Shortly after, the army of Zhu's rival Yang Xingmi the military governor of Huainan Circuit (淮南, headquartered in modern Yangzhou, Jiangsu) put Su under siege, but Yuan capably defended it, and the city did not fall.
[1] In 908, by which time Zhu Quanzhong had seized the Tang throne and established a new Later Liang as its Emperor Taizu, Yuan Xiangxian was recalled to serve as a general of the imperial guards.
[5] Shortly after, he was moved to be the acting military governor of Tianping Circuit (天平, headquartered in modern Tai'an, Shandong).
At that time, the circuit was suffering through a major famine, and Yuan was credited with opening up the military food reserves to feed the people.
Zhu Yougui, seeing the situation as hopeless, committed suicide with his wife Empress Zhang and his servant Feng Ting'e (馮廷諤).
Yuan and Zhao took over control of the capital Luoyang, and sent the imperial seal to Daliang, where Zhu Youzhen was then at the time, offering the throne to him.
[6] For his contributions, Yuan was given the honorary titles of military governor of Zhennan Circuit (鎮南, headquartered in modern Nanchang, Jiangxi, then under control of Later Liang's enemy Wu), acting Taibao (太保), honorary chancellor (同中書門下平章事, Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi), acting mayor of Kaifeng (i.e., Daliang), and the commander of the capital guards; he was also created a duke.
[1] When Wu's junior regent Xu Zhixun put Ying Prefecture (潁州, in modern Fuyang, Anhui) under siege late in 916, Zhu Youzhen (who had changed his name to Zhu Zhen by this point) ordered Yuan to command a relief force; when Yuan approached Ying, Xu withdrew.