Back then, no such thing as a fixed getting off time —staying up all night was the norm.

To conquer the first crucial project, I slept on a cot for two whole months and I lived on coffee like water and instant noodles.

Ultimately, we came up with a disruptive solution before our competitors.

It was thanks to that project that the company truly earned its first pot of gold, survived and then grew bigger.

Niall Andrew, Joana's father, would often pat me on the shoulder and say to everyone, "Lucius is a hero to our company! Without him, we wouldn’t have achieved what we have today!"

His eyes held admiration, gratitude and a strong sense of reliance.

Although it was tough and tiring back then, my heart was warm and I felt that all the hard work was meaningful. This company was like a child we nurtured together.

"Lucius ...." At that moment, a cautious voice interrupted my reminiscence.

Mark stood at the door, his face showing worry and a hint of indignation. He didn't come in immediately, as if waiting for my permission.

"Come in."

I continued packing up, without looking up.

He tiptoed in, glanced around the somewhat empty office and sighed. "I really didn't expect ... Ms. Andrew would make such a decision."

"It's ridiculous to send you to the Logistics Department to clean the toilet!"

I gave no response, waiting for him to continue.

Seeing me giving no response, he leaned forward and lowered his voice. "Lucius, you're the one in charge of the project, that's an undeniable fact!"

"Even if you didn't achieve great success, you still put in a lot of hard work!"

"Ms. Andrew's actions ... are a bit like crossing the line." He spoke with genuine sincerity, as if he were truly indignant on my behalf.

Looking at his young yet worldly-wise face, I recalled how he looked when he first joined the company.

Three months ago, Mark joined in the company as an intern, with a PhD from overseas and experience at a major company. He greeted and smiled brightly to everyone he met, his humility bordering on obsequiousness.

He, then, volunteered to join the then-most crucial and demanding intelligent robot project team. He spoke earnestly, only asking for a learning opportunity.

Joana agreed without hesitation, without even consulting me.

Once in the project, he extremely "cleverly" took on all the miscellaneous tasks that didn't involve core code.

His most outstanding skills were making PowerPoint presentations and organizing data documents.

It was not that he came from a large company, his PowerPoint presentations were indeed beautiful, with cool animations, exquisite layouts and a strong visual impact.

He did "work overtime," often sitting at his desk late into the night, typing furiously on his keyboard, processing seemingly complex data documents, or repeatedly refining reports.

That was how his reputation for dedication spread.

"Lucius, don't be too discouraged." The intern's voice rang out again.

"The Logistics Department may not sound prestigious, but at least it's a position."

"If you need any help over there in the future, you can tell me and I will definitely take it seriously."

I stopped packing up and finally looked up at him with a calm gaze. "Are you done?"

He paused, seemingly surprised by my reaction and looked somewhat embarrassed.

"Leave now," I said calmly, "Mr. Rousseau, I need to continue packing up. Don't delay my reporting to the Logistics Department."

His lips twitched slightly, his carefully disguised mask almost crumbling, a flash of offended anger crossing his eyes. But he quickly forced a helpless yet tolerant smile. "I know you're in a bad mood, Lucius, then I'll go now, take care."

He turned around and left, with a straight back and light steps, carrying the pride of his new appointment.

I watched his back without any ripples in my heart.

Angry? Perhaps.

But now it had been replaced by something calmer.

Joana said, the company would keep running even without me.

I picked up the old coffee cup engraved with the word "merit," my fingers gripping it slightly, then, I released it.

The cup fell into the corner trash can, shattering with a crisp sound.

They might have forgotten that I built the company from scratch, single-handedly creating one hundred fourty-two million dollars core project.

Some things were ingrained in our bones, not something a transfer order, a few laughs, or a clown stealing our achievements could erase.

Cleaning the toilet? Okay.

Then let's start from the bottom and see how many corrupt officials were lurking beneath this ship they thought could sail smoothly without me. And how many storms could it withstand?

The next morning, I changed into the blue work clothes from the Logistics Department, picked up my cleaning tools and appeared in the first-floor restroom on time.

The pungent smell of disinfectant filled the air, replacing the usual aroma of coffee in the office.

The first person to come in was Diego Sanders from the Technical Department, who used to be one of my engineers.

He was stunned for a moment when he saw me wiping the sink with a cloth and then a sarcastic smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"Oh, our technical director? Started your new job so early?"

He deliberately emphasized the word "technical director," unzipping his trousers with a sneer. "You sure know how to bend and stretch."

I didn't look up, continuing what I was doing.

During the morning rush hour, many people came and left the toilet one after another.

"He deserves it." A low voice came from outside the stall -- it was Billy Johanson, the guy from the Marketing Department who always wore flashy shirts.

"I've been disliking his aloof appearance for a long time. Does he really think the company can't do without him?" he said.

"He's really thick-skin." Another voice chimed in. "If it were me, I would have thrown my things and left on the spot yesterday! Staying here to clean toilets? Haaa!"

"Leave? Does he dare?"

"Besides relying on his seniority at the company, what other real skills does he have? Who wants him outside? Finding a job isn't easy these days."

"I think so, he's just a show-off."

An older employee who was on good terms with Mark deliberately raised his voice. "Mr. Schroeder ... oh I mean, Lucius -- only got his seniority because he has good relationship with Mr. Andrew."

"Actually, he couldn't get involved in the core technical problems in the later stages at all. Mark solved them all by staying up the whole night."

The person next to him immediately chimed in. "Exactly! When Mr. Andrew was around, he was willing to support him out of old friendship."

"Now that his daughter, Ms. Andrew, is in charge, she values real talent and dedication. Someone like him, who are just pretending, have naturally been exposed."

"Yeah, Ms. Andrew is truly amazing," said another voice with admiration, "She has a sharp eye and acts decisively, far more so than her father."

"If it weren't for her, our company would still be occupied by these incompetent people."

I pushed the cleaning cart to the urinal and began scrubbing.

Someone deliberately shook his hand, splashing urine onto the freshly cleaned floor and my trousers, then said insincerely, "Oh, sorry, I didn't notice."

A mocking low laugh echoed around.

I didn't pause, nor did I look at that person. I picked up the hose, washed away the stains and mopped the floor again.

During the lunch break, the third-floor restrooms were bustling with people.

As I cleaned the stalls, I heard several women outside touching up their makeup and chatting.

"To think I once thought he was quite capable—I must have been blind."

It was Paulina Haldane from the Technical Department, who used to be very attentive to me and repeatedly expressed her goodwill.

"Come on, didn't someone say, you shouldn't judge a book by its cover?"

"Ms. Andrew saw right through him! Making him clean toilets is brilliant!"

"Keep your voices down, he's probably still busy inside."

"What are you afraid of? He's already nothing, what can he do to us? Let him hear it, it's just a fact."

That afternoon, Mark walked in, surrounded by several people.

His steps faltered upon seeing me, his face flushing with a mix of awkwardness and reluctance.

"Lucius."

His henchman immediately scoffed. "Mr. Rousseau, you still talk friendly to him?”

"He's just a toilet cleaner now, not on the same level as you."

Mark frowned as if trying to refute, but in the end, he just sighed and said in a helpless tone, "Stop saying that, after all, Lucius has contributed to our company."

"Contributed to what? To save his face?" the man said mercilessly, "You're just too kind, Mr. Rousseau. This kind of person doesn't deserve your support."

I bent down to clean the waste paper in the trash can and turned a deaf ear to their words. Tied the black trash bag tightly, took it out and replaced it with a new one.

As I was about to leave work, I pushed my cleaning cart through the empty lobby on the first floor and bumped into Joana. She looked me up and down in my blue workwear, a sneer playing on her lips.

"Lucius."

"Getting used to the new job?"

I halted, meeting her gaze with calm eyes.

"Not bad. Thanks for your concern, Ms. Andrew."

She stumped at my indifferent expression and sneered, "When I first took over the company, my dad repeatedly emphasized your importance to me, saying that you are the backbone of the company and the soul of technology."

"I used to think you had great abilities, but now I realized you were nothing but an old fool relying on past achievements and waiting for death!"

I looked at her cheeks, that were slightly flushed with excitement and felt indifferent in my heart, so I just replied lightly. "Perhaps, whether it's gold or stone, the truth will be revealed one day."

This almost indifferent calmness angered her.

She took a step forward and her manicured finger almost touched the tip of my nose. She said in a sharp voice, "Lucius! Don't be so shameless!"

"Who do you think you are now? Just a stinky cleaner who cleans toilets!"

"If it weren't for my dad's sake, you would have been fired long ago."

"The truth will be revealed? Let me tell you, you are nothing without the company! You are just ...."

At this moment, the mobile phone in her handbag suddenly rang.

Joana frowned impatiently, took out her phone and glanced at the caller ID. In an instant, all the anger and arrogance on his face receded like a tide.

The name appearing on the screen was obviously very important.

She took a deep breath, barely suppressed her emotions and pressed the answer button. "Hey, what's going on?"

The next second, her expression changed drastically.

"What? The intelligent robot crashed during testing and caused a large-scale failure?"

"The Quinndom Group said that if it is not solved immediately, they will cancel an order worth one hundred fourty-two million dollars!"