Seeing William lead Jasmine in, the cook was momentarily dazed, her eyes widening in fear. Then, the cook reacted to Jasmine's noble status evidenced by her attire; the cook was so frightened that she did not even have time to wipe the flour from her hands before kneeling straight down onto the dusty ground. Her forehead touched the floor, and her thin frame trembled slightly, fearing that the new Lord had come to punish or scold her because breakfast was not to her liking.
Jasmine was also startled by the cook's overreaction and extreme terror, hurriedly leaning aside to avoid the gesture. Her tone softened as she told the cook to stand up.
"I do not like people kneeling before me at every turn. From now on, regardless of who it is, even the lowliest slave, no one is allowed to kneel upon seeing me." Jasmine said with a darkened face and a stern voice, instructing both the trembling cook in front of her and William standing behind her.
William seemed not to have expected Jasmine to say this; his expression was somewhat surprised, and a spark of amazement flashed in his eyes. The butler opened his mouth as if wanting to advise her on the social hierarchy, but ultimately, William respectfully replied: "As you command, Lord. I will convey your merciful order to the others in the territory."
Jasmine nodded with satisfaction. She looked at the trembling cook who had just crawled back up, her hands and feet awkward as if she didn't know where to place them, and gently asked: "I want to boil some hot water to drink. Where is the water obtained here?"
The cook must have experienced something terrible in the past, for she looked very afraid of the new Lord. Hearing Jasmine ask a question, the cook shook violently, her lips moving for a long time without being able to answer a single complete sentence. It was the quick-witted William beside her who answered instead:
"My Lord, in the backyard of the castle, there is a dedicated well dug very deep. Normally, we take water from there for cooking."
"Oh? Take me to see it." Jasmine was somewhat delighted, her eyes lighting up.
Earlier on the road, she had heard the sound of gurgling water and assumed the castle's water was taken from outside rivers or streams which were easily polluted. If the castle had its own well, then at least it could be ensured that the water source here was cleaner, and she wouldn't have to worry about foreign objects or floating animal carcasses in the water. Jasmine still remembered the hardship of finding water sources and filtering water with sand and charcoal on the way to the territory; she never wanted to remember what kind of trash people threw into the rivers and streams, and she understood why people here normally preferred to rely on cheap wines to meet their daily fluid intake rather than drinking directly from nature.
The castle's well was located right near the kitchen, built with sturdy boulders and covered by a small roof, making water retrieval very convenient. Jasmine asked the cook to help her pull up a bucket of water using the worn wooden pail and found that the water here was crystal clear, clean, and cool. To the naked eye, no foreign impurities or sediment were visible, which made Jasmine very satisfied and relieved.
In the kitchen, only a large, black clay pot was empty; this was the pot usually used to cook stewed beans for the slaves. Jasmine told the cook to scrub the clay pot thoroughly, then ladle water in to boil. The clay pot was very thick, and its heat conductivity was not very good; it took more than half the day, burning a large bundle of firewood until thick smoke rose, before the water finally boiled vigorously.
Jasmine ladled a large cup for herself first, then found a ceramic bottle originally used to hold wine. She washed away the wine smell and filled it; this was her drinking water for the rest of the day.
More than half a pot of hot water remained in the clay pot, so Jasmine turned to give instructions: "Divide the rest of the water among yourselves to drink and warm your stomachs. If there isn't enough, boil another pot. Remember to boil it thoroughly and let it cool before drinking; do not drink raw water."
"My Lord, if that is the case, and it must be cooled anyway, why not just drink the well water directly? Well water is very sweet and cool." Doing this cost too much wood and time, so William was a bit distressed about the resources and frowned in confusion.
"Drinking boiled water leads to fewer stomach ailments," Jasmine patiently explained briefly. "The same goes for the slaves; health is the most important thing for working. From now on, everyone in the territory must drink boiled water; absolutely no raw water."
Seeing that Jasmine was determined and had her own reasoning, William could only comply. Jasmine took her water bottle and returned to the banquet hall to continue breakfast. The bread here was made very firm and dense; one loaf was as long as an adult's arm and heavy. Jasmine only ate more than half of it; dipping it in warm water to soften it filled her stomach to the brim, and she did not touch the rest.
She could not finish it herself, and looking at the leftovers, she naturally could not let them go to waste in these deprived circumstances. She decisively shared the untouched portions with William and the cook to eat together. Currently, in this vast but desolate castle, besides Jasmine, only these two people were available to take orders. The slaves had been driven out to work early in the morning; this season, wild fruits had begun to ripen in the forest and mushrooms grew after the rain. The slaves had to go into the forest to gather dry wood for storage while also picking wild fruits to supplement the food supply. They were usually busy until dark before returning, so now the entire castle was very quiet, as silent as a grave.
Having eaten her fill, her spirits were more refreshed. Jasmine intended to patrol her territory for a bit. Yesterday, when she first arrived, she was dizzy from motion sickness and hadn't had the chance to look closely at her castle and the fields outside. She had to live on this land for a long time and bear the responsibility of feeding many people in the territory; naturally, she had to plan well and could not let this state of famine persist forever.
William saw Jasmine stand up to go outside and told the cook to clear the dining table, while the butler picked up the Dragon Egg sitting on the chair, scurrying after Jasmine like a loyal tail. Jasmine saw this and stopped, turning her head to look suspiciously at William's actions.
William respectfully explained with a serious face: "My Lord, according to ancient records, frequently staying with one's partner and sensing each other's breath is beneficial for the hatching and development of the Dragon Egg."
Was there such a strange saying?
Jasmine recalled for a moment, searching her memory, and found that the old King mainly focused on the assets and lands of the Black Dragon; from beginning to end, the King never mentioned to Jasmine how to make the Dragon Egg hatch. Even the aging Bishop who presided over her wedding did not seem to believe this fossilized Dragon Egg still had the possibility of hatching.
But seeing William's serious and hopeful face, Jasmine thought it over, sighed, and reached out to take the Dragon Egg from the butler's arms: "Alright, give it to me."
Out of gratitude for inheriting a vast territory from the other party, carrying it with her was not a major problem; she would treat it like lifting weights.