When Alice arrived, William had just finished writing several papers on medical science theories and operational methods.
“Regarding the bookstore, we can check it out this evening,” William said as he handed over the stack of densely written papers on his desk to Alice. “You wanted to learn about medicine, right? Take these and read them. When you’re done, burn them.” 𝗼𝐯𝗹．𝐞𝘁
Alice took the papers with a furrowed brow, her eyes widening at the sight of the densely packed words and numerous hand-drawn illustrations.
“What is this?” she asked, glancing at the contents. “Are these medical science techniques that haven’t been developed yet?”
“Yes, these are the most basic ones,” William told Alice. “If you want to read them now, go ahead. Once you’re done, wash the vegetables, and I’ll cook.” With that, he got up and left the room.
Setting the vegetables on the ground, Alice sat down and eagerly began reading.
“This handwriting is…beautiful!” she remarked as she placed the papers on the desk. The first thing that struck her was how well-written the words were. The writing was simply a feast for the eyes.
It was hard to believe that a young man could produce such exquisite penmanship. By Alice’s standards, the writing on the paper resembled that of a master calligrapher, a rare occurrence even among contemporary calligraphy experts. His script boasted advanced technique, a unique style, refined layout, attention to detail, emotional expression, and creative inspiration.
As for the content, it was astounding. As Alice read, it was as if her entire soul was drawn into the writing. The words seemed to have been enchanted, shimmering and leaping from the pages straight into her mind. Before she knew it, Alice had memorized all the content. When she finished the last word, she couldn’t help but exhale deeply.
Alice couldn’t remember ever having a photographic memory, but she had absorbed all of William’s writings after just one reading, understanding the principles and specific methods of the medical science within.
Am I a genius?
Alice began to question whether she had some exceptional talent.
Little did she know that the medical book she held was a one-of-a-kind tome. Written by William’s own hand and imbued with magic, it could be fully grasped by even the most obtuse reader with just one careful reading. It was like a skill book from a video game—just click “learn,” and you’d know it instantly.
By the time Alice emerged from the room, an hour had passed, and William was sitting under a sycamore tree in an old armchair, resting with his eyes closed.
“Finished?” William’s voice reached her ears.
“Yes, I’m done,” Alice responded quickly.
“Burn it. Then go wash the vegetables.”
William didn’t think there was anything wrong with ordering Alice to do these things. It had been a long time since he had taken on a formal apprentice, but wasn’t this how apprentices were supposed to be used?
At first, Alice had found William mysterious, acknowledging him as her master only because of the two medical scrolls on parchment that Celsus had given her. Now, she finally understood.
Why her grandfather had wanted her to acknowledge William as her master!
This man was practically a deity!
The medical science principles and specific operational methods were described so clearly and concisely that anyone could understand them at a glance. What’s more, they were filled with miraculous techniques that seemed to be years ahead of their time.
Any of these medical techniques would be highly classified and patented by any researcher or company. For others to know about them would be impossible.
“I understand, I’ll go do it now,” Alice said, now utterly in awe of William. If anyone else had asked her to wash vegetables and prepare ingredients, she would have scoffed at the idea. But when William asked her to do these things, she couldn’t help but willingly comply.
William slowly rose and walked over to the neighboring yard, feeling that having an apprentice was quite nice. Although he didn’t mind doing mundane tasks himself, it was still pleasant to have someone around to help him.
At this moment, Evelyn’s grandfather was still sweeping fallen leaves in the yard. Actually, the yard was quite clean, but people tend to find something to do as they age, lest they get bored.
“Nathaniel, no need to make lunch today. Come over to my place,” William called out to him, using the honorific naturally.
“Sounds good! What are you planning to cook?” Nathaniel, although quite elderly, found interacting with this young man to be very pleasant and natural. Nathaniel didn’t know why, but he really liked it when William addressed him like this; it made him feel very warm and familiar.
Of course, he wouldn’t know that sixty-eight years ago, William used to live here as well. That year, he had just been born, and his father was a close friend of William’s. Knowing that William was a highly cultured individual, his father had asked him to help name the child.
If William were to tell Nathaniel Smith that he was the one who named him, Nathaniel would probably be so astonished and incredulous that his mind might just explode with disbelief!The baby who had just been born that year was now in the twilight of his life, while William still looked like the same young man.
William chuckled, “Just come over, and you’ll see. It’s going to be very delicious food!”
“Let’s have a drink together later!” Nathaniel said, “I have a bottle of Bourbon tucked away.”
“Sounds great! Bring the wine over in a bit,” William said, not asking about Evelyn’s situation. He turned around and went back to his yard. Speaking of good wine, there was still a wine cellar hidden under that plane tree. William remembered that he had built it specifically when he planted the tree. It had been over four hundred years, and he wondered if anyone who lived here had discovered this secret.
“How should I cut this?” Alice held the knife in her hand, looking at the whole chicken on the cutting board, unsure where to begin. “I should have bought pre-cut meat!”
Alice, who had grown up in a wealthy family, was already doing well by being able to prepare some simple dishes herself. However, she didn’t know what dish William was planning to cook, so she had bought a whole chicken, some beef, and some salmon. She had also bought a variety of vegetables.
She had no problem washing the vegetables, but as for using a knife on the meat…
This was even more complicated than using a scalpel!
“I guess I’ll just chop it into small pieces.” Alice squinted her eyes, and the knife rose and fell. In an instant, bits of chicken were flying everywhere. Many pieces of chicken ended up off the cutting board and on the floor. After she finished chopping, only about a third of the chicken remained on the cutting board; the rest had fallen on the floor.
“So embarrassing!” Alice, noticing that William hadn’t entered the kitchen yet, hurriedly tossed the chicken pieces that had fallen on the floor into the trash.
William entered the kitchen and was taken aback by the chaotic scene.
“Did you wash all the vegetables?” William asked, somewhat speechless. The kitchen counter was covered in various washed vegetables.
“Yeah!” Alice nodded and unconsciously nudged the trash can next to her foot aside.
William took a deep breath. William took a deep breath, not bothering to comment on whether the vegetables were thoroughly washed or not. But there was just too much of them!If the leaves hadn’t been wet, they could have lasted quite a while, but she had washed everything!
And what was going on with the meat in the trash can? Was that the chopped chicken?
Her knife skills were akin to a mad butcher!
“You just stand there!” William was at a loss. The world had changed so much. Even fifty years ago, which girl didn’t know how to cook? Alice’s performance made him hesitant to ask her into the kitchen again.