As the leader of a local White Lotus society[2] and a follower of the Maitreya Buddha, Guo believed that a time of great change was ahead so he used his money to gather a group of loyal soldiers.
The Yuan dynasty's response to the capture of Haozhou was initially lackluster, consisting of undisciplined village raiding and temple burning.
[5] Yuan forces under Toqto'a drove Sesame Seed Li (芝麻李)[1] from Xuzhou in late 1352 and two of his generals, Peng Da (彭大) and Zhao Junyong (趙均用), took refuge in Haozhou in early 1353.
Guo Zixing sided with Peng Da and was kidnapped by the opposing faction led by Sun Deya and Zhao Junyong.
Zhu Yuanzhang, returning from an expedition, rescued him after bringing Guo's younger wife, her children,[6] and Peng Da[7] to the opposing faction's camp and raiding Sun's house.
[3] Yuan forces under hydraulic engineer Jia Lu (賈魯) besieged Haozhou in winter 1352[1] and ended in June 1353 after he died.
Zhao Junyong became the strongest leader in Haozhou after Peng Da's death, causing Guo and Zhu to fall out of favor.
[8] After a failed Yuan counter siege, Zhu allowed Guo's old enemy, Sun Deya, to join their forces.