The news of Vanessa's safe escape had already been sent out by Tudyk through the intelligence points along the way, and the Raven had informed Mayor Hoffa.

So as soon as the group arrived at the northern outskirts of Yorktown, they met the city guards waiting to greet them.

The leader of the city guard was the captain Davidson, and when he saw everyone, he greeted him with enthusiasm, shook Paul's hand with both hands, and said: "This time, thanks to Grandmaster Paul, Miss Vanessa was able to get out safely, and the mayor was supposed to greet her personally, but unfortunately she was entangled in official business and could not make the trip, which is a great pity."

After a few days of free time, can you bother Grandmaster Paul to go to the mayor's mansion for a while?"

Paul had no choice but to accompany Davidson to say some words of entertainment, and watched as the city guards greeted Vanessa into the steam car.

As the steam car drove away, Vanessa poked her head out and waved goodbye to everyone.

Later, Davidson also led the team away, and Tudyk, after saying goodbye to everyone, also followed the ranks of the City Guard.

Mark Cromwell said, "That...... I also found a rental carriage to go back to Nancheng, and my father didn't know that I had come back safely, so it would have saved him from worrying if I had returned early.

Mr. Jacques, have you been at the Marian Mansion all along, and I will visit you in two days to thank you for your saving grace. ”

Jacques said, "You saved me, I can save you, you don't owe me." We are all friends who have experienced life and death together, and if you want to come to play with us, of course you are welcome, and you will see you when you come to visit. ”

Mark nodded vigorously and said, "Okay!

Marianne quipped, "Lily, you have to keep an eye on Jacques, don't let him hang out with Mark alone!"

Lily wondered, "Why?"

Marianne explained: "This guy and Vento are notoriously happy couples, and when they go to a place like the Moulin Rouge, there is not a girl in it who doesn't know them. ”

was teased by Marianne, and Mark didn't dare to reply, so he quickly stopped a taxi and left.

They rode back to the Lechhardt River Bridge, where Paul took Sammy back to the Flower Bar in his heart, and rode along the bridge to the south bank, while Jacques accompanied Lily to Marianne's house.

When he arrived at the door of Marian's house, he did not expect Tudyk to wait at the gate of the manor, accompanied by a small group of city guards.

When he saw them, he hurried up to them, and said, "Mr. Jacques, Miss Marianne, Mayor Hoffa invites you to the town hall, and by the way, Mr. Fabian, Miss Lily, and Miss Alisia, please go with you." ”

Jacques asked, "Didn't you say that the mayor was busy, why did he suddenly invite us there, and why didn't the others invite us along?"

Tudyk was full of apologies and said, "We also received the news halfway and came to you, and I don't know the specific situation." ”

Then he pulled Jacques over again, turned his back on the city guards, and whispered, "I just heard that the mayor is receiving the Imperial envoy, and I deduce that the invitation may be that he wants to meet with the envoy and answer some questions. Miss Emma and Miss Natasha are both civilians and may not be convenient to attend the ......"

Jacques also whispered: "Thank you, Mr. Tuddyk, but I am also a civilian, can I go?"

Tudyk hurriedly said: "No, no, Mr. Jacques was invited by the mayor by name, no problem." ”

Upon learning of the situation, Marianne suggested that everyone pack up and go to the town hall, and Tudyk had to wait.

Half an hour later, Jacques, Lily, Marianne, Alisia, and Fabian packed up their dresses and rode Marianne's blue steam car to City Hall.

......

Town Hall, the circular chamber of the City Council.

Jacques and the others were brought in through the back door, and they ascended the steps to the top of the stepped seats, where they were guided by the attendants.

As far as the eye can see, the City Council chamber today is completely different from what it was a few days ago.

If Marianne had come here a few days ago to tell the story of the attack on the spring hunting camp, the council chamber was as noisy as a weekend fair. Today, then, the City Council Chamber is like an elegant opera house, where the audience listens intently to a voice.

After listening for a while, Jacques realized that the speaker was not talking about rebels and hostages, but about the latest regulations of the Empire's three major commodity markets. Jacques listened to the clouds, and Marianne clenched and released her little fist, and then tightened her grip on the skirt of the cicada's wings, still trembling slightly.

After talking about the about commodity exchanges, the man on the stage talked about the need to add a unified price control for fruit wine to the Sugar Act.

This time, the originally quiet parliamentarians couldn't help but start talking to each other, and Jacques saw someone talking, and quietly asked Marianne next to him: "What is the Sugar Act?"

Marianne whispered, "Did you know that most of the sugar in the royal colonies in the northern New World comes from the Stuart colonies?"

Jacques shook his head and added, "But I've seen sugar cane fields in Tavaré in the center, and I've harvested sugar cane. Sugarcane sugar ......"

"Imagine that you pay taxes on a third of the money you spend on sugar produced in the Stuart colony. Now, this is about to be extended to all wines outside the Crown Territory. ”

"Why?"

"Take care of sugar beet farmers in the Northern Regions and fight sugar dumping in Stuart. This policy, apart from making everyone eat high-priced sugar, has no impact on Stuart's sugar industry at all. ”

"I see!

"Yes, there are too many ways to get from the central region to the northern region to stop smuggling, but smuggled sugar can be sold at a high price. ”

"What do the policymakers think?"

"The landed aristocracy in the north of the empire needs to be protected and co-opted. Sugar and wine, which were their main products, were hit by New World products. The Sugar Act was enforced not only here, but also in Gyeonggi and the Northern Regions, as well as in the Duchy of Saxony, which meant that later the wines of the New World would have little price advantage when they arrived in the Empire.

Hehe, my uncle didn't have to go to the trouble to explain at next year's family meeting why everyone else's vineyard was profitable, and only mine would lose money. ”

While the two were talking quietly, the spokesperson on the stage walked down amid sparse applause.

Then a purple skirt floated to the small podium, and the parliamentarians immediately burst into a burst of enthusiastic applause, and even many people stood up excitedly.

The woman in the purple dress spun around the small podium and greeted the councillors scattered in the circular staircase chamber.

It was in this turn that Jacques saw her face clearly, and Marianne's words surprised her:

"It turns out that she is a royal envoy!"

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