[5] After the breakdown of the alliance between the communists and the Kuomintang, Xu left the National Revolutionary Army.
In March 1930, he went to the Eyuwan Soviet in the border region of Hubei, Henan and Anhui Provinces, where he was made commander of the First Red Army.
[7] In April 1931, Chiang Kai-shek ordered another offensive on the area, with He Yingqin in direct command.
Ji Hongchang, one of the generals in this campaign, refused to fight the communists and attempted negotiations instead.
Using this to frame Xu as collaborator with the Kuomintang, Zhang Guotao ordered his execution, which took place at Guangshan County, Henan.