In 931, Xu Zhigao was poised to make Song chancellor. Song, however, believed that he would not be able to get people to be obedient to him given his relative lack of seniority, decided not to accept. Instead, he requested to return to Zhennan's capital Hong Prefecture () to rebury his father. Instead, on the way, he entered Mount Jiuhua and became a hermit at Yingtian Temple () on the mountain. Despite edicts from Yang Longan's brother and successor, Yang Pu (who by that point had claimed imperial title) and letters from Xu Zhigao, he refused to exit the mountain. Xu Zhigao had to send his son Xu Jingtong to Mount Jiuhua to personally persuade Song, for Song to return to the imperial government. Still, after doing so, Song retired with the title of You Pushe (). As a result of this episode, Yingtian Temple was renamed Zhengxian Temple (徵賢寺, temple where the able was summoned). However, later in the year, when Xu Zhigao himself took up position at Jinling (i.e., Run Prefecture) following Xu Wen's example and left Xu JIngtong in charge at Guangling, Song agreed to return to the imperial government to serve as chancellor with the designation Tong Zhongshu Menxia Pingzhangshi (), along with Wang Lingmou, to assist Xu JIngtong.