1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 5 The landlord has no surplus food

Ronan discovered that there was also a "circle" in the village of Lourmarin, where there were less than a thousand people, because the dinner this time was attended by the original group of people, no more, no less.

Louis' family who work as real estate agents, Alan's family who run a bakery, and Freddy's family who run a slaughterhouse in the quarantined village. Except for the former village chief Carl, they are all businessmen.

Merchants have many contacts and are well-informed, so Ronan became the focus of discussion as soon as he entered the room.

Alan, the owner of the bakery, patted Ronan on the back:

"My dear friend, are you in some trouble? Are you not going to tell us about it?"

Combining his own experience, it was not difficult for Ronan to connect the troubles Alan mentioned with those strange looks today. He said with a slightly troubled look:
"I don't know if I'm overthinking it, but it seems like some villagers don't welcome me?"

Alan gulped down a few mouthfuls of anise liquor, as if he were drinking water. He wiped his wet beard and raised his eyebrows:

"There's talk in the village that you're going to dig up farmland to build holiday villas, and that it's going to become a golf course or an equestrian facility or something, which makes a lot of farmers unhappy."

Compared to Freddy, who does business in the next village and only goes back to Lourmarin to sleep, and Louis, who hangs around the house every day, Alain, who runs a bakery, can obtain more information about the village.

In recent years, as Provence has gradually become a holiday option for France and several neighboring countries, many foreigners come to Luberon to buy properties for vacation or to entertain friends.

Many of them would destroy farmland and exchange precious crops for other pleasures - a behavior that local farmers considered blasphemous.

Ronan rejected everyone's invitation to cooperate, but everyone unanimously believed that Ronan did not have the ability to grow it himself. Perhaps one or more dissatisfied people complained about this in public, and Ronan's name spread.

Fortunately, Ronan first mixed into the business circle that was very friendly to outsiders. These people needed to make money by relying on the economic growth driven by outsiders. If he had mixed into the farmer's circle, he would definitely be eating bread at home at this moment, instead of sitting here comfortably drinking fennel wine, with the mixed aroma of barbecue lingering around his nose.

"Why would I destroy farmland to build a villa?" Ronan was stunned.

These people should have looked in his pockets before spreading rumors. There was nothing in them.

The last thing Louis wanted to see was that Master Ronan would not adapt to the local environment or be unhappy here, which would cause him to lose a large number of clients, so his expression became even uglier than Ronan's:

"Are you free tomorrow afternoon? I'll arrange for you to meet with Pierre and finalize the tenant farmers as soon as possible."

Pierre is the best farmer in Lourmarin according to Louis. It is not easy to cooperate with him, but Louis can handle it.

Ronan shrugged helplessly, saying the same thing for the tenth time in three days:

"I plan to take care of those acres of vineyards myself."

Ronan has done a lot of work related to planting these days.

His vineyard had good vines and did not need to be reseeded.

In the months before the harvest season, you only need to irrigate, fertilize, weed and pest control, and Level 2 [Planting] can handle it completely.

"Are you crazy?"

"Kid, I swear you're taking this too lightly."

"No wonder they said that about you. I thought you were here to get a new job, but you turned out to be here to steal my business. Haha—"

Ronan laughed too.

If I gave them work, I would starve to death.

The landlord's family has no surplus food.

Even Zoe, who was playing with the puppy and rarely participated in the conversation, couldn't help but look over.

The two looked at each other for just a few seconds before the pleasant atmosphere was broken. Louis blocked Ronan's sight and said worriedly:
"you alone?"

The previous cooperation process made him realize that Ronan was a man of his word and there was a high probability that there was no room for maneuver in this matter.

This made Louis even more convinced that Ronan was a rich young man who was unwilling to endure hardships and was ignorant of the immensity of the world.

Ronan nodded:
"Myself." Louis' wrinkles became more vicissitudes:

"I can arrange a meeting between you and Pierre at any time. Even if you don't cooperate, it's fine to just chat. If necessary, you can ask Vieri to help you. The future best farmer in Lourmarin Village needs space to practice."

Ronan opened his arms and said with a bright smile:

"Thank you, Mr. Louis."

You are the best real estate agent I have ever met!

The slightly tense atmosphere of the conversation disappeared after dinner officially began.

Everyone was drinking and chatting happily.

Encouraged by the reminder sounds in his ears, Ronan temporarily forgot his worries.

[Taste delicious pepper sausage and increase happiness by 1 point]

[Tasting fresh onions increases happiness by 1 point]

[Taste freshly baked wild boar pie to increase happiness by 2 points]

[Taste the delicious roast duck and increase happiness by 1 point]

Physical labor and four meals a day have gradually made Ronan's stomach "Provençal". At the second party, he insisted on having almond cake as dessert after the meal. The only step left was the after-dinner drink to complete the whole process.

What an exciting progress!
Having a bigger appetite means he can eat more happiness. At this moment, he is only one step away from 100 points of [Happiness Value].

When he wakes up tomorrow morning, he will be able to harvest his 100th point, become a farmer with a certain level of planting ability, and shut up those rumor-mongers.

But before that, he had some questions he wanted to clarify.

"Why are so many people eyeing my eight acres of land? I mean," Ronan pointed in the direction of the mountain, "there is a lot of land over there."

Carl put down his wine glass and folded his arms:
"The land near the village has been owned by someone else, and the tenant farmers don't want to work too far from home. Your location is what they dream of."

Louis also has a say in this:
"Twenty years ago, farmers still had the ability to buy their own farmland, but driven by the 'Golden Triangle', land is getting more and more expensive now, and being a tenant farmer is a better choice."

Ronan nodded. In 1986, Provence had already begun to emerge on the world stage, and there must have been many businessmen with a keen sense of smell who came to make plans early on.

The influx of funds will certainly push up housing and land prices, but what is the 'Golden Triangle'?
"Some people call the triangle formed by the villages of Ger, Mena and Bonnieux the 'Golden Triangle', believing it to be the most fashionable place in the Luberon Mountains. I heard that many celebrities have bought houses there." Freddy's slaughterhouse is built in the Golden Triangle.

Ronan's question was a good start. Everyone at the party had their own unique views on the Golden Triangle, and Zoe also joined in on the fun:

“Many vendors do not participate in the market in their own village, but they do attend the market in these three villages.”

Ronan secretly wrote down the key information these people said.

First, those three villages have more developed businesses, and second, if you want to invest in houses and land in Provence, you have to do it as soon as possible.

Afterwards, he looked into Zoe’s charming eyes and asked:

“Anyone selling second-hand furniture?”

His house is too empty and he urgently needs to buy some furniture.

Even if he cleaned every house spotlessly, sleeping on it would still only increase his [happiness] by 1 point, and the system would stubbornly judge him as 'bare bones'.

"There's no furniture for sale at the market. If you want to buy second-hand furniture, you can go to the antique market on Sorgue Island, or ask the carpenters and stonemasons in the village." Zoe said patiently.

Louis burped and asked in confusion:
"Where is the space for furniture in your house? Michelle is the person who hates throwing things away the most. She can't even bear to throw away garlic sauce that is two months past its expiration date."

There was laughter all around, except for Ronan, who looked livid.

(End of this chapter)