During Hu 's lifetime , the Ming dynasty , which had ruled China for over 250 years , was overthrown and replaced by China 's last imperial dynasty , the Qing . Following the fall of the capital Beijing in 1644 , remnants of the imperial family and a few ministers set up a Ming loyalist regime in Nanjing with Zhu Yousong on the throne as the Hongguang Emperor . Hu , who was noted for his seal @-@ carving and facility with seal script , created a seal for the new Emperor . The court offered him the position of Drafter for the Secretariat ( zhongshu sheren , 中書舍人 ) as a reward , but he did not accept no role ( although he did accord himself the title of zhongshu sheren in some of his subsequent personal seals ) .