Due to having been wronged by some northern Chinese rich merchants, he joined the Qing army as a means to exact revenge.

In 1674, Yao, along with his son, raised a small army of several hundred men to assist Giyesu, the Prince Kang, in the fight against Geng Jingzhong, who had revolted against Manchu rule.

[1] On recommendation from Giyesu, Yao became entrusted by the Kangxi Emperor, who eventually appointed him Viceroy of Fujian during a campaign against Ming Dynasty loyalists on Taiwan under the leadership of Zheng Jing.

However, he became involved in a bitter struggle for control of the imperial forces with former Ming loyalist and defector Shi Lang, who had also become a trusted military officer of the Kangxi emperor, and who steadfastly refused to submit to Yao's oversight.

In 2015, the local government renovated the burial grounds to make the site more visible, and also erected an engraved stone tablet to describe Yao's achievements, possibly to generate tourist revenue.