Abstract: The predicament caused by the Boxer Uprising was the most important and the most direct reason for the transference of the Kaiping mining rights． The problem of shortage of funds became more precarious and Kaiping Company faced the danger of being confiscated． Selling mining rights was undoubtedly a measure to protect itself． It was initiated to avoid being cheated． And the price was relatively reasonable． But the problem was that，in accordance with the law of Qing Dynasty，Zhang Yi had no right to sell the coal mine． The long dispute between Britain and China about mining rights，by its nature，was caused by the differences between the English and Chinese legal systems． Based on sales agreement and transfer agreement，English businessmen were entitled to possess and operate the Kaiping Mines completely． The supplementary agreement Zhang Yi stuck with was not carried out at all and English businessmen brought the Kaiping Mines under their sole control under the name of Chinese-foreign joint venture．