The fat elder was holding up the pheasant, but he was placing it too close to the fire, and the speed at which he rotated the pheasant was too slow. Roasting food with a naked fire was unlike grilling in a barbecue eatery. A barbecue eatery uses specialized grills that are easily lit. Its flame is uniform and most importantly, it is smokeless.
But for firewood, the fire is not uniform, and the smoke is thick. This smoke was the ash from the unburned wood and would rise up with the flames, sticking onto the pheasant's skin. So in a while, the pheasant in the old man's hands was already burned black. It wasn't overcooked, but it was covered in a layer of ash. It not only affected the texture, but it would also taste bitter.
Although the old man wiped oil every now and then, it was unable to change the situation of the layer of ash growing thicker. From the way the old man did it, it was clear that it was a matter of time before it was burnt.
