Also in 585, Sui's Emperor Wen, upon hearing that Emperor Jing's uncle Xiao Cen, the Prince of Wu Prefecture, is relying on his honored position and difficult to control, summons Xiao Cen to Daxing and detains him there, although creating him the Duke of Huaiyi.

Thereafter, Emperor Wen also reestablishes the post of the Commandant of Jiangling (Liang's capital) and posts troops at Jiangling, effectively reasserting control over Liang.

(Sui had withdrawn troops from Jiangling in 582, giving Emperor Ming more autonomy than before.)

Perhaps because of this, Emperor Jing's general Xu Shiwu secretly offers to submit to the Chen general Chen Huiji, the Marquess of Yihuang (the cousin to Chen's emperor Chen Shubao), but Emperor Jing discovers Xu's plot and executes him.