When Wang Rong's ally Li Cunxu the Prince of Jin attacked in response, he died in shock.
However, the people of Cang Prefecture then rose against him, causing him to flee to neighboring Chengde Circuit (成德, headquartered in modern Shijiazhuang, Hebei).
[4] In 912, when Li Cunxu was set to launch a major attack against Liu Rengong's son and successor Liu Shouguang, who had claimed the title of Emperor of Yan, Wang Deming joined forces with Li Cunxu's major general Zhou Dewei, as well as Cheng Yan (程巖), who commanded an army from Jin's and Zhao's ally Yiwu Circuit (義武, headquartered in modern Baoding, Hebei), and they subsequently sieged You Prefecture.
By the end of the year, however, Wang appeared to be no longer participating in the campaign, for he was recorded as taking 30,000 men to raid Later Liang's northern territory and capturing Zongcheng (宗城, in modern Xingtai, Hebei).
That year, Wang Rong, who had become accustomed to luxurious living, alienated his army by spending too much time at his vacation home in the mountains west of Zhao's capital Zhen Prefecture (鎮州).
[2] Zhang Wenli sent a report of what occurred to Li Cunxu, requesting to be commissioned as a military governor, while at the same time offering to support him as emperor.
(Li Cunxu had, up to that point, only carried the title of Prince of Jin as he theoretically still considered himself a Tang subject.)
(Zhu Zhen, despite the urging of his chancellor Jing Xiang, took no action, believing that Zhang was not truly a trustworthy subject.)
[2] In fall 921, Li Cunxu commissioned Fu as the acting military governor of Chengde and launched a general campaign against Zhang.
His son Zhang Chujin took over command of the Chengde forces, but was eventually defeated and killed by Li Cunxu in 922.