In 1928, his submission of the melody of "Three Principles of the People" was chosen. In 1947, he travelled to Taiwan for the first time, where Hsiao Er-hua (蕭而化 Xiāo Érhuà), head of the College of Music in the Taiwan Provincial Normal University, offered Cheng Maoyun a position, but he refused. He never returned to Taiwan again. He had a stroke in 1951 in Xi'an, and he died of a second stroke on July 31, 1957.[citation needed]
The official university song of the National Central University is also composed by Cheng.
Personal life
His wife and son are also musicians. Zhang Yongzhen (张咏真), Cheng's wife, is a piano professor at the Xi'an Music Academy. His son, Zhang Jiannan (张坚男; born 1945), is a composer.