1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 553 You want to dump me? No way!

One day before the wedding.

Feng Zhen stopped watching TV dramas and trying on dresses, and went straight to her bedroom as soon as it got dark.

Ronan took the dogs out, and Feng Zhen stopped chattering. The house was suddenly so quiet that Luo Tianhai felt very uncomfortable and took the initiative to ask his wife:

"Have you decided what to wear on the wedding day? If you ask me, just listen to Zoe. Wear one outfit in the morning, one in the afternoon, and one in the evening. Wear all the clothes you like."

The elderly couple only had one son, and they didn't have such good conditions when they got married—a castle wedding and an outdoor party. They heard that Zoe's friend even invited a minor celebrity to perform, which made Feng Zhen very proud.

But as the wedding approaches, why has this enthusiasm died down?
Feng Zhen leaned against the headboard, holding a photo album with a yellowed cover. With each page she turned, she would sigh:
"Time flies! My son is getting married soon. Look, Ronan wasn't even in school yet at this age."

The album contains images of Ronan from childhood to adulthood, with the last few pages showing the two years after he arrived in Provence.

Feng Zhen's gaze lingered on the group photo taken by Vieri during last year's harvest. The Louis family, the Freddie family, the Alain family, and the Ronan family stood in the vineyard, smiling brightly under the blazing sun.

She smiled and tapped the photo twice, then called Luo Tianhai over to look at it together:

"Look, Ronan is already so dark-skinned, and look ahead, his little face is so white!"

Before Luo Tianhai could respond, Feng Zhen continued speaking to herself:

“But Ronan wasn’t smiling this happily before; his mouth was stretched so wide you could see his throat.”

Feng Zhen is a very sentimental person.

She would feel down for days when her son went to stay at Lucas's house. The big event of her son's wedding caused her even more emotional turmoil, and she would have this "flashback" every now and then, which became more and more frequent as the wedding approached.

“He was laughing even more happily at this moment,” Luo Tianhai said, pointing to another photo.

That photo was taken on Chinese New Year earlier this year—Ronan stood in front of the restaurant with his arm around Zoe's shoulder. Although the background was dark, it couldn't hide their big smiling faces.

“That’s wonderful, that’s wonderful.” Feng Zhen touched Ronan’s face in the photo, and then touched Zoe’s.

She liked Zoe from the bottom of her heart; she had taken a liking to the girl the first time she came to Provence.

Ronan lived up to expectations and actually married the dazzling jewel of Lourmaran.

When Luo Tianhai saw Feng Zhen's state, he knew that if he didn't give her a change of heart, she might start acting like a character from a romance novel again. Why was she crying on such a joyous occasion?

He stood up from the bed and said in a passionate tone:
"Ronan's friend's restaurant in Apte is doing quite well. I'm planning to open a Chinese restaurant in Apte once my new store in Lourmaran is stable. I'm going downstairs to check the restaurant listings in the Yellow Pages and find a target area. Can you give me some advice?"

The last time Feng Zhen's maternal love overflowed, she spurred Luo Tianhai on, urging him to work harder so that Luo Nan could become a rich second-generation.

Luo Tianhai wanted to use this topic to help Feng Zhen clear her head and stop looking at those photos.

Feng Zhen actually sat up obediently, but she refused to become Luo Tianhai's advisor:
"I'm not going, I need to clean the house."

"Now?" Luo Tianhai glanced at his watch. "It's already 8 o'clock. What are you doing cleaning the house now?"

Without saying a word, Feng Zhen rolled up her sleeves and went downstairs:
"We're moving out tomorrow, so we need to make sure Ronan gets everything spotless. We don't want Zoe to come over and see how messy the place is."

Luo Tianhai chased after his wife downstairs:

"You're really moving tomorrow? Did you forget that Ronan and Batty are going to move the tables and chairs tomorrow? You should at least wait until Ronan is home to move them."

After the wedding, Zoe will move in. A few days before the wedding, according to Provençal custom, the couple will hold a few small celebrations.

After discussing it, Luo Tianhai and Feng Zhenyi decided that since they would have to move sooner or later, they might as well move a few days earlier.

They informed Ronan that he would be moving out ahead of schedule, but did not specify the exact date.

In fact, the elderly couple had already moved most of their belongings away; the so-called 'moving' was actually just them not coming back to live there anymore.

"I specifically chose a day when Ronan wasn't home to move! If he were watching, I'd be miserable!"

"Let's talk about it tomorrow. You've had a long day, so rest first. I'll help you clean the house tomorrow."

“I’m not tired from working for my son.”

"Okay, okay, I'll work on the menu for the wedding day. I've been having trouble sleeping these past few nights anyway."

Ronan has been secretly preparing a surprise for Zoe these past few days.

Fearing that someone might see them and leak the news, they took Xiao Hei into the forest every day.

With the wedding approaching, although there aren't many things to worry about, there are still a lot of things to do. I'm working from dawn till dusk every day and I'm exhausted.

The good news is that his 'assistant' is quite reliable and making good progress, so he should be able to give a good 'performance' at the wedding.

Two days before the wedding, Ronan, who had been busy all day the previous day, was woken up by a phone call.

Without a second thought, he covered his face with the blanket and turned to continue sleeping. In the past, Luo Tianhai would go downstairs to answer the phone in this situation, and it would not be Luo Nan's turn.

But the phone rang several times in a row, and he still didn't hear his father come downstairs.

Luo Nan had no choice but to go downstairs to answer the phone. When he picked it up, he was surprised to find that the caller was none other than Luo Tianhai.

"Don't sleep in today, there are still a lot to do."

Ronan rubbed his face:

"Where did you go? Why are you out so early?"

There was a few seconds of pause on the other end of the phone before Luo Tianhai's voice came through:
"You were busy all day yesterday and came home late. I forgot to tell you, your mother and I have moved out."

"You moved away?" Ronan instantly snapped back to reality.

Luo Tianhai said casually on the other end of the phone:

"We'll have to move sooner or later, and it's so close, no need to make a fuss. Oh, and there's food in the fridge, remember to eat breakfast."

After hanging up the phone, Ronan sat on the sofa for a full minute.

Every morning, as soon as he goes downstairs, he sees his father making breakfast in the kitchen.

But in the future, no one will make him breakfast anymore.

There's still a lot to do today, so I don't have time to reminisce here. Ronan went to the kitchen, wanting to make some quick breakfast, but he broke down again as soon as he opened the refrigerator.

As soon as the refrigerator door was opened, a lot of food fell out with a clatter, clearly indicating that it was already overcrowded.

Bread, cheese, milk, sausages, fruit, and vegetables—enough for him and Zoe to eat for half a month.

The frozen section was also full of bottles and jars, all of which were things that Luo Tianhai had prepared in advance. They could be heated up and eaten. Luo Nan even found five large bags of dumplings inside.

Ronan boiled a pot of water, took out a bag of dumplings, and then looked down at Ma Sai, who usually squatted at Luo Tianhai's feet waiting for food, but today could only squat at his feet 'eagerly waiting', and said:
"It's really sad that we see each other every day."

Marseille simply waited for her meal, remaining silent.

This made Ronan feel that the house was too quiet.

While Luo Tianhai was making breakfast, Feng Zhen's mouth was already working.

To lighten the mood, while waiting for the water to boil, Ronan went to the bathroom to wash up, singing as he did so. After washing his face, he hummed a little tune and reached for a towel, only to find that his speaker was out of power.

Ronan's towel was still in the same spot, but now there was a small note next to it: "After you've washed your face, apply some skincare products. It's right next to the sink. Don't be lazy, you can't get any darker!"

Ronan stared at the note for a while, his mother's nagging seemingly still ringing in his ears.

Feng Zhen's disdain for Ronan's dark skin wasn't a recent development, and Ronan usually just let it go in one ear and out the other whenever he heard similar comments. But today, for some inexplicable reason, he started wiping his face.

After applying a lethal dose of skincare products, the water downstairs boiled and the dumplings were ready. Ronan habitually took out three sets of bowls and chopsticks, only to realize he had taken too many when he put them on the table.

"Look at my head." He chuckled self-deprecatingly as he put away two of the tableware sets and sat down alone at the enormous dining table.

In the past, mealtimes were the liveliest time in our home.

It looks like three people are eating, but actually there are six mouths moving.

As soon as it's mealtime, the dogs surround Luo Tianhai and Feng Zhen, and they never leave empty-handed. However, none of the dogs guard Ronan, because they know very well that Ronan has a very steady hand and will never 'accidentally' drop the food.

The elderly couple weren't home today. Apart from the gluttonous and shameless Marseille clinging to Ronan, drooling all over the place, Little Black and Margaret obediently lay in the distance and didn't come over.

Ronan is actually a staunch advocate of "not feeding people indiscriminately," but for some reason today, his heart inexplicably softened.

He ate one dumpling, fed one to Marseille, and then called over Little Black and Margaret, giving each of them one. In this way, the 'four people' finished a plate of dumplings.

After breakfast, he tapped each of the three little ones on the head:
"Don't push yourself too far."

After washing the dishes and walking the dog and sheep, Ronan returned to his bedroom to change clothes and begin his busy day.

But when I opened the wardrobe, I saw familiar sticky notes again, and more than one.

The note stuck to his usual plaid shirt read: 'Don't always wear this one, it's all faded from washing! Put it down and get something else, I bought you a new one, it's on the far right.'

Ronan looked to the far right of the wardrobe, where three new plaid shirts hung, the tags still on.

He picked up the first item, which read, "This goes well with black pants. I've washed and ironed the pants for you. This outfit will make you look smart."

Ronan then took out a second item—"This one is a bit thick. Wear it when it gets colder. It's a set with the gray jacket in the middle. Zoe and I picked it out for you together."

Finally, he picked up the third item—"This is my favorite! Son, you'll look absolutely stunning in this, but don't wear it with jeans, that would be a disaster!"

When Ronan saw these notes, he automatically imagined the tone of Feng Zhen's voice when she said them.

In the past, he always complained that his mother was too nagging and worried about everything for him. Even though he was already so old and about to get married, she still treated him like a child. But today, he found her nagging so pleasant.

Ronan chose the new shirt that his mother liked best, and then found many sticky notes in the house with all sorts of contents.

"The shoes have been polished."

"The toilet paper is here."

"This is for trash bags, not for throwing trash here! Please don't throw trash here!"

As if drawn by some force, Ronan pushed open his parents' bedroom door before leaving.

The furnishings were the same, the furniture was the same, the bed was still covered with neat and clean sheets, and you could even smell the laundry detergent that Mother liked in the air. But the calendar on the wall was frozen on the day before.

Ronan sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at the photo on the bedside table that he had never paid attention to before.

Feng Zhen has a habit of taking photos and keeping them. Whether intentionally or by oversight, she didn't take this one with her when they moved away.

This photo was taken last Easter when Ronan brought his parents to Provence. The background is simple: this house.

Upon learning that the beautiful house belonged to Ronan, Feng Zhen invited Henry to help them create a memento—Ronan stood in the middle, holding his father in one arm and his mother in the other.

In the photo, only Ronan is smiling; Luo Tianhai and Feng Zhen's expressions aren't exactly pleasant.

Ronan was particularly impressed by this photo because before it was taken, he tentatively asked his parents if they would like to spend their later years in Provence.

Luo Tianhai and Feng Zhen thought Luo Nan was joking.

"Am I kidding? We had such a wonderful year together after you moved to Provence." Ronan picked up the photo, finally releasing his pent-up emotions. "It was so much fun that I'm going to miss you all!"

With two people suddenly gone from the house, Ronan found it hard to adjust.

Luo Tianhai and Feng Zhen moved into their new home and need some time to adjust.

Although this was upstairs in the restaurant and they were very familiar with the environment, without Ronan and the dog, Feng Zhen, who was used to the quietness of home, didn't want to stay there.

In the two days leading up to the wedding, neither Feng Zhen nor Luo Tianhai had any work scheduled.

But before noon, Feng Zhen rushed to the restaurant to grab the cashier's counter.

Luo Tianhai is also someone who can't sit still. When his wife went to the restaurant, he went with her to help out. The two of them were busy until the afternoon before they finally had time to go upstairs to rest for a while.

"What do you want to eat tonight?" Luo Tianhai knew that Feng Zhen was feeling a little uncomfortable and wanted to make her something she liked.

Feng Zhen said listlessly:

"Don't bother cooking, just have a bite at the restaurant."

Luo Tianhai spoke in a domineering tone, like a 'Little Sun of Marseille':
"That won't do. Today marks the beginning of our time together as a couple, so we have to do something special to celebrate. I've always made Ronan's favorite dishes before, but you can order today."

"I'm so tired." Feng Zhen left the restaurant and headed towards the stairs leading to her residence on the second floor. "I'll go up and lie down for a while, and we'll talk when I wake up."

“Okay, then you can rest for a while and order later.” Luo Tianhai followed closely behind.

Feng Zhen pushed open the cold door of her new home and immediately saw Ma Sai lying at the door.

Just as she was about to exclaim in surprise, she saw Little Black and Margaret running out of the living room.

"Oh my, babies, how did you get here?" Feng Zhen turned left and right, stroking the three dogs who were jumping up and down with excitement.

"Ronan is here?" Luo Tianhai asked, unable to hide his excitement.

No sooner had he finished speaking than Ronan came out from the direction of the living room, and immediately launched into a 'blame' upon seeing him:
"You guys secretly moved house behind my back, that's really something!"

Knowing she was in the wrong, Feng Zhen didn't dare look at Ronan and continued to tease the dog.

"Baby Marseille misses me, doesn't she? Little Black misses me, doesn't he? Margaret misses me too, right? You all move in, all of you move in with me!"

Ronan said confidently:

"It's not that they miss you, it's that I miss you all! You think you can get rid of me? No way! From now on, I'll bring my whole family to find you every day!"

Luo Tianhai quickly fled the scene:

"I'll go cook, you guys chat, you guys chat."

"What are you cooking? I've already 'brought' everything." Ronan turned back. "With so much stuff in the fridge, Zoe and I would never finish eating it. We should eat together. After we get married, the house will only be more lively with one more person. I don't agree to it being cold and quiet."

(End of this chapter)