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Imperial Foreign Minister Lin Zihao expressed strong dissatisfaction and indignation at the British plotting a rebellion on the plateau. However, the British did not admit their involvement in the rebellion at all, and instead demanded that the empire protect the lives and property of British merchants and tourists entering the plateau. In fact, those British tourists and businessmen were simply British intelligence officers. What's even more bizarre is that those British intelligence officers have already confessed, but the British government is still stubborn and refuses to admit it.

From the very beginning to the present, the British have never stopped making trouble for the Empire. Even before the empire was established, the British encouraged the Dutch and the Spaniards in the South Seas to oppose the empire. However, in the end, they all failed. After that, the British took matters into their own hands, but the invincible British Navy was defeated under the attack of the Imperial Navy. This made Britain directly lose the ability to contain the empire. In the following, the British supported the Manchus and Russia to fight against the Empire, but in the end they all failed. Now, if they want to plan a rebellion on the plateau, they are trying to make trouble for the Empire, further drag down the Empire, and consume the Empire's strength. What they didn't expect, though, was that in just a few days, the rebellion was extinguished, and even their intelligence officers fell into the hands of the Empire.

However, the British would never admit that they had orchestrated such a rebellion. Although Britain and the Empire have clashed several times in private, on the surface, they are still friendly countries. After the first two defeats, the British government was not absolutely sure. They are not going to fight the Empire themselves. They can only weaken the empire by supporting countries that have a grudge against the empire. When the power of the empire is weakened, they will fall into the ground. That's the case. For the UK, it is undoubtedly much safer.

However, this strategy is actually like adding fuel to the vinegar. Gave the empire plenty of time to develop. By the time the empire defeated the countries supported by the British one by one, the empire was already very powerful. When the time comes, if the British want to deal with the Empire, it will be even more impossible.

The British refused to admit to planning a rebellion on the plateau. This had long been expected by Emperor Long Yufei. After all, the British pride themselves on being a civilized country, the hegemon of the world. They always have to put on the garb of gentlemen.

Singapore, the capital of the Imperial Straits Province and the largest city in the South Seas, meanwhile. It was also the home port of the Imperial Navy's 5th Fleet. Singapore now. It has developed into a big city. Merchant ships traveling between the East and the West would choose to dock here. Coupled with the protection of the Imperial Navy, piracy in the Strait of Malacca was almost extinct, which promoted the prosperity of commerce.

The task of the 5th Fleet of the Imperial Navy is to protect the interests of the Empire in the South Seas and to alert the enemy in the direction of the Indian Ocean. Now that Burma is part of the Empire, the Imperial Navy's 5th Fleet also has a military base in Yangon, allowing the Imperial Navy to maintain a military presence in the Bay of Bengal. Confronted the Indian fleet of the British Navy.

The main fighter of the 5th Fleet. It includes 12 'Xia-class' cruisers, 4 'Western Zhou-class' warships and three 'Eastern Zhou-class' warships that have just been commissioned. Other than that. There are also dozens of small offshore patrol warships, as well as supply ships, and so on. Such a fleet, although inferior to the Indian fleet of the British Navy in terms of the number of warships, is far superior to the Indian fleet of the British Navy in terms of strength.

In particular, the 'Dongzhou-class' warships, which have just been put into service, are very strong in combat. Rear Admiral Lu Haipeng, commander of the 5th Fleet, immediately replaced his flagship with a 'Dongzhou-class' warship as soon as it entered service. In addition, training should be organized as soon as possible, so that the fleet can form combat effectiveness as soon as possible. The displacement of the 'Eastern Zhou-class' warships is nearly 8,000 tons, just like a giant on the sea. Coupled with a 210 mm main gun, as well as thick armor, this class of battleships is definitely the most powerful warship in the world, and there is no one. Unless the next 'Qin-class' warships of the Imperial Navy are put into service. However, the 'Qin-class' warships have not yet started construction, and if they want to enter service, it is estimated that they will have to wait for more than three years.

Recently, Major General Lu Haipeng has been a little anxious. In this great war of the Empire, the 5th Fleet had no chance to go to the battlefield at all, and even the 1st Fleet had the task of escorting the Imperial Army across the Pacific Ocean and landing in North America. However, the 5th Fleet still received an order to alert the enemy in the direction of the Indian Ocean, which made Rear Admiral Lu Haipeng, who was uncomfortable without a fight, very unhappy.

"Haha, old Lu, there is an order from the General Staff!" Rear Admiral Ye Feng, chief of staff of the 5th Fleet, entered the fleet headquarters with a smile.

"What order? It won't be another order to wipe out pirates! Major General Lu Haipeng replied with some weakness.

"Hey, not this time. The Chief of the General Staff ordered the fleet to set sail at once and head for the Indian Ocean. Major General Ye Feng said with a smile.

"What? Is it going to war with the British? Major General Lu Haipeng suddenly jumped up. He had been waiting for this day, but he had been waiting for a long time.

"No, we have enough enemies right now, and the Empire doesn't want to go to war with the British right away. The Chief of the General Staff asked us to go around the east coast of India and show our strength. Major General Ye Feng said.

"Oh! That's what happened. I see, China wants to recover Hong Kong, so let's go and deter the British. I hope that when the time comes, some blind people will dare to provoke us, and in that case, if war breaks out suddenly, it will not be our responsibility. Major General Lu Haipeng said with some excitement. After all, the relationship between the 5th Fleet of the Imperial Navy and the Indian Ocean Fleet of the British Navy has always been relatively tense. Conflicts often break out, and if both sides had not tried to restrain themselves, war might have broken out long ago.

"Lao Ye, give orders to the fleet! Three hours later, the fleet set sail. Major General Lu Haipeng ordered.

"Yes, Commander!" Major General Ye Feng nodded.

The 5th Fleet of the Imperial Navy, began an emergency assembly. The officers and men who had been on leave and went ashore to rest also rushed to the fleet's military port as soon as possible. For a while, the whole of Singapore was panicked. Could it be that there is another war? Foreigners in Singapore, in particular, were a little worried that their safety would be affected if the Chinese Empire went to war with their country.

At 1 p.m., the 19 capital warships of the 5th Fleet of the Imperial Navy sailed out of the military port one after another and entered the Strait of Malacca. This news was quickly learned by the intelligence officers sent to Singapore by various countries, and they hurriedly sent the news back to China.

On June 20, 1847, Emperor Long Yufei summoned Prime Minister Li Decheng, Foreign Minister Lin Zihao, and Chief of General Staff General Niu Meng to consult them on a single issue. That is the Hong Kong problem. Although, the capital of the empire has been determined to be Huaxia City. However, Hong Kong, as a British colony, still posed a great threat to the empire. Last time, the empire almost used force to recover Hong Kong, but in order not to exacerbate the contradictions, the empire temporarily withheld it.

Now, the Manchu Qing Dynasty has been destroyed by the Empire, which has announced at the first time that it will not recognize a series of unequal treaties signed by the Manchu government with foreign countries. It also meant that the empire did not recognize the British occupation of Hong Kong at all.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it has been five years since Hong Kong was occupied by the British, beginning in 1842. For the past five years, I have been trying to take Hong Kong back from the British. However, due to various reasons, it has not been able to succeed. Now, we can't afford to wait any longer. You have to do your best! Emperor Long Yufei said sternly.

"Your Majesty, according to our agreement with the British, the British have deployed no more than five thousand men in Hong Kong. With the support of the 1st Fleet, only one Marine Brigade is needed to take Hong Kong! The Chief of the General Staff, Admiral Niu Meng, assured.

"Solving the problem by force is just a last resort. It would be best if it could be resolved through diplomacy. Majesty, we may be able to get in touch with the British first through diplomatic means. Foreign Minister Lin Zihao said. War is a way to use it when there is no way to do it.

"Your Majesty, I agree with Lord Lin's point of view. Let's get in touch with the British first, and then use force if diplomacy doesn't work. In this case, it is also a courtesy before a soldier, and there is courtesy and courtesy. Prime Minister Li Decheng said.

"Well, well! The Ministry of Foreign Affairs first contacted the British, but this time, I had already made up my mind to recover Hong Kong. If the British refuse to return it, then we will resort to force. The army must make preparations, and once the order is given, it must recover Hong Kong in the shortest possible time! ”

"Yes, Your Majesty!" The Chief of the General Staff, General Niu Meng, nodded.

"Your Majesty, if we recover Hong Kong by force, will it lead to a full-scale war with Britain?" Prime Minister Li Decheng said with some concern.

"The British are not going to war with us for a little Hong Kong. They are still waiting for us to be defeated by other countries, and then they will come and pick up the bargain. Besides, even if there is a real war, we don't have to be afraid of them. Both the 5th and 1st fleets of the Imperial Navy were ready for battle. As long as the British navy was not sure of victory, they would not have gone to war lightly! Long Yufei looked very confident. (To be continued......)