1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 247 This House is Worth Buying
Cafu ordered a total of five types of grapevine wreaths from Ronan, 5 of each.

He said that he would start looking for buyers for the wreaths when he got home in the afternoon and would soon know the market feedback.

If sales are good, orders will continue to come to Ronan.

After the order is accepted, the next step is to solve the personnel issue.

In fact, the wreath is very easy to make. It doesn’t even require any difficult weaving skills. Just follow the steps and patterns taught by Ronan.

The difficulty lies in selecting the right rattan and processing it, which is a time-consuming and labor-intensive task.

The diameter of the vines used to make wreaths does not need to be limited to 0.5 to 1 cm, it can be slightly wider, but those that are smaller than 0.3 cm, have unnatural curvature, or have insect bites, mildew, or cracks should be picked out.

The next step is to remove the leaves and thorns.

After the clean rattan is washed, it must be disinfected and sterilized, then dried in the sun. If time is urgent, auxiliary means such as artificial drying may be required.

Then comes anti-corrosion treatment, grinding and polishing.
If rattan lamps and rattan ornaments with complex shapes are to be mass-produced in the future, softening treatment, grinding and polishing will have to be added in the middle, and Ronan cannot teach those people any of these steps with just a few words.

But Ronan still had to go into the mountains to dig truffles later. The fire had already delayed him for two or three days, so he would not have time to watch them do this in the restaurant in the future.

So when it comes to hand-woven items, you have to find someone to be in charge.

And the candidates are ready.

Batty almost spit the pink wine in his mouth onto Ronan's face:

"Have you found a way to sell rattan crafts in bulk?"

Batty has been working in the Provence art world for seven or eight years and can only barely support himself.

He has no fame or money, and all he has is a group of female artist friends.

How long has Ronan been exposed to weaving?

Two months or three months?

Have they all been scaled up? ?
Ronan wiped the table with a tissue:

"You can do a lot in two or three months. Zoe was selling plates and cups at the market three months ago. Look at what she has become now."

Ronan said as he looked at Zoe, who shone brightly among the artists.

He made Batty feel even worse by saying this.

This pair of artist lovers are each more terrifying than the other. I’m tired of envying them!
"What style do you want? Are there any technical requirements?" he asked Ronan.

Ronan explained to Batty:
"Now I just need to make very simple Christmas wreaths. In the future, I may make lights and decorations, and maybe furniture. We will see step by step. We don't know how the market will accept it."

Batty drank to calm his nerves.

My God, it’s not just handicrafts, there are also lamps and furniture. Is Provence going to have its own Bonacina?

"You want me to help you teach your employees?" Batty asked seriously.

Ronan nodded:

"Yes, teach my employees how to handle the vines and supervise them for a while. If you are interested, you can join us."

Batty shook his head repeatedly:

"I won't live in a certain place permanently. I will move away in the spring of next year, so I won't be able to join."

Ronan frowned.

He forgot about Batty's cosmopolitan character.

But it is very difficult to find a second person who knows how to weave in Provence.

He said to Batty in a negotiating tone:
"Then can you just help me train? Just like when you taught me in Valensole, I can give you some compensation."

Batty rarely looked serious and shook his head.
"It's not about money. I told you when I first met you that the more people who learn weaving skills, the happier I'll be. Just like you deliberately let other bosses learn Chinese cooking, one or two people can't build an entire industry. You said there are nearly twenty 'students' this time. I'm worried that I won't be able to teach them all. There are too many people. You know, this craft requires guidance from one person to another."

He raised his head and looked at Ronan with a complicated expression:
"There are very few people in the world who are as talented as you."

Weaving skills are easy to learn, but it can be frustrating to meet someone with clumsy hands. Not everyone is suitable for learning this skill.

Batty knew that his health was not good, and if a few "evil disciples" came, he was afraid that he would be angry to death here.

Ronan also became serious:
"How about trying it first?"

These employees have been working in the restaurant for more than a month, and Ronan knows each of them more or less.

These women are all capable and hardworking.

To put it bluntly, Feng Zhen, who has worked in Paris for decades, looks like a "weak woman" compared to them.

Moreover, most of these people can make embroidered quilts. Even if they can't, they can do other handicrafts. Maybe it's not as difficult to teach as Batty thought.

Batty sighed:

"Okay, but I have to be frank. If they don't have the talent, I may not be able to help you. I can only help you guide them to handle the vines."

Ronan was startled, and found a grammatical error, and immediately corrected it:
"It's not them, it's them. I don't have any male employees in my restaurant."

Batty's eyes suddenly lit up:

"You said that all the dozen or so students this time are female?"

Ronan told the kitchen staff and front desk waiters separately that he might have to do something else in the future.

Everyone understood Ronan's decision very well.

Nicola said worriedly:
"I only have a little to do every day, and I feel uneasy about getting paid. I would feel more at ease if I could do something else." Flossie put down the rag in his hand:
"We have to clean the kitchen cabinets, stoves and tables more than ten times a day. Please give me something else to do. I didn't have so much free time when I was a housewife at home."

Isabel asked curiously:

"Ronan, what exactly do you want us to do?"

Ronan led everyone to Batty's table:
"I want you to learn how to make a grapevine wreath from Mr. Batty."

The employees were very excited when they heard this.

They loved the beautiful wreaths Ronan made.

Are you going to teach us how to make wreaths?

It’s great to work here, I can always learn something I like!

Batty was even more excited than his employees. He patted his chest and assured Ronan:
"It is my responsibility and mission to popularize weaving skills in Provence. Don't worry, Ronan. I am a professional and I will definitely teach the sisters well."

Ronan suppressed his laughter and said:

"No, don't be so decisive. Let's see if they can learn it first and see if they have the talent."

"No, no, no!" Batty pointed a finger at the female employees and said, "Weaving is an easy skill to learn. How can you not learn it? If you can't learn it, it's my fault as a teacher. If you can't learn it once, I will teach you twice. If you can't learn it twice, I will teach you three times!"

"Sisters, let's go! I'll take you to pick the branches, but everyone, be careful not to hurt your fingers, and do it step by step."

The quantity that Cafu placed his first order was not large, only 18000 francs, but it gave Ronan a sigh of relief.

The employees in the restaurant can generate other value, so even if the restaurant’s business is not as good as expected this month, it will not lose money.

And Ronan was confident that someone would buy those wreaths.

There may not be enough supply in the future.

After arranging things in the restaurant, Ronan went to see Henry.

"Henry, please help me notify the farmers and tell them not to burn the cut grape branches. Find a place to store them first. I will find a way to take them away before next spring."

Henry would never ask Ronan why, he would just obey and do as he was told.

But the other farmers were not Henry, and they surrounded Henry and kept asking questions.

Henry didn't know the reason and could only use his power to bully others so that they would stop talking nonsense.

In the past few months, Henry has straightened his back a lot because of Ronan's "kindness". He dares to confront anyone except Pierre now. He is no longer the person who followed behind everyone and waited to have a sip of soup.

But Henry's mouth was really too poisonous, and after a while, the farmers would inevitably say something unpleasant.

I don't necessarily mean it, but I just don't want to see Henry's ugly face.

"Why are you so proud? You follow Ronan around and lick his clothes every day, but what did you get? Did he help you make money or build a house for you?"

"Bah! I, Henry, am loyal to Mr. Ronan. When he needs something good, the first person he thinks of is me, not you!"

"What good did I give you? Some sausage and cheese? Haha——"

"Mr. Ronan taught Josephine and Lisa the art of weaving, which is how the decorations in the restaurant are made!"

"What's the use of that? Can it make your roof less leaky?"

"Stupid guy! This skill will definitely help us make money in the future!"

"This is the funniest joke I've ever heard in my life. Making money with a skill I've never heard of? It's so funny. I'm going to tell this to everyone in the village!"

After that, the Provence Daily published many reports about forest fires, but never issued any police reports.

According to the Provencal style, if the police arrested the arsonist, it would definitely be written on the front page of the newspaper, and maybe even a photo of him looking miserable when he was arrested by the police would be posted.

This means that the demon who claimed that "if the northwest wind doesn't stop, he will set every forest in Provence on fire with a match" is still at large.

The residents' panic has eased a little, but they cannot completely forget about the incident because helicopters patrolling the forest hover overhead every day, reminding residents to always pay attention to their own safety and the safety of those around them.

Although Ronan's family is not far from the forest, there will be some people having picnics between them and the dense forest.

These men are now not only bodyguards for the Paris family, but also their fire detectors.

As long as they were not drunk to the point of passing out, they would not have just watched the fire start.

After that, Luo Tianhai went to the window to count cars more and more frequently.

They had never wished so much for more people to picnic there.

But one morning, Luo Tianhai discovered something different.

The private cars at the end of the vineyard were gone, replaced by military trucks.

Parked next to the truck was a machine larger than the Paris family had ever imagined possible—something between a bulldozer and a large tractor.

Many people in uniform and police uniforms were moving hurriedly between the trucks and the dense forest.

Feng Zhen nervously grabbed Ronan's arm and said tremblingly:
"Son, the arsonist won't be found there, will he?!"

Ronan let out a breath.

This house is really worth buying. Not only can you see the beautiful scenery of Luberon, but you can also watch a lot of dramas, such as wild boars and arsonists.

Ronan put on a coat and walked out of the house in the strong wind:

"Don't scare yourself. I'll go over and take a look and I'll know."

(End of this chapter)