1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 238 You are the rich people!
At the beginning of the year, when Ronan digs up truffles, he will keep a little, or none at all and sell them all.

But now that I have a restaurant, I have to keep some of it for myself.

In order to cater to the tastes of locals, the restaurant will also launch some seasonal truffle-themed dishes. Luo Tianhai plans to update the menu within a week.

"How much truffles are consumed every month?" Ronan asked Luo Tianhai.

The shelf life of truffles is very short. In an unprocessed natural state, they can only be kept for 7-15 days. After this time, the quality and aroma will be seriously degraded.

Ronan wanted to calculate the demand for the restaurant and sell the rest as soon as possible.

Luo Tianhai is no stranger to truffles. In France, no matter what type of restaurant you run, you have to deal with this expensive ingredient.

While he was calculating for himself, he explained to Ronan:

"Normally, truffles are consumed in cold dishes and soups at 1-2 grams per serving, main dishes at about 3-5 grams, and desserts and drinks at 0.5-1 gram per serving. Chinese cuisine does not have as high a proportion of truffles as French cuisine, accounting for only about 10%-15% of the total dishes, and considering the customer flow and actual conditions."

Luo Tianhai pondered for a moment:
"About 3-5 kilograms per month."

Ronan nodded.

At a party at Lucas's house earlier this year, he asked Olivier, who owns restaurants in several cities, how much truffles he consumes each month.

Olivier's answer was that several restaurants together would consume about 20 kilograms per month. Judging from this data, Luo Tianhai's estimate was reliable.

Ronan weighed the bag of truffles.

Today he picked 3 kilograms of truffles a day, which means that he can cover the restaurant's expenses by digging for two days every month, and the rest can all be sold.

Ronan has calculated the time. He has to go to the market every Friday and Saturday. His identity as a stall owner is recorded in the "Mifar Guide" and other magazines. This will be his identity card when the future travel season comes. Moreover, the restaurant's fixed "advertising space" cannot be stopped. Occasionally, there are some things that he cannot get away from. In a whole month, he can go into the mountains for about 20 days.

Based on the first day’s performance, it is estimated that 50-60 kilograms of truffles can be sold every month.

If it were based on the previous market conditions, Ronan would have started laughing by this point, but now that the price has dropped so much at once, he feels distressed that "the more he digs, the more he loses."

Even though efficiency has been greatly improved, I am not as happy anymore.

Luo Tianhai asked Ronan:

“Squeeze a little space between the sweet and sour pork and boxed lunch stalls to sell truffles?”

Ronan sold truffles at the market at the beginning of the year.

Ronan pursed his lips and thought for a moment:
“Maybe we need to change the way we sell it.”

Lucas had an easier time digging truffles than Ronan.

Every day, Lucas followed Margaret and squatted down to dig when he saw her digging the soil.

But Margaret inherited the character of her 'uncle' Theo, and is a 'lazy girl' who gets upset if she stays out for too long.

So Lucas's time outside is very limited every day. He goes out at around 7 o'clock in the morning and must be home before 5 o'clock in the afternoon.

Margaret has also gotten used to this biological clock. She will not get out of her bed before 7 o'clock in the morning and will go to bed after 5 o'clock in the afternoon.

But tonight, when Lucas was having dinner at around 6 o'clock, he saw Margaret squatting at the door, looking at it.

"What's wrong, baby? Do you want to eat something else?" Although the first thing he did when he got home was to feed Margaret, Lucas still picked out the meat from the dish and continued to feed it.

Margaret was unimpressed by the food and began to wander around the door, looking a little anxious.

Lucas immediately tensed up.

Margaret had the same reaction when she had a stomachache before, and wanted to go out.

Lucas quickly put down his knife and fork, put on a coat and took Margaret out, but found that his baby daughter ran to the side of the house as soon as she went out without defecating or peeing.

Lucas followed from a distance and found another person with a dog more than a hundred meters away from his home.

As soon as Margaret saw the black dog, she trotted over to it without showing any discomfort.

"Hello Lucas, are you out walking the dog too?" Ronan asked harmlessly.

Lucas lowered his head and took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, and asked with a clearly smiling tone:

"You could have knocked."

Ronan's house and his house are in two different directions of the village.

Is this walking the dog or running a marathon?
Ronan smiled awkwardly:
"I didn't see your car at the door, not sure if you were home."

Lucas lit up his cigarette:
"Then why bring the dog?"

Ronan laughed even more awkwardly:

“This is a second way to confirm whether you are at home.”

The two dogs were running and jumping in front, while Ronan and Lucas were following leisurely behind.

"You didn't go into the mountains today?" Lucas asked.

Ronan looked at Margaret in front of him with envy:
"I went, but I wanted to talk to you so I came back a little early."

Lucas took a few puffs of his cigarette:
"what's up?"

Ronan asked expectantly:

"Can the restaurants in Nice and Marseilles that you know take my truffles as well?"

Ronan's weekly truffle production is too large to be sold at the market. And from what Lucas said that day, his channel purchase price is higher, so Ronan wants to ask if he can buy his goods as well.

According to Lucas's personality, he has to help his friend when he speaks out.

A few months ago, knowing that Ronan's parents were coming to Provence to celebrate Easter, he gave the car away without Ronan asking.

But he really can't help with this matter now.

"I used to supply my truffles directly to Olivier, but as you know, we fell out this year. These restaurants can't even handle all my truffles, so I'm looking for other channels to receive them."

In fact, Ronan had expected this result.

In the past, Lucas and Olivier were very close, and Olivier's several restaurants were enough to eat up Lucas' weekly food.

Speaking of Olivier, Ronan couldn't help but ask:
"What's the current situation of your experimental forest?"

Lucas said with his hands behind his back, "The host trees have been planted, and the first batch of mycelium culture has also been transplanted. Based on the fungus production rate tested next spring, we can estimate the yield per hectare in the next two to three years."

Ronan turned his head to look at him:

"How much land did you acquire in total?"

Lucas has been in the artificial truffle cultivation business for a year, but Ronan knows nothing about it.

Lucas shook his head expressionlessly:

"Not much. We only built an experimental forest, 7 hectares for truffle cultivation, and 3 hectares for ecological buffer zone and scientific research facilities."

Ronan asked with a complicated expression:

“It cost a lot of money to buy the land, right?”

He heard from farmers that the price of buying agricultural land in Luberon is 5 to 8 francs per hectare. Truffle cultivation has high requirements for the soil, so the price will definitely be higher.

Lucas silently blew out a smoke ring:
"The government provides a 10%-20% purchase subsidy for specialty agriculture, which is equivalent to 9 francs per hectare."

Ronan kept shaking his head:
“And there are annual maintenance costs, right?”

Compared to Lucas, he is a nobody.

He spent 90 francs just on buying the land!!

Lucas said, smoking a cigarette:

"Labor costs, seedling inoculation, soil treatment, irrigation. All that matters is 5 to 6 per hectare."

Ronan immediately lost his composure:

"Five or six hundred thousand operating expenses a year?"

You can't even make 60k a year, Lucas?
How dare you!
Lucas spat on the ground angrily:
"Who would have thought that Olivier would desert? This is calculated based on the combined investment of both of us."

Ronan wanted to say, then you run away with him, but it was no use saying that now.

He really felt the financial pressure on Lucas' behalf.

No wonder they have to sell boats and cars.

But even if I sell them all, it will be hard to survive.
Especially this year the price of truffles has fallen.

"What are you going to do—" Ronan tried his best to keep his tone calm and not hurt his self-esteem, "Should we think of other ways?"

Lucas smiled and patted Ronan on the shoulder:

"Don't worry, I have a solution."

After saying this, he squatted down and waved to Margaret:
"Come back baby, we should go back."

Margaret looked at Xiao Hei, then at Lucas, and finally ran towards her 'Dad' reluctantly.

"I'll find a good channel and tell you!" Ronan shouted at Lucas' back.

Lucas didn't look back, but waved his hand behind Ronan:

"Thanks."

Lucas's approach doesn't work, so Ronan has to continue looking for other channels to collect truffles.

His second goal was Mr. Jacques' Michelin restaurant.

They met through buying and selling truffles at the Mena village market.

Talking about business over the phone is not very formal, so Ronan went to Bonnieux the day after meeting Lucas and discussed the matter with Jacques in person.

After listening to Ronan's intention, Jacques said truthfully:

"Of course I need truffles, and the demand for truffles in the restaurant is very high, an average of 10-12 kilograms per month throughout the winter."

Jacques' restaurant serves traditional French cuisine, and its high-end French cuisine is one of the most expensive in the Luberon region. Its winter menu includes a large number of dishes that require truffles.

Just as Ronan was about to say thank you, Jacques changed the subject:
"But I only want fresh truffles that are less than 48 hours old, and I have a requirement for the diameter, which must be more than 5 cm. If you pick this kind, I will take as many as you can get every day."

"Freshness is not a problem. I can have someone deliver it to you every day. But those larger than 5 cm—" Ronan said tangledly, "are rare."

Taking the ones Ronan picked on the first day as an example, there were probably only 5 or 4 seeds that were over 5 centimeters in diameter.

Jacques pushed up his glasses:
"I know this kind of thing is rare, so I will definitely buy it when I see it. To run a Michelin restaurant, you must have something 'outstanding'."

It seems that my restaurant is still a long way from Michelin. Ronan complained in his heart.

Ronan thought about it briefly:
"I will deliver truffles that meet your requirements every day."

There are not many customers in the Luberon region who can buy fine truffles, so Jacques should be the best choice.

Jacques happily stretched out his right hand:

"I will buy the fine truffles you sent me at 2.5 times the market price. If the diameter exceeds 6.5 centimeters, I will increase the price. Don't ask me how much. You should remember that I never skimp on the price for good things. I will increase the price until you are satisfied. Happy cooperation, Ronan."

Ronan was delighted.

I love you generous rich people!

Truffles of good quality have found sales channels, but those of average quality are the 'main force'.

After returning from Bonnieux, Ronan immediately called Arthur to make an appointment.

After learning so much from him secretly, this guy should pay some tuition.

But even with Arthur and his friends, they still couldn't eat all of Ronan's truffles in a month.

Returning to the restaurant and passing by the cafe on the commercial street, Ronan suddenly stopped.

“Should I get to know this neighbor?”

Ronan stroked his chin and thought for a moment, then turned and entered Thomas's stone shop.

(End of this chapter)