Anti-Rightist Movement
When the Anti-Rightist Movement began in 1957, Yang and three of his cousins (sons of Yang Shuda) were labelled "Rightists". Yang was transferred to Lanzhou University in remote Gansu province, where he continued to teach in the Chinese department. In Lanzhou he wrote "Mengzi Yizhu" (孟子译注, "Translation and Annotation of the Mencius"), which was published by Zhonghua Book Company in 1960.