"The life of a man in China is always counted as insignificant. Is it not so, Ling Wen?"
"Who could be so ungallant as to contradict you?" he suavely responded.
"Hun Sun was sent with the message, and you, Ling Wen, were to kill him when he had delivered it."
"Well, madame?"
"Because I know this, you will give me the seal and conduct me to my carriage."
Ling Wen shook his head.
"No, madame, the price is too high for a series of deductions, clever though they be. His Excellency died from natural causes."
"You are sure the physicians will say so?"
"Their opinion will not be asked. The French government cannot insult our illustrious dead. Hun Sun is dead. That is sufficient."
"But because of the part you have played, Ling Wen, I demand the seal as the price of my silence."