After the death of Guo Zixing in 1355, Zhu Yuanzhang took over the military power of the Red Scarf Army and served as the right deputy marshal. It was the year when he crossed the river and conquered Taiping (now Dangtu, Anhui), and the next year he captured Jiqing (now Nanjing). He established Jiangnan Xingzhongshu Province and developed outward with Nanjing as the base.

On July 28, 1356 (the first day of July in the 16th year of Yuan to Zheng), he called himself "Duke of Wu" and continued to expand his strength. The uprising team developed to more than 100,000 people.

From 1357 onwards, Zhu Yuanzhang marched to the west and east of Zhejiang to attack the remnants and separatist forces of the Yuan Dynasty.

In 1359, it occupied a vast area in western and eastern Zhejiang, and its strength developed rapidly.