Following the incident, the Qing government took a more active role in the administration of Taiwan, assigning Shen Baozhen, an imperial official from Fujian, to oversee shipping around the island.
清同治十三年，恆春發生歷史上著名的「牡丹社之役」，清廷對台灣的治理態度轉為積極，命福建船政大臣沈葆楨為欽差，統籌台灣海防事務。