 In 528, Emperor Xiaoming, who was having increasing friction with Empress Dowager Hu, conspired with the general Erzhu Rong to have Erzhu advance on the capital Luoyang to force Empress Dowager Hu to yield power and to kill her lover Zheng Yan () and Zheng's associate Xu Ge ().The conspiracy was discovered, and Empress Dowager Hu poisoned the emperor and made Yuan Zhao, a two-year-old son of an imperial prince, emperor.Erzhu refused to recognize Yuan Zhao as emperor and advanced on Luoyang.