The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 247: The Qing Dynasty is still the best, please welcome Luo Xueyan (please subscribe, please vote)
"What? He really said that? He is truly a devil!"

"He actually dared to oppose free trade and even wanted to take back the concession. How despicable!"

"You are really overestimating your own capabilities. We must defend the concession. I suggest that we immediately recruit militia and set up defenses throughout the concession!"

In the French Consulate, after listening to Wade's report, British Consul Alcock, French Consul Atong, and American Consul Ma Hui all jumped up and down.

The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was too arrogant. Not only did they not want the generous help from the British Empire, they also did not want the free trade granted by imperialism, and even tried to take back the concessions! Compared with them, even the Qing Dynasty looked so handsome.

After the American Consul Ma Hui proposed to organize a militia to defend the concession, the French Consul Ai Tong's brows suddenly twisted into a ball. Seeing his sudden change of expression, the American redneck Consul Ma Hui thought that the French wanted to surrender to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and immediately stared at the French Consul and asked: "Mr. Ai Tong, I think the proud French would rather die than compromise with the devil, right?"

"Of course! We French are staunch Catholics!" French Consul Ai Tong first expressed the French attitude towards God with a resolute face, and then said helplessly, "But most of the expatriates in our French Concession who used to serve in the army and have fighting spirit and are strong and healthy have been hired by Luo Xueyan. Even some veterans in the embassy guards have followed Captain Pierre to help Luo Xueyan train new troops."

France's overseas trade was not on the same level as Britain's, and France's main colonial target was North Africa. It did not invest much in East Asia, and its focus was still on missionary work. Therefore, there were not many French expatriates in Shanghai, and a considerable number of them were clergy. Consul Aitong couldn't recruit a group of French priests to carry rifles and fight the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, right?

If Napoleon III, who was in a fierce battle with the church, knew this, what future would he have?

Hearing what Aitang said, Major Ma Hui also frowned and said, "There are not many American expatriates in Shanghai, and I have no reason to recruit them. After all, there is no legal American concession in Shanghai!"

Now there are only British and French concessions in Shanghai, but no American concession. The land north of Suzhou River and south of Hongjiang River was just bought by the American consulate, not a concession. Moreover, because the land is separated from the British and French concessions by Suzhou River, it is inconvenient to travel there, and now it is still abandoned. No American expatriates are willing to risk their lives to defend it.

Consul Aliguo was speechless when he saw these two stupid teammates. What was this "unity among powers, sharing benefits equally"? It was clearly that the Americans and the French were taking advantage of the British and not paying for their ride.

But then again, the British Empire's military power and commercial interests in the Far East were indeed far greater than those of the United States and France.

The so-called "unity among powers, sharing of benefits" was not so much a desire by Britain to bring the United States and France together to colonize the Qing Dynasty, but rather a desire to prevent France and the United States from providing too much aid to local Chinese forces that opposed Britain's expansion of its colonial interests.

"Boom!"

Suddenly, two loud noises were heard, startling Aliguo, Wade, Aitong and Ma Hui who were talking in the room.

The four of them quickly walked to the balcony and looked in the direction where the loud noise came from. They saw two 12-pound cannons placed side by side on an open space less than yards away from the North Gate Office of the Jianghai Customs. A dozen British artillerymen in red uniforms were using the two cannons to fire at the Jianghai Customs Office!
Just as the two British men, Alcock and Wade, showed some smug smiles, the American consul, Major Ma Hui, suddenly exclaimed: "Oh no! Artillery fire!"

Before he could finish his exclamation, Alcock and Wade heard a loud bang, and then a corner of the roof of a foreign company warehouse in the French Concession, less than a hundred yards away from the French Consulate, collapsed. Broken tiles flew in all directions and hit the heads of the people in the concession who were watching the excitement below, causing chaos and noise.

"Damn it!" French Consul Ai Tong exclaimed, "The Qing army in the Customs Office is firing at us. This is a counterattack caused by the bombardment launched by that idiot Smith!"

"Oh my God, it's worse!" American Consul Ma Hui continued to shout, "The shell fired by that idiot Smith seems to have hit the wall of Shanghai County!

I'm afraid the Taiping Army in the city will soon launch an attack on the concession. Now we have to fight both the Qing Dynasty and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom at the same time. What's going on? Do you British people know anything else besides fighting wars? "

"Boom boom boom" three more cannon shots rang out in response to Ma Hui's question.

This is the two 12-pound cannons that the British army had just pulled out of the barracks and a 12-pound cannon that was previously seized by the Qing Dynasty's "tax soldiers" firing at each other!
Maybe the artillery commander of the British army in Shanghai was gone, so the accuracy of the three cannons was a bit poor. The shells fired by the British all flew over the top of the Customs Office and hit the city wall of Shanghai County again!

The shell fired by a cannon of the "Qing Dynasty Taxation" was not very accurate and once again fell into the French Concession, hitting the road less than fifty yards away from the French Consulate, causing even greater panic.

Is there anything more frustrating than three inaccurate 12-pound cannons firing randomly?
Now, Alcock, Wade, Aitong, Ma Hui and others dared not stay in the French consulate. They had to issue an order to mobilise for war while moving to the British consulate which was farther away from the battlefield.

Just as they were transferred to the relatively safe British Consulate, worse news came.

Captain Smith's indiscriminate bombardment seemed to have angered the "devil" in Shanghai County.

And the devil's reaction is very fast!
Shortly after Aliguo and others fled from the French consulate, thousands of Taiping soldiers with red scarves on their heads and foreign rifles on their shoulders drove out of the Old West Gate of Shanghai County, and then rushed directly into the western part of the French Concession without any courtesy!

Although the British were already bombarding the county town of Shanghai, the Taiping Army's action of entering the concession without hesitation still greatly surprised the French troops in the French Concession.

When thousands of Taiping troops equipped with Brown Bass rifles swarmed in, the small number of French troops guarding the western part of the French Concession were unable to resist and could only fire a few symbolic shots before moving towards the French Consulate.

The Taiping Army that rushed into the French Concession did not touch the French Consulate, but attacked the British Concession along the western part of the French Concession and advanced to the south bank of the Suzhou River. Along the way, they seized many taller buildings, piled up sandbags and built barricades on all east-west roads. This scene really made the Europeans who had experienced the great turmoil of 1848 feel at home!
"Rutherford, Thomas, Luo Xueyan's troops are now in Suzhou and Taicang. We should send someone to invite him back."

Inside the British Consulate, seeing the situation deteriorating rapidly and with Alcock and Wade helpless, the American Consul Robert MacArthur had no choice but to make what he thought was the only feasible suggestion.

He analyzed, "Lord Luo Xueyan has 6,000 new troops, well-equipped and well-trained. If he returns to Shanghai, it is very likely that he will be able to drive out the Taiping Army entrenched in Shanghai County and save the concession. After all, most of those Taiping Army are gang members with little combat effectiveness!"

The French consul immediately agreed: "I agree with Robert's suggestion. As long as Lord Luo Xueyan comes back, everything will be fine."

Aliguo frowned slightly and thought, "Now that Luo Xueyan is back, will things really get better? Can the British Empire's privileges in China be maintained by a Chinese warlord? Even if it can, what will be the price?"

Thinking of this, he turned his head and looked at Wade-Giles again. The latter frowned and said, "Mr. Consul, Luo Yaoguo is just a vassal king of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, not their highest king. Perhaps the king of Jiangning is more reasonable.

In addition, we can first tell Luo Yaoguo that we will negotiate directly with the King on issues such as the Shanghai Concession and free trade. During the negotiations, the Shanghai Concession can maintain the status quo.

Moreover, Minister Bonham will arrive in Shanghai soon, along with hundreds of British troops from Hong Kong.

If we can fully mobilize the overseas Chinese, we may be able to gather an army of nearly a thousand people. With this army, plus Luo Xueyan's 6,000 new troops, let alone defending the concession, even retaking Shanghai County will not be a problem. "

Aliguo nodded and sighed, "That's it, Thomas. Please make a little more effort and go to Kunshan to invite Luo Xueyan back!"

(End of this chapter)