The Macartney Mission's first face-to-face contact with New China began in this sea area littered with fish-man stumps and emitting a fishy smell.

Many years later, to historians who like to exaggerate, this was described as "the first intimate contact between two civilizations."

And this dramatic scene, together with the corpses of the Sirens covering the sea, the Feiyun piercing the waves, the two fleets that meet unexpectedly, and the incomparably far-reaching "historical significance" behind it, have allowed the writers to find countless topics and dig deeper again and again, including novels, movies, comics, and pocket books that focus on "stew" in style......

However, for the crew of the Lion, even curiosity had to be put aside, even veterans who had experienced the war in the North American colonies couldn't help but have a sense of prostration after nearly dying.

And George Staunton, who walked out of the cabin with Macartney, just stared at the large corpses of fish monsters on the sea, and only felt that his long-standing knowledge of naturalism was about to be overturned in an instant. It seems that this trip to China is like entering the "Odyssey Crusoe" in Homer's epic poem, which describes all kinds of strange monsters on the ocean.

He walked onto the deck, which was still stained with battlefield blood, and looked at the corpses that floated with the current under the side of the Lion, and couldn't help but sigh: "It's unbelievable that there are such terrifying monsters living in the depths of the ocean......"

But Academician Staunton's exclamation was soon interrupted by the white-sailed clippers approaching the Lion.

The captain of the Feiyun, Lao Cai, was standing on the bow of the ship and shouted to the people on the Lion with a big grin: "Listen to the foreigners over there, which of you is in charge, come out and answer." What is the intention of a merchant ship belonging to us to enter the territorial waters of our Xisha Coast Guard? In short, we must first register with our Xisha Coast Guard!"

After he shouted at the top of his voice, he realized that the foreigners on the opposite big ship, old and young, were all looking at him in a daze, and he slapped his thigh, and then roared: "Damn, four boat boys, didn't you participate in the crash course of the General Affairs Department? You come to talk to these people!"

Although his official language is standard, the last sentence is to say "speak" as "cylinder", bringing out a bit of southern Fujian pronunciation.

As Lao Cai greeted, a young sailor responded with a smile, took out a small notebook from his arms, flipped through it, and then asked the warship on the opposite side in a rather non-standard Latin: "What is the purpose of your entry into China's waters? Please follow the Feiyun to the customs registration on Qiongya Road!"

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In the private room prepared for the deputy envoy of the mission on the warship Lion, George Staunton, a member of the Royal Academy of Sciences, held a quill pen and quickly recounted this thrilling day in his mission diary:

"The creatures that appear in front of us are supposed to be marine amphibians. It has obvious fish characteristics, but at the same time it is able to move away from the surface. They know how to fight with stony spears, which means that they have at least some intelligence, just like the natives of the equatorial islands. But for the inhabitants of the civilized world, this wild creature from the bottom of the sea is undoubtedly more dangerous, and there are more unsolved mysteries waiting to be discovered. ”

“...... The emergence of China's maritime patrol force was a dramatic event. The Dutch, who had abandoned us and fled desperately, shamelessly approached again. It is clear that these Dutch know that navigating the perilous waters of China without the protection of the Chinese Navy is an unwise thing to do. ”

"The patrol ships used by the Chinese Navy are much smaller than the Royal Navy's Lion, and their low hulls are almost parallel to the water. But this long, narrow patrol ship is extremely fast, and it shuttles like a flying fish across the sea. Both the Dutch and the British, on long ocean voyages, turned their ships into huge mobile castles in order to carry large quantities of cargo. There is no doubt that the Chinese pay more attention to its speed than to tonnage in the design of the ship. This unique-shaped vessel was probably specially designed by the Chinese Navy to patrol their vast sea area......"

At this point, Staunton pondered for a moment, and then continued: "This patrol ship named 'Feiyun', which means 'ship as fast as a white cloud' in Chinese, has a pure white hull and pure white sails to match its name. The sails of the Flying Cloud are stronger and finer than the best canvas I have ever seen. Unlike the sails of Asian countries such as Cochinchina, they are not connected with pieces of cloth, but are composed of a whole canvas like European sailing ships. Judging by this patrol ship, the new imperial court of China has invested extremely high expectations in their navy. ”

Writing this, Staunton couldn't help but be a little silent, judging from the intelligence obtained from European merchants and missionaries, China in the past was a continental country that did not attach importance to the sea. Despite its wealth, power, and population, it never realized what its vast coastline meant.

But the appearance of the Feiyun in front of the mission made Staunton a little suspicious. Will the new Chinese court still adhere to the principles of this ancient empire and be content to rule over a vast land?

At the same time, on board the Hindustani, John Barrow, who was the secretary of mission and the chief of affairs, was also working hard to write.

Barrow's attention was clearly more focused on other aspects than Staton's:

"The composition of the Chinese Navy is very peculiar. On their warships, in addition to captains, first mates, navigators, and sailors, there were also a number of religious figures. ”

"According to our two Chinese priests who acted as translators, these people in special military positions were called Taoist priests. But they, out of devout Catholic feelings, were reluctant to say much about these idolatrous pagans. ”

"The captain of the Flying Cloud is a middle-aged man of unassuming appearance, lean and short, with the kind of roughness and nonchalance we often find in the sailor's tavern. But this officer was respected by everyone on the Feiyun, including the Taoist priests on the Feiyun. ”

"The administrators of the Taoist priests are Song Daoguan, and the 'Daoguan' is a Taoist priest who has been granted an official position. The Chinese dynasty stipulated that the Chinese should have the same hairstyle as the Tatars, and the hair on the forehead was shaved off, leaving only the hair at the back of the head to be braided into a long braid. But as religious monks, they were given the opportunity to preserve the traditional Chinese hairstyle, by wearing long hair, then tying it up in a bun at the top of the head, and then protecting it with hairpins and cloth scarves. ”

"The Taoists retained the traditional dress of the Chinese, and this privilege led them to retain their dissatisfaction with the Tatars. Among the big names of China's new court, two of the most important figures came from among the Taoist priests. Because of this, Taoist priests began to participate in the secular world. Judging from our contact with the Feiyun, the Taoist priests served as military doctors. They seldom prayed, but treated the wounded with great rigor and seriousness. ”

"The administrator of the Taoist priest, Song Daoguan, is a soldier with a serious expression, unlike other naval soldiers, his military uniform is like a military coat with a waist, and the characteristics of the robe can be seen on the drooping hem, which represents his status as a Taoist official. He was responsible for managing the Munitions on board the Flying Cloud and documenting climatic and hydrological changes along the way. The Feiyun is equipped with a complete set of climatic instruments, including a mercury barometer made of glass. Unlike most of the world's clergy, the Daoists of the Feiyun are skilled in handling these instruments, and they are more like a group of assistants in the service of a scholar than a clergyman. ”

"All the Taoist priests wore swords, which was also a way to distinguish them from ordinary sailors. Another way to distinguish this is that the sailors also abandoned the Tatar hairstyle, but their hair was not long enough to tie it into a bun. The captain, for example, just tied his hair back at the back of his head. ”

"In this skirmish against monsters, the sailors of the Flying Cloud salvaged all the dead monster corpses. According to the Chinese, the tough skin of these new sea creatures has a better use value than crocodile skin. And Song Daoguan numbered each monster and carefully dissected a monster. From this point of view, this Song Daoguan is more like a seasoned surgeon, and he seems to confirm the distribution of these monsters by looking at the food residues in the monsters' stomach pouches. ”

At this point, Barrow couldn't help but move his fingers slightly, and then continued: "On the Lion and Hindustan there were already many soldiers and sailors who were sick with diseases, and with this battle, more than a dozen heroic soldiers died. In response, the captain of the Feiyun is willing to treat soldiers and sailors who are seriously injured and pre-existing diseases. The Feiyun was fast, and the Taoist priest on the Feiyun had won the trust of the ambassador for his surgical treatment. ”

"They disinfect the wound with a high concentration of distilled spirit, and then use a white linen cloth to bandage the wound, which is sealed in a container and covered with red minerals, which is said to be effective in preventing infection and necrosis. ”

"Whether this was really the case, I can't say for sure, but after bandaging the linen, the pain of the wounded was quickly relieved. This highly effective topical drug is something we have never seen in Europe......"

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At this moment, on the Feiyun, Taoist official Song Ning also spread out a piece of letterhead, and the pen was like flying:

"Qiongya Road, Xisha Coast Guard, Jin Tanlang Song Ning reported as follows;

The restoration of the Cold Dragon Spirit sent to us has already begun, and the Cold Dragon Spirit has a very high reaction to the shark-like fish-man individuals who have recently been born in the waters of the Paracel Islands, and has devoured a large amount of shark-like fish-man blood. In the near future, the growth of the Cold Dragon Spirit has been greatly improved, and in this regard, my observation report of the Cold Dragon Spirit for nearly a month is attached to it......"

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If we look away from these fleets and look at the entire South China Sea, we will find that the ecological environment around the entire coastline has undergone great changes, from the Bohai Sea to the South China Sea.

Originally, the deep sea of this time and space was inhabited by cold-blooded creatures called "deep divers", who were the dependents of the evil gods, and sang the praises of the evil gods who had long since escaped.

This innate environment makes the fusion of heaven and earth the most intuitive in the process of the fusion of heaven and earth, except for the Zhili area of Wei Yehuo refining Zhenwen and Dingyuan heaven and earth.

And this reaction is put into the South China Sea, that is, a large number of fish mutations, devouring, and finally the mutation of certain sharks and bony fish, a large number of shark people appear in the South China Sea.

The Daohai Zongyuan, who had long been expected, was not slow to react, and immediately transferred his disciples to sit in Qiongzhou Mansion and Lingao County on Hainan Island at the same time, and even the flying clippers that Qian Gang had made with great difficulty were asked by Wei Ye to come over.

But even though Daohai Zongyuan and the Red Bronze Crown team quickly set up the Xisha Coast Guard, the spread of sharkized mermaids still caused distress in Vietnam.

However, at this moment, no one cares about Vietnam's Nguyen Dynasty and Tay Son Dynasty in the face of shark-turned mermaids landing and harassing them.

With the return of the Feiyun, a letterhead in both Chinese and English was placed on Wei Ye and Murong Parrot's table:

"George III is blessed by God, and the King of England, France and Ireland and the Guardian of the Sea Lords congratulate the Emperor of China for a long life.

"This kingdom, since its accession to the throne, has been merciful in all its ways, and has benefited the whole world as far as possible, in addition to taking care to preserve the peace and security of the land, and to the happiness, morality, and knowledge of its subjects. In this spirit, even after our country's victories in various parts of the world in times of war, we continue to allow our defeated enemies to enjoy peace and happiness on fair terms. Now, in addition to striving to surpass his predecessors in all respects, this king has also sent his own outstanding scholars on several voyages to explore unknown lands, not for the purpose of occupying or expanding the vast territory we already have to meet our needs, nor for the purpose of plundering the wealth of foreign countries, or even for the foreign business behavior of his subjects, but for the purpose of understanding the products produced in various places, and exchanging knowledge of a happy life with the backward regions. We also send boats to deliver flora and fauna to people in need in barren areas. For the material and spiritual life of the ancient civilization, the king paid more attention to the inquiry and research. Under the rule of His Majesty the Emperor, your country prospered and was admired by the surrounding countries. Now that our country is in peace with all the nations of the world, the King considers it an opportune time to seek friendly relations between our two great civilizational empires. Your subjects have often come to your country to do business, and there is no doubt that both sides will benefit from this. However, the two sides need to behave in a manner that does not violate the laws and customs of the other country. I hope my subjects don't make trouble outside. Of course, I also hope that they will not be wronged. Therefore, I wish to appoint a man of authority to be stationed in your country to restrain the conduct of my subjects, and to protect them if they are wronged. This is a way to keep things safe.

The Count of George Macartney, whom I have sent this time, is a relative of this king. He was a lord, a faithful and good minister, a member of the Royal Academy in London, and had represented our country in many important countries, such as Russia and Mengjiala. I beseech that His Majesty the Emperor will receive him as he has received me. In order to avoid any changes after the departure of the special envoy, I also appointed the deputy envoy, George Staunton. Like the envoys, he was a man of high moral standing and erudition. Once again, I beg His Majesty the Emperor to receive him as if he were an envoy.

I know that His Majesty the Emperor is just and benevolent, and I beseech that those whom I have sent may be allowed to bathe in your land, so that they may educate the people of your country when they return home. As for those who are sent, if His Majesty the Emperor needs to use their knowledge and ask them to do things, let them do it. For our subjects who live in your country or go to do business, if they obey your laws and regulations, ask His Majesty the Emperor for mercy. If not, it should be dealt with. Before the envoy left, I instructed him to be cautious in his presence with His Majesty the Emperor. Since we should be like brothers on our respective thrones, we hope that a brotherly friendship will endure among us. May God bless His Majesty the Emperor with the blessings of peace. ”