1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 297 Only mother is good in the world

The grapevines beneath the soil have entered a 'Schrödinger' state.

Before the artifact is unearthed in April, Ronan will strive to protect everyone's hope and find ways to keep that hope alive.

After thinking about it for two whole days, he came up with a few general ideas.

The first possibility is to apply to the Lourmaran government for sufficient disaster relief funds.

The tourism bureau approved the budget earlier than April. If the budget application is approved and is sufficient, perhaps some clever ways can be found to divert a portion of the budget to recover everyone's losses.
The second direction to explore is to consult with Juliet about the possibility of agricultural transformation in Lourmaran.

The Vaucluse Tourism Board has special support funds, and perhaps planting certain crops in Luberon could also receive subsidies and support from the Vaucluse Agriculture Department?
After such a major disaster, Ronan didn't believe the Ministry of Agriculture wouldn't consider introducing advanced agricultural technologies and equipment, and perhaps even try to get Lourmaran to be a pilot site?
Another direction is to find a 'new hope' that can help farmers forget their pain and point them to a brighter 'new future'.

Land is how farmers make money; it would be great if we could find them a new way to earn money.

Besides the above attempts, there must be other directions, but there's just not enough time, and Ronan hasn't thought of any yet.

In short, hope began to sprout in his heart.

As long as there is hope, and as long as we are not defeated, there will always be a chance to find a solution.

Ronan firmly believed that Lourmaran would undergo a dramatic transformation in the future, whether in terms of labor structure, agricultural layout, or even the dominant economic type. There would certainly be twists and turns in this process, but the final result of the change would definitely be good.

The cold wave has been over for four or five days.

But the dark clouds hanging over Lourmaran have not dissipated, and although the specific situation of the farmland is still unknown, people's lives have been affected.

First, Château Mollécs has cancelled the wine discount for residents of Lourmarin; even if purchased by the case, the cheapest red and white wines now cost 40 francs a bottle.

The reason is that they are worried that the cold wave will affect this year's grape production, resulting in lower-than-expected profits next year, so they need to start 'saving money' a year in advance.

The winery owner personally came to Lourmarin to apologize to everyone, saying that because he obtained the brand license last year and purchased a lot of advanced winemaking equipment, he owed the French Agricultural Bank more than one million francs. If he couldn't make it through this year, everyone would no longer have cheap wine to drink.

Pierre said that many wineries and wine cooperatives in Luberon have cancelled their cooperative village discounts, and even without bank loans, they are pessimistic about this year's grape yield.

If the grapevines suffer severe damage this year, the grape harvest in the heart of the Luberon will be reduced over the next three to five years. In that case, wineries will continue to raise the prices of their red and white wines, which means that people will not have affordable table wines for the next few years.

“Since there’s no discount, I’m not drinking Moli wine,” Fabian said angrily. “They’re all 40 francs. I’m going to find other good wine brands.”

"Moli Winery made a terrible decision! For such a small profit, they lost the entire Lourmarin market! Foolish fellow!" Henry shouted, gripping his wine glass. "Mr. Ronan, you shouldn't sell Moli wine either. You'd better let them go bankrupt immediately!"

Ronan smiled but didn't say anything.

This year has been tough for everyone.
Theo shrugged indifferently:

"This doesn't affect me much. Apart from going out for a few drinks every day, my house is full of wine that Lucas sent me. They're not cheap, and they're not Moli."

But then he suddenly slammed his hand on the table:
"What I'm concerned about is something else entirely. Damn it, how did meat prices go up so high? The lamb and tripe that Anna likes have gone up by 10 francs per kilogram!"

Ronan shook his head and said:
"Not only has the price of mutton gone up, but the prices of all meats and vegetables have increased."

Cornell sighed:
"This cold wave has killed many cattle and sheep, reducing the number of livestock and increasing feed prices."

Cold waves not only freeze crops and livestock, but also the pasture that animals eat.

The food Huhu has been eating these days is the same kind of fodder that Theo uses to feed the rabbits.

Ronan continued to add to the discussion:

"This time, the power company focused on the electricity supply for residents in mountainous areas. Many businesses encountered unstable power supply. During the cold wave, Freddy's slaughterhouse frequently experienced power outages, which reduced the efficiency of fresh meat supply."

Fabian looked at everyone and said:
"Although there have been various problems, I still have to say that the response speed and ability of governments at all levels this time are much stronger than in 1976. Life has not been greatly affected, and I have not heard of any residents being affected by the disaster this time."

"Yes, this is a stroke of luck amidst misfortune," everyone echoed.

"No impact yet?!" Henry said through gritted teeth. "The prices of vegetables, meat, and wine have all gone up; we're almost starving!"

"Can't we eat bread for a few days?" Theo retorted to Henry, annoyed. "You've been eating too much meat and seafood lately, it's good to cleanse your system."

"I've been eating bread and cheese for half a month!" Henry said angrily.

“Who isn’t?” Theo yelled at Henry. “We were so busy the other day, who had the mood to eat well? Lucas was eating bread with me for half a month. What are you being so fussy about?”

"Alright, alright, stop arguing." Ronan separated the two of them. "You've all worked hard lately. Come to my house at the end of the month for Chinese New Year. We'll have a good meal for two days and I'll treat you to something nice."

Everyone at the table turned to look at Ronan.

"Spring Festival?"

Ronan had just finished processing all the tobacco compost piles today and had a little free time. After drinking and chatting with the farmers for a while, he went to the cashier.

"How much has the cold wave affected the restaurant?" Ronan asked his mother.

For a while, he focused his energy on fighting the cold and didn't pay attention to anything else.

Feng Zhen nodded first, then pouted and said:

"It has had an impact, but not as severe as it was in November. It's much better than in November. The villagers' living conditions have improved. Before, they ate bread and cheese every day without a problem, but now they need to come out to satisfy their cravings after a few days. Our house is definitely their first choice."

Ronan was relieved:

"That's good."

Feng Zhen lowered her voice and said:
"The problem now is that prices have gone up, and our profit margins have shrunk!"

Prices are soaring, but Luo Tianhai said he would not raise prices for the time being, so as not to put any more pressure on the people of Lourmaran.

From this perspective, Ronan and his father have quite similar personalities.

“Dad told me about this,” Ronan comforted his mother. “Dad’s idea is to not raise prices before the tourist season arrives, and see how things go. Right now, the people eating at the restaurant are mostly villagers or regulars from the neighborhood, so raising prices wouldn’t be appropriate. If prices haven’t come down by March, then we’ll see how things go and decide whether to raise prices and by how much. By then, the people eating there will be tourists.”

In previous years, the taverns and restaurants in Lourmaran were packed with locals during the tourist season, and this year will certainly be no different.

Ronan's restaurants are sure to be the focus of tourists' attention.

The locals are poor, but the tourists from all over the world are. Luberon is a tourist destination. Ronan and his team could easily upgrade the restaurant to reflect the prices in a tourist area.

"Fine, I don't care, you two can discuss it yourselves," Feng Zhen said without much emotion.

Ronan leaned against the bar and said with a smile:
"You can ignore the vegetable prices, but you need to start preparing for the Spring Festival well in advance. I've already invited my friends to experience our family's 'New Year' celebration.'"

The Spring Festival is at the end of January, which is not far away.

Ronan wanted to use this festive occasion to lift everyone's spirits and quickly forget about the cold snap. Feng Zhen winked smugly at her son.

"You don't need to tell me. I started preparing back in December, and I even included all your friends in the calculation. Don't worry, I've even bought red underwear and red socks. Next year is Pierre's birth year, so he has to wear them!"

Ronan gently hugged his mother across the counter:
"I am so happy to have such a good and thoughtful mother like you!"

After spending some time at the restaurant, Ronan returned home.

Cafu's guys are back to work today to continue building the studio, and Ronan plans to go check if the cold wave has affected the project.

“I’ll go back with you.” Theo finished his drink and left with him. “I complained about the price of lamb going up. Lucas is supposed to bring me some lamb this afternoon. He should be here soon. I’ll go home and wait for him.”

Fabian laughed heartily and said:
"Lucas has been good to you, Theo."

Theo first proudly raised his chin, then waved casually:

“It was for Anna’s good. He knew Anna loved lamb, so he specially went to Mena Village to buy lambs.”

"A whole one?" Cornell asked, his mouth agape.

He hadn't eaten meat for several days, let alone lambs.

Theo chuckled twice, revealing a sly grin of 'successful plot':

"One lamb is enough for anyone to eat, but Lucas always buys three or more lambs at a time!"

“You did this on purpose! You’re infuriating!” Cornell protested.

"That's going too far, you're stirring up trouble," Fabian muttered.

Henry angrily slammed his fist on the table:

"You're so arrogant because you have a powerful older brother! You're nothing without Lucas!!"

Theo, arm in arm with Ronan, happily left the restaurant.
You guys are so envious!

Before even reaching Theo's house, Ronan spotted Lucas's SUV in the distance.

Ronan asked Theo with a smile:
"Have the two brothers gotten along quite well lately?"

Lucas not only found help for Theo, but also worked alongside him throughout the entire cold wave.

The two brothers couldn't be closer.

Theo wasn't as 'irritating' when he spoke to Ronan; he showed a happy smile.

"Maybe it's because we talked about it a while ago, and I feel like some of the misunderstandings between us have been cleared up."

"What misunderstanding?" Ronan asked.

Theo replied perfunctorily:
“It was a few small things, no need to mention them, but Lucas started treating me well after that.”

Ronan didn't press further, only saying something that was half-true and half-false:

"Maybe they were already quite nice to you before that, you just didn't see it."

Theo gave two embarrassed chuckles:

"Maybe so. I used to want to run away whenever I saw him."

He changed the subject, lowering his voice to Ronan:

"But I have to thank you for this. With money in my pocket, the family is much more harmonious and happy."

At the fork in the road, Ronan stopped and patted Theo on the shoulder:

"I'll work hard to earn money in the future and contribute more to my family."

“That’s for sure!” Theo said with a grin.

Ronan waved to Lucas, who was sitting in the car, from a distance, and continued driving towards his home.

He walked around his house to the backyard and found that the workers were not actually doing any construction work; there wasn't a single clanging or banging sound coming from the site.

As I got closer, I heard them talking around a small pit.

"What's wrong?" Ronan also went over to see.

The leader of the group explained to Ronan:

"We can't work for the next couple of days. We have to wait for the temperature to rise a bit more. We've put down a few shovels, and the ground is frozen for the next 20 centimeters."

“Okay.” Ronan nodded.

He can wait a day or two.

After explaining some more construction details to his colleagues, Ronan returned indoors.

But after taking only two steps, he slowed down.

Wait, it seems like something has been overlooked.

frozen soil.

20 centimeters of frozen soil.

It was as if a bolt of lightning had suddenly struck Ronan's head.

He disregarded his appearance and rushed to Theo's house in a panic.

Lucas and Theo were moving sheep when they saw Ronan looking like this and joked:

"What? You want to steal a lamb?"

Ronan hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't state his purpose directly.

He helped move things for a while, and finally waited for a moment when Theo wasn't around, then whispered to Lucas:
Have you been to the mountains recently?

(End of this chapter)