[4] Nguyên returned to the Mekong Delta after being released in 1945 and immediately began forming new armed units; he also became a healer, calling himself the dao Ngoan.

[5] On 7–9 September 1945,[6][7] a band of 15,000 Hoahaoists armed with hand-to-hand weapons,[8] and aided by the Trotskyists,[7] attacked the Việt Minh garrison at the port city of Cần Thơ, which the Hòa Hảo considered the rightful capital of their domain.

[9] They were led by Thành Nguyên, General Trần Văn Soái, his eldest son, and Sổ's younger brother,[10] but with their antiquated weapons, the Hòa Hảo were defeated and Sổ's men were massacred[6][8] by the Việt Minh-controlled Advanced Guard Youth, who were reportedly aided by a nearby Japanese garrison.

[11] Thành Nguyên's territorial ambitions entangled him in conflicts with both the French and Soái, forcing him to retreat to Tu Te and eventually Bảy Núi before the end of 1946.

Thành Nguyên, along with Nguyễn Giác Ngộ were disappointed by the rebellion's ineffectiveness, and they surrendered and turned over their armies to Saigon.