 As Kwangtung declared independence from Qing government shortly after the Wuchang Uprising in October 1911, Chan was appointed by the Kwangtung military government as the foreign minister, until the Republic of China was established in Nanking on 1 January 1912.After resigning from the government, Chan founded the Yuethong Shipping Company (粵航公司) and regained several piers in Canton from foreign companies.Yuethong lasted until 1919.