Editing Hongwu Emperor (section)

===Conquest of Han (1360–1365)===
[[File:Cina v roce 1360.svg|thumb|China in 1360. Zhu Yuanzhang ruled the southern part of [[Han Lin'er]]'s [[self-proclaimed]] Song empire (red).]]
[[File:Xu Da.jpg|thumb|[[Xu Da]], the Hongwu Emperor's most trusted general. Illustration from the collection of biographies of ''Wanxiaotang Huazhuan'' ({{zhi|t=晚笑堂畫傳}}), 1743.]]
In the beginning of 1360, Zhu controlled the southwestern part of Jiangsu, all of [[Anhui]] south of the Yangtze River, and the inland of Zhejiang. By 1393, these territories had a population of 7.8 million.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=72}} The domain (known as the Kingdom of Wu since 1363),{{efn|name=Wu}} led by Zhang Shicheng, had comparable power with a larger population but worse organization. Chen Youlang's state of Han had a similar situation.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=72}} The [[Chen Han|state of Han]], located west of Zhu's territory, included the provinces of [[Jiangxi]] and [[Hubei]]. Zhang, based in [[Suzhou]], controlled the lower reaches of the Yangtze, from the eastern borders of Zhu's dominions to the sea. While Zhu, Zhang, and Chen divided up the Yangtze River Basin, the rest of southern and central China was largely under the control of "one-province" regimes. [[Fang Guozhen]] controlled the eastern Chinese coast, [[Ming Yuzhen]] ruled in [[Sichuan]], and the trio of Yuan loyalists ([[Chen Youding]], [[He Zhen (count)|He Zhen]], and [[Basalawarmi]]) controlled [[Fujian]], [[Guangdong]], and [[Yunnan]]. These provincial regimes were unable to threaten the "big three", but were strong in defense.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=72}}

The war between Zhu's Jiangnan and Chen Youliang's Han state from 1360 to 1363 had a devastating impact on the balance of power in the Yangtze River Basin. This conflict not only gave Zhu a significant advantage over other rivals, but also increased his prestige among his own people.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=72}} The fighting began when the Han army attacked Nanjing in 1360, but they were quickly defeated by Zhu.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=77}} In 1361, the war spread to the Han province of Jiangxi, which changed hands multiple times.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=78}} By the following year, Zhu had gained control of the province.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=79}}

In January 1363, Zhang Shicheng's army launched a surprise attack on Anfeng, the residence of Song emperor Han Lin'er, resulting in the death of [[Liu Futong]], the de facto leader of the regime. Despite being formally under the control of the Song government, Zhu offered his army to assist Han Lin'er, who was still highly respected among the troops.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=82}} As a result, the powerless Han Lin'er was relocated to [[Chuzhou]], located west of Nanjing on the opposite side of the Yangtze River.{{sfnp|Mote|1988|p=51}} However, the army remained stationed in the north until August 1363.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=83}}

The departure of Zhu's main forces to the north presented Chen with an opportunity to turn the tide of the war. He quickly raised an army of 300,000, outnumbering Zhu's remaining forces.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=83}} Chen's plan was to capture [[Nanchang]] and then rally the local leaders in Jiangxi to join his cause and attack Nanjing,{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=83}} but the Nanchang [[garrison]], led by Deng Yu ({{zhi|t=鄧兪}}), held out until early June 1363. In mid-August, Zhu's army and fleet finally set out from Nanjing with approximately 100,000 soldiers.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=84}} The two fleets [[Battle of Lake Poyang|clashed on Lake Poyang]] on 29 August 1363, engaging in a four-day battle that resulted in the defeat of the Han fleet and the death of Chen Youliang.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|pp=85–86}}

In 1364–1365, Zhu focused on conquering and absorbing the Han's territories. Numerous Han prefectural and county commanders surrendered without resistance, and Huguang was pacified by General [[Xu Da]] by April 1365. By February 1365, Generals [[Chang Yuchun]] and Deng Yu had gained control over central and southern Jiangxi.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|pp=89–90}} This annexation of territories provided Zhu with a significant population advantage over its adversaries. The main threats to Zhu at this time were the Mongol warlord [[Köke Temür]] in northern China and Zhang Shicheng, who was based in Suzhou.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=89}}

Expansion of the army with former Han troops required a reorganization of the military.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|pp=90–91}} Therefore, in 1364, Zhu implemented the ''Weisuo'' system, which involved the formation of guards (''wei'') comprising 5,600 soldiers. These guards were further divided into 5 battalions (''qianhusuo'') of 1,120 soldiers each, with 10 companies (''baihusuo'') in each battalion.{{sfnp|Wakeman|1985|p=25}}

After 1364, the army was made up of 17 guards consisting of veterans who had previously served before 1363. The older veterans were demobilized, while the others were assigned to the garrison in Nanjing where they worked as peasants, using their production to provide food for the army.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|p=91}} Additional soldiers, who were reliable but had shorter periods of service, were acquired during the conquest of southern Anhui and central Zhejiang. They were stationed in the former Han territory, with field armies concentrated in Nanchang and Wuchang, and garrisons scattered across Jiangxi and Huguang.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|pp=91–92}} The remaining soldiers, mostly former Han soldiers, were joined by some veterans in the field armies sent to fight against the [[Wu (Zhang Shicheng)|state of Wu]] under the leadership of Generals Xu Da and Chang Yuchun.{{sfnp|Dreyer|1988|pp=91–92}}