Background
It is not known when Yang Yong was born. He was the oldest son of Yang Jian and Yang Jian's wife Dugu Qieluo, but it is not known whether he was older or younger than his oldest sister, Yang Lihua (who later became empress to Emperor Xuan of Northern Zhou), born in 561. During Northern Zhou, as Yang Jian's father Yang Zhong (楊忠) the Duke of Sui was an accomplished general, Yang Yong received the title of Marquess of Boping. (This implies, but does not conclusively show, that Yang Yong was born before Yang Zhong's death in 568, when Yang Jian inherited the title of Duke of Sui.) Sometime before 580, Yang Jian and Lady Dugu selected the daughter of the official Yuan Xiaoju (元孝矩), a descendant of Northern Wei's imperial house, to be Yang Yong's wife. During this time, Yang Yong served as a low-level official in Northern Zhou's imperial administration.
In 580, after Emperor Xuan's death, Yang Jian seized power as regent over Emperor Xuan's son Emperor Jing (by Emperor Xuan's concubine Empress Zhu Manyue. After defeating the general Weichi Jiong, who rose against him, he had Yang Yong created the Duke of Changning and the commandant of Luoyang, with authority over all of the old territory of Northern Qi (which Emperor Xuan's father Emperor Wu destroyed in 577. He was, however, soon recalled to the capital Chang'an to serve as the minister of defense.
In spring 581, Yang Jian had Emperor Jing yield the throne to him, ending Northern Zhou and establishing Sui Dynasty as its Emperor Wen. Emperor Wen created Yang Yong crown prince.
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