1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 377 Acting, it's all acting!!
Ronan had been planning this for a long time: to give the studio to Zoe as a gift, and then hold a sacred marriage proposal ceremony.

But he can't do this alone; he needs help.

It's too difficult to do something secretly in Lourmarin. If one person knows, the whole village will know. Even his parents can't completely trust him anymore. They're becoming more and more Provençal, especially Ronan's mother, Fonzhen.

You're asking about Luo Tianhai?
Like father, like son. Ronan was willing to betray Vieri for Zoe. Who knows if he'll betray himself?

Ronan thought for a long time about which friends he could keep the secret and cooperate with him to complete this important task, but found that there was no suitable candidate.

At that moment, he thought of his old classmate Tolle, who was far away in Paris.

Thor is simple-minded, kind-hearted, and reliable. Most importantly, he is taciturn and doesn't like to talk much, so he can definitely help Ronan keep the secret.

Moreover, when Thor left Provence last year, he sent Ronan his best wishes—saying that he hoped his next visit to Provence would be for a friend's wedding.

The wedding may have to wait, but the proposal can be on the agenda.

Ronan would prepare everything in advance, and during the two days he and Zoe went to Nice, he would have Thor secretly do the preparations at the studio.

Thor didn't even ask which day of next week or how many days he would stay, and said decisively:

"Okay, I'll go."

He knew that the girl named Zoe would end up with Ronan; they were such a perfect match!
Because of his personality, Ronan is Thor's only friend, and he absolutely has to go to his best friend's marriage proposal—such a big event!
After discussing the details and meeting time with Thor, Ronan returned to the restaurant.

Upon seeing Ronan Zoe, he asked worriedly:
"How long have you been there? Is everything going smoothly?"

Ronan said he was going home to make an important phone call. Was something not going well?
Ronan said with a bright smile:

"all the best!"

Just you wait, my fiancée!!

Kafu's physical store in Apte recently opened, and all of Batti's newly designed trinkets and lamps were sent there. Orders have been coming in recently.

Selling new styles meant teaching women new skills and weaving techniques. One person like Barty couldn't teach so many 'students', especially since new people with no experience would join them every day. So Ronan moved his workspace to Barty's yard, designing woven chairs while teaching everyone.

Ronan's goal was to design at least 10 woven chairs, and after ten days of hard work, that number was finally more than halfway there, with five chairs already delivered to Apte.

Cafu really liked the style of those chairs and confidently declared that they would be a huge hit in Provence.

To demonstrate his confidence, he paid very high prices for these chairs, the cheapest being 2500 francs and the most expensive being 5500 francs. Moreover, he sold one on the very first day the physical store opened!
This gave Cafu even more confidence. He hadn't even notified the customers who had left their contact information that the store had "new arrivals" yet, and this one was bought by a passerby.

Seeing this, Cafu urged Ronan to continue designing new styles while also telling him to quickly teach the women how to make chairs, lest the demand increase and the supply fall short of demand.

After giving a knitting lesson to a few men, Barty came out to chat with Ronan.

Seeing that Ronan had made a new chair, Barty couldn't wait to sit down, prop his feet up, and comfortably squint his eyes.

"It's so comfortable. I'm sure someone will like this one too. You're really amazing. All the designs you've made are fantastic. If I were rich, I would definitely buy them."

Ronan pointed to the chair beneath him and asked:
Who should be taught this first?

There are too many people doing knitting in Lourmaran now, but Ronan can't teach everyone. When he makes a new style, he can only teach it to one or two people first. If it sells well, those people will teach others.

Ronan didn't know the women's orders or their knitting skills, so it was up to Barty to decide who to choose.

Barty opened his eyes, clutching his chin as he struggled:
"Josephine has been learning so many new things lately, she must be too busy to keep up."

"And Amonyna is still learning about those new lamps, so we can't teach her anymore."

“Pirey? But he just stole two orders from me! I’m going to give him a little ‘punishment’.”

Woven furniture has a high unit price, so whoever gets the order should be secretly happy!
Ronan smiled and glanced at Batty, then offered him a 'good idea':
“Everyone’s been learning about new lighting fixtures and decorations lately, so it’s hard to digest the knowledge of making chairs. There probably won’t be many orders for woven furniture at the beginning. You can work on chair orders for a while first, and then teach them slowly as the women have digested what you’ve taught them. I’m free for a while, so even if orders suddenly explode, there’s still time. I’ll teach everyone with you.”

Ronan made this suggestion based on two considerations.

First, there are too many new things for women to learn recently, especially the more complex and time-consuming skill of weaving chairs. It is not appropriate to teach them at this time; the timing should be staggered.

The second consideration was that Ronan wanted Batistuta to earn more money.

Despite being busier than anyone else and spending so much time securing orders, this "Secretary-General" doesn't earn as much as Josephine.

Ronan had proposed a profit-sharing model to Batistuta two months earlier, but Batistuta rejected it, citing that he might leave Lourmaran at any time.

Batty said he was only staying to make the women rich, and once that goal was achieved, he would definitely continue to live there, making it impossible for Ronan to stay.

Another point is that Batty doesn't have a high desire to make money. Although he still takes orders now, he stops once he has enough to cover rent and treat female artists to meals and drinks.

I only work for half the month, and rest for the other half.

He values ​​spiritual enrichment more than material wealth.

Bati said that being too busy would hinder his observation of the world. As long as he doesn't starve, it would be more meaningful to spend his time drinking and chatting with artists instead of making money.

Ronan respected his mentor Barty's choice, knowing that neither money nor scenery could truly bind this prodigal son. However, given the opportunity, he still wanted Barty to earn more.

Money and scenery along the way don't conflict, my friend!
“What’s the point of making so much money? The scenery you see is always the same.” Barty spread his hands. “I’ll think of a suitable candidate. I’ll only do it if there’s really no one else.”

When the scenery was mentioned, Ronan suddenly looked up at him:

"Oh, by the way, Cotillard has booked our accommodation in Nice. I heard that the sea is right outside the window."

Michelin magazine reimbursed the Lourmarin artist for his accommodation and travel expenses in Nice.

In this way, the artists viewed this project as a collective outing.

Nice is the most beautiful coastal city in southern France!
To ensure the artists had a good time, the ever-thoughtful Cotillard personally went to Nice to choose accommodations, which he heard were in very nice condition.

"Wow! The ocean!!" Barty suddenly became excited and turned to go to the bedroom. "I need to find my floral shirt. The beach and a floral shirt go perfectly together!"

If it weren't for the Lourmarin handicrafts cooperative, Batti would have moved to Nice right after Christmas.

"It's only March! You can't even wear a floral shirt yet!" Ronan shouted at Batty's retreating figure.

When Cotillard returned last night with the news, all the artists in the restaurant were in an uproar, even more so than Batty. It seems everyone is really looking forward to this trip.

After working for a while longer, Cornell entered the yard.

“Your mother went back and said she was going to cook for your sister’s child,” Ronan kindly reminded Cornell.

Cornell squatted down directly in front of Ronan:

"The agricultural ministry of Vaucluse province arrived a few hours early and is now on their way to your restaurant. It seems they're going to have lunch. Pierre asked me to inform you to go and greet them."

The Ministry of Agriculture told the government that they would arrive in the afternoon, but for some reason they suddenly appeared in Lourmaran before lunch.

Ronan laughed when he heard that.

Juliet led the team to Lourmaranth to promote weather insurance.

She's really too good at taking care of her business!

"It's alright, you guys hurry home and eat too, don't miss the weather insurance hearing this afternoon." Ronan continued working, showing no sign of going to 'greet' anyone.

Juliet is "one of us," so why should we entertain her?

Moreover, even if Ronan goes, she won't acknowledge him as her boyfriend; she'll just let them eat normally.

Cornell stubbornly said:

“No, no, Pierre said the Ministry of Agriculture has never been to Lourmarin before. This is their first time, so we must treat them well. You're the best host in the village.” Seeing Ronan motionless, Cornell picked him up, chair and all.

“Let’s go, Ronan, this is no laughing matter.”

Ronan grabbed the handrail in a panic and shouted:
"Put me down, I'll go, I'll go, okay? But let me call Zoe first, okay? She's waiting for me to have lunch."

Today, the Ministry of Agriculture sent three people to Lourmaran again, with Juliet leading the team.

Juliet had been to Ronan's restaurant many times, and she knew very well what was delicious and what the specialties were.

However, since it was the first time for the other colleagues, they asked Juliet to recommend some good food.

"You should give us some feedback on suddenly bringing us here for lunch."

Juliet said in a nonchalant tone:
"The food here is all delicious, and Chinese food is all about the novelty. If you've never eaten Chinese food before, you can order anything, including desserts, which are all great."

"Does the red chili pepper shape on the menu mean it's spicy?" one of my colleagues from the Ministry of Agriculture asked.

Julie nodded in agreement:

"Yes, this restaurant has a lot of spicy dishes."

Juliet was a veteran in the department, and the kind of 'veteran' who was just a step away from a promotion.

The other two officials had only been in the department for a short time, so she would definitely be given priority for this business trip opportunity.
"Juliet doesn't like spicy food, let's look at something else."

Juliet doesn't like spicy food, but Ronan modified the dishes, and Juliet tried them a few times and found them perfectly acceptable, but she was too lazy to explain the details to these people.

A few minutes later, Blanco arrived in a hurry with Sylvie and a few others.

They were told that the Ministry of Agriculture would arrive in the afternoon, but upon learning that they had arrived ahead of schedule, they rushed over immediately.

After exchanging a few pleasantries with the Ministry of Agriculture, Blanco politely said:

"Since you've come to Lourmaran for a meal, we must show you hospitality. I'll arrange some of the local specialties!"

Unlike Quincy, Juliet dislikes 'ineffective socializing'.

Moreover, she was there just to eat and didn't want to mix it with her afternoon work, so she somewhat coldly refused.
"We've already ordered. Why don't you all go and have lunch? We can meet again at our agreed time this afternoon."

Blanco had dealt with Juliet many times. This important official from the Ministry of Agriculture had almost issued a huge fine to Lourmaran. Knowing that she was serious and didn't like to get close to people, Blanco obediently left with his men.

When Ronan returned, he happened to see several Lourmaran officials leaving in a sorry state.

This is the first time the Ministry of Agriculture has sent a special team to Lourmaran, and we heard that they are here to promote something very important. Every villager who works with the land is taking this very seriously. Even when the tourism bureau came, not many people cared about it.

Tourism is too far removed from people's lives, but agriculture is a major issue that is closely related to all residents. Most of the people having lunch at the Ronan Restaurant today were farmers.

After closely observing the situation at the Ministry of Agriculture's table and Blanco's reaction, Pierre solemnly instructed Ronan:
"The one leading the group should be that woman in the brown coat, yes, the one who doesn't smile. She just rejected Blanco. The situation this afternoon is not optimistic."

Ronan shrugged indifferently:

"Maybe."

Pierre, pushing Ronan, said:
"Don't just stand there like an idiot. Go over and offer them some hospitality, bring them some wine and food, and make connections with these officials. These kinds of connections are much more important than the rich people you know."

Ronan shook his head:

"No need. Didn't you see they rejected Blanco? Maybe they don't like being bothered."

"If you won't go, I will!" Theo said, getting up. "Get me a bottle of the best wine! I'm going to have a couple of drinks with them!"

As soon as Theo started, several farmers also clamored to go to that table and get to know the people from the Ministry of Agriculture.

Ronan quickly stopped them. "Juliet doesn't even want to acknowledge him. Why would she acknowledge you?"

You guys better stop making things worse!

"I'll go, you guys keep eating." Ronan reluctantly went to the kitchen.

After Ronan left, Theo comfortably sat back down in his seat.

“I knew this trick would work. Ronan would never let us go. Even if he didn’t want to go, he would have to bite the bullet and go.”

Cornell propped his head up and looked at the few people from the Department of Agriculture:

"We're doing this for his own good. Getting to know these officials will be a huge help to him!"

Henry said angrily:

"But they rejected Blanco, and they'll reject Mr. Ronan in the same way! You're forcing Mr. Ronan to 'hit a wall'!!"

Henry was vehemently opposed to the farmers' proposed plan!
Why should Mr. Ronan have to "beg for the cold shoulder" from those people?
Even if they are officials from the Agriculture Department of the Vaucluse province, it won't work!

But Pierre's support for this matter was undeniable.
Henry doesn't give face to others anymore, but Mr. Ronan said that face must be given to Lucas and Pierre.

Pierre crossed his arms and said with a wicked grin:
"So what if he's been rejected? Have you ever seen Ronan suffer a loss? He's not as honest as Blanco. I've never seen Ronan fail to accomplish anything he set his mind to! Just wait and see, Ronan will definitely get to know those important figures!!"

Ronan went to the kitchen and looked at the order that Juliet's table had placed. He found that all the dishes were specialty dishes, but none of them were spicy.

But spicy dishes are also a major specialty here in Ronan.

He asked someone to add a dish of spicy shrimp and a dish of boiled fish, both seafood dishes that Provençal people love to eat.

After the dishes were ready, he took a nice bottle of rosé wine, went to Juliet's table, and said in a pretentious manner:
"You are all distinguished guests. I am Ronan, the owner of this restaurant. Thank you for coming. Here are two of our signature dishes, which I would like to offer you for free. I hope you enjoy your meal today!"

Juliet's two colleagues frowned in displeasure.

They knew Juliet's personality very well; she hated 'ineffective socializing', and this boss's actions were sure to provoke her resentment.

And we've even 'driven' your village chief away, didn't you see that?

This feeling is especially strong after seeing the lethal amount of chili peppers in spicy shrimp and boiled fish.

“No need—” one of the officials was interrupted by Juliet halfway through his sentence.

"Three more glasses, please, thank you." Juliet took the rosé from Ronan.

The two colleagues stared wide-eyed.

and many more!

Did Juliet accept?

They even asked the owner for three new glasses for drinking rosé wine and politely said thank you!

What's even stranger is that it seems someone forced the boss to say those words, and he left without even saying goodbye.
Hey, are you here to say hello to us or not?

Juliet completely ignored Ronan's abrupt departure and had already started peeling shrimp:

"Try them, these two dishes are quite delicious."

Juliet dislikes ineffective social interactions, but her interactions with Ronan are effective.

Should he refuse Ronan's offer?
Ask Ines and Astrid if they agree.
The farmers and the two agriculture officials had the same expression.

What if you refuse?
What if you run into a wall?
Is it like offering a warm face to a cold backside?
How did it go so smoothly??
(End of this chapter)