1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 479 The God of Wealth! (Revised Edition)
Quincy's expression was initially serious, but he quickly understood:
"You mean the female workers at the Lourmaran Handicraft Cooperative?"

When Ellian first visited Lourmaran, she paid close attention to the phenomenon of women's independence in Lourmaran, claiming that she saw the most beautiful scenery in the world there.

The weaving tour program was established before the start of the travel season. It wasn't available when they last came, and this time, Ariane arranged for their first stop to be Barty's weaving courtyard.

She spent a long time in the courtyard, talking carefully with each woman to understand their situation. She discovered that these Luberon women not only bravely stepped out of their homes, but also chose a greater challenge—this morning, more than twenty women were queuing up to sign contracts with the Lourmaran Handicraft Cooperative.

Upon further inquiry into the contract details, it turned out that these women had transformed into handicraft practitioners!

Just as Ronan had predicted, with successful examples, the women made very decisive choices, and even rushed to claim their spots as soon as possible, fearing that the situation might change.

And this positive and enthusiastic scene was exactly what Elian stumbled upon.

When Quincy saw Elian looking thoughtful in the weaving courtyard, she knew that Elian must have some ideas.

This woman gets all worked up whenever it comes to issues involving women and children!

Elian said very frankly:

"Yes, it's those female workers. I looked at Lourmarin's future development plan, and there was nothing about this aspect in it. It's such a pity, Quincy. We may have missed an opportunity to introduce Luberon to the world."

From his first visit to Lourmaran, Ellian wanted to do something about the local female workers, but unfortunately, the person in charge of the tourism bureau and Lourmaran was Quincy.

Quincy is an infrastructure freak. His style is to undertake large-scale construction projects, and recently he may have added a new style – rosé wine.

However, their work styles and directions are completely different.

I had intended to let it go, but when I returned to Lourmaran for the second time, I found that the women there were more independent and autonomous.

Furthermore, according to the conversation with the person in charge named Baty this morning, the weaving business of the Lourmaran Handicraft Cooperative is doing quite well, with monthly turnover increasing.

What's even more remarkable is that they are willing to give women a formal job.

Ellian had worked in the province of Vaucluse for over twenty years and had never seen anything like it, so her anger was reignited, and she wanted to do something about it.

Quincy wasn't surprised by the answer; he was more troubled.

Quincy was certain Lourmaran was on the right and fast track and didn't want to cause any further trouble.

“That is indeed a good suggestion. We can talk to Blanco in person this afternoon. However, the tourism bureau’s job is to provide guidance to Lourmaran and supervise their implementation. Ultimately, the decision is theirs, and we should respect their choice. What do you think?”

Elian gave a calm "hmm," but his heart sank.

Quincy's answer seemed promising, but it was actually a polite refusal.

As the head of the higher-level department, Quincy has a lot of say in how Lourmaran should develop and what kind of development it should have, since he is the one who handed over the money to the Lourmaran government. How could they not listen to his opinions?
However, Quincy's attitude was to leave the decision to Blanco.

Blanco isn't stupid.
The suggestion came from Ellian, and Quincy was still being ambiguous; he would definitely be able to tell Quincy's attitude.

Furthermore, the Lourmaran government, led by Blanco, was so busy that it couldn't even spare anyone for reception. Without guidance from higher authorities, it was impossible for them to actively promote their own opinions, because there were too many higher-priority matters.

Therefore, the path of implementing Elian's ideas through the Lourmaran government is fraught with difficulties.

Seeing that Elian seemed to have given up and stopped speaking, Quincy pointed ahead and continued:
"The latest report says that this road lined with shops has become Lourmaran's 'food street.' We won't be going to Ronan's restaurant today, as it's unlikely we'll get a seat without prior notice. We'll have lunch at the food street, then go back to the Lourmaran government building to rest for a bit, and continue our itinerary at 2:30 pm."

The French civil service has a long-standing tradition of taking a lunch break, which cannot be changed even when traveling for work. "Okay!" Willie caught up with Quincy.

Elian then turned around on the spot:

“I’m not very hungry. You guys go ahead. I’ll come to the Lourmaran government office to find you at 2:30 this afternoon.”

The tourism bureau staff cannot be neglected; they have the prestige of the franc behind them.

Ronan entrusted the task of buying seafood to Freddie, who was known as 'omnipotent' in the Provençal culinary world, and then immediately headed to the restaurant.

As soon as Ronan entered, Isabel pointed in a direction and said to him:
"Look, that's the person. She's waiting for you."

Ronan followed Isabel's finger and saw a strange figure standing alone in front of a decorative wall covered with woven ornaments, looking at the things on the wall.

"Please arrange a seat for me." After saying that, he walked straight over.

"Hello, may I ask who you are?" Ronan walked up to Elian and asked softly.

Ronan's sudden appearance seemed to startle Elian. She was watching intently, but after a brief pause, she called out Ronan's name:

"Hello Ronan, it's great to meet you. I'm Elian."

Ronan was a stranger to Elian, but Elian was not a stranger to Ronan; she had seen Ronan's picture on the wall of the Lourmaran meeting room.

This young man with yellow skin and black hair is very easy to recognize.

Ronan is an extremely meticulous person, which may be inherited from his father, Ronan Tianhai. Even the shrewd Llorente acknowledged Ronan's talent in social situations.

Upon hearing the word 'finally,' Ronan realized that although it was their first meeting, the other person must know him very well and have a good impression of him.

Across from them is the wealthy and powerful tourism bureau of the Vaucluse province, a veritable benefactor.

When facing the God of Wealth, you must show the utmost enthusiasm!
Ronan took the initiative and gave Elian a light kiss on the cheek twice:

"I'm so sorry, my memory is terrible. Have we ever worked together?"

In Provence, it's perfectly acceptable for opposite sexes to shake hands, kiss on the cheek, or remain silent upon first meeting; it all depends on the first impression.

Ronan's cheek kiss made Anlian feel that their relationship had suddenly become much closer.

Elian had expected Ronan's attitude to be polite and courteous, but with a clear sense of distance, because her visit had been so sudden.

Unexpectedly, Ronan gave off an exceptionally friendly vibe.

This smooth start put Elian at ease, and he naturally began making Provençal-style jokes:
Does having a shared goal count as 'working together'?

Ronan made a puzzled but interested expression:

"I bet this is a long story. Why don't we sit down and have a proper chat?"

(End of this chapter)