Thousands of miles away, Queen Victoria read the Treaty of Chuanbi and said to Prime Minister Melbourne and Foreign Minister Palmerston: "Your Excellency Elliot is a general who does not obey orders and strives for the shortest term."
Foreign Minister Palmerston was angry: "Xianggang, a place where birds don't lay eggs, rabbits don't poop, and a house can't be built, what's the use of it? Charles Elliot, treating the empire's instructions as waste paper, will It is intolerable that the illusion of one's own freedom is placed above the national interests of the British Empire. It is extremely shameful for it to complete its unfulfilled mission in this way. Lord Pottinger is based in India and Afghanistan and is familiar with Asian affairs. He traveled 2,500 kilometers across the Indian continent on his own. I believe he will avenge the empire. Baga, the commander of the East India Navy, acts steadily and ruthlessly. He will never put the interests of merchants before the interests of the British Empire. superior."
Prime Minister Melbourne said: "I will immediately appoint Sir Robert Pottinger as the commercial director in China and the plenipotentiary representative to the Qing Dynasty to succeed Yi Lu and then argue with the Qing Dynasty."
When Yilu heard about it, he was full of complaints and said to Yilu: "The Foreign Minister accused me of taking care of the Chinese people. I really don't know what he thinks? But I must clarify that in order to safeguard the honor and real interests of our British Empire, we must Always take good care of and treat this helpless and friendly Eastern people."
Yilu smiled and said: "Brother is a decent person full of illusions, but national disputes cannot be resolved by peaceful means."
On August 22, 1841, Pu Dingcha led 10 warships, 4 ships, 1 survey ship, and 22 transport ships to arrive in Guangdong. Before leaving, British Foreign Minister Palmerston gave instructions: First, do not negotiate in Guangdong; second, occupy Zhoushan again and negotiate here or in Tianjin. 3. Negotiations should be made with the plenipotentiary representative of the Chinese Emperor. 4. The compensation shall not be less than 3 million pounds. Fifth, try to legalize the opium trade.
Yishan sent Yu Chunbao to investigate, but Pudingcha refused to meet with Qing officials who did not have the title of "full power". He sent his secretary Ma Gong to deal with it, and led the main force of the fleet to Fujian.
Yishan reported to Pu Dingzha that he was leaving Yue and heading north, because Yi Lv was putting the blame on him. He deliberately did not say that Guangdong was already open to trade, and deceived Pu to go north. As soon as the war started, trade ended again, and Yi Lv could be excused. We now inform the deputy consul Ma Gong that our emperor has granted permission for trade. Ma Gong has rushed to catch up, and Yilu has also sent a letter to persuade him.
On August 26, the British ship arrived at Xiamen.
In the previous three months, Yan Botao, the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, temporarily left his post and stationed himself in Xiamen, spending 1.5 million taels of silver to build a 2-kilometer granite stone wall facing the sea. The wall was 3.3 meters high and 2.6 meters thick. A cannon was placed every ten meters. The east and west are supplemented by more than 200 artillery pieces. Yan Botao said with great ambition: "Xiamen is as stable as a rock. The thieves will be destroyed before they arrive."
Puding investigated and issued an ultimatum, but failed, so he attacked. Within half a day, the strong walls were broken and the cannons were destroyed. Yan Botao was trembling with fear and heartbroken. He stamped his feet and lamented: This barbarian is beyond the reach of our division. So he cried together with Xingquan Yongdao Liu Yaochun and fled to Tong'an all night. Let me tell you: The barbarians invaded the territory and fired back. One barbarian ship was sunk and six were damaged. Reluctantly, Sanyi ships landed from Gulangyu Island on the right wing, and the officers and soldiers fought bloody battles. Jiang Jiyun, the commander-in-chief of Kinmen, died in the battle, Xiamen was lost, and the guilty ministers and others retreated to Tong'an to fight with the barbarians again.
The British army occupied Xiamen and repaired for ten days. They patrolled the Taiwan Strait with three ships and three sampans. The main force went north to attack Dinghai.
At the end of September, the British ship "Narbudda" led three sampans into Keelung, Taiwan, and attacked the Ershawan Fort. Yao Ying of the Military Preparatory Department ordered a counterattack, and Qiu Zhengong, the general in charge, fired an eight-thousand-jin cannon and broke the mast of the "Narbudda". The "Narbudda" retreated, hit a reef and broke off, the British troops fell into the water, and countless people came ashore on the river and took sampans to escape. The Qing army and Xiang Yong pursued separately, killing 42 enemies, capturing 133 people, and seized 10 cannons, many Yi books, and atlases.
Half a month later, another British ship sailed to Keelung and asked for the release of people. For each person released, they would be given a hundred dollars in foreign silver. Yao Ying ignored it. The British ships attacked Ershawan Fort and fired fiercely. Ershawan is surrounded by mountains on three sides and receives water on one side. The Qing army took advantage of the danger to guard it, and nearby volunteers also came to help in the battle. The British ships were at a disadvantage in attacking from the rear and retreated out of fear. When Yao Ying and Dahong Ah Zhiyi returned, they immediately ordered soldiers to block the harbor, build walls, dig trenches, bury bamboo sticks, set up ground barriers, and inspect the traitors.
Half a year ago, the British army withdrew its troops and settled in the sea in accordance with the "Chuanbicao Treaty". Three generals, Ge Yunfei, Zheng Guohong and Wang Xipeng, received the order and settled in. They built an earthen city with mud and lime on the southern beach, where ships must pass, and relied on Dongyue Mountain. The city was 5 kilometers long and equipped with 80 artillery pieces. Although there was no Xiamen Stone The walls are strong, but thicker and taller. Dongyue Mountain is located in the middle of Tucheng, 50 meters high, and has 15 cannons on the top. To the west of Tucheng is the Zhushan Gate, an important pass in Dinghai. Three-thirds of this pass is inserted into the sea, and the other seven are left on land. The terrain is steep, so Ge Yunfei set up more than ten cannons here. Xiaofengling, north of Tucheng and Zhushan Gate, is the commanding heights of Dinghai and is also heavily guarded.
Yuqian, the imperial envoy and governor of Liangjiang, praised: Tucheng, Zhushanmen and Xiaofengling are close to each other and form the horns of each other. This is as solid as gold. If the rebels dare to invade, they will not leave a single sail.
Ge Yunfei checked for leaks and filled them up, hoping to build a fort on Xiaofengling and block the river road under Zhushan Gate.
Yuqian said: This is just a waste of money.
Yunfei asked for a three-year salary loan to build the fort at his own expense.
Yuqian said angrily: Hold me hostage!
Ge Yunfei said: The British attack Xiamen and will reach Dinghai in a few days. Tucheng has few soldiers and cannons, and the back of Xiaofengling faces the sea and there is a passage. It is necessary to add more cannons and ships.
Yuqian said: "In the previous battle, our division's ships were destroyed in an instant. It is forbidden to discuss this matter. We are only allowed to kill the enemy on the shore and are not allowed to go to sea to fight. All the division's ships in Dinghai will be escorted to Zhenhai immediately."
On September 26, 1841, Pu Dingcha led his ship to Dinghai, but encountered a typhoon and heavy rain and was unable to attack. On October 1, when the wind stopped and the rain stopped, the British army divided into three groups and attacked Tucheng all the way to tie down Ge Yunfei's department, the commander-in-chief of the navy. Attack Zhushan Gate all the way. The third route bypassed Tucheng and Zhushan Gate to land in a roundabout way, and mainly attacked Xiaofengling where the commander-in-chief of Shouchun Town, Wang Xipeng, was stationed.
Wang Xipeng commanded the soldiers and resisted tenaciously, repelling eight British attacks. At the end of the battle, the barrel of the gun was red and unable to hit again. He drew his knife and fought hand to hand, fighting bloody to the death.
The British occupied Xiaofengling and attacked Zhushan Gate from a high position. Zheng Guohong, the commander-in-chief of Chuzhou Town, was attacked on both sides. He resisted for two seconds and was shot to death.
Generals Wang and Zheng died. Ge Yunfei knew that the critical situation was difficult to save, so he handed the seal to his entourage and said: "When I am loyal to you, I have an old mother who is eighty years old. When I know that someone is dead, my eyes are about to dry up, so I should comfort her with a hundred plans." , instructing the children to work hard to succeed their father’s ambition.”
The British approached, Yun Fei fought back with a four thousand kilogram cannon, but the red cannon was ineffective. Yun Fei swung his sword to kill several enemies, and was wounded in more than forty places. Suddenly, a bullet hit his left eye, and another knife struck his face. Yun Fei He fell into Tucheng and died for his country.
On October 9, the British army attacked Zhenhai again and bombarded Jinji Mountain and Zhaobaoshan. At noon, they captured the North and South Mountain forts. The British army landed and attacked Zhenhai County.
Yu Buyun, the admiral of Zhejiang Province, retreated before the battle, the Qing troops were defeated, and the Kipchak minister Yu Qian could not stop firing cannons from the city. Yuqian went down the city wall in confusion, walked to the Confucian Temple, kowtowed at the tower, and jumped into Panchi. His subordinates rescued him and forcibly swallowed the gold. The next day, he became a wealthy man.
The British army occupied Zhenhai and attacked Ningbo again. Yu Buyun's foothold was not stable, so he escaped to Shangyu together with the prefect Deng Tingcai. The British army occupied Ningbo without any bloodshed.
Three places were lost in a row. Liu Yunke, the governor of Zhejiang, did not dare to neglect and urgently ordered the chief envoy Zheng Zuchen to guard the Cao'e River and protect Shao and Hangzhou. He also ordered the commander-in-chief Li Tingyang, the inspector general Jiang Wenqing, and the Taoist priest Lu Zeliang to work together to defend Shaoxing. He then eliminated Shouju, purged the traitors, and recruited ten pockmarked river bandits, and sent 20,000 troops to Hangzhou.
After Dinghai, Zhenhai, and Ningbo were lost, Emperor Daoguang was furious and ordered Yijing, the Minister of Civil Affairs, to be appointed as General Yang Wei, Minister Wenwei, and Vice-Capital Tongte Yishun as counselors, and he mobilized the Qi of Jiangxi, Hubei, Anhui, Henan, Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu The province's 11,000 troops will go to Zhejiang immediately.
The Minister of Military and Aircraft Mu Zhang'a asked Qi Shan to serve as a scapegoat, but Yijing refused.
On November 16, Yijing arrived in Suzhou, where he played music and drank wine around the stove; his officials even "asked for supplies, sang and danced, indulged in cattails, and gathered good fortune."
Yijing said: "My emperor ordered us to set up camp in a suitable place in Jiangsu and Zhejiang to cast cannon and raise food. I think Suzhou is just right. You can have fun for the time being. When the armies of the seven provinces gather together, you can rely on the power of God to win in one battle."
Pu Dingcha occupied Ningbo, and successively captured Yuyao, Cixi, and Fenghua. Suffering from insufficient troops, he retreated to Ningbo. Pu Dingcha wrote to Liu Yunke and Yu Buyun many times, hoping to reopen negotiations. If Yijing does not come, Liu and Yu dare not agree lightly.
Pu Dingcha told Baga and Guo Fudao: "We have few soldiers and supplies, so we are temporarily on the defensive. I will return to Guangdong to raise ships and recruit troops."
The Puding investigation passed through the Taiwan Strait. The new governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, Yi Liang, was afraid and repeatedly ordered Yao Ying, the Taiwan military commander, to release the captured British troops as a show of goodwill.
Yao Ying said: "The barbarians are afraid of the strong and bully the weak. If I capture them and do not kill them for a long time, it is a clear sign of weakness. When the two armies are fighting, they are bound to fight. If I don't kill the thief, or the thief kills me, I should think about revenge first. Nian, how to encourage morale!"
Taiwan's commander-in-chief Da Hong'a also thought that the plan was not feasible.
Taiwan's defenses were tight, and Pu Dingcha had no way of attacking him, so he ordered people to bribe him and work carefully, thinking that he was an insider. Taiwanese Zhang Congxin readily obeyed his orders.
Yao Ying and Da Hong'a saw through it and led the British ship to the shallow water of Tudigong Port, causing it to run aground. The Qing army broke out from an ambush and killed 11 British soldiers and captured 49.
Unwilling to give up, Pu Dingcha dispatched ten more warships and sailed to Changhua and Tamsui, looking for loopholes and waiting for opportunities to attack. Unfortunately, there was no chance to take advantage of it, so I had to retreat.
When the good news from Taiwan arrived in Beijing, Emperor Daoguang was overjoyed and rewarded Dahong'a, the crown prince, as his Taibao, and Yao Ying, the second-grade crown prince. The order was given to kill everyone except the captain and officers of the British ship.
