Author: Half-wounded but not broken

Juniper City, this place was originally called Juniper Town, and later it was called Juniper Village.

The reason why we got this name is because this place was once a village. The most famous thing here is gin, which is also the only specialty.

This is a place with such a high green coverage that it doesn’t look like a city at all. It is surrounded by green on all sides.

Meltwater from the glaciers in the highest mountains eventually falls here, forming ladder-like waterfalls and rivers that feed on them.

There are a large number of mountain treasures in the large tracts of virgin forest that have not been developed or are not developed at all. The bounty of nature has never been so abundant.

Although Juniper City's gin is still one of the most famous business cards, it is now more famous for its large group of druids than for its wine.

With a total of 2,000 druids belonging to more than a dozen circles, it can be called the city with the most druids in the entire plane.

This situation occurs because of a legend.

When this place was originally a small village, the life of the villagers was very poor. Due to the impassable roads, even the best gin could not be transported out.

Until one day, when the villagers went into the forest to pick mushrooms, they accidentally discovered an acorn.

You must know that apart from pine and cypress trees, there are only shrubs such as juniper and no oak trees at all. And the acorn is indeed unusual, it looks like it is made of pure gold and sparkles.

Some villagers believe that the acorns should be sold to use the money to build roads in the village, but others believe that the acorn is a gift from Father Nature.

After arguing for three days and three nights with no result, a naughty child secretly took the acorn and planted it in his backyard.

As a result, the acorn immediately took root and sprouted as soon as it was planted. When the villagers who discovered that the golden acorn was missing came to look for it, they saw a large oak tree rising from the ground.

The druids who heard this story came to make a pilgrimage one after another. They believed that this was the will of Silvanus, the father of the oak tree.

The pilgrim druids taught the villagers the techniques of planting and gathering, and also taught them how to carve a path in the forest without harming any plants or trees.

This incident spread more and more widely, and gradually the number of pilgrims was no longer limited to druids, so slowly a small village turned into a city.

Generally speaking, it is difficult to tell whether a rumor is true or false, but the rumors in Juniper City are actually easy to confirm.

Because as long as you get close to the city, you will see a giant tree appearing in your field of vision like it is holding up your upper and lower eyelids. The big oak tree is still in the center of Juniper City, and it seems to be still growing.

Pei Renli and his carriage stepped into this city blessed by nature. The bitter heat of midsummer seemed to have been weakened a lot after entering the city.

The air is moist, cool and incredibly refreshing, and a large number of water channels introduce running water into every corner of the city, providing water sources for any greening plants in the city.

The whole city seemed to be filled with the pleasant smell of flowers and wood, which was in great contrast to the smoke and smoke in most cities, let alone the chimneys all over the place like Brevo.

This is a very livable city. If you want to retire, Juniper City will be your first choice.

"I need to take a shower. I haven't washed up for two days and two nights. I can't go to meet the Lord of Juniper City like this!"

Miaojie's complaint this time is reasonable, and she really can't just go there.

Perenli asked Anna to park the car near a mid-to-high-end hotel. Perenli went in and opened two rooms, and told Anna and Cosette that you have to go with Miaojie even when she goes to the bathroom, and you can't let her leave your sight.

Although the public security in Juniper City is good, it is not a reason to be careless.

Since it is a fairly high-end guest room, the price is of course in line with the standard. This money must be included in the budget, otherwise Pei Renli will feel very painful.

But it’s true, you get what you pay for.

The room is full of the characteristics of Juniper City, and many of the furniture seem to be natural, making people wonder if they are also grown from trees.

A messenger has already helped put water in the wooden bathtub. It seems that some kind of essential oil and a large number of flower petals have been added to it. The feeling of taking a bath is quite elegant.

For Pei Renli, the only dissatisfaction was that he had to take a bath with Camille, and the two men took a flower petal bath, which always made him feel a bit gay...

–‐‐——–‐‐——

Juniper City is Princess Miaojie's first stop. It is also the city closest to the border. Although it does not occupy an important geographical location and does not have much say in the kingdom, it still needs to be fought for.

After taking a shower and taking the opportunity to enjoy the massage service provided by the hotel, the five of them felt much more energetic and changed into clean clothes and headed to the City Lord's Mansion.

Generally, the places where city lords live look like castles, and Juniper City is no exception. However, the castle is covered with a lot of ivy and moss. At first glance, it looks like a ruin that has been abandoned for a long time.

Of course, not everyone can enter this place casually. Miaojie took out a badge and showed it to the soldier guarding the door. It was probably something to prove the identity of the royal family. Then the soldier sprinted back and forth at a speed of 100 meters, respectfully

Invite a few of them in.

Once inside, the maid took over and led them into the reception room.

But not everyone. After all, this is a meeting between the princess and the city lord. It is really not appropriate for two people to talk about things and a bunch of bodyguards standing in a row behind them.

So only Pei Renli accompanied Miaojie into the reception room, while everyone else was resting in the living room not far away.

Although he didn't like Miao Jie's princess style, Pei Renli still saved Miao Jie's face in formal occasions. He stood behind the sofa, and people knew at a glance that he must be a bodyguard.

After waiting for a few minutes, the door of the reception room was opened again, and a middle-aged man of about forty or fifty years old walked in.

He was wearing an off-white robe with some small decorations made of wood. He looked more like a druid than a city lord.

The two parties met with each other in a very standard polite manner. It was basically as if Her Royal Highness the Princess was flattered when she arrived at a distance. Miaojie also fully adopted the princess' airs and said that she was just out incognito for a patrol, so she didn't need to mind.

After the greetings were over, the two parties sat across from each other on the sofa. The city lord picked up the teapot and poured Miao Jie a cup of light golden liquid himself.

"This is our specialty honey from Juniper City. Please be sure to try it."

Before the city lord came in, Pei Renli used the poison detection method to check the contents of the teapot, and Miaojie could drink it with confidence.

"But Your Highness, your sudden visit surprised me."

"In order to avoid unnecessary attention, I can only come quietly."

Upon hearing these words, the city lord's expression changed slightly, obviously he understood what Miao Jie meant.

Miaojie also noticed this and said:

"Lord City Lord, you should understand why I'm here."

"Yes."

The city lord sat upright and said seriously:

"After discussion and voting by the Citizens Council, we decided to continue to maintain our consistent neutral stance."

Although Juniper City is famous in the Orion Kingdom, it never has a say, because being famous does not mean it is important.

It is not on the road, and it has no strategic value. Although the gin it produces is good, its output is not large, so its economic value is not very high.

Juniper City also knows its position in the kingdom. They do not favor any party. In short, no matter who becomes the king, I support it.

What Miaojie wants to persuade is this kind of neutral city to support the first prince.

"But Juniper City is still part of the Kingdom of Orion, and you should be aware of the current situation. Remaining neutral is not a good choice."

"Your Majesty, your words are serious. Of course I know that Juniper City is part of Orion, but this decision was not made by me alone. The person you want to convince is not me, but the citizens' council."

A major feature of the Kingdom of Orion is that each city has its own citizen assembly, and due to the laissez-faire nature of the current king, the citizen assembly and city lords who should only have the right to propose and have no management rights are actually managing each city.

, it can be said that except for the fact that military power is no longer in their hands, all management rights have been delegated.

This was an extremely rare situation in a centralized feudal society, which resulted in two princes having to pay attention to the support rates in various cities in the country when they competed for the throne.

The city lord's meaning was rather vague. He was not rejecting Miaojie, but he was saying, 'If you want me to support the first prince, there must be some benefit, right?'

"Then we can talk about some more practical issues."

The city lord made a gesture of invitation, and Miaojie said calmly:

"Juniper City has reached its limit, but its current scale can only barely be considered a city. You need new industry support."

Miaojie understood the hint from the city lord. If it were Sally, she would probably think that the city lord was asking for a bribe from her...

Members of the Citizens' Assembly come from all walks of life, from government officials to farmers who farm, and citizens have the right to enter the Assembly to observe.

If you want to convince them, the benefits must be promised to all the people of Juniper City, not just to the city lord.

"The First Prince has always wanted to build Juniper City into a new commercial city, and you need new trade routes."

Miaojie's words hit home directly.

The biggest problem in Juniper City is transportation. Although there is a road leading to the outside world, the road is too narrow and in disrepair. When Pei Renli came, the road was bumpy.

In addition, Juniper City is not attractive enough to attract merchants to come and trade.

Its most famous product is only gin, and its location is not on a necessary trade road.

This creates a vicious cycle. If you want to build roads, you need money, but if no businessmen come, the government will naturally have no money to build roads. It cannot build roads and improve its attractiveness, and businessmen will not come.

Juniper City is currently positioned as a livable city, the most suitable place for retirement, and it is not even a city for tourism and vacation. After all, not everyone is willing to travel thousands of miles just to take a look at the big oak tree.

Of course, someone who has reached the position of city lord cannot be fooled by just one word.

"Is there any specific plan?"

In short, you have to draw the cake first. It’s a bit unreliable to just throw out a direction and try to fool people.

"On this point, the First Prince and his staff are still discussing the specific plan..."

Hearing this, the city lord showed a slightly disappointed expression.

He told Miaojie that he would remain neutral. This was out of a mentality of waiting for a price. Since both princes wanted to compete for the throne, it might bring some benefits to Juniper City.

"Of course there are detailed plans, please allow me to explain."

The city lord and Miao Jie were stunned and looked at Pei Renli who was standing behind the sofa.

The expression seemed very unexpected. After all, it was a bit strange for a bodyguard to interfere in national affairs...
Chapter completed!