Ma was transferred along with his brother Ma Fuxiang and several cousins to serve as officers under General Dong Fuxiang to Beijing in 1898. During the Hundred Days' Reform in 1898, Dong Fuxiang, Ma Anliang and Ma Haiyan were called to Beijing and helped put an end to the reform movement along with Ma Fulu and Ma Fuxiang. During the Boxer Rebellion, the Muslim troops came to be known as the "Kansu Braves" and fought against the Eight Nation Alliance. Ma Fulu and Ma Fuxiang both participated in ambushing and driving back the Alliance forces at the Battle of Langfang during the Seymour Expedition, leading a force of Hui, Dongxiang, and Baoan Muslims to drive the Alliance back to Tianjin and personally leading a cavalry charge, cutting down enemy troops with his sword. Ma Fulu and four cousins of his were killed in action during the battle against the foreigners in Beijing, in 1900 during the Battle of Peking (1900) during a bloody battle at Zhengyang Gate. His paternal cousins Ma Fugui 馬福貴, Ma Fuquan 馬福全 and his paternal nephews Ma Yaotu 馬耀圖 and Ma Zhaotu 馬兆圖 died in the battle. 100 of his fellow Hui and Dongxiang soldiers from his home village were killed in action at the Zhengyang Gate in the Siege of Peking. He had commanded a brigade, his brother Ma Fuxiang took over his position after his death. Ma Fuxiang inherited Ma Fulu's army.