In early July 1920 the Anhui clique gathered five divisions and four combined brigades to form the so-called National Stabilization Army, with Duan Qirui as its commander-in-chief. The army was deployed in two fronts, the western covering the regions of Zhuozhou, Laishui and Gu'an, while the eastern covered the regions of Liang Hamlet and Beijimiao, just to the west of Yang Hamlet. Zhili and allied forces gathered a division and nine combined brigades to form their own "Traitor Suppression Army", with Wu Peifu as its front-line commander-in-chief. This, too, was deployed on two fronts, with an eastern zone in the region of Yang Hamlet and a western front in the region of Gaobei. Meanwhile, Zhang Zuolin ordered a detachment of his troops to enter Shanhaiguan, taking up positions at Machang and Junliangcheng.

Slightly more than a week of fighting led to the unexpected defeat of the Anhui clique and the permanent breakup of the Beiyang Army. Wu Peifu was nationally credited as the strategist behind the Zhili clique's victory, while the Fengtian clique provided token support and were allowed to form a joint government, an arrangement which would last until the First Zhili-Fengtian War in 1922.