"Oil-poured dried beef? Since you recommend it so highly, Heath, I'll definitely have a serving. Give me one to try." Mr. Cord smiled. To be honest, he knew Heath's cooking skills very well. In Cord's view, Heath's cooking was beyond reproach, but looking at that dry lump of meat, he felt it couldn't possibly taste all that good. After all, Cord had eaten plenty of food before, and overly dry foods often didn't taste particularly good. Cord wasn't very fond of dry, crunchy foods like potato chips. In his opinion, only freshly peeled potatoes tasted better.
Still, it was food Heath had recommended, so although Cord didn't have very high hopes, he didn't reject Heath's suggestion either. He knew very well that if Heath recommended it, the dish must have its merits, so what if it actually suited his tastes? It was for this reason that Cord said nothing more and simply waited quietly.
Heath had no idea what Cord was thinking. After checking Cord's requirements for food, he went back to start cooking. Since dried beef had a salty, savory flavor, Heath didn't choose fried rice or anything like that, instead planning to serve plain white rice. But serving only oil-poured dried beef wouldn't quite do either, so Heath decided it would be best to pair it with side dishes like tomatoes and eggs. He also made a soup specifically, a seaweed soup. With that, a simple Chinese meal was ready: one meat dish, one vegetable dish, and one soup. That was basically enough to eat.
In fact, most people's lunches were very simple. Only some rich and powerful people were particularly exacting about what they ate. Most ordinary people had something like one meat dish and one vegetable dish for a meal, and Heath's portions were quite generous