The first lesson that the junior class took after going abroad was completed in Xingjiapo. This lesson told them: if the motherland is weak, it will not be respected by others.

Only with the backing of a strong motherland can we be able to raise our heads outside and be a good person.

Shang Tai personally came forward, and the British officials in Xingjiapo finally compromised. After some wrangling, they finally let the fleet leave.

It is said that it is really difficult for these foreigners to distinguish between Ryukyu people and Chinese people.

But at least I can be sure that the King of Ryukyu is real.

Because the Ryukyu Kingdom had already sent a note to the British before.

Xiang Bang approached the British consul in Naha to handle this matter.

British merchant ships sailing from Naha carried the news to the various colonies.

The King of Ryukyu's visit to Britain was a very honorable event for the British Empire. It could also be regarded as the political achievement of the minister.

No wonder the other party is so positive.

During this period, the British Empire also liked the coming of all nations.

The Xingjiapo authorities naturally got the news.

After all, Rong Hong lacked experience. He grew up a lot after this incident.

He had stayed abroad for many years and had seen that foreign diplomats were very decent people. He originally thought that becoming a diplomat would be such a glorious thing.

He also didn’t want to think about why, as a Chinese diplomat, he still had the title of Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Ryukyu Kingdom? Although the Ryukyu Kingdom is now a kingdom within the Chinese nation.

That's because the Chinese have not even rectified their names at this time.

Without correcting your name, others will not regard you as an independent diplomatic subject.

Rong Hong understood that the only thing he could use now was his status as Ryukyu State's Foreign Minister.

And these foreigners also want to make money through the Naha Port in Ryukyu.

Foreigners now dare not do anything to the Ryukyu Kingdom, because the Ryukyu Kingdom is still a vassal state of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. With this status, Manchu and Qing Dynasty goods can be transported to Ryukyu smoothly.

It gave these foreigners a stable source of goods.

They must keep this line, especially now that the Chinese have occupied the southeastern coast and the five-port trade has been cut off.

Naha Port is the card that Rong Hong can play. If he wants to gain recognition from foreigners, he must play this card well.

…

Outside Hong Kong Island, the British fleet lingered for several days. There were too few small ships in the fleet to clear the mines.

The fleet tried several times to break into the Kowloon Strait without success, and had no choice but to withdraw.

General Carden regretted handing over those shallow-water gunboats to the Army.

At this time, he did not know what the situation was like on the island. The fleet did not feel like rashly bombing Hong Kong Island.

He sent people ashore several times in small boats, but in the end they never came back.

Zhao Liewen has returned to Guangzhou, and Dong Liang is preparing to send him to organize the war on the Western Front.

Wang Su was in charge of the security of Hong Kong Island at this time. He placed a large number of hidden sentries around the island and blocked the entire island.

The remaining foreigners on the island and some Chinese who were dependent on the foreigners were all imprisoned to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Thanks to the fact that most of the British people were poisoned to death, there was no one on the island to talk to. Until the escort finally occupied the place, the British did not have time to destroy the island.

Dong Liang ordered Wang Su to focus on protecting the factory area on the island.

The British have been operating on Hong Kong Island for more than ten years and regard this place as more important than Xingjiapo.

A miniature industrial system has been established on the island. Although the scale is small, the system is very complete.

After all, this place is too far away from the British mainland, and the things they need for ship repair cannot be transported from such a far place.

Moreover, these factories were built by the British themselves, and there is no technical emasculation. They represent the latest technology of the British.

They include shipyards, machinery factories, sail and cable factories, military factories, and some light industrial factories.

These British people already regard this place as the British mainland.

…

"Guan Yan, why don't you make some arrangements? I want to go to Hong Kong Island to visit." Dong Liang said.

"Führer, you'd better not go over to Hong Kong Island for the time being. The British fleet hasn't left yet and it's not safe there yet." Guan Yan heard that Dong Liang wanted to visit Hong Kong Island and hurriedly stopped him.

This is also his responsibility.

"On November 16, the third year of Xianfeng, the head of state wanted to go to Hong Kong Island, but Guan Yan, the director of the attendant's office, stopped him..." Zhao Guodong wrote in his notebook.

Dong Liang had already regarded Zhao Guodong as a transparent person, and sometimes he would not even notice that there was a middle-aged uncle following behind him.

"The British cannot get supplies around them, so they will have to retreat sooner or later. The closest supply point to them is at Xingjiapo, and no other place has the ability to maintain their large warships." Dong Liang said.

At the same time that the escort army attacked Hong Kong Island, a convoy army group also came to Macau from overland.

The Guards took over Macau with little or no decent resistance.

Even the British were defeated, and the Portuguese were not so overconfident.

What's more, Macau now has no governor and is managed by a council.

In 1847, the previous governor Amariu drove away the customs officials of the Qing government without authorization and took the customs authority into his own hands.

He also targeted the local Chinese, bringing them under his jurisdiction and controlling their life and death.

He also sent troops to destroy the Qing government's institutions in Macau, emptied them of personnel, and wanted to monopolize Macau.

He also expanded the roads in Macau without authorization for his own use, and never paid land rent to the Qing government again.

Amariu's behavior aroused strong resistance from the local Chinese people. Shen Zhiliang, a villager in Wangxia, and others decided to assassinate him when he rode around the Guanzha area.

The plan of Shen Zhiliang and others was leaked, but Amariu still had no scruples and went his own way.

In August 1849, while Yama stayed in the vicinity of the border gate, he was eventually assassinated by Shen Zhiliang and others.

Macau was again taken over by a council composed of Chinese and Australian businessmen.

The Portuguese in Macau have always wanted to make Macau the same status as Hong Kong Island, but their own strength is insufficient.

Even the Qing government looked down upon the Portuguese.

At this time, among the Western powers, the Portuguese were completely reduced to a third-rate small country.

Macau is very important to them. By helping Chinese merchants build ships and relying on Macau's trade, they can bring huge benefits to the Kingdom of Portugal every year.

However, the situation in Portugal was also very chaotic at this time.

In 1853, Queen Maria II of Portugal died in childbirth, and King Fernando II of Portugal abdicated at the same time.

However, Fernando II still served as regent of Portugal for his son King Pedro V of Portugal.

The power is unclear and the country's political orders are difficult to unify. This is the source of unrest.

Just as Dong Liang and Guan Yan were discussing the next itinerary, an official from the Headquarters came to report.

"Führer, Mr. Wu has brought a Portuguese man here to ask for an audience."

"Wu Chongyao?" Dong Liang said.

"It's none other than Mr. Wu Chongyao Wu."

Because of the relationship with Yuehua Company, Wu Chongyao has been visiting the State Headquarters frequently these days, and even these staff members have gotten to know Wu Chongyao.

It is normal that Wu Chongyao has a relationship with the Portuguese.

The Portuguese are not as arrogant as the British, and their business relationship with the Chinese is an equal one.

Many Chinese businessmen like to do business with the Portuguese.

Moreover, the merchant ships produced in Macao, especially the old lock ships, are deeply loved by Chinese businessmen.

Dong Liang expected that the Portuguese would come to visit him. If they did not come again, Dong Liang would not mind driving them away.

The Chinese are now at odds with the Western powers and are at war with Britain, the United States, and Spain.

According to Dong Liang's strategy, their relationship with the Dutch will not be good later.

But he hoped to find a vest to maintain the maritime connection between the Chinese and the West.

I don’t know how long Ryukyu Kingdom’s vest will last. You can’t put all your eggs in one basket.

No matter how weak the Portuguese were, they still had colonies in India, East Africa, and West Africa.

These colonies were connected together to form a complete supply line.
Chapter completed!