A native of
Shenyang, Yang was sent to
Japan by the
Qing government in 1904 to study at the
Tokyo Shimbu Gakko, a military preparatory school. He continued his education at the
Imperial Japanese Army Academy, specializing in artillery. He returned to China after the
Xinhai Revolution of 1911 and served in various military posts in the
Beiyang government, and was chief of staff to
Zhang Zuolin, the founder of the Fengtian clique, during the
First Zhili–Fengtian War of 1922 and the
Second Zhili–Fengtian War of 1924. He was governor of Jiangsu Province from August–November 1925. During
Guo Songling's uprising against Zhang Zuolin (
Anti-Fengtian War), he was forced to retreat to
Dalian and seek help from the Japanese
Kwantung Army. In 1928, after the assassination of Zhang Zuolin in the
Huanggutun Incident, Yang came into increasing conflict with Zhang's son and heir,
Zhang Xueliang. He was particularly opposed to the
Northeast Flag Replacement, which united
Manchuria with the
Kuomintang government of the
Republic of China. On 10 January 1929, he was among a group of generals invited to Zhang's home, ostensibly for a game of mahjong. Zhang arrested the generals, held trials that night, and had them executed. This allowed Zhang to replace leaders from his father's administration with those whom Zhang deemed more loyal. ==Sources==