 On 19 April 1916, Cen, along with Liang Qichao and Lu Rongting, met in Zhaoqing, Guangdong, where they established a National Protection Military Government.Cen was nominated to be commander-in-chief of the National Protection Army, with Liang Qichao as his chief of staff.Cen declared war against Yuan Shikai and proclaimed, "(...) If Yuan Shikai lives, I die; if Yuan Shikai dies, I live!"