Upon her arrival at Weihaiwei, she was sent onto Port Arthur for repairs. Captain Fang of the "Jiyuan" was court-martialled for his actions but found not guilty and returned to duty. "Jiyuan" was repaired and rejoined the fleet on 7 August in Weihaiwei, shortly before the Japanese attacked the port three days later, bombarding the defensive forts before leaving. On 17 September, at the Battle of Yalu River, she was at the far left of the Chinese line and in a fighting pair with the cruiser . "Jiyuan" signalled early on that she was damaged, and was withdrawn. The ship was manoeuvred into some nearby shallows where the crew found it difficult to steer the vessel, and instead steamed back into the engagement. While doing so, it collided with the Chinese cruiser "Chaoyong", which subsequently sank. At some point during the battle, Captain Fang was relieved of his duties by First Lieutenant Shen Sou Ch'ang, but Fang returned to command after Shen was killed.