[2] On 6 September 1891, he established a novitiate to provide access to Franciscan life for the Chinese of all four vicariates in Shanxi and a rest home for overworked missionaries.

He also dealt with the suffering of the local population brought on by plague and famine, which led him to enlarge the orphanage in the city and establish several others, in order to cope with the orphans left behind by these catastrophes.

When the short but bloody Boxer Rebellion broke out in Peking in June 1900 and the Empress Dowager Cixi issued the Imperial Decree of declaration of war against foreign powers, Grassi was urged to flee.

[4] On 27 June 1900, Grassi described the situation of Christians in the Shanxi province in a letter, saying, "The European establishments... are seriously threatened by the mob, united with the Boxers and the soldiers: a catastrophe could occur at any moment.

[7] On 9 July 1900, Grassi, along with the rest, was escorted from prison with his hands bound behind his back to public trial presided by Yuxian.

By custom, Grassi's head was severed from his corpse so that it could be put on display in a small cage at the city entrance.