1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 9 Black Gold

The market will last from 8 am until before lunch.

Zoe was quite lucky today. She completed her usual half-day sales just after ten o'clock.

As a thank you, she would treat Ronan, who had been busy running around, to lunch after the market.

"You're welcome. Your father has helped me a lot. I don't know how to thank him."

Ronan felt embarrassed to continue taking advantage of them, as they gave him free food and drinks and even let him use their tractor for free.

Zoe tucked her golden hair behind her ears, looked into Ronan's eyes and said:

"That was between you and my dad, now it's between you and me."

Zoe has a strong artistic aura and eyes as deep as the stars and the sea. Even if she doesn't speak, you can read some irresistible messages from her face. When she speaks, it is even more irresistible.

"Okay then," Ronan agreed with his head down.

After that, Zoe often stared at him with a look that Ronan couldn't understand.

Feeling uncomfortable, he found an excuse:
"I'm going to buy some fruit."

Zoe propped up her chin with her right hand and couldn't help but smile at Ronan's back:

"It's still not 'Provence' enough. There are no shy men in Provence."

Ronan used the opportunity of buying fruit to complete another task for the day - to find the next way to make money.

Looking at the dazzling array of goods, he kept calculating in his mind:

Vegetables and fruits are not available because there is no land.

The same goes for flowers, which are not considered.

Selling wine and honey is not a good option, as both require initial capital. He needs to find a way that does not require too much investment.

After walking around for a while, Ronan discovered that although it was a daily market, there were also many seasonal items here, such as fishing gear.

France is surrounded by the sea on three sides, but its fishing industry is not well developed.

The peak season for seafood supply is winter because cold chain conditions are limited.

Ronan is considering it as an alternative, but if he wants to make money from it, he also needs to solve the cold chain problem.

He also saw hunting supplies such as bullet bags at the market.

France does not ban guns, but does allow hunting, but you need a hunting license.

But the hunting season is about to end and considering the time it takes to take the certification exam, I definitely can't count on making money from this this year.

What else can I do?

Ronan was wandering around the market at a loss when a voice sounded in his ears.

[Attending a lively market increases happiness by 2 points]

His expression changed from gloomy to sunny:

“It’s not completely without gain.”

Due to the monotony of the food, the growth rate of happiness has slowed down for a few days.

This discovery finally allowed Ronan to find a third way to gain experience besides eating and sleeping.

I must go to the fair more often in the future, and not just the one in Lourmarin.

It had been quite some time since they were out, so Ronan temporarily gave up looking for his target, bought some fresh oranges and cherry tomatoes, and returned to find Zoe. After walking a few steps, he suddenly smelled a strong odor.

"What is this?" He sniffed hard twice.

It's a very familiar smell, but I just can't remember what it is.

Ronan followed the complex smell to a stall. It was just past ten o'clock, but the stall was empty with only some dirt left.

"What's selling so fast?" Ronan couldn't help but speak out his real thoughts.

The stall owner was an old man. Seeing that Ronan had yellow skin, he mistook him for a tourist and said in a flattering way:

"France has the best truffles in the world! But unfortunately, the ones we dug up last week are all sold out. You can leave me your contact information and I'll send you new ones when I have them." Ronan's eyes lit up.

Truffles!

Truffles are perhaps the most 'famous' fungus in the world, with more myths and rumors surrounding them than any other.

Chefs consider it a treasure.

People who are addicted to truffles are unable to extricate themselves from it, such as Ronan.

But which Frenchman can resist the temptation of truffles?

Look, it’s sold out before 11 o’clock!

But truffles are different from other crops. They are extremely challenging to grow and can only be artificially promoted, so they are very expensive.

In later times, one kilogram could be sold for several hundred euros. What about now?
"How much?" Ronan did not reveal his identity.

The stall owner generously spread out his hands:
"To show the friendliness of the French, I can give you 2000 francs per kilogram. I sell it to others for 2100 francs."

2000 per kilogram?

This is Ronan’s living expenses for more than a month!
As expected, no matter what era, rich people are willing to spend money on food.

Ronan pointed at the dirt on the table and asked:
"From Luberon?"

The most famous truffle producing area in France is the Périgord region, where black truffles are sold all over the world.

Luberon too?
The stall owner nodded seriously:

“I picked it near here.”

In order to facilitate the deal, he continued to explain to Ronan:
"The truffle picking season starts in November and ends at the end of February, and ends in early March at the latest. If you want to taste the authentic French specialty, you should hurry."

Ronan immediately showed a look of joy, and could no longer hide his smile.

The stall owner saw Ronan's reaction and seemed to have seen him take out the money, but Ronan waved his hand:
"Okay, bye."

After the market, Zoe took Ronan to a very secret restaurant in the village for dinner.

“On market days, other restaurants are full of tourists and outsiders.” Zoe likes the quiet environment.

She inherited her parents' generous and warm character and ordered stewed lamb's feet and tripe, shortbread and cherry sauce, Mediterranean fish soup, Banh Mi cheese and a glass of blackcurrant wine for each of them.

The two of them ate in silence for a while. When Zoe obviously slowed down her eating speed, Ronan asked:

"Can I pick truffles around here?"

Zoe was not surprised by Ronan's question. She put down her knife and fork and wiped her mouth elegantly.
"There are certainly no truffles near the village, but there are hundreds of thousands of oak and hazel trees in the Luberon Mountains, and there may be truffles at the roots of each tree. During the picking season, many people go into the mountains to try their luck. Vieri and I went to dig with our father when we were young."

She guessed that Ronan must have seen the truffle merchant at the market, and it was not surprising that Ronan was interested in this, as he had vowed to experience all the beauty of Provence.

"Did you find it?" Ronan asked expectantly.

High profits, popularity and low input costs, truffle picking is the most ideal way to make money that Ronan has discovered.

Zoe took a sip of black currant liqueur and raised her eyebrows.

“Our whole family has had bad luck.”

"Never found anything once?" Ronan seemed to have been poured with a bucket of cold water.

Is it so difficult?

In his opinion, Louis' family's understanding of nature can be described as "experts".

Zoe said in a soothing tone:
"Compared to truffle digging, driving a tractor to spread fertilizer is as easy as eating. You can find someone to take you there to try your luck, but don't expect too much. They will only take you there symbolically to experience it, and they won't really let you dig it out. Every mushroom picker doesn't like others to discover his or her 'secret garden'."

"Who can I talk to?" Ronan asked.

"Pierre, he can dig some every year. There are more skilled mushroom pickers in the village, but at least you won't be bored spending an afternoon in the woods with Pierre. He'll tell you jokes the whole time." Zoe said calmly.

Since it is doomed to fail, why not prioritize user experience?
For the first time, Ronan saw the humorous side of Zoe, which was more pleasant than listening to Pierre's "cold jokes", and he laughed out loud.

[Having lunch with an attractive person of the opposite sex increases happiness by 5 points]

(End of this chapter)