Chinese victory. White Russian forces assisted the Soviet Red Army. Ma Zhongying then was sent back to Gansu after graduating from the academy and fought in the Kumul Rebellion where, with the tacit support of the Kuomintang government of China, he tried to overthrow the pro-Soviet provincial government first led by Governor Jin Shuren then duban military governor Sheng Shicai.
Ma invaded Xinjiang in support of Kumul Khanate loyalists and received official approval and designation from the Kuomintang as commander of the 36th Division. In late , the Han Chinese provincial commander General Zhang Peiyuan and his army defected from the provincial government side to Ma Zhongying's side and joined him in waging war against Jin Shuren's provincial government. In , two brigades of about 7, Soviet GPU troops, backed by tanks, airplanes and artillery with mustard gas, crossed the border to assist Sheng Shicai in gaining control of Xinjiang.
The brigades were named " Altayiiskii " and "Tarbakhataiskii". Soviet soldiers disguised themselves in uniforms lacking markings, and were dispersed among the White Russians.
Despite his early successes, Zhang's forces were overrun at Kulja and Chuguchak , and he committed suicide after the battle at Muzart Pass to avoid capture. Even though the Soviets were superior to the New 36th Division in both manpower and technology, they were held off for weeks and took severe casualties.
The New 36th Division managed to halt the Soviet forces from supplying Sheng with military equipment. Chinese Muslim troops led by Ma Shih-ming managed to hold off the superior Red Army forces armed with machine guns, tanks, and planes for about 30 days.
