly came to be regarded as one of the chief sources on Ryûkyû, and remains an important historical document today. The text describes the journey to Ryûkyû, various rituals and ceremonies including the investiture ceremony and formal banquets, as well as the topography, political structures, customs, and language of Ryûkyû. Its diagrams of the maritime distances between [[Fuzhou]] and [[Naha]], and between Naha and various other locations in the Ryûkyû Islands, may be the earliest extant such record.<ref name=hendrick/>  

Xu's report was first published for a more popular audience in [[1766]],<ref name=hendrick/> and was later not only re-published in both [[Edo]] and [[Kyoto]], but was even translated by a French missionary, becoming a valuable source of information on Ryûkyû for a Western audience.

Xu's report was first published for a more popular audience in [[1766]],<ref name=hendrick/> and was later not only re-published in both [[Edo]] and [[Kyoto]], but was even translated by a French missionary, becoming a valuable source of information on Ryûkyû for a Western audience.