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"Gentlemen, there is no doubt that we are in big trouble now." British Prime Minister Earl Stanley convened an emergency cabinet meeting early in the morning to discuss countermeasures. The Chinese Empire suddenly raised the issue of Hong Kong, which caught the British by surprise. However, in fact, the British should have been able to think of it a long time ago. Last time, the Chinese Empire wanted to recover Hong Kong, but for some reason, it could not succeed. Now that the Manchus have fallen, the Chinese Empire simply does not recognize the Treaty of Nanking signed by the British and the Manchus, and the Chinese Empire recovers Hong Kong, which is inevitable.

"The Chinese Empire demands that we give an answer on the question of Hong Kong within three days, otherwise they will take all necessary means to recover Hong Kong, including by force. Everybody talks, what are we going to do now? Earl Stanley looked at them and asked.

"Your Excellency, do we have a choice now? Hong Kong is a British colony, and that is stipulated in the treaty. However, now the Chinese have torn up the treaty with great shame, and this kind of behavior is simply too shameless. In order to defend the interests of the British Empire, we did not hesitate to fight. The Marquess of Anglesey, the British War Secretary, said angrily. In the past few years, Britain has always adopted a compromise and concession attitude in the face of the Chinese Empire, which made the Marquis of Anglesey very dissatisfied.

"Your Excellency the Marquis, we are in Hong Kong, and the army and navy together are only five thousand people. Moreover, the Navy had only a few old sail warships there, and the Army had only two regiments. And there are no heavy weapons yet. The Chinese, on the other hand, could send more than 50,000 men to fight at any time if they were to launch an attack on Hong Kong. And our reinforcements. If you are still in India and want to support Hong Kong, it is simply impossible. "Lord of the Admiralty, Charles. Sir Adam said. Hong Kong was under the nose of the Chinese Empire, far from the British, and it would be too difficult for the British to hold Hong Kong.

Perhaps, this is nothing more than the intimidation of the Chinese emperor. Don't forget. They do that a lot. "Chancellor of the Exchequer Benjamin. Disraeli said. All along, the Chinese Empire has taken a relatively tough attitude towards the British, and most of the time. All ended with British retreat.

"No, this time, I'm afraid it's different. If we refuse, the Chinese will most likely resort to force. Even if the Chinese will not go to war with us. But. They regained Hong Kong by force, that's for sure. Said the Earl of Granville, the Foreign Secretary.

"So, gentlemen, do we reject or accept the demands of the Chinese?" Prime Minister Earl Stanley asked. Obviously, this is a very headache.

"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, I still stand by my point of view. We should take a tough stance and face the Chinese. We can't afford to be weak. Don't forget, the Chinese are now in a big war with Russia. They are also about to start a war against the United States, and if they provoke us again, then the Chinese are looking for death. Said the Marquis of Anglesey, Minister of War. At this time, it was still June 22, and the army of the Chinese Empire was fighting a decisive battle against the Russian expeditionary force in Eastern Siberia.

Earl Stanley nodded, there is no doubt that Russia is a powerful country, and even the British are not willing to go to war with Russia. If the Chinese Empire wanted to defeat Russia, it would be impossible. Perhaps, the Chinese will be able to gain some upper hand, but it will take a long time to completely defeat Russia. If the Chinese Empire wants to retake Hong Kong by force, it is simply asking for its own death.

"If a war breaks out between us and the Chinese Empire, will we be able to win?" Earl Stanley asked.

This time, no one dared to give an affirmative answer. The last Burma war has always been a pain in the heart for Britain. In the Burma War, the Chinese Empire defeated hundreds of thousands of British and British and Indian troops, of which the British army suffered more than 100,000 casualties. This made the British Army have formed a subconscious fear of the Chinese Army.

"Your Excellency, although the army has been equipped with many new weapons and equipment over the years, it will be more difficult to defeat the Chinese Empire. In particular, our army had to travel long distances to be able to fight in the Far East. If the navy does not gain sea supremacy, it will be empty talk. Said the Marquis of Anglesey.

The Earl of Stanley looked at the Admiralty Chancellor, Charles. Sir Adam.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, the Navy, has not yet defeated the strength of the Chinese Navy. First of all, with the rise of the French Navy and the Navy of the Kingdom of Spain, we are under increasing pressure to devote much force to the Far East. In addition, the development of the Chinese navy is also relatively fast, and their new 'Eastern Zhou-class' warships have a displacement of nearly 8,000 tons, and the British Navy has no warship that can compete with it. According to the information we have received, the displacement of the warships of the next class of the Chinese Navy will reach more than 10,000 tons. Although I don't want to admit it, it is true, we must rise up and catch up with the Chinese. Until then, we need to avoid war with the Chinese Navy as much as possible. "Lord of the Admiralty, Charles. Sir Adam said.

Although, Britain claims to be the hegemon of the seas. But in fact, after the defeat of the British Navy's Indian Fleet and Far East Fleet by the Chinese Navy, this hegemon was somewhat worthy of the name. The number of warships in the Chinese Navy may not be as large as that of the British Navy. However, in terms of strength, the Chinese Navy has already gained the upper hand.

It was at this time that the secretary of the Prime Minister's Office pushed open the door to his office. Prime Minister Earl Stanley's brow furrowed involuntarily.

"What's going on?" Earl Stanley asked. Now, when an emergency cabinet meeting is held, how can it be disturbed casually?

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, the Viceroy of India has called. The main force of the Chinese navy has appeared on the east coast of India and is facing off the Indian fleet. The secretary replied.

"What? How could it be like this? Are the Chinese going to attack India? Earl Stanley was shocked. India is Britain's most important overseas colony, and Britain's current vigorous development of armaments mainly relies on financial support from India. If India is lost, Britain will suffer a heavy blow.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, you need to give an order to the Viceroy of India immediately to prepare the Indian army for battle. If the Chinese dare to attack India, they must make them pay! The Marquis of Anglesey said through gritted teeth.

"Your Excellency, I think this is just a show of force by the Chinese. If we reject them on the issue of Hong Kong, then war may well break out. Said the Earl of Granville, the Foreign Secretary.

"Your Excellency, I also believe that we should avoid this war as much as possible." Secretary of the Navy Charles. Sir Adam also said.

Earl Stanley's brows were only furrowed. The appearance of the Chinese Navy on the shores of India was undoubtedly a provocation to the British. The target is the Hong Kong issue. If Britain refuses to return Hong Kong, then China is very likely to attack.

At this time, another secretary walked in again: "Your Excellency Prime Minister, the Governor of Hong Kong has called, saying that the Chinese Navy has sent a large number of warships to surround Hong Kong, and our fleet in Hong Kong is blocked in Hong Kong. In addition, on the Kowloon Peninsula opposite Hong Kong, the Chinese* army has also begun to move, and the Chinese* army has deployed at least tens of thousands of troops on the Kowloon Peninsula. Governor Davis asked for advice on what to do. If the three-day period expires, there is a high probability that the Chinese* army will attack! ”

"Damn the Chinese!" The Earl of Stanley was furious. He did not expect that this time the attitude of the Chinese Empire would be so resolute, and the army had already begun to move. Could it be that the Chinese Empire really dared to go to war against Britain?

The rest of the cabinet seemed to be shocked by the news. While they have not yet negotiated a solution, the Chinese have begun to press step by step.

"Your Excellency, there is no doubt that the attitude of the Chinese this time is very resolute. This should be the style of the Chinese emperor. For the sake of Hong Kong, presumably they will really go to war against us. I don't think a Hong Kong is worth going to war with the Chinese Empire. The Earl of Granville, the Foreign Secretary, expressed his attitude in a clear manner. Hong Kong is originally a small place, there are few resources, although the strategic location is very important, but if there is a war with a world power for this, then there is more to gain than to lose.

"Yes, Your Excellency, although Hong Kong is very important, it is very detrimental to us to go to war with the Chinese Empire now." Secretary of the Navy Charles. Sir Adam chimed in.

Subsequently, Chancellor of the Exchequer Benjamin . Disraeli agrees.

Although the Minister of War, Marquis Anglesey, was a little dissatisfied, his views alone could no longer affect the overall situation.

"Well, let's first agree to the Chinese's request. It can be returned to Hong Kong to them. However, it will take a lot of time for the troops and personnel in Hong Kong to be evacuated. Wait until the Chinese and the Russians have decided the winners and losers in Eastern Siberia before making the next decision. Earl Stanley said. His meaning was clear: if the Chinese* army suffered defeat in Eastern Siberia, then Britain could still regret it.

Soon, however, news came that the Chinese* army had completely annihilated the Russian expeditionary force in Eastern Siberia. This shocked Britain and made it even more difficult to confront the Chinese Empire over Hong Kong.

On July 1, 1847, the 2nd Marine Brigade of the Chinese Empire landed in Hong Kong, which represented the empire and officially recovered Hong Kong, which was occupied by the British. (To be continued......)