Abstract: Aside from the interpretation of “ruling according to minority customs，”previous studies have neither clearly pointed out why the“Miao sub-statutes”appeared in the Qing code nor analyzed their range of application in depth， much less dealt with substantial cases of judicial practice． After presenting such cases，this paper maintains that in the newly opened Miao regions of Hunan province's Qianzhou，Fenghuang and Yongsui subprefectures，the Qing Dynasty adopted the“Miao sub-statutes” as legal norms for handling conflicts among the Miao in keeping with the Miao way of life and the region's distinctive manner of opening，which differed from the policy of incorporation into regular government administration． However，in practice local officials also made appropriate use of“official law”in addition to the Miao sub-statutes，thereby manifesting the dynasty's legal authority． From the Qianlong and Jiaqing periods onward，newly-reclaimed Miao regions were incessantly assimilated into“civilization，”and with the westernization of law in the late Qing the Miao sub-statutes were ultimately eliminated from the Great Qing Code.