to rebuild his power with support from Zhang Ya (), a rebel leader with a strong army. They succeeded in killing Han Yan (), the Commandant of the Southern Region () appointed by Sun Ce, but were ultimately defeated by He Qi, a general under Sun Ce. Wang Lang tried to go further south to Jiao Province to recuperate, but was caught up and defeated by Sun Ce. He then conducted a very humble speech to appease Sun Ce, who later accepted his surrender. Service in Wei Despite surrendering, Wang Lang entered into a self-imposed retirement from public life, refusing Zhang Zhao's request to serve Sun Ce. Eventually he was contacted by one of Cao Cao's spies and was asked to join Cao Cao in the new imperial capital, Xuchang, where the Han central government was based. Although he was initially hesitant, he became convinced after reading a letter from his old friend, Kong Rong, who praised Cao Cao and urged him to go to Xuchang. Thus, he travelled north and reached Xuchang about a year later. Cao Cao highly valued Wang Lang's talent and appointed him as Critical Grandee, and Advisor to the Army of the Excellency of Works. Wang Lang later served in key appointments in Cao Cao's vassal kingdom of Wei after the latter was enfeoffed as a vassal king by Emperor Xian, the last emperor of the Han dynasty. In 220, after Cao Cao's death, his son Cao Pi became king, promoting Wang Lang as Censorate Grandee and enfeoffed him as Marquis of Yueping Village. Later that winter, the Emperor abdicated in favor of Cao Pi, who established the state of Cao Wei to replace the Han dynasty. After becoming the emperor, Cao Pi appointed Wang Lang as the Minister of Works and enfeoffed him as the Marquis of Anling Precinct. During Cao Pi's reign, Wang Lang made several suggestions regarding both military and civilian matters, such as security and the reduction of the state's employees and expenditures. In 226, when Cao Rui came to the throne, he promoted Wang Lang from a district marquis to a county marquis under the title "Marquis of Lanling", increasing his marquisate to 1,700 taxable households, from his previous 1,200. Wang Lang was later sent to Ye (in present-day Handan, Hebei) to visit the tomb of Empress Wenzhao, Cao Rui's mother. She had yet to be canonized as Empress at