He Ning
Believing that his grandmother (Emperor Taizong's mother) Empress Dowager Shulü would not agree to his ascension (as she favored his uncle (Emperor Taizong's younger brother) Yelü Lihu), Emperor Shizong headed north to contend with her. Most of the ethnically Han officials accompanying Emperor Taizong were left at Heng, and he left Emperor Taizong's cousin Yelü Mada () in charge of Heng. Subsequently, Emperor Shizong sent an edict to Heng, ordering He Ning and a number of other Han officials, including fellow chancellors Feng Dao and Li Song, to rendezvous with him for Emperor Taizong's burial. However, at that time, a rebellion by the Han soldiers against Yelü Mada, led by the officers Bai Zairong () and Li Rong, broke out at Heng. Initially, Yelü Mada's Khitan soldiers had the upper hand in street battles, but a turning point came when the official Li Gu, asked He Ning, Feng, and Li Song to visit the battle scene to encourage the Han soldiers. When the soldiers saw the three senior chancellors, they were encouraged, and they fought harder, eventually expelling the Khitan soldiers out of the city. Subsequently, the soldiers supported Bai to be the acting military governor of Chengde, so that he could submit to Later Han and seek aid. Meanwhile, Bai, who was greedy, wanted to kill Li Song and He Ning to seize their wealth. Li Gu rebuked him, pointing out that if he did so, the new Later Han emperor would surely have him punished, so Bai did not do so. Bai subsequently submitted the region to the sovereignty of Liu Zhiyuan, a former Later Jin military governor of Hedong who had declared himself emperor of Later Han.