It took Yan Liqiang about an hour to make more than ten trips up and down the mountain to fill those two jars of water in the toilet to their brims.
Over the past hour, he had spilled quite a lot of water on the mountain path. Since Yan Liqiang had lifted those buckets of water up the mountain with his arms straight, the muscles and tendons on either side underneath his armpits were burning; they were sore and painful despite the fact that he had passed the Horse Stance stage and cultivated Muscle Tendon Changing and Marrow Cleansing. He could barely even lift his arms.
Upon seeing the two water jars filled to their brims, Yan Liqiang didn't rest for even a moment. He immediately wore his face mask, gloves, kerchief, and put on the overall he had sewn for himself. With a pile of tools, he started to clean the toilets with utmost effort.
He swept the floor first before he washed it with water. He then applied some force on his brush to scrub before he finally washed it with water again. Then he scrubbed again…
Yan Liqiang took this extremely seriously. He went through every nook and cranny and he did not miss even a speck of dust. He cleaned the place as best as he could.
Servant Huo from Gray Hall probably thought that assigning Yan Liqiang to clean the toilets here was a punishment for him, but little did he know in Yan Liqiang's previous life, the people who inspired Yan Liqiang to further his career were actually two individuals with stories related to toilets.
Many probably heard of Seiko Noda's story. Seiko Noda's first job upon graduating from university was a bathroom janitor in a hotel. Yet in the end, she was appointed as the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications for Japan at the age of thirty-seven. The turning point in her life and destiny started from a toilet. The tale of a person who dared to actually drink from the toilet she had cleaned herself was actually her.
The second toilet-related inspiring figure to Yan Liqiang was Hans Wall, the founder of Wall AG company in Germany. Was it possible for a person to earn money by managing free, public toilets? Prior to Hans Wall's achievement, no one in the world would probably expect that managing a free-of-charge public toilet could generate any profit. Yet, Hans Wall proved everyone wrong. This was the person who had changed everyone's mindsets about seeing public toilets as dirty and messy places. The public toilets he operated were all ingenious works of art which showed great creativity. They became advertising platforms that famous international brands and luxury brands would fight over for space, thus easily generating an annual profit of 300 million dollars.
Ever since Yan Liqiang heard about the tales of Seiko Noda and Hans Wall who did things to the very best of their abilities, their stories shook Yan Liqiang to his very core and had a long-lasting impact on Yan Liqiang. The success in the later stage of his career was all thanks to the inspiration he had drawn from their spirits.
Both of them made Yan Liqiang understand one of the most important principles of life— the success of a person hinged not on their job but on their performance. Oftentimes, the former might be beyond most people's control and destiny might just sneer at you in your face. However, everyone had control over the latter in their hands. Even if it was cleaning toilets, if one could clean the toilet so well that one could scoop the water out from the bowl and drink it with no shame, then destiny's sneer would surely turn into a smile; a broad and hearty one at that. When that happened, one would be able to grasp the uncertainty of the future in their hands.
An uneducated woman from a poor family who could only make salted vegetables could end up becoming The Godmother [1]!
A man from a royal family with the most affluent empire in the world and millions of people in it might just become Emperor Huizong of Song [2] in the end!
The Godmother and Emperor Huizong of Song, who was the more successful individual?
Therefore, a person's job was not important. The truly important thing was how you did it. Regardless of how lowly and boring a job may be, if you handle a job to the point where everyone would admire and respect you, then you would be successful, even if you weren't striving for that. This was how one should set the course of their destiny in the right direction.
Yan Liqiang planned to set the course of his destiny in the Divine Sword Sect within these toilets on Tianqiao Peak!
...
By the time Yan Liqiang finished cleaning the entire toilet area before daybreak, he was completely drenched in sweat and feeling a little exhausted. When he was about to leave, he even wiped away his footprints with a linen cloth, leaving no trace at all.
When Yan Liqiang left Tianqiao Peak with his tools, he could feel his footsteps becoming lighter. This job, where he had to work for a few hours continuously like a robot, was indeed more tiring than the average person's job for a day. Yan Liqiang was probably the only person who could turn a toilet cleaning job into an intense physical work activity.
...
When Yan Liqiang returned to the mountain basin at the foot of Tianqiao Peak, Gu Zexuan and Zhao Huipeng were practicing their fist techniques and training their bodies in the 'Tianqiao 2' courtyard they stayed in. Both of them instantly stopped when they saw Yan Liqiang return with his tools as he passed by the path outside their courtyard, looking exhausted.
"Hey, Liqiang. Don't tell me you have already finished cleaning the toilets on Tianqiao Peak." Gu Zexuan approached the fence of their small courtyard and looked at Yan Liqiang curiously. "A moment ago, I was just asking Zhao Huipeng why you weren't awake to practice yet. It seems like you already left long ago…"
"Yes, I just finished cleaning…"
"This early?! What time did you go?"
"About four in the morning…"
Gu Zexuan's jaw dropped at his response. "That early?! It's not like there are any rules stating that the toilets on Tianqiao Peak have to be cleaned this early. Isn't it fine as long as you get it done before noon? As long as no one tells on you at Gray Hall, you should be fine... "
"Haha, I'll have a peace of mind the sooner I finish cleaning them so that I can squeeze out some time later in the day to do something else!" Yan Liqiang smiled and waved at Gu Zexuan. "I'm all sweaty so I'll go take a bath first and get a fresh change of clothes…"
Not far from Yan Liqiang's courtyard were a clear small stream and a small lake which were convenient places for a bath. Although the water was quite cold, Yan Liqiang's body was able to withstand it.
...
Just as Yan Liqiang returned to the mountain basin, someone on Tianqiao Peak arrived at the toilet that Yan Liqiang had just cleaned. The moment he went in, his eyes widened in surprise. The entire toilet had suddenly turned extremely shiny and clean overnight. It was so outrageously clean that it wasn't even smelly in the slightest.
The person hesitated for a moment. He'd feel extremely bad, or even guilty, if he destroyed such a clean and neat environment. Someone must have spent a lot of energy to clean this toilet so flawlessly. Could it be that the Sect Master and the other Elders were coming to Tianqiao Peak for an inspection...? That person secretly wondered while standing at the toilet entrance, struggling to decide whether or not he should enter...
Shortly later, a few others also came. Like the first person, they were also stunned by the sight of the toilet which was so clean that it was brand new. Some of them were stupefied and started to hesitate at the entrance.
"What are you guys hesitating about?" Just when the few of them were wondering if they should enter or not, a cold shout came from behind them. The few disciples on Tianqiao Peak who were gathered at the toilet entrance secretly winced upon hearing the voice.
A bald but bearded man who appeared to be in his fifties came over with his eyes wide like saucers. He was dressed in a casual yellowish-brown gown, with half of his tummy jutting out and exposed to the air. "Are you guys too free? If you are, then go to the cave down there and make a few hundred more jin of Pear Blossom Steel for me…"
"Hall Master, well… is the Sect Master or the Elders coming to Tianqiao Peak today for an inspection?" One of the guys who stood at the toilet entrance asked with a smile on his face.
"Nonsense!" The bald man immediately exploded, spraying his spittle on their faces. "If the Sect Master and Elders were coming, why wouldn't I know about it? Sun Weizhen, what are you blabbering about?"
"Look at this then, Hall Master. I remember when Elder Gao came to visit Tianqiao Peak, he beat us up and told us that even though only men live on Tianqiao Peak, we shouldn't be too sloppy either. Elder Gao also mentioned that he will check on us again next time…"
The few of them stepped out of the way and let the bald man enter the toilet. The moment he saw the state of the toilet, the bald man was also stunned for a good few seconds. He then came back to his senses and waved his hands. "Don't worry, the Sect Master and Elders aren't coming in for an inspection today. The person who is responsible for cleaning today must have come in earlier and cleaned a little extra cleaner. Stop making a fuss over nothing. Just use it as how you would…"
After finishing his sentence, that man went in first. The other disciples outside the bathroom looked at him and followed suit…
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