In 1748, when Li Qingyun was 71, he joined the Chinese army as a martial arts teacher and military adviser.
In 1927 Li Qingyun was invited to the Governor Yang Seng. The general was delighted with Lee's youthfulness, strength and skill at the incredible age of the latter. During this visit, the famous photo of the super-long-lived was taken. After this meeting, Li Qingyun returned to his homeland and, 6 years later, died. There is a legend that before his death he told his friends “I did everything that I had to do in this world. I'm going home,”and after that he gave up his ghost.
In 1933, people interviewed Lee's relatives and children. Some said that he was old for as long as they can remember, others said that he was friends with their grandfathers. According to rumors, he had 200 descendants and 24 wives, 23 of whom he survived, and the 24th became his widow. And this is quite possible if he really lived for 256 years. When asked about the secret of longevity, he answered:
keep your heart quiet
sit like a turtle,
walk as cheerful as a dove
and sleep like a dog.
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Interesting facts about Lee:
If Li really lived for 256 years, then this is an unconditional record among human life expectancy.
Lee could have survived the entire Romanov empire, starting with Peter I (who, by the way, was born only 5 years earlier than Lee) and ending with Nicholas II, as well as the first Soviet leader, Vladimir Lenin.
Li lived 88 years more than Shirali Mislimov (officially the oldest person in the USSR and unofficially in history), who was 168 years old, 89 years more than the 167 year old unofficial record holder Ram Avtar Sakha Kanu and 112 years more than the official world record holder Omar Abas, who lived for 144 years.
Lee, if he really lived that long, could be the only one who saw his children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, great-great-great-grandchildren, and possibly later descendants.