Tywin's desk was quiet.
The other long tables were all far from Tywin's table.
There are eleven people at the table.
Lord Tywin Lannister sat alone at the head of the table. To his right were five people: first, Jenny; second, Lord Gavin; then, in order, Lord Marble of Branded City; Lord Leford of Goldtooth City; and Lord Farman of Fairy Isle.
To Tywin Lannister's left were five men: the first was Lord Kevan, the second was Grand Maester Porter, followed by Lord Craig of Rattleseat, Lord Lannister of Lannisport, and Lord Swiffer of Corn City.
This was the first time Earl Gavin had tasted such tender and delicious roast meat and drunk such refreshing bacon soup. Despite his family being on the verge of bankruptcy, he remained a connoisseur of fine food.
For Jenny, who was used to fine dining, every dish today was delicious and appetizing.
Earl Gavin had drunk a bit too much and became bolder: "Your Grace, are all these dishes seasoned with snow salt?"
"Yes!" Duke Tywin was always sparing with his words.
"Snow Salt, is it really Lord Gregor...?"
Before Gavin could finish speaking, the Duke abruptly interrupted him: "Yes!"
Although Earl Gavin showed an expression of relief and understanding, he was still unwilling to believe it at all.
Jenny Westerling was equally unwilling and unable to believe it.
Although the gift-giver accurately announced that the Snow Salt came from Clegane Keep and was accidentally produced by Ser Gregor Clegane when the gift was presented, and her doubts were once again confirmed by Lord Tywin Lannister at the dinner table, she still found it hard to believe that the Mountain possessed the technology to produce Snow Salt.
Count Marble said softly, "Your Grace, I have never tasted such delicious bacon soup. Sir Gregor's production of snow salt is truly remarkable."
The other earls nodded vigorously, none of them uttering a word of agreement, even though they genuinely believed it to be true.
Duke Tywin disliked people who constantly fawned over others, which made the atmosphere at the dinner table oppressive and dull.
Having grown accustomed to salt with its bitterness and grainy texture, the first taste of this snow-white, fine salt was immediately strikingly different. The suckling pig roasted with the two types of salt tasted completely different. The purity of the snow salt seemed to make the meat even more tender.
But the enjoyment of snow salt was limited to Duke Tywin's table only.
There were eleven people at the table, and everyone was using chopsticks.
Following Tywin's example, the other ten people at the table learned how to use chopsticks.
This was indeed a bit difficult at the beginning, because when faced with two'sticks', you didn't know how to hold them, and you couldn't tell the beginning and the end apart at all.
The dishes on this table are also quite special.
The barbecue chefs set up fires to grill meat on the street below the square, and the bakers baked bread right next to them. All kinds of dishes were made on the spot by the chefs, and then served piping hot and fragrant.
Once the meat was roasted, two skilled chefs were tasked with slicing it into various sizes for the noble knights at Duke Tywin's table, serving it on plates for everyone to eat with chopsticks.
In this way, the Duke's table of meat and bread didn't require anyone to cut them themselves.
This made Jenny feel fantastic!
When a lady cuts hot, oily grilled meat, she often gets her fingers and her elegant clothes dirty.
Duke Tywin thought Gregor's words when he was demonstrating how to use chopsticks were accurate: roast meat and bread and let the chef cut them for you, tell him how you want them cut, and then eat with chopsticks. There is no need to cut the meat and bread yourself and get greasy and breadcrumbs on your hands. This is more convenient for the elderly, young children and elegant ladies, and is more in line with the aristocratic status.
The bacon soup was brimming with ham, carrots, and various vegetables. Only the poor would chop meat and vegetables into small pieces and simmer them into a thick soup for easy consumption with a spoon. But the nobility didn't need to do that. Large chunks of meat, long strips of carrots, and all sorts of vegetables were thrown in, and chopsticks were far more convenient than knives and forks for picking them up from the soup. Furthermore, there was no need to worry about the steaming bacon soup burning their hands, making it especially convenient and safe for children who had learned to use chopsticks.
In the Chinese civilization that Gregor traveled to, chopsticks had been used for thousands of years and had never been replaced by other tableware, precisely because of their convenience and practicality.
As a science and engineering student at a Chinese university, Grego is well aware that chopsticks come in a wide variety of types. Throughout Chinese civilization, chopsticks have been made from materials such as bamboo, wood, bone, porcelain, ivory, gold, silver, and plastic. Chopsticks are one of the most commonly used tableware items globally and a symbol of Chinese culinary culture. Invented in China, they later spread to many Asian countries and influenced the culinary landscape overseas.
Jenny quickly learned to use chopsticks. She was multi-talented, skilled in music, painting, and medicine, and always had dexterous hands and feet.
She glanced furtively at the Demon Mountain. That villain invented chopsticks? Invented a whistle? Produced snow salt?
Is that possible?
Absolutely impossible!
But the Duke of Tywin's honor is beyond question.
This made Jenny feel quite awkward.
She was a proud, intelligent, and talented woman who deeply despised Gregor. She subtly inquired about him with the Grand Secretary, who told her explicitly that Gregor was indeed illiterate.
How could an illiterate, ignorant fellow possess such high intelligence? How could he invent something completely new that never existed in this world before?
If that's true, then it can only be attributed to the divine revelation of the Seven Gods.
A scumbag favored by the seven gods?
Jenny thought this was so twisted!
The lady elegantly enjoyed the food while pondering her daughter's thoughts.
In the Westerlands, there are four extremely wealthy noble families: the Lyford family of Golden Tooth, who are rich because of their gold mines; the Sallowe family of Silverhall, who are rich because of their gold mines; the Lannister family of Lannisport, who are rich because of their port trade; and the Lannister family of Casterly Rock, who are rich because of their gold mines and taxes.
Jenny has no hope of marrying into the Lannister family of Casterly Rock, and the Earl of Lannister in Lannisport has only one daughter and no sons. Therefore, in the Westerlands, only two families remain to choose from: House Lyford of Golden Tooth and House Salriot of Silverhall. The Salriots of Silverhall had once rejected her father's marriage proposal, but today, on the day she becomes Lord Tywin's daughter, she has received proposals from several noble youths, including Ador Salriot, the future patriarch of House Salriot.
Ador Saloth was handsome, wealthy, and powerful; he was also a highly skilled martial artist and the young nobleman Jenny admired. In the entire Westerlands, there was no better catch than Saloth. If Jenny married Ador, she would become the Countess of the Silver Hall.
Jenny had high hopes for Adoo Saloort.
Today, Jenny, as the protagonist of the entire city, has also garnered admiring glances from almost every man and woman.
From sixteen-year-old boys to sixty-year-old noblemen, their eyes were filled with admiration and...desire when they looked at her.
Jenny's status was due to her father's influence.
The only regret was that her mother could not attend and witness her glory. Her mother was the daughter of a merchant, not a noblewoman, and was looked down upon by Lord Tywin, so she had to compromise and stay alone in Cliffrock.
Jenny, pondering her daughter's secret thoughts, stole another glance at her beloved Adu.
It was quite lively on Ado's side, with bursts of laughter constantly erupting. Because of the distance, Jenny couldn't hear what Ado and Gregor were talking about. She saw many knights holding wine glasses gathered around Ado and Gregor at a long table nearby, laughing and talking about something. The atmosphere was lively, and the sounds of laughter kept coming.
"I'm betting ten gold dragons."
"I'll bet fifty."
She could faintly hear the knights and nobles shouting loudly.
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