It was once written in the "Augmented Sage Text" that the dragon swims in shallow water and is played by shrimp, and the tiger falls in Pingyang and is bullied by dogs.
Because the Qing government was closed to the world, china was "isolated from the world" for a long time, and when china was still stuck in the stubborn feudal society, some Western countries had completed the industrial revolution, and the gap between China and them was getting wider and wider. We have also experienced the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty, and we have also been worshiped by all countries, but the times are progressive, stagnation will be eliminated, the same is true for the country, if a country is very weak, then it is absolutely unable to resist the aggression of other countries, which has also led to the fact that our country has suffered very serious harm in modern times.
In order to better open the Chinese market, Britain brazenly launched the Opium War
。 In this war, the strength of the two sides is too different, and the most powerful weapons in China's hands can be used are not as good as the advanced weapons in the hands of Britain. The final outcome of the war was not very surprising, and China lost completely in this relatively passive war. This war also had a great impact on our country, not only losing a lot of financial resources and manpower, but also making other great powers feel that China is such a "good bully".
Since then, there have been many wars, each of which deepened the degree of semi-colonization of China, so that it was finally completely reduced to a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society
。 During this period, China signed a series of unequal treaties, cut land, paid indemnities, blindly compromised, and some land boundaries were clearly marked with signs prohibiting Chinese entry, which was a very humiliating thing for the entire Chinese nation. China's land is vast, and many places with rich resources have long been targeted by the great powers.
Whether in terms of economy or resources, Hong Kong has great advantages and still has great development value, and it is precisely because of this that the British forced the Qing government to lease Hong Kong to them. In fact, on the surface, it sounds good, but this is just a forced occupation of Hong Kong in the name of leasing.
During the negotiations, Li Hongzhang was very embarrassed, and clearly stated in the present regulations that Britain wanted to lease Hong Kong for 100 years, and under Li Hongzhang's arguments, 100 years was reduced to 99 years
。
At this time, some people may sigh, this time is only one year less, what is the use of reducing or not reducing? Such a view is obviously very one-sided, and it is this reduction of one year that determines whose sovereignty Hong Kong will fall into.
At that time, if an international country lost the jurisdiction of a piece of territory for more than 100 years, then the country would completely lose its rule over this territory
。 As we all know, the British had already adopted an attitude of forcible occupation when they first wanted to lease Hong Kong. At that time, the lease agreement stated that hong Kong would be leased for 100 years in order to turn Hong Kong into its own territory.
Obviously, this is a big pit dug by the British for China, just wait for Li Hongzhang to jump down and take Hong Kong into his own pocket. But fortunately, at that time, Li Hongzhang did not agree to lease for 100 years, until he changed the 100 years to 99 years, he reluctantly agreed.
Although there was only a one-year difference, the final ownership of Hong Kong's territory remained with China
。 It has also laid a solid and solid foundation for Hong Kong's return to China after 1999. If Li Hongzhang had not acted and paid no attention to this matter, then today's Hong Kong may never return to the motherland, and this will eventually become a very big regret in history.
Along with the unity of the Chinese people, working hard, adhering to the belief that victory will eventually defeat evil, and driving out all the Western powers that once entered our territory for exploitation.
With the continuous improvement of comprehensive national strength, the day of Britain's return of Hong Kong territory has also come, so China has taken the initiative to put forward relevant demands on Britain to return China's Hong Kong territory
Although the intermediate process has experienced twists and turns, in the end, after all the hardships, Hong Kong has finally returned to the embrace of the motherland.
remember
Hong Kong was returned to the motherland in 1997
To celebrate this great victory, the streets were lit up with celebratory banners. Everyone can hardly hide the joy in their hearts, so many years, China finally has its own position in the international community, and finally it is no longer the lamb that can be slaughtered. Today we have become stronger, people can live and work in peace, and the good life now is not easy to come by, and we should cherish it.
brief summary
A country that is backward will really be beaten, which is what we can really see from history, and it is also our own experience. Only when you are strong enough, others will pay attention to you and respect you, and are willing to be friends with you, on the contrary, if you are too weak, not only will you have no friends, but you will also be bullied. Therefore, we who are in the modern society must be conscientious and contribute our own strength to the prosperity and strength of the country.
Citations: China Economic Weekly, Contemporary Economy