In December 1882, when the British calendar entered the Western calendar, Reuters and then The Times published articles criticizing the ships of the British Far East Fleet for not only being obsolete and failing, but also still using the former guns of the 1860s and 1870s, which was a real shame for the British Navy. In order to ensure the influence of the British Empire in the Far East, both newspapers strongly demanded that the British government send new ironclads to the Far East!

Later, a middle-ranking officer of the British Admiralty also made an anonymous opinion in the newspaper, saying that the British government should adopt an active policy of replacing the fleet of the "Far East Fleet" with new ones, and eliminating all the old ships of the Fly and Jewel classes. Swift, Cockchafer, Espair, Firebrand, Linnet, Merlin, Rambler, and all the old ships, such as the thousand-ton sail clippers, were all eliminated. Replace it with newer ships.

The other two heavily armoured ships, "Orion" and "Wyvern", were also old, but due to their thick armor and heavy guns, they could still be left in Singapore for defensive purposes. Others, such as the "Constance", are equipped with old guns, but their performance is still good. As for the remaining ships such as Alacrity, Cordelia, Her0ine, Leander, Mutine, porpoise, Rattler, Satellite, Wanderer, the performance is quite acceptable, and it can also show a certain deterrent in the Far East, with many new ships, to maintain British naval superiority in the Far East. It was envisaged that the British government would be able to add an additional second-class ironclad and a new 4,000-ton dome cruiser. Like the Mersey, it would be better.

This sudden explosion of public opinion from the media. With the fermentation of time, it entered after 1883 in the Western calendar. The momentum in Britain is getting stronger. Of course, Liu Xian just wants to scold his mother.

After the British Far Eastern Fleet turned Hong Kong into a free port, the main forces were transferred to Singapore. At present, there is one second-class ironclad ship with a tonnage of more than 6,500 tons, four cruisers of more than 2,000 tons, three heavy armored ships with an upper displacement of 3,000 tons, a total of eight main warships and many clippers and gunboats to form the British naval force in the Far East.

Now, if the four uncle's cruisers and two heavy armored ships were all replaced, and a second-class ironclad ship and a 4,000-ton dome cruiser were to be replaced, the strength of the British would already be able to pose a mortal threat to China's Nanyang Fleet.

Liu Xian didn't scold his mother at this time. When to stay and scold?

But what about swearing? The British have such strength.

Although the British Imperial Navy in 1883 was in a 'dark period' in the eyes of later generations, the capital ships authorized by the British Royal Navy were far from meeting Britain's needs to ensure world sea control.

Although there are still many old broadside gun ironclads in the current British Royal Navy fleet, built between 1864 and 1872, the actual combat effectiveness is already relatively low, and the cruisers are still carrying out missions around the world with iron-hulled frigates and patrol ships, the dawn of new cruisers is only just emerging, and the first and second class cruisers are just beginning to be equipped with four. The time has not yet come when the Royal Navy steel-hulled fast cruisers will spread across the world's oceans. But the huge fleet of 600,000 tons of gross tonnage is beyond the imagination of the Chinese Navy. The Royal Navy is still an invincible behemoth!

Liu Xian can only hold back!

The interests of the Himalayan corridor cannot be ceded. Otherwise, a large area of southern Tibet will be coveted by the British sooner or later. The 'independence' of Bhutan and Sikkim is very necessary.

Of course, the British don't think much of the two countries of Bhutan and Sikkim right now. What they really value is the Gurkhas.

In 1769 A.D., the Gurkha conquered the Mara dynasty in Nepal and established the Shah dynasty. The martial Gurkha people fought constantly in the process of unifying Nepal. The territory continued to expand, and at its peak it was about three times the size of Nepal in later generations. A series of military victories greatly inflated the ambitions of the Gurkhas. Attempting to get involved in Tibet.

In 1788 and 1791, Gurkha was involved in a dispute with Tibet over the salt tax and money and at the instigation of the White Sect Tsugu Shamapa. Two invasions of Tibet with the intention of plundering the wealth of monasteries scattered throughout Tibet.

In the first invasion, the Qing Dynasty sent 3,000 officers and soldiers led by Sichuan Chengdu General E Hui, Deputy Metropolitan Fozhi, and Sichuan Governor Chengde to Tibet. Soon after, when Chengde led a group of officers and soldiers to Shigatse, the Gurkha invading army that invaded Xiegar retreated. After that, the Gurkha proposed peace. In the end, the officials stationed in Tibet privately accepted the method of negotiating peace. In the second invasion, because the Qing Dynasty did not have many troops in Tibet, the Gurkha army once occupied the Tibetan region and looted at the Tashilhunpo Monastery, and the Dalai Lama and Panchen Erdeni successively asked the Qianlong Emperor for help. After Qianlong heard the news, he urgently transferred Fukangan and led more than 10,000 Qing troops to recover the lost territory.

Fukangan mobilized troops from Qinghai, Gansu, and Sichuan, rushed to Tibet in the starry night, and killed them in 40 days, forcibly marching every day, and his lightning-fast speed and action greatly exceeded the expectations of the Gurkha army. As a result, the Qing army won six battles and six victories, killed 4,000 enemies, recovered Houzang, and took advantage of the victory to fight the Himalayas, and the troops came to the Gorkha capital Yangbu (now Kathmandu). In desperation, the Gurkha king had to sue for peace, expressing his willingness to submit to the Qing Dynasty and pay tribute to the Qing Dynasty every five years. This subordination was stable and lasted until 1908, when Nepal was completely controlled by the British, who forbade the Gurkha to pay tribute to the Qing Dynasty. The Gurkha of later generations was therefore also known as the last vassal state of China.

But the loyalty of the Manchus in the Gurkha does not necessarily mean that they are also loyal to the new Qin. After the new Qin quickly replaced the dominance of the Manchu Qing in an irrepressible state, although the Gurkha also expressed its submission to the new Qin, its attitude was much more blunt.

Not to mention that after the Qin army entered Tibet, Liu Shengzao established contact with Beijing in the Gurkhas, and the following year forced the Gurkha to abandon the "Tibet-Nepal Treaty" signed with Tibet in 1856.

The Gurkha were hostile to Britain in the early to mid-19th century. Year 1816. King Gurkha Gilda died of smallpox and was succeeded by 2-year-old Eugendra. by Queen Mother Lalita and Prime Minister Bim. Forest. Thapa is in power. In order to regain lost territory, abolish unequal treaties. Beamm began Nepal's first modernization reform. To deal with the British. Bhim contacted France, the sworn enemy of the British, and with the help of the French, Nepal built modern military factories, reformed the military system, and vigorously developed trade and industry. As a result, this qiē was naturally hated by the British, who chose the Gurkha general Zhongge. Bahadur. Rana acts as its agent. At their instigation, in 1846 Chung Ge. Bahadur. Rana staged a coup d'état and killed Prime Minister Bhim. Forest. Tapa. and more than 400 generals and ministers, seized the military and political power of the Gurkha, proclaimed himself prime minister, abolished King Eugendra, and set up King Sulendra as a puppet. Naturally, the Gurkhas' attitude towards Britain changed from their previous hostility to pro-attachment.

In 1855, after the coup d'état, Nepal invaded Tibet again at the instigation of the British, and the Qing government at that time was concentrating on suppressing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, so it was anxious to calm the situation. He then ordered the Minister in Tibet, Hethe, to intervene. In 1856, the Tibet-Nepal Treaty was signed under the mediation of Hethe. Although the treaty affirmed that "Nepal respects the Chinese emperor as it has always been". However, it stipulates that the local government of Tibet shall pay a "gift" of 10,000 Ni yuan to the Gurkha side every year, that the Nins enjoy extraterritorial jurisdiction in Tibet, and that the Nins doing business in Tibet have the right to be exempted from commercial taxes, road taxes, and other taxes. The treaty was the first unequal treaty on Tibet directly directed by the Qing government. It had an extremely bad impact on the Qing Dynasty in winning over the hearts and minds of Tibetans. The majesty of the central imperial power was thus greatly reduced!

Liu Shengzao had a detailed understanding of Tibet's past and history long before entering Tibet, and the "Tibet-Nepal Treaty" was a perfect entry point. Abolish the one qiē privilege of the Gurkha in Tibet. Abolishing the "gift" of 10,000 niyuan can not only safeguard the majesty of China's interests. It will also greatly enhance the prestige and authority of the new dynasty in Tibet.

At that time, it was the Sino-British fornication, and the British even sold small Japan easily, so in order to contain Russia, what could they do with the Gurkha? Not to mention the fact that this in itself does not have much impact on the Gurkhas. The economic exchange of the Gurkha is more for India, not for Tibet!

Such actions make the Gurkha feel even worse about China. Even in this military parade in Beijing, Liu Xian directly invited the second leader of the Rana family, Udip. Singh, too, was rejected cleanly by the Gurkhas. In this military parade, the Gurkha only sent envoys to Beijing to refer to it.

Therefore, if necessary, Liu Xian could sever the suzerain-vassal relationship with the Gurkhas, as the British wished.

"Your Majesty, the Gurkha people are brave and good at fighting, if they can master it, the land south of the Himalayas can rest easy." Fan Debang and Zhang Shouyan did not agree with Liu Xian's idea.

"Today, my big military parade is imminent, 20,000 soldiers, the army is strong, and the soldiers are sharp. When the Gurkha people look at the might of our army, they will be shocked, and they will surrender and retreat from their unruly color. ”

Both of them only wanted to stabilize the situation in Tibet, and they never had irrepressible ambitions for the South Asian subcontinent. Both of these are absolute moderates. Doing their work in a down-to-earth manner and building the country honestly, China's current strength and momentum have never given birth to the idea of challenging the UK!

But Liu Xian is different. For his wish to be fulfilled, conflict with the British was inevitable. The Gurkha really don't know what to do, and that can be a good excuse for friction.

Besides, the Rana family and the Gurkha Shah royal family, in terms of power disputes, are two irreconcilable contradictions. The Rana family is holding on to the British to fight back, and Liu Xian is going to hold the Shah royal family!

When the time comes, the Gurkha will be destroyed, the Rana family will be destroyed, and the Shah royal family will be brought out of the Shah, and a loyal little brother will not be there immediately? There is no need to worry about the legacy of history......

"It doesn't have to be to give up the Gurkhas. It depends on the choice of the Gurkha themselves. The British, let's continue to delay. Negotiate according to four, five, six, or seven rounds of negotiations. ”

"If it doesn't work in one year, it will be two years, and if it doesn't work in two years, it will be three years. If the British and Indian colonial troops dare to move, let Liu Shengzao also move! ”

In addition, on the 27th day of the lunar month, three days before the arrival of the New Year, the "Treaty on the Re-survey and Separation of the Northwest-Northeast Boundary between China and Russia" came from the northwest. (To be continued......)