Deng was later part of Liu Xiu's train while fleeing the attacks of the pretender Wang Lang in 23-24, and contributed to Liu's eventual defeat of Wang. After Wang's defeat, it was at Deng's suggestion that Liu, who had decided to break away from the Gengshi Emperor by that point, entrusted his base of the He'nei (河內, modern northern Henan north of the Yellow River) region to Kou Xun () -- a key suggestion since Kou was an able administrator who turned He'nei into a wealthy territory capable of supplying Liu's subsequent campaigns.