A splash of cold water hit Jia in her face. The chill that seeped through her skin finally allowed her jailed breaths to pass through. Drops of water fell back into the washbasin as Jia stared at her reflection in the mirror.
Technically, she had failed the negotiations. There was a point where Qiu Dai seemed more inclined to believe her and give but it turned out he had a thick skin. Beyond that no matter what she said made no difference to him. The entire Bureau would have blown up. The death toll would have been beyond imaginable.
Jia breathed in and exhaled. Patting her face dry, she stepped out of the washroom when Tang Haitao summoned her. She closed the door behind her and stood in attention.
"A crisis is averted. Good work."
It was evident she didn't take the compliment too well.
"What?"
"I did nothing much."
"Of course, you did."
"I couldn't stop him in the end."
He shook his head. "You were there, Jia. You had cracked through his defenses."
"It didn't work."
