His family was from the Tang dynasty capital Chang'an, and his ancestors had served as officers in the imperial Shence Armies for generations.
His father Wang Zong (王宗) was not only a highly ranked general in the Shence armies but was also a skillful merchant.
[1] Yet later, he was made the overseer (制置使, Zizhishi) of the army at Ding Prefecture (定州, in modern Baoding, Hebei), then the capital of Yiwu Circuit.
[3] Around the new year 881, the major agrarian rebel Huang Chao captured Chang'an, forcing then-reigning Emperor Xizong to flee to Chengdu.
He entered into an alliance with Wang Chongrong the military governor of Hezhong Circuit (河中, headquartered in modern Yuncheng, Shanxi), who had briefly submitted to Huang's Qi state but then reverted to Tang allegiance due to Huang's heavy tax and conscription burdens; they launched their armies and approached Chang'an, camping north of the Wei River.
[4] Meanwhile, the Shatuo chieftain Li Keyong, who had previously rebelled against Tang rule as well, was offering to resubmit to the imperial government and aid in the operations against Huang but had also seized Xin (忻州) and Dai (代州, both in modern Xinzhou, Shanxi) Prefectures and pillaged the surrounding regions.
Wang Chucun's and Li Keyong's families had intermarried for generations and were friendly to each other, so Emperor Xizong had Wang Chucun write Li Keyong in fall 882, rebuking him for the pillages and instructing him to await instructions if he were truly interested in aiding the imperial government.
Wang Chucun then surprised them with his attack, defeating them and recapturing Yi Prefecture, forcing Li Quanzhong to flee.
)[6] Around the same time, though, Wang Chongrong and the powerful eunuch Tian Lingzi, who dominated Emperor Xizong's court (which had returned to Chang'an by this point), got into a major dispute over control of salt ponds at Hezhong Circuit.
He appeared to make no subsequently attempt to side with either side when Wang Chongrong and Li Keyong subsequently engaged and defeated the forces under Tian and his allies Zhu Mei the military governor of Jingnan Circuit (靜難, headquartered in modern Xianyang, Shaanxi) and Li Changfu the military governor of Fengxiang Circuit (鳳翔, headquartered in modern Baoji, Shaanxi), causing Emperor Xizong to flee again, to Xingyuan, nor was there any sign that he was involved in Zhu's subsequent failed attempt to make Emperor Xizong's distant relative Li Yun the Prince of Xiang emperor.