Had the political leaders listened to those wiser and less avaricious heads, Britain’s honor would not have been sullied by participation in the multinational megacorporations’ schemes that ultimately resulted in their control of Hong Kong. Britain had been used. The multinational corporations funding the rebellion had also funded dissident warlords, using the breakup of the repressive Shui regime to grab and hold Hong Kong and the New Territories for themselves. Those corporations renamed their corporate state the Hong Kong Free Enterprise Enclave. When Britain stepped forward to claim control, there had been laughter in the boardrooms. The corps had already obtained grants to the disputed territories from a dozen warlords in trade for arms and supplies. It wasn’t strictly legal, but they had possesion. The few British ambassadors to Chinese leaders who hadn’t had "accidents" were sent away in shame. Liaisons to the corporate consortium waited for appointments that never materialized.