Assassin Family
After Xu Huo mentioned Shi Qing's name, the old woman soon came out, trembling. She warmly ushered him inside. "Professor Shi? I know him. He lives on the tenth floor. I'll take you up."
"Are you Professor Shi's relatives? We haven't had any young people here in ages. If you've come looking for family, you must be doing well. You can take Professor Shi away with you and let him enjoy the good life." The old woman rambled on. "It's so inconvenient living here. Nobody maintains the building. It took two years of complaints to the government before they fixed the elevator. The plumbing and wiring break down all the time, and sometimes we can't even get a meal. The bald old man on the thirty-second floor died a few days ago. I saw him out for a walk the day before... At least he died of illness."
The elevator had reached the tenth floor. The old woman stepped out first, cleared away some trash in the hallway, then knocked on the door.
Professor Shi answered in a tattered undershirt. He looked rather surprised to see Xu Huo and the painted woman. "Sister Zhao, are these your relatives?"
The old woman waved a hand. "My relatives are all dead, as you well know. They're here to see you."
"Me?" Professor Shi studied Xu Huo and the painted woman carefully. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "What do you want with me?"
"Could we come in and talk?" Xu Huo glanced inside.
"Sister Zhao, you can head back. I'll bring you a couple of vegetables later," Professor Shi said to the old woman, then invited Xu Huo and the painted woman inside.
Professor Shi lived alone too. Though he was unkempt, his place was very tidy, and it