After finishing the box of Häagen-Dazs, Fang Er headed to the outhouse.
Someone was guarding the entrance to the outhouse. It wasn't for fear of someone stealing feces, but to ensure prompt cleaning.
Previously, Zhuzi had assigned people to this task. However, after Uncle Zhang moved into the manor, he said that with many women in the household, it was inappropriate for male soldiers to do this work. Therefore, he specifically bought several more women from Shenyang.
Today, the gatekeeper was a maid about eighteen or nineteen years old, named Chunlan.
Seeing Fang Er, Chunlan, blushing nervously, bowed to him: "Your Grace, the servant greets you. Are you personally coming to use the outhouse?"
Fang Er: ...
What, can this task be done by someone else?
However, he merely smiled and nodded at the female slave.
These servants had only recently arrived at the manor, so their timidity was understandable.
Chunlan pushed open the outhouse door and stepped aside. After Fang Er entered, she followed him in.
Fang Er was taken aback and looked at her questioningly: "Do you need something else?"
"This servant is here to attend to Your Grace. Uncle Zhang said that from now on, servants like us will handle such cleaning tasks," Chunlan said, her head bowed, her body trembling with nervousness.
"Good heavens!"
Uncle Zhang has learned to be corrupt!
To have a subordinate wait on him while using the restroom?
"No need, you can go out."
Fang Er quickly dismissed her. This was a joke. Not to mention that he didn't have to go right now, but even if he did, he couldn't possibly go with a woman standing beside him!
Chunlan sighed with relief: "Yes, this servant will wait outside."
With that, she walked out of the outhouse, closed the door, and stood guard nearby, waiting to clean up after Fang Er came out.
Don't assume that all outhouses in this era were dirty; it depended on one's status.
The outhouse in the manor bore no resemblance to a straw shack. The floor was entirely paved with bluestone tiles. Compared to this, those artificially fired ceramic tiles were vastly inferior!
The outhouse was not large, only about seventy to eighty square meters.
In the center was a wooden bucket, with a seat frame modified by Fang Er on top. Beside it, a whole roll of toilet paper was kept ready.
When using the facilities, one would sit on the frame, and the waste would fall directly into the bucket. The bucket also contained wood ash, which acted like cat litter, absorbing odors and evenly coating the waste for easy disposal.
The bluestone floor of the outhouse was wiped clean. Near the back wall of the outhouse, a large jar was placed upside down.
Fang Er walked over, moved the jar aside, revealing a hole where the jar had been.
This hole was for the pre-installed sewage pipe.
The pipe was prefabricated with cement and then buried underground, connecting to a deep drainage pipe that led to a septic tank outside the manor.
After fermentation, drying, and crushing, the waste in the tank became excellent fertilizer.
He took out the toilet, aligned it with the hole, and traced the outline at the bottom with a pen before moving the toilet aside.
In his spatial storage, he found silicone sealant exchanged from the hardware store. He took it out and squeezed a layer along the traced outline, then placed the toilet back, and applied another bead of sealant.
There was a pre-installed water pipe on the wall. This pipe was a steel pipe fixed to the outside of the wall, and it would need to be replaced periodically over time.
Until stainless steel was invented, this was the best they could do.
Using the accessories that came with the toilet, he connected the water tank and the pipe. As the valve was opened, water flowed into the tank with a gurgling sound.
At the construction shed, there was a water tower that supplied water via an electric motor.
This water flowed from the water tower.
The freshly sealed toilet could not bear weight yet; it would need at least a day and a night before it could be used.
After finishing these tasks, Fang Er opened the outhouse door and walked out.
Chunlan, who was waiting outside, heard the door open and quickly walked to the entrance with her head down.
"Your Grace, the water is ready. Please follow this servant."
Outside the outhouse, there was a platform made of cement, on which sat a copper basin filled with clean water. Beside the basin were soap and a cotton towel.
As Fang Er stood by the platform, Chunlan took his hand and placed it in the basin. After wetting his hands, she applied soap and carefully washed them clean, then wiped them dry with the towel.
Fang Er remained passive throughout the entire process, his head buzzing.
What had Uncle Zhang told these newly hired servants?
Previously, when Xiao Qing and the others helped him wash, they would only bring water and stand by with a towel.
Good heavens, these newcomers actually provided a full 360-degree service.
This was degeneracy, absolute degeneracy. Otherwise, why would he feel just a tiny bit of—
Hiss—this thought is too shameless!
He chased away the corrupt thoughts from his mind and instructed Chunlan.
"You don't need to tidy this outhouse for now. Lock the door and go do something else."
"Ah?" Chunlan covered her mouth in disbelief, suspecting she had misheard.
Does Your Grace have such a fetish?
The splashing sound just now, perhaps he had diarrhea?
And he didn't want it cleaned; was he planning to preserve it?
"Never mind, go attend to your other duties. I'll lock the door myself."
Fang Er waved his hand at her, not entirely at ease. He then walked to the outhouse door, took out a large padlock, and securely locked it before turning and leaving lightly.
The servant Chunlan was dumbfounded.
"Your Grace, you've actually locked the door?"