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.

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.

He was particularly opposed to the Northeast Flag Replacement, which united Manchuria with the Kuomintang government of the Republic of China.

He was invited by Zhang to his home to play cards; when he arrived, he was seized and executed by firing squad on January 10.