1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 461 Monaco in the F1 Atmosphere

Ronan and Zoe made extensive preparations for the Monaco Grand Prix.

Strictly speaking, it was Zoe who did it.

She arranged different outfits and accessories for each activity over the two days, and prepared two extra sets in case of emergencies.

In addition, they also bought Ronan two expensive formal men's suits, from shoes and socks to watches and sunglasses. He was practically armed to the teeth.

Looking at himself in the mirror, dressed in ivory white casual pants, a white shirt, brown loafers, an expensive watch, and sunglasses, Ronan was momentarily dazed:
"Zoe, you're a fashion genius. I look richer than Gabriel now."

Ronan didn't know how much Zoe had spent on his outfit, but he looked like a wealthy Monaco businessman with at least several million francs in his bank account.

This outfit, these accessories, this hairstyle... wow, it's like some mysterious Western head-changing technique!

Zoe ran her fingers through Ronan's hair, making final adjustments:

"You're just used to wearing peasant clothes. Didn't you wear these when you were in Paris? Didn't you dress up? I don't believe it."

Ronan lowered his head to cooperate with Zoe's finishing touches:

“I dress less formally in Paris than I do in Provence. At least peasant style has a standard logic to dressing. In Paris, I only wear whatever brand is on sale. In your fashion industry terms, it’s called ‘mix and match’.”

Zoe frowned slightly, seemingly displeased with Ronan's 'smooth talk', but the corners of her mouth still honestly curved into a smile:
"What? You're in the fashion industry? This is normal aesthetics."

Cotillard returned from outside, circled the 'stranger' Ronan twice, and exaggerated further:
"Zoe, if you had gone into fashion or entertainment from the beginning, you might have become famous by now. How do you have such a great sense of style? Oh my, who is this? He's so handsome."

In fact, many people have asked Zoe – you are so good-looking and have such a great temperament, have you never thought about becoming a star?
What a waste of resources!
Zoe not only has the objective qualities to be a star, but also a soul with a sophisticated aesthetic sense.

Even more regrettable!

Even before she was financially well-off, she could dress herself up very beautifully and fashionably, and even in a fashion and art capital like Aix-en-Provence, she would be the most eye-catching person on the street.

Ronan thought more than once that Zoe was not at all like a girl born and raised in Lourmaran; returning to the big city was like a fish returning to the sea.

I'm so lucky!

Thinking about those guys who had taken over his king-size bed, Ronan felt a burning rage!
Zoe took two steps back, looked at her work one last time, nodded in satisfaction, then picked up the clothes she was going to wear that afternoon, turned and went into the bathroom, saying with strong disapproval:
"Being a celebrity is too unchallenging; being an artist is much more fulfilling."

The gate blocked Ronan and Cotillard's view.

The two looked at each other in bewilderment upon hearing this.

Cotillard pointed to the bathroom and asked:

Is she showing off?

Ronan blinked innocently a few times:

"seems like it."

Cotillard, realizing what was happening, put his hands on his hips and said:

“An artist must never be arrogant, as that will hinder her progress.”

Ronan asked uncertainly:
"Is it that serious? There's no need to escalate it so much, is there?"

Cotillard picked up a small mirror and lipstick to make final adjustments to her afternoon makeup:

“Helping artists become stronger is the mission of a good agent. Zoe has been too ‘slack’ lately. Today I have to tighten her belt and let her know that there are always people better than you.”

Cotillard had already drafted an 800-word essay in her mind, but a few minutes later, upon seeing Zoe emerge from the bathroom, she immediately adopted an 'ugly' expression and forgot all about her draft.

"Aren't you really going to consider trying your hand at something different? Oh my, oh my, I swear after this event, we'll definitely get a lot more offers from all sorts of fields!"

Ronan stared blankly at Zoe as she walked out, speechless for a long time.

It's not that I didn't want to talk, but I was so stunned by what I saw that I forgot.

Wearing a gold sequined dress, large earrings, and sexy high heels, Ronan thought Zoe looked stunning, like a heroine straight out of a movie, exuding charm with every move she made.

"Are you stupid?" Zoe bent down and picked up the handbag on the bed, skillfully stuffing in lipstick and other makeup items. Seeing that Ronan still hadn't spoken, she looked up and finally brought Ronan back to his senses.

Ronan raised an eyebrow, tilted his head, and said with a self-deprecating smile:

"I naively thought this high-end, wealthy outfit was a bit too extravagant, but thankfully, it's finally barely worthy of you now."

Zoe linked arms with Ronan and, in a very good mood, cracked a joke:

"Perhaps you would look even more 'rich' without this lavish outfit?"

"Okay, just kidding. I put a lot of effort into preparing. We look absolutely perfect together now." Zoe happily pulled Ronan's arm and headed for the door. "Let's go, let's go."

Behind the well-matched young couple, Cotillard, looking like a maid, raised her arms and shouted:
"Let's go, let's go! I can't wait for the next event!"

The Monte Carlo circuit in Monaco is the most special of all the F1 circuits, known as 'an extraordinary place where charm and prestige coexist'.

The first unique aspect is that, due to the special nature of Monaco, a tiny country, this world-famous tourist destination is home to many nobles and wealthy people, and every F1 race held here attracts a large audience.

The second unique feature is that this track is integrated with the city streets. The race cars travel directly between blocks at high speed. The track is undulating, with sharp turns and narrow sections (only 7 meters wide at its narrowest point). It also passes through tunnel areas, making it one of the most demanding tracks in Formula One and the track that places the highest demands on the racers.

The third unique aspect is that, since the race is held on city streets, there are no buffer zones on either side of the track like other tracks; instead, there are temporary guardrails. Unexpected accidents often occur. Some people describe driving an F1 car in Monaco Monte Carlo as being as difficult as flying a helicopter in a living room.

Therefore, it is no exaggeration to say that the Monaco Grand Prix is ​​the most watched circuit in the F1 Grand Prix series.

With the support of upgraded broadcasting technology, this year's Monaco Grand Prix was even more exciting.

Most of the streets in Monte Carlo, Monaco, were closed due to the match, so you had to drive around in a huge circle to get to your destination.

But this is also good, as it allows us to see what Monaco looks like in the F1 atmosphere.

The race track sections on both sides of the street have been fenced off, and occasionally passersby try to sneak through to avoid paying, but they are quickly discovered by staff and asked to move to another area.

Whenever Ronan saw this, he would chuckle and comment:
"F1 tickets to Monaco can only be obtained through 'class status,' so it's not that easy to sneak in without a ticket."

Zoe's large earrings shimmered with gold, but even the most dazzling gold couldn't outshine the charm emanating from her. She stretched her arm slightly out of the convertible, seemingly sensing the shape of the wind:
"Actually, that statement isn't entirely accurate."

“Not entirely?” Ronan asked, bewildered. “But Theo said Lucas tried to buy tickets many times, but failed every time.” Zoe chuckled lightly.
"Because the threshold for 'ticket evasion' is very high."

As he was speaking, Ronan suddenly felt something flash in his eyes a few times on the upper floors of a building to the side, and at the same time he heard shouting coming from the glowing place, which sounded even more lively than in his bedroom.

He turned his head to look at the source of the light, and was immediately startled, blurting out:
"God, is there a party upstairs? The kind that's completely packed?"

All that could be seen on the roof of a building were heads.

The density was even higher than in his small, less than 30-square-meter room with a double bed; it looked extremely dangerous.

Zoe looked up, smiled, and said:
"This is one way to evade fares; truly wealthy businessmen always find a way to get tickets."

The rooftop party was so far from the ground that Ronan's eyes practically popped out of their sockets, and he still couldn't make out their costumes.

"Can you see what they're wearing?"

Zoe shook her head:

"You don't even need to look at the clothes; it must be a hotel, the kind that costs several thousand francs a night, and it comes with a bunch of expensive purchases, bringing the final price to tens of thousands. I heard that the 'viewing fee' for a good location can be equivalent to the price of one or two Renault 5s, but even so, these rooms with a view of the track were booked out six months in advance. Similar hotels in Monaco are all like this."

Ronan seemed to have discovered something extraordinary, and he gasped in shock:
"That's indeed a high bar, but it's still barely acceptable."

It's alright, it's only a few tens of thousands of francs, the threshold isn't very high.

Zoe looked away, then smiled and said, "..."
"This is the easiest way to evade fares."

"Are there other ways to evade fares?" Ronan asked curiously.

Zoe shook her head a few times with captivating charm:
"Of course."

The car continued driving forward and soon left the hotel area, but the shouts behind it continued and intensified in some areas.

Ronan couldn't help but glance at the rearview mirror, worried that there might be a risk of falling from the building in that densely populated area where such excited people might be present.

Could it be that if they're not careful, they might fall down and affect the game?
"What are they yelling about? The match hasn't even started yet," Ronan asked, puzzled.

As soon as they finished speaking, their car turned a corner and drove into a harbor.

The superyachts moored here were packed with people even more densely than those on the hotel terraces, and Ronan began to worry about safety here:
"Won't those ships sink?"

He swore those yachts were definitely overloaded!

The sea breeze ruffled Zoe's hair, and she sensually ran her fingers through it to fix it, looking as if she were shooting a high-fashion beach photoshoot.
"Falling down won't extinguish their passion for watching F1. I heard from my classmates that some wealthy businessmen who are passionate about F1 buy yachts just to watch F1, and they only use them once a year, never setting sail at other times."

Ronan swallowed hard, unable to contain himself.
"What an expensive hobby."

This threshold is high, extremely high, unattainably high.

Compared to these wealthy people, his antique guns are probably nothing but firewood.

Ronan thought he had picked up an expensive hobby, but it seems really low-class!
However, Ronan's dejected mood was quickly interrupted by another shouting.

The people on the yachts were also shouting and yelling, and several of them were even gesturing wildly.

The dense yacht viewing area was right next to the roadway, close by and not too high, so Ronan and Zoe could clearly hear what the group was yelling about.

"Look, look! Isn't that one of the celebrities who came to watch F1?"

"Which celebrity is this? They're so good-looking, but I have absolutely no recollection of them!"

"Or are you referring to which model?"

"She must be a celebrity, she must be a celebrity, look, she even brought a driver and assistant!"

Ronan: "???"

Me? The driver?

Knowing he was somewhat unworthy to be in this car, Cotillard, who was trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible, was left with the thought: "???"

Are you polite?

Zoe was also completely puzzled.

Ronan and I were clearly wearing matching outfits, are these people blind?
Ronan coughed twice to ease the awkwardness.

He was mainly worried about embarrassing Cotillard.

"Um, are we almost at our destination?"

After entering the harbor, he could already see the densely packed grandstand area.

Theo had previously explained things to Ronan.

Due to the nature of the city circuit, all the grandstands at Monaco Grand Prix are temporary structures. Since the circuit is flanked by residential buildings, shops, and other amenities, most of the temporary grandstands at Monaco Grand Prix are located in the harbor area.

Seeing these stands, Ronan thought they had arrived at their destination.

To prove that 'maids' also have value, Gotia pointed forward again:
"What are you thinking? This time I've arranged the absolute VIP seats for you. Your seats are right in front of the start/finish line, only 20 meters away from the starting grid. The qualifying race will also be broadcast globally, so manage your expressions and posture. Don't let the director see you all flailing your arms and legs when he cuts to you, especially you, Ronan, you need to practice your smile."

Ronan dismissed it, saying:

"So many people went today, how come it was such a coincidence that it happened to be us?"

Cotillard grabbed Ronan's arm, seemingly retaliating for his 'disobedience':
"If we won't give you cameras, will we not give the Monaco royal family cameras either? You're sitting right below the Monaco royal box!"

Ronan didn't turn around, nor did he shake off Cotillard's clutches on his shoulder.

Cotillard leaned closer and asked Ronan uncertainly:
Did you hear me?

Ronan smiled more brightly than the sun in the sky, nodding and saying:

"I heard you, I heard you, I'm already practicing. Even if a tsunami hits, I get robbed, or a dog bites my arm, I will still keep smiling."

(End of this chapter)