His family was originally from Tong Prefecture (同州, in modern Weinan, Shaanxi), and claimed ancestry from the Sui dynasty general Yang Su.
His grandfather Yang Yizhi (楊遺直) served as a personnel officer at Hao Prefecture (濠州, in modern Chuzhou, Anhui).
After the emperor's arrival in Luoyang, he was made the minister of civil service affairs (吏部尚書, Libu Shangshu).
In their place, Zhang Wenwei and Yang She were named chancellors, with the designations Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi (同中書門下平章事).
[5] At that time, his younger brother Yang Zhu was an imperial scholar, and chose to resign to avoid appearance of impropriety.
As part of the ceremonial passage of the throne, Yang, acting as Shizhong (侍中), the head of the examination bureau of government (門下省, Menxia Sheng), was put in delivering the main imperial seal to Zhu.