1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 563 What will I cosplay today?
Ronan never imagined he would one day participate in a marathon.

According to French sports channels, only lean, dark-skinned individuals with no excess fat are eligible to participate in this test of willpower.

But that morning, after he finished washing up, he stood in front of the mirror and carefully examined himself—his originally fair skin had turned wheat-colored without any special effort, and there were clear and smooth muscle lines on his shoulders and arms. Looking down, his abdomen was flat.

Moving to Provence changed more than just his life and lifestyle; it also changed his physique.

This is thanks to his farming experience last year and his 'weight loss' journey this year. To this day, Ronan still maintains the good habit of exercising every day, and he didn't stop even on the day of his wedding.

Before he knew it, he had acquired the exact same appearance as the marathon runners on French sports television.

The Lourmarin Marathon is no ordinary marathon; it's specially designed for the people of Provence, and Ronan believes the event will attract a lot of attention from the locals.

The booming tourism industry has brought rosé wine, presented as a local specialty, into the view of outsiders.

However, getting more attention from locals, especially those outside the beach area, remains a major challenge for Ronan and Stella.

The marathon held in Lourmaran is a good solution.

Ronan naturally didn't want to waste such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Both Stjesga and he himself will become a mobile billboard, 'shining' over Lourmaran on match day!
Therefore, he has to participate in this marathon.

Moreover, in order to gain more attention and focus, he has to show off his style and achieve good results.

He had no idea whether he could run the whole distance, even though he used to run every day but had never run as far as 40 kilometers.

"Aren't you going to sleep a little longer?" Zoe entered the bathroom, interrupting Ronan's 'self-admiration'.

Ronan squeezed toothpaste onto Zoe's toothpaste tube and then filled the pink mug with water.

"Charlotte is going to the Weaving Courtyard today, so I need to make some preparations early."

Charlotte wants to take a look at some new furniture styles that have recently been released.

Zoe kissed Ronan on the cheek to thank him for his thoughtfulness, then put the toothbrush in her mouth and asked, somewhat puzzled:
"You don't need to get up this early, do you? It's not even 6 o'clock yet."

Zoe has been working lately, getting up early and working late every day. Not wanting to disturb Ronan, she tiptoed out of bed, only to find that no one was around.

Although Ronan is also very busy and has a full schedule, he shouldn't be getting up this early.

Ronan kissed Zoe on the forehead, then turned and left.

"Today I'm taking Marseille and Huhu on a longer trip. I'm worried about unexpected situations on the road, so I need to allow some time to deal with any emergencies. I'll make breakfast. Alan brought me some pecan rye bread yesterday. Is that okay? I'll also have some milk and olives with it."

Zoe chased Ronan out of the bathroom, her mouth full of toothpaste foam, but she still spoke rapidly:

"Can you please stop taking Marseille and Huhu out with you? Yesterday afternoon you were chasing and playing around in the vineyard. The barking of dogs, the bleating of sheep, and the shouting of people were driving me crazy. I couldn't concentrate on my work at all. All I could think about was the image of the three of you wrestling together."

Ronan took his sheep and dog out for more than half a month, but the relationship between the two brothers did not improve at all. Whenever they met, they would bark endlessly, sometimes mixed with Ronan's angry roars.

Zoe, who didn't live here before, heard the villagers discussing this and thought Ronan was so cute and had such a creative mind to come up with such a 'brilliant' solution.

Even if it can't ease the tension between Huhu and Masai, at least he'll be healthy, right?

Look, the Lourmaran government has even invited him to participate in the marathon.

Now that she's moved to her new home, after a few days of utter chaos, all she wants to do is beat Ronan to death!

What an absurd solution!
You all need to stop right now!!

Ronan apologized as he went downstairs:
"Sorry, sorry, so I'll take them a little further away today so they won't disturb your work."

Zoe's furious roar came from upstairs:

"My point isn't that you're interfering with my work, but that the three of you need to be separated! Stop walking the dog and the sheep at the same time, do you hear me, Ronan?!"

Ronan replied with a grin:

"I heard you, I heard you said to boil a few more eggs for breakfast."

Ronan didn't want to keep Huhu in captivity, but the little guy loved going out for walks. Several times, when no one was looking, it ran off to places far from home, and Ronan only managed to catch the sheep and bring it back after the villagers gave him directions.

But after all, he was the 'big contributor' who made Ronan and Zoe 100,000 francs, so they couldn't be scolded or punished.

Given Huhu's age, it can compete for several more years, and Ronan can also enjoy its glory for a few more years.

Ronan had Henry and a few men build a fence around the entire backyard—this became Huhu's 'sheepfold'.

But even such a large area of ​​activity still couldn't satisfy Huhu's desire to breathe freely.

It waits at the edge of the sheep twice a day, morning and evening, as soon as it's time to take the sheep for a walk.

Upon seeing Ronan, she immediately began to squeal with delight, and upon seeing Marseille beside Ronan, she revealed her ram horns.

Marseille also had a smug look on his face. Knowing that Huhu couldn't come out yet, he barked wildly at its face. But as soon as Ronan opened the fence, the kid ran faster than anyone else.

Ronan, fearing Zoe would hear his cries, quickly pulled open the fence:
"I advise you all to conserve your energy today. The marathon is 42.195 kilometers. I plan to run half of it first. None of you are allowed to fall behind. Hurry up, keep up, keep up!"

Dogs are amazing animals. When they see a familiar person running, they will almost always follow, with very few exceptions. They think that the human is playing with them.

Sheep are also very strange animals. When they see an enemy who is smaller than themselves running away, they will definitely chase after it. There are very few exceptions. They think that sooner or later they will be able to bully this little brat to pieces.

"Daddy, Daddy, Uncle Ronan has started his morning exercise again!" Anna skipped and hopped over to report to her father, who lived a few hundred meters away from Ronan's house.

Theo picked up his daughter and stood by the window to enjoy the view together:
"You know, I feel like something's missing if I don't watch Ronan being chased by dogs and sheep every day. Anna, while Dad's in Avignon, you keep an eye on them for me. When we talk on the phone each day, remember to tell me if Uncle Ronan has been bitten, okay?"

Anna waved her small hands vigorously a few times, seemingly trying to help Ronan, as if afraid he would get bitten:
"remember!"

Cornell was dreaming of dancing intimately with Astrid. This woman was not only hot in figure, but even hotter in action. As they danced, she pulled out a leather whip from behind and mercilessly lashed Cornell's buttocks.

"Haha, hit me again, hit me again." Cornell smiled, and an unnatural blush appeared on his face.

"Get up! Stop sleeping!" Cornell's sister gave her brother another smack on the bottom. "Ronan has already taken his dogs and sheep to Lourmaran Castle!"

Cornell groggily opened his eyes and stretched, still feeling a bit lazy:
"They ran all the way to the castle? They ran so far today, did Marseille and Huhu lose control?"

Cornell's sister shook her head and left her brother's room:
"If you want to see the show, get up now. Barty has already led his men after them. They bet Ronan will get bitten today."

Cornell grabbed his clothes and ran outside immediately:

“Huh? Pierre and I bet that Ronan could hold out until the end of the month.”

Ronan ran ahead, Marseille chased behind, and Huhu followed behind. This scene had been playing out every day in Lourmaran for the past two weeks.

The villagers unanimously believed that Ronan would eventually get a good beating from the dogs and sheep, sooner or later.

If that day ever comes, everyone's morning fun will be gone. So every morning when Ronan exercises, a group of people follow him to watch, and many people make bets on how long Ronan can keep it up. As Ronan's wife, Zoe also keeps an eye on her newlywed husband's morning exercises.

Ever since Ronan left home, she would stand by the window every now and then to see if they were coming back.

Despite Ronan's countless explanations—that his previous injury was an accident, that Huhu and Marseille would never have hurt him, and that he did this to completely resolve the conflict between the two brothers, blah blah blah.

But Zoe still believed she had to stop Ronan from continuing to do so.

Putting aside the noise they make every day when they meet, and the relationship between Huhu and Marseille, how could this possibly alleviate the problem?

Around 8 a.m., Zoe still hadn't seen Ronan return. She decided she had to have a serious talk with him today, not the kind she did this morning, but one that showed the 'assertiveness' of a wife.

After a while, while she was working, she heard a commotion in the distance, and the sound was gradually getting closer to her.

Worried that something had happened to Ronan, she put down her work and went outside, only to be shocked to find Ronan and several farmers outside the vineyard, with Marseille by their side, but Huhu was nowhere to be seen.

"Where's Huhu?" Zoe asked from afar, her heart clenching.

Ronan stepped aside, revealing the hooves being carried by several farmers behind him, and replied with a wry smile:

"I ran 10 kilometers and then got lazy and stopped running. I had to ask someone to help me carry it back. I originally planned to run 20 kilometers today, but I only ran half of it."

Fortunately, there were always people watching each time, otherwise Ronan really wouldn't know what to do.

Bati followed them, laughing so hard he almost fell over.

He had a really funny day; he was still replaying the hilarious scene in his mind when Ronan encouraged him to "get back on your feet."
"You're really something! Even sheep can't outrun you."

Ronan said very modestly:
"Most sheep are not endurance athletes; a distance of ten kilometers or so is their limit."

Ronan had always known this common sense, but he didn't know how far he could run.

Unexpectedly, after trying this today, the sheep fell before him.

Fabian, who was carrying the sheep, said indignantly:

"Damn it, I came here to watch the fun, but now I've become your laborer. How much does this sheep weigh? It's so heavy."

Zoe rushed over to check on him and found that Hu Hu still had the energy to eat the grass in Cornell's hand, and was being carried like a 'big shot'. He seemed to be fine.

Perhaps, as Ronan said, it was just being lazy; a clever bird like Hoo wouldn't work itself to death.

Immediately afterwards, she went to check on Marseille's condition.

Marseille can still walk on her own, she's just panting heavily with her tongue sticking out, but she doesn't seem to have any major problems.

The farmers carried it back to the backyard and left quickly; it was time to go to work.

After everyone left, Zoe said seriously to Ronan:
"I want to have a serious talk with you—"

Ronan and Zoe spoke almost simultaneously. He pointed to Hu Hu lying on the ground, then pointed to Marseille, who was also lying on the ground a few meters away, panting heavily, and asked:

"Didn't you notice?"

Zoe frowned and asked in return:

"What did you find? Stop using these tricks."

Every time she brought it up, Ronan would use a little trick to change the subject.

This includes, but is not limited to, pretending not to understand, pretending not to hear, telling jokes, silencing her, or selling one's body.

But this time, Zoe will not compromise!

Ronan said with a smile:
"Haven't you noticed that our house has become quieter?"

Zoe took a few seconds to process what Ronan was saying.

She looked down in surprise at the dog and the sheep.

Yeah, why is it so quiet today?

Previously, whenever the two of them met, the house would be in chaos, making her very upset.

Ronan crouched down, revealing a devilish smile, and stroked the goat's horns:
"I already know where your limit is."

Then, he said to Marseille in an even more 'devilish' way:

"It fell, and you're next. This week it's 20 kilometers, next week it's 30 kilometers, and the week after that it's a full marathon. We'll try it slowly."

After saying that, Ronan looked up and asked Zoe with a smile:
"Honey, what were you trying to say?"

Zoe's mouth opened and closed several times before she finally smiled.
"Breakfast was delicious, thank you, darling."

Fortunately, Ronan got up early, giving him ample time to deal with any unexpected situations; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to reach the Weaving Courtyard before Charlotte arrived.

Recently, the number of orders for the Lourmaran Handicraft Cooperative has stabilized, not as hot as it was right after receiving the 'Thorns and Flames' medal, but it is still a huge increase compared to before.

The backlog of orders has been delivered in recent days.

Although it wasn't time to settle accounts yet, Ronan knew he would make a fortune in July and was very confident about it.

The women have been quite busy lately. The indoor hygiene is well maintained, but the hygiene in the yard is not as timely as before. The overall appearance is good, but the details are not being paid attention to.

Today, our major client Charlotte is coming, so Ronan went there early this morning with his team to clean the place thoroughly and went over the new designs again, making sure to explain them to her in detail today.

But as time ticked by, and it was almost lunchtime, our big star still hadn't appeared.

But yesterday, she told Ronan that she would go first thing in the morning.

As Ronan stood at the door pondering whether he had remembered the date wrong, a dark-skinned local man who looked like a farmer brushed past him.

Ronan wondered if it was just his imagination, but he thought he saw this guy wink at him?

Immediately afterwards, a laughing voice came from behind him:

"I've already checked out the new products, see you at the restaurant."

Ronan suddenly turned his head to look at the old man's back.

Good heavens, he completely forgot that big stars love cosplay!

(End of this chapter)