1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 371 The place that the women of Luberon love most!
After months of separation, Ronan and Zoe were both excited and thrilled to finally go out at night. They could even chat happily for a long time about a tree by the roadside.

Especially with so many new neighbors moving into Lourmaran this year, and so many more beautiful houses, I'm sure the nighttime scenery will be incredibly diverse and beautiful in the future.

However, seeing Zoe constantly tugging at his collar and leaning against him, Ronan decided that tonight's night out could be temporarily called off.

The temperature difference in the Luberon Valley is significant in early March, with nighttime temperatures dropping to around 8 degrees Celsius. Indoor activities are probably the best option. Warm spring is still a while away.

"Is there anything you want to do?" Ronan put his arm around Zoe. "Besides going out at night, is there anything else you want to do but haven't had time for because you've been too busy?"

Zoe thought for a few seconds, then her eyes suddenly lit up:
"There is one!"

Looking into Zoe's bright eyes, Ronan asked with affection:
"What is it?"

Zoe broke free from Ronan's embrace and walked backwards while adorably gesturing with her hands in front of her chest:

“I wanted to learn to cook. After my mother went out to work, my father, Vieri, and I made a bet on who could take over my mother’s title of best chef. Vieri helps out at the restaurant every day and can already make many kinds of pasta and pies on his own. My father’s grilled meat is also very good, but my skill level is still limited to making nizza salad.”

"That's easy!" Ronan pointed to himself. "What dish do you want to learn? I'll teach you!"

Zoe said with a smile:

"I don't want to take a crash course that only teaches me one or two dishes; I want to learn and understand the subject systematically."

She turned away, not letting Ronan see her expression:
"Although you are a great chef, I can't be completely helpless when you have a family in the future, so you still need to master basic cooking knowledge."

Leah took excellent care of the children. Zoe had never cooked before, and Louis often got into trouble because Leah took such good care of him. Now that Leah has left the family, everyone needs to rediscover the life experiences they had missed.

Zoe was the most anxious of them all.

She's about to have her own family!

But it seems that besides making money, Zoe has nothing else to offer.
She certainly has basic life skills, but Zoe isn't confident she can take care of Ronan like her mother would.

Cooking is just the first step; in the future, Zoe wants to improve her various life skills.

Ronan, beaming, quickly caught up with Zoe and asked, looking at her profile:

How can I help you?

Zoe's bright, light blue eyes met Ronan's.

"I'll cook you some delicious food tomorrow at noon. Let me see how good I am first?"

"No problem—" Ronan shouted excitedly, "I will definitely wipe them out!"

This is the first time Zoe has cooked for Ronan, and no matter what it turns out like, he will eat it all.

"Go to the restaurant to get some ingredients?" Ronan asked, pointing in the direction of the shopping street.

He guessed that Louis's family probably didn't have anything to cook, and that the four of them had been eating at a restaurant for the past few days.

Zoe thought for a moment and said in a consultative tone:
"Shouldn't a systematic learning process for cooking start with selecting ingredients? I'd like to buy the ingredients myself."

Ronan nodded without hesitation, but then immediately hesitated:

"There aren't any big markets around here tomorrow, but the butcher shops and vegetable shops have enough ingredients for you. I'll go grocery shopping with you first thing tomorrow morning."

The truffle season is over, and Ronan has plenty of time.

After Zoe completed Miss Patricia's order, all her time was now hers to do.

When it comes to 'selection', you should definitely go to the bustling markets, where you can find the most seasonal items in Luberon.

Unfortunately, there will be no market in Little Luberon tomorrow.

Zoe suddenly laughed and looked up at Ronan:

"What? My first time seriously buying groceries isn't worth going to a farther place?"

"Hmm?" Ronan quickly recalled whether there would be markets in the villages of Daluberon tomorrow.

What day of the week is the market in Goldshire?

Does Sog have a market?
Zoe raised an eyebrow with a bright smile:

"We didn't get enough of exploring tonight. Let's go to Piazza Milona in Apte tomorrow morning. I've heard it's a favorite spot for Luberon women, and I'd like to see it."

Ronan happily took Zoe's hand:

"Go, go, I'll go with you wherever you go. 'Spring outings' and 'night outings' should be back!"

As the 'minor capital' of Luberon, Apte has many markets of all sizes, scattered throughout the town.

Milona Market, located in Piazza Milona, ​​is a favorite among locals because its slogan is "The cheapest food in all of Luberon."

The affordable food also attracted many women from nearby villages and towns, and over time, the saying "Milona Market is the favorite place of Luberon women" spread.

Ronan had been to Apte many times, but this was his first time in the Piazza Milona area, and his first impression of the old square was quite different from what he had imagined.

"This place is amazing. It's so desolate, yet so 'bustling.' It's only 8 o'clock and there are no parking spaces left?"

Logically, such a famous market should have plenty of parking spaces nearby, and that's exactly what happened – the municipal department utilized every inch of land within 500 meters of the square as parking areas.

Ronan circled the parking lot three times but couldn't find a single empty space; they were all occupied by trucks and private cars of all sizes.

However, these three laps allowed Ronan to enjoy a 360-degree panoramic view of Piazza Milona:
In the middle of the square stood a very ugly monument, and on one side were dilapidated ancient buildings. The dull and desolate atmosphere could be smelled even through the car window.

But on the other side of the square, a different scene unfolded. Countless trolleys piled high with goods and women carrying shopping baskets hurried in and out of a building that resembled a train station. Inside, it was brightly lit and bustling, as if it were providing an early wake-up call for the entire city, creating a busy and vibrant atmosphere.

This is their destination for today – Milona Market.

As Zoe looked for parking spots on both sides, she remarked:

“The Milona Market opens at five in the morning. The first half hour is reserved for buyers and restaurant owners. By six o’clock, the most hardworking women in Luberon have already finished their shopping for a day or several days.”

Ronan's struggle to find a parking space made him worry about the situation in the market:

"It's probably even more crowded inside than outside."

Ronan finally found a place to park his car two blocks away from the Milona Market.

On his walk to Milona Market, he saw two homeless men on the road. Although it was only a little past 8 o'clock, they were already carrying bottles of red wine.

Ronan joked:

"Even the vagabonds of Provence adhere to the Provençal habit of 'drinking as soon as they open their eyes'."

Zoe shrugged: "That just means the people who gave them the wine started drinking it even earlier. Okay, we're almost at the market entrance. Hold on tight, don't let us separate."

Just seconds after Zoe finished speaking, a cart loaded with potatoes and tomatoes bumped into Ronan's backside.

The goods piled on the cart were so high that Ronan couldn't even see whether the person pushing the cart was male or female when he turned around.

"Sorry, buddy." A slightly weathered voice came from behind the merchandise, sounding like an old man of considerable age.

"Be careful." Ronan didn't mean to blame him, but was worried that such a difficult move might be too dangerous for his age.

"Oh dear—" The handcart suddenly accelerated, bypassing Ronan and Zoe at a terrifying speed.

Ronan quickly shielded Zoe and saw that the person running past him was a short woman, not an old man.

The reason she overtook the car on the bend was because a row of equally overloaded carts behind her bumped into her rear.

Looking at the densely packed, overloaded trucks behind him, Ronan felt a sense of oppression, as if a locomotive were rushing towards him. While protecting Zoe, he looked for a place to temporarily hide, making way for the speeding fruits and vegetables.

Finally, Ronan plunged into a restaurant near the market entrance. As he entered, he saw that the restaurant's name was "Peace and Tranquility."

What a good name. What Ronan needs right now is a moment of peace.

But Ronan's dream was shattered; the restaurant was incredibly noisy, as if 100 parrots were having a meeting to discuss what to have for breakfast.

Hmm, it could also be lunch.

Because Ronan had difficulty distinguishing which meal they were eating from the food laid out on the table.

One guy was holding a greasy sausage in one hand and a cup with some brown liquid in his other hand, which looked like whiskey.

Another table of guests were enjoying a tempting baked pizza, accompanied by a locally produced beer.

At another table, burly men were elegantly sipping champagne, their bodies and fingernails covered in dirt, seemingly celebrating a successful day of business.

"Are you having breakfast here?" Ronan asked Zoe.

They didn't eat at home; they agreed to eat together in Apt.

But this restaurant, which started serving champagne before most people were even out of bed, left Ronan somewhat undecided.

Zoe comforted Ronan, and in doing so, she comforted herself.

"There should be a milder breakfast here, you know, people who work around here get up early, and it's lunchtime for them now."

Ronan also said with great optimism:
“Indeed, when I used to set up a stall at the market, I would start thinking about what to have for lunch at nine in the morning.”

When he was setting up a stall, Ronan could eat whatever he wanted; there were quite a few choices.

But this restaurant called 'Anning' only offers one breakfast option—a very rustic sandwich.

This was truly the most rustic sandwich Ronan had ever seen in Provence.

It contained nothing but a huge amount of sausages, cheese, and pickled olives, and one of them was longer than an adult man's forearm.

What's even more horrifying is that such a huge sandwich didn't come with any utensils; everyone just picked it up and ate it.

Ronan swore that whether he ate breakfast or lunch, this one sandwich would keep him full until dinner.

Ronan doesn't usually have alcohol with breakfast, so he ordered two coffees for himself and Zoe.

Zoe wasn't very happy about the lack of food, and while stirring her coffee, she said to Ronan:
"Try it first. If it's not good, I'll go inside and buy something else."

Choosy, a picky eater, thought the sandwich wasn't her cup of tea.

Ronan massaged his chin a few times, then took a big bite. The sandwich only suffered minor damage. After chewing a few times, he unexpectedly held the sandwich to Zoe's mouth:

"It tastes good; the ham has been specially cured."

Zoe took a small bite with some skepticism, then quickly followed with a large bite:

"delicious."

Without utensils, the two of them had to take turns eating the giant sandwich.

Seemingly thinking about how she was about to become a wife and needed to practice taking care of others, Zoe took the initiative to take on the task of 'feeding' her.

Throughout the meal, she would take a bite herself, then feed Ronan a bite, and occasionally wipe Ronan's mouth, giving him no chance to 'take care of himself'.

[Enjoying a Provençal sausage sandwich increases happiness by 12 points]

Having breakfast with an attractive person of the opposite sex increases happiness by 19 points.

[Physical contact with someone of the opposite sex increases happiness by 35 points]

Ronan was constantly hearing notification sounds.

As early as last year, he summarized the patterns of happiness related to 'eating', which are roughly as follows:

The happiness level of eating alone is N.

Having dinner with Zoe increases your happiness level to N+2 or 3.

When Zoe serves him food, his happiness level is N+4 or 5.

When Ronan discovered this pattern, the two were just ordinary friends sharing a stall. However, he couldn't help but wonder how much happiness Zoe would gain if she fed him the whole time.
Now he can say with absolute certainty—at least 4N!
Seeing Ronan eating and laughing, Zoe considerately asked:
"You really like it? If you haven't had enough, we'll pack one to go."

Ronan's mouth was bulging:
"There must be other delicious food inside, let's go eat something else."

Zoe wiped Ronan's mouth one last time and then held the coffee to his lips again:

"Okay, I'll keep feeding you! But I'm worried it's too messy inside. You might not like it here."

Ronan said happily:
"Impossible! I already love this place before I even went inside!"

Ronan went to pay the bill and discovered that the huge sandwich only cost 25 francs.

"Even the sandwiches are the cheapest in Luberon?" Zoe looked at the bill several times.

Ronan eagerly took her hand and led her into the Milona Market:

"Let's go see what this 'Luberon women's favorite place' is really like."

(End of this chapter)