Guo Guangbi was a man of immense ambition, and his sights extended far beyond Xingzhou alone. Once Jiang Zhengyang learned that Guo Guangbi had brought Cloud Marsh's Blackwater Stronghold back under his control, he knew that Guo Guangbi's ultimate goal was to seize all of Great Kang. First, he intended to become the unrivaled overlord of the Yong River's northern bank. The three hundred thousand shi of grain Hu Xiaotian was sending to support Capital City became the bond that united Jiang Zhengyang and Guo Guangbi. Common interests brought them together. To solve their grain shortage and become the strongest power north of the Yong River, they had to join forces, break through Wuxing Commandery, and snatch away the fruits of Hu Xiaotian's victory.
Jiang Zhengyang believed everything had unfolded as a matter of course. Hu Xiaotian had been the one to reject him first. Despite holding the Eastern Luo Granary, he had been too miserly to lend Jiang Zhengyang even a single grain of rice, watching him and his brothers march toward a dead end. Had Hu Xiaotian agreed to lend him grain back then, Jiang Zhengyang might never have sought refuge with Guo Guangbi, nor resolved to rebel.
Zu Dacheng also came back from the front of the column to Jiang Zhengyang's side and said respectfully, "My lord, two thousand troops from White Spring City have come to meet us."
Jiang Zhengyang smiled. "Zuo Xingjian is as impatient as ever."
Zu Dacheng said with feeling, "Lord Zuo is almost out of grain too."
At the mention of grain, Jiang Zhengyang's gaze involuntarily turned toward the convoy ahead, suddenly burning with eagerness. From now on, they would no longer have to worry about food. His soldiers needed only half a month to rest and reorganize before they regained their