menial services; humble domestic work; serving one's master unsparingly
A literary set phrase, typically used in the pattern 薪水の労をとる, meaning to perform humble, laborious tasks such as kitchen work in service of a master. Conveys a sense of devoted, ungrudging service.
He performed menial tasks for his master.
In old novels, scenes of disciples doing humble chores are often depicted.
The phrase originates from classical Chinese, where 薪 (firewood) and 水 (water) represent basic, laborious tasks. Combined with 労 (labor), it came to mean humble service. The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but it is a set phrase in literary Japanese.