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墨書 Inktalez
Min Zhengkai's teaching style was often whimsical, with lessons that sometimes seemed unrelated to the subject matter. However, his students not only enjoyed his classes but also performed well in exams, with few failing his courses. As he often put it, "I'm not just teaching a subject; I'm cultivating your interest in learning!"
On this particular day, Min was particularly animated as he engaged the class in a discussion about our relationship with the West, especially with the Beautiful Country. He explained that since Qianlong implemented the policy of isolationism, the once-mighty Great Qing had begun to stagnate and fall behind. In the fifty-eighth year of Qianlong's reign (1793), British Envoy Macaulay arrived at the court, but Qianlong regarded Britain as just another vassal state like Korea, Myanmar, and Ryukyu. He dismissed Britain's tribute gifts—such as automatic firearms and cannons—as mere curiosities, asserting that the Celestial Empire was rich in resources and lacked for nothing from these foreign lands, warning the British to "Yong Da Gong Shun."
By the time of Qianlong's grandson, Daoguang, internal strife and external pressures intensified. In the twentieth year of Daoguang's reign (1840), British ships gathered off the coast of Guangdong, leading to the outbreak of the First Opium War. The Treaty of Nanking resulted in territorial concessions, followed by subsequent treaties such as the Guangzhou Treaty, Nanjing Treaty, Sino-American Treaty of Wangxia, and Sino-French Huangpu Treaty—all resulting in land cessions and reparations imposed on the Qing government.
In the sixth year of Xianfeng (1856), the Second Opium War erupted, forcing the Qing government to sign humiliating treaties like the Tianjin Treaty and Beijing Treaty. In 1894 (the twentieth year of Guangxu), the First Sino-Japanese War broke out, resulting in the complete destruction of the Beiyang Fleet and forced concessions to Japan through the Treaty of Shimonoseki. By 1900 (the twenty-sixth year of Guangxu), eight nations—including Britain, France, Germany, Russia, America, Japan, Italy, and Austria-Hungary—invaded Beijing. The de facto ruler Empress Dowager Cixi fled with Guangxu Emperor to Shaanxi… leading to the signing of the Boxer Protocol.
From 1912 to 1949, warlords battled for power amidst foreign invasions while the GMD government ignored public welfare. For many years, Western nations viewed us as a weak and impoverished nation that could be easily insulted; they did not believe this poor nation could grow strong or prosperous.
In 1949, New China was established. We joined the Socialist Camp and became adversaries with the Beautiful Country. The Western nations led by it imposed a comprehensive blockade and isolation policy against us. The Korean War broke out soon after, making Western powers realize we were no longer an easy target for bullying; it dispelled their hopes of stifling our nascent state in its cradle.
The Korean War paved the way for our long-term peace and enhanced our international standing. Despite a long-standing arms embargo from the West, we managed to develop our own capabilities with efforts leading to "Two Bombs, One Satellite," garnering global attention.
It wasn't until 1971 that both countries began "Ping Pong Diplomacy." Following visits from Old Ji and Asong to China, both sides attempted tentative contact and signed a joint communiqué. Due to geopolitical shifts favoring us amidst competition between superpowers, there emerged strong domestic calls within Beautiful Country to engage with us against Russia. This led to a general easing of relations.
In 1979, Beautiful Country agreed to formally end its diplomatic relations with Taiwan while officially lifting its blockade against mainland China. Both sides made concessions on core interests.
Thus began our era of opening up; vast amounts of Western capital and technology flowed into our country. However, during this period incidents like the "Galaxy" event—the bombing of our embassy—and aircraft collision incidents caused diplomatic crises that were ultimately resolved through dialogue. Overall during this period of engagement, cooperation outweighed differences as both sides maximized their interests. Notably, we achieved significant development during these years; our economy grew steadily, raising alarms in Beautiful Country.
"It’s much like in our rural areas: if someone is weak but has many brothers and wealth at home, they tend to bully others—similar to Old America and its allies Australia and Canada. When they see an honest child grow stronger—especially one they’ve bullied—they can’t help but provoke trouble… Isn’t that how Old America views China?
We were meant to develop; enduring humiliation was one thing. But as we grow stronger in time ahead, if they provoke us again, we will certainly show them that we are not made of clay."
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