What led to the first opium war in 1839? a) the qing dynasty was challenging british merchants for control of the lucrative opium trade in eastern asia. b) the chinese were growing and selling poppies that were turned into opium, which was finding its way into britain. c) secret chinese martial arts societies, dubbed “boxers” by europeans, were smuggling opium into british hong kong. d) when british merchants began selling opium in china, the authorities attempted to stop them, causing britain to react.