Some things he didn’t understand, Samuel Webb would ask about repeatedly until he fully grasped them, then show a look of sudden realization.

Samuel Webb stood up, bowed with clasped hands, and said, “Ethan, it seems you must have been taught by a (famous) master.”

Knowledge is never acquired for no reason; it must be accumulated and then taught.

Ethan Clark could fabricate countless lies to explain why he knew so much.

For example, he could claim to have been taught by an immortal in a dream, or to have received divine favor from heaven, or to have met a remarkable teacher.

Claiming an immortal or heaven’s blessing would be a good excuse, and there would be no way to find evidence.

A remarkable teacher?

First of all, this is the Spring and Autumn period—anyone remarkable is well-known and has a deep background.

The Webb family absolutely has the means to investigate who has visited the The Clark Family recently, even to the point of checking for any strangers within their fief.

So, inventing a remarkable teacher is the worst choice.

Ethan Clark said, “I offered a great sum for books, but got none; I’ve liked pondering things since childhood, and by chance, while examining how the Golden Crow shines on weapons, I came to this conclusion.”

Right now, if you want to buy books, you simply can’t.

And books are actually bamboo slips.

Any household with a set of recorded bamboo slips, no matter what’s written on them, would treat them as treasures.

The Golden Crow refers to the sun.

When Ethan Clark claimed he figured it out himself, Samuel Webb immediately believed him.

There was no complicated reason.

First, Ethan Clark is a noble, so he must be literate, already a cut above the rest (in terms of knowledge).

Next, the The Clark Family is in decline, and as the actual heir who hasn’t yet had his coming-of-age ceremony (and the only one), Samuel Webb would think that Ethan Clark is racking his brains to revive the family.

Someone determined to restore their family would go to any lengths—that’s normal.

Stumbling upon some new knowledge by chance is perfectly reasonable.

Samuel Webb took a closer look at Ethan Clark and could tell he usually trained his body diligently; his eyes were bright and lively.

Ethan Clark felt a bit uneasy under the scrutiny, stood up, and said, “How about I personally butcher and cook, and let you have a taste?”

At this time, Confucius (Kong Qiu) hasn’t been born yet, so there’s no Confucianism, and no Mencius, so naturally no one to jump out and say a gentleman stays away from the kitchen.

Even Laozi (Li Er) hasn’t been born yet, so if Confucius wanted to get inspiration from Laozi’s works to create Confucianism, he’d have to wait.

In fact, many of the future Hundred Schools haven’t even appeared yet.

Samuel Webb paid even more attention to the unfamiliar viewpoints and knowledge Ethan Clark shared, but since Ethan Clark had already changed the subject, he followed him to the kitchen, curious to see how to cook with an iron wok.

There are very few types of vegetables now, such as amaranth, chives, scallions, shallots, smartweed, perilla, ginger, rue, garlic, shepherd’s purse, mustard, dogwood, turnip, lotus root, wild ginger, and so on.

Ethan Clark couldn’t do much with these ingredients.

Even just stir-frying scallions in oil was a cooking method that didn’t exist in the Spring and Autumn period. Samuel Webb was stunned as he watched, and at the same time, smelled an aroma he’d never encountered before.

Using the vegetables available to the The Clark Family, plus some things now considered staples but actually just seasonings in modern times, he stir-fried a few small dishes.

Besides stir-fried dishes (some with lean meat), Ethan Clark also made steamed crab, stir-fried shrimp, stir-fried shrimp meat, stewed soft-shelled turtle… and so on.

Due to the lack of certain seasonings and condiments, from a modern perspective, the food was nothing special, and the taste was definitely average.

But!

What do people eat now?

Even nobles only use more kitchen utensils to cook their food, but the ways of eating and the flavors are so monotonous as to be dull.

Samuel Webb looked at the many dishes laid out on the table, then looked up at Ethan Clark across from him, and praised before even tasting: “Ethan, you are a ‘Ya’.”

This “Ya” is a heartfelt compliment for someone extremely skilled in cooking.

For example, there was a man deeply versed in cooking and food named Yi, who later became known as Yi Ya.

At present, the system is individual servings.

Commoners lack furniture, so they just carry their food and eat wherever.

Nobles, on the other hand, each sit at their own table and do not gather together.

That is, they do not eat from the same plate.

Ethan Clark did not act modestly and gestured for Samuel Webb to look at the dining utensils.

Of course, there were tableware items in the Spring and Autumn period, and many had specific uses.

For example: daggers for cutting meat, hairpins (not just for decoration), chopsticks, and various spoons.

These four were the most widely used.

Ethan Clark prepared plates and bowls for various purposes, and also added some tableware with a modern touch, but since the The Clark Family had no metalworkers, they were all made of wood.

Samuel Webb couldn’t figure out the uses for the various utensils.

As the host, Ethan Clark brought out the new dining tools and naturally demonstrated their use himself.

Without going into the details of each utensil, Samuel Webb picked up some food with chopsticks and began to chew.

Meanwhile, Ethan Clark watched Samuel Webb expectantly, waiting for feedback.

Chapter 5: The Ritual of Offering Meat

Samuel Webb’s feedback was both mild and intense.