Born in Changsha of Qing Dynasty China's Hunan province, he was the sixth son of Yi Man-sheng (Chinese: 易滿生; pinyin: Yì Mǎnshēng) and Hu Jin-rong (Chinese: 胡金容 ; pinyin: Hú Jīnróng) and he studied at the Whampoa Military Academy's 6th class, where Chiang Kai-shek served as Chief Commandant.

[1][2][3] In the Second Sino-Japanese War where the ROCAF was augmented by a volunteer group of American pilots known as the Flying Tigers, Yi was involved in attacks on Japanese air and ground forces.

Yi and the #26 battalion led thousands of people through the jungles of Burma and Laos on foot, and received political asylum in Bangkok, Thailand in 1951.

Yi was a recipient of the Order of Loyalty and Valour 忠勇勳章, Exemplary Medal of the Spirit of Chu 莒光楷模獎章, Good Service Medal 優績獎章, Order of Loyalty and Diligence 忠勤勳章, and recognized as a national hero 克難英雄 by Chiang Kai-shek (Chinese: 蔣介石; pinyin: Jiǎng Jièshí) for overcoming great difficulties at Mengzi.

The team required 14 players, but Loo Hor-kuay, Liu Zhong-hong, and Zheng Zheng-nan withdrew due to their academic studies.