"Third Master Xu, Qin Liuhe is dead," Li Ziming reported gravely.
"What did you say?" Third Master Xu, who had only just woken up, froze at the news. He thought he must have heard wrong.
"Qin Liuhe is dead," Li Ziming repeated.
"How is that possible?" Third Master Xu said in disbelief. "That old coot may be advanced in years, but he's in excellent health. How could he suddenly die? What exactly happened?"
Li Ziming recounted the news report he had just read. After he finished, Third Master Xu remained silent on the other end of the phone for a long time.
A while later, Li Ziming asked, "Third Master Xu, we've already paid. Now that Qin Liuhe is dead, will that money go down the drain?"
"Phew..." Third Master Xu raised a hand and rubbed his brow, then let out a long breath.
"You don't need to worry. Since he's already taken the money, even if he's dead now, someone will still give us an explanation.
"If the organization he belonged to isn't willing to continue the job, they'll refund the money for the sake of their reputation."
Li Ziming was in charge of this matter. If the money was paid and they ended up with nothing to show for it, he would not only lose face but also have his ability to get things done called into question.
Now that Third Master Xu had told him not to worry, if anything else went wrong later, at least Li Ziming could shoulder less of the blame.
"Now that Qin Liuhe is dead, someone else should contact you. Just wait for the call," Third Master Xu said.
"Yes." Li Ziming nodded. He had nothing else to report, so he ended the call.
In the quiet bedroom, Third Master Xu sat