For negotiations, Feng Yunshan is naturally willing.

In addition to capturing 14 warships (especially the two battleships), dozens of troop carriers, and more than 5 million pounds in cash, the joint expeditionary force of the British, Dutch, Portuguese, and Turkish countries invaded China, and captured more than 8,600 prisoners. For these captives, Feng Yunshan has been looking forward to making a fortune again, after all, as early as when he was still the Holy King of the Taiping Holy Kingdom, he had already obtained a ransom for the 600 or so British soldiers captured at a price of 400 silver dollars per capita.

However, Feng Yunshan did not instruct his subordinates to give special preferential treatment to these prisoners who invaded China, except for some medical students who treated some of the injured prisoners humanitarianly with the attitude of experimental mice, and ignored all the others, so that after nearly three months, more than 8,600 prisoners were reduced by more than 1,000 people. Moltke, the deputy chief of the general staff in charge of the captives, believed that proper starvation would make the captives survive better, so the captives ate one meal a day and two meals the next day from the beginning, hoping that the British Empire would send someone to bring them back as soon as possible.

Knowing that the British side proposed to negotiate, Feng Yunshan realized that there was still a group of wealth imprisoned in the suburbs of Guangzhou, so he paid attention to it and sent people to treat these Shengyuan-Western prisoners.

Half a month later.

On the tower of the Taiping Gate of the Holy Capital City, the red background and yellow star banner of the Chinese Empire are fluttering. Not far from the city gate, on the shore of Xuanwu Lake, there are three posts in one step, densely packed with soldiers in light gray military uniforms neatly occupied on both sides of the road, lined up all the way, there are thousands of people.

In a burst of passionate military music, under the guidance of two military bands, 2,500 officers and soldiers of the Chinese Empire, divided into five columns, each team of 500 people, came out of the Taiping Gate in a mighty manner. Out of the city gate, the column formation was unfolded and turned into a neat phalanx, adding to the momentum.

First of all, the phalanx composed of 500 royal guards, led by Liu Shengbang himself, walked neatly and walked to the square under the parade platform on the shore of Xuanwu Lake outside the city. The next phalanx of 500 infantry was followed by a phalanx of 500 artillery and 500 naval phalanxes, 200 cadets of the Huangpu Military Academy and 200 cadets of the shipyard bureaus and 100 representatives of officers in service.

Finally, Zuo Zongtang, Chief of the General Staff of the Chinese Imperial General Staff, and Wu Ruxiao, Minister of Foreign Affairs, rode in a flat-top open-top carriage without carriages, consisting of four tall Western horses, plus four British, Portuguese, Dutch, and Ottoman Turkish captives as royals, slowly walked out of the Taiping City Gate and came to the parade platform.

On both sides of the parade platform, there are two rows of people, each with 200 people. In the front row of each row, all kneeling on the ground with their hands tied behind their backs, turned out to be 100 prisoners of the Anglo-Dutch-Portuguese and Turkish countries in the last war, all of whom were as scrawny as firewood, like beggars; In the back column, there are soldiers of the capture army who have made great achievements in this battle, holding the most advanced Sharps M1859 rifle in the empire, which is majestic.

In the streets and alleys on both sides of Yuewutai Square, and even on the slope of a nearby mountain called Jiuhua Mountain, on the roofs of the streets, and on the treetops around it, there were all people in the Shengjing City who heard the news and rushed to watch.

They all know that today it was the Western British Kingdom thousands of miles away who came to the Chinese Empire to sue for peace, admitting defeat and asking for a negotiated solution to the post-war problem.

After three cannon shots, hundreds of soldiers of the captive army on one side of the square dispersed, revealing a group of foreigners appearing in a corner of the square. These more than 100 Western soldiers escorted more than 10 people, and slowly walked to the center of the square, facing the parade platform.

The two headed by the former British Prime Minister and the 15th Earl of Derby are none other than Edward Edward. Henry. Stanley, and Sir Baling, the British Special Envoy Plenipotentiary to China again, were respectively the chief and deputy peace talks, and the two led the negotiating delegations of LinkedIn and the other three countries, taking advantage of the monsoon in the Indian Ocean, on the fastest clipper boat, hurried to the east, and proposed negotiations.

The British negotiations were making the Earl of Derby, whose face was a little pale, and it was evident that he was very dissatisfied with such a grand and grand negotiation ceremony that the Chinese Empire had made, and he kept muttering something, but no one paid any attention to him. Because at this time, a magnificent military song of the captive army has been sounded: "...... Breathe our wrath out on the Manchu Tartar enemies! The Han family has reached the most dangerous time,......"

The Earl of Derby was annoyed. He naturally understood that this was the other side putting on a posture to preach the powerful military power to the negotiating delegation led by him, to show their victory, and to mock and even humiliate the British Empire in this way. He was extremely dissatisfied, but he couldn't help himself, after all, the fact in front of him was that the British Expeditionary Force had been wiped out, and there were still nearly 10,000 prisoners in the hands of the other side, whether it was the crowds of demonstrators in major British cities or the pressure of public opinion in the newspapers that filled Europe, which forced the Queen of England and Parliament to express their efforts to bring these poor prisoners back to their homeland. Therefore, he must restrain himself, even if he swallows his anger, and if the peace talks are successful, and those captives are brought back.

The Earl of Derby was still thinking in annoyance, and the military song had stopped.

On both sides of the square, several strong soldiers of the begging army came over and "invited" the Earl of Derby and his deputy, Sir Bao Ling, the plenipotentiary envoy to China, to the parade.

On the parade platform, Zuo Zongtang and Wu Ruxiao stood among them, and behind them were dozens of officials of the Chinese Empire who came to watch the ceremony, especially several local officials from Qinghai, Tibet, Mongolia, Korea, Annam and other places, as well as envoys or representatives from Japan, Siam, Burma, and Sikh, with serious expressions on their faces or proud and proud, and so on.

In addition, several foreigners also sat next to the ceremony, but the French Empire's Foreign Minister Valleves, the French Minister to China, Bourblon, the Prussian Prince William and the Minister to China, the American Minister to China, and the former Minister Marshali, were also sitting there solemnly.

When the Earl of Derby and Sir Bao Ling saluted each other, Zuo Zongtang turned his face to the side, pretending to be talking about something with Pan Wentao, the vice minister of commerce next to him, but he didn't pay attention to it, and when Wu Ruxiao pulled his sleeve, Zuo Zongtang seemed to have just found that the British envoy had come to him, but he nodded at the two with a cold attitude, and his attitude was very cold.

This made the Earl of Derby even more angry, but it was more than that. When the Earl of Derby had just introduced himself, Sir Bao Ling gently reminded him that it was the Chinese negotiator opposite, and motioned for the two of them to come closer to him, and the other party said that he could not hear the words of the Earl of Derby, and that his voice was too small and bold, so he should not be afraid.

This is utter contempt! The Earl of Derby almost fainted. Originally, he was against the expedition to China, but now, he feels that Palmerston is right.

But the negotiations have to continue. Two rows of British prisoners on either side of the square were still kneeling. The Earl of Derby, suppressing his anger, strode up to the hateful Chinese official, and looked at him viciously.

The other party laughed. But not to the Earl of Derby, but to Sir Baling.

Zuo Zongtang was like an old friend, and Wu Ruxiao and Wu Ruxiao pulled Sir Bao Ling over with one hand, and said with a smile: "Sir Bao Ling, we are old friends, please sit down." After speaking, Zuo Zongtang didn't even glance at Earl Derby, and Wu Ruxiao walked straight to the stage and sat down on the Taishi chair behind the two large tables.

In the middle of the rear of the parade platform, there are two tables, on which are placed the text of the treaty to be signed, and the two sides are for the signing of the plenipotentiary envoys of the two countries.

Zuo Zongtang walked straight to the left of the two negotiation tables and sat down. Seeing this, Wu Ruxiao also followed the other seat on the left side next to him and sat down.

The Earl of Derby and Sir Bauling were seated on the right. After that, Count Derby nodded his head, and Bao Ling got up and said in Chinese: "Chief of Staff Zuo, Lord Wu, now that we have come to your country for peace talks, will we send the British boys who are still kneeling on the ground in the audience to look very weak, will they all be sent back to the camp to rest?" They are kneeling here, but it has an impact on the negotiations. ”

Zuo Zongtang was also simply, and with a direct wave of his hand, the two columns of soldiers in the square under the stage pushed and shoved those kneeling British soldiers out of the square.

Both the Earl of Derby and Sir Bowling breathed a sigh of relief.

The two sides decided on an armistice and peace talks, and the terms of the peace talks had already been negotiated, and before that, the Earl of Derby, as the chief negotiator, had never met with the officials of the Chinese Empire. The reason is that as soon as he entered the East Indies, the French Minister to China, Bourbron, and the American Minister to China, as if they had known that he would come, sent a letter in advance, listing the conditions for negotiations in the Chinese Empire, so that Count Derby had a psychological preparation in advance, of course, this extremely harsh condition was also the reason why Count Derby was furious along the way.

But for the first time, he felt extremely angry and unacceptable conditions, and after many times of persuasion and mediation by Bourblon, Bour and others, the Earl of Derby slowly recognized the situation, and the form was inadmissible. What he hated more was actually the group of parliamentarians in the country, who had already decided to bring the prisoners back to Britain in peace talks, so how could he negotiate? There are no chips at all, only to fall into passivity.

But after opening the conditions in the "Agreement on the Aftermath of the Battle of Canton" on the table, Earl Derby couldn't help but stand up in shock: there were two more conditions than the original mediation.