In 893, Li Keyong attacked Wang Rong again, and Wang could not repel his attack despite aid from
Li Cunxiao, formerly an adoptive son of Li Keyong's who had turned against Li Keyong. Li Kuangwei launched his army to aid Wang, and after he defeated Li Keyong, Li Keyong withdrew. Because of this, Wang awarded Li Kuangwei's army with a large amount of money and silk. However, right as he launched his army, Li Kuangwei had sown the seeds of his defeat. His family members had held a feast to send him off, and at the feast, Li Kuangwei, who was drunk, raped the beautiful wife of his younger brother
Li Kuangchou. Thereafter, while Li Kuangwei was on the way back to Lulong after aiding Wang, Li Kuangchou took over the Lulong headquarters and claimed the title of acting military governor, and subsequently issued orders to the Lulong soldiers to return to Lulong. The Lulong soldiers largely followed that order and deserted Li Kuangwei, who was left at Chengde's Shen Prefecture (深州, in modern
Hengshui,
Hebei) with a small number of his close followers. Unsure what he should do next, he sent his assistant Li Baozhen () to the imperial capital
Chang'an, requesting that he be allowed to report to the imperial capital. However, thereafter, as Wang was grateful to Li Kuangwei for his aid and sorry that Li Kuangwei had lost his own circuit, welcomed Li Kuangwei to Chengde's capital Zhen Prefecture (). He built a mansion for Li Kuangwei and honored Li Kuangwei like a father. Once Li Kuangwei settled in at Zhen, he assisted Wang in building the defenses of Zhen Prefecture and training Chengde soldiers. However, as Wang was young (19) at the time, and Li Kuangwei himself liked the customs of the people of Zhen, he plotted with Li Baozhen (who had returned from Chang'an by that point) to seize control of the circuit. Later in 893, on the anniversary of the death of one of Li Kuangwei's parents, when Wang was at Li Kuangwei's mansion to pay his respects, Li Kuangwei had his own soldiers try to seize Wang. Wang, reacting quickly, stated that he was willing to turn the control of the circuit to him but that they should formally do so at the circuit headquarters. Li Kuangwei agreed, and they rode horses together toward headquarters, escorted by Li Kuangwei's soldiers. On the way there, one of the Chengde soldiers, Mo Junhe (), hidden in a corner, seized Wang and took him out of Li Kuangwei's corps of soldiers. The remaining Chengde troops, once they saw that Wang was out of danger, attacked Li Kuangwei and his troops, slaughtering them and allowing Wang to retain Chengde. == Notes and references ==