CHAPTER 123 — A MEETING WRITTEN IN SECRET
Tang Ke Xin watched Ye Lan Chen dash after her, his robes fluttering behind him like a startled bird. The corner of her mouth twitched despite herself. He was so earnest, so unguarded, so painfully transparent that she felt a faint stab of guilt for deceiving him earlier.
He trusted her without hesitation.
He believed her without question.
And she… was not being truthfull to him.
She quickened her pace.
"Wait for me! Xinxin, wait for me!" Ye Lan Chen called, breathless.
She did not slow.
---
The Empress had summoned her to the palace, though not for anything urgent. It was simply that the Empress missed her — a sentiment that warmed Tang Ke Xin more than she expected.
But when she entered Kunning Palace, she saw immediately that the Empress looked exhausted. Her complexion was pale, her eyes shadowed, her expression strained with worry.
Too much had happened in too short a time.
Tang Ke Xin's heart tightened.
"Xin'er," the Empress said softly, taking her hand, "if anything happens in the future, try not to involve yourself. I worry for you."
Tang Ke Xin lowered her gaze. "Yes."
In truth, she would not have interfered at all if not for the danger looming over the Empress and Ye Lan Chen. She had no interest in palace politics. But she could not stand by and watch them be harmed.
The Empress spoke with her for nearly two hours — about trivial matters, about the palace, about Ye Lan Chen, about nothing and everything. Only when she seemed reassured did she finally let Tang Ke Xin leave.
---
As Tang Ke Xin stepped out of the palace gates, a thought struck her like a spark.
Today was the eleventh day.
The exact day the Third Prince had mentioned.
The day the Suo Yan Sect would appear at the Wordless Restaurant.
She glanced up at the sky. The sun hung high — nearly noon.
If she hurried, she might still make it.
She hesitated only a moment.
Ye Lan Jue might be black‑bellied, sharp‑tongued, and dangerously unpredictable, but he would not harm her with something so convoluted. If he wanted to harm her, he would not need tricks.
He could crush her with a single finger.
No — if he had told her this, it was because he wanted her to find the Suo Yan Sect.
Or because he wanted her to owe him.
Either way, she needed answers.
She climbed into the carriage and urged the driver to head west — to the most secluded part of the capital.
---
The western district was quiet, almost eerily so. The further they travelled, the more the bustling noise of the city faded behind them. The streets grew narrower, the buildings older, the air stiller.
Tang Ke Xin found she liked it.
It felt untouched by the chaos of the palace, untouched by the schemes of noble families. A place where secrets could hide in plain sight.
When the carriage finally stopped, she peered out the window — and there it was.
A modest, weathered building with no signboard.
The Wordless Restaurant.
"Stop here," she said quickly, leaping down before the carriage had fully halted.
"Miss, where are you going?" the coachman asked anxiously.
"Wait for me."
She did not look back.
---
The restaurant was unassuming — too unassuming. No one would open a business in such a remote place unless they had another purpose entirely.
She stepped inside.
A middle‑aged man approached her, bowing politely. His movements were light, his eyes sharp — far too sharp for a simple innkeeper.
"Miss, do you wish to dine?"
"I'm looking for someone," Tang Ke Xin said bluntly.
The man paused.
His gaze flickered — a brief, almost imperceptible shift — before his expression smoothed again.
"Who is Miss looking for?"
"The Suo Yan Sect."
This time, the flicker in his eyes was unmistakable.
Tang Ke Xin did not bother with pretense. She had always been good at reading people, and this man was no ordinary server. If this place was truly a front for the Suo Yan Sect, then subtlety was pointless.
"Miss is very direct," the man said slowly.
"Does that mean I can find them here?" she asked.
He did not answer.
Instead, he turned and gestured for her to follow.
"Miss, come with me."
Tang Ke Xin's pulse quickened.
So the Third Prince had not lied.
She followed the man up a narrow staircase to the second floor. The corridor was dimly lit, the wooden floorboards creaking softly beneath their feet. He led her to the room in the centre — an unremarkable door, plain and silent.
He stopped.
"Miss, please enter. The Sect Leader is inside."
Tang Ke Xin froze.
The Sect Leader?
The Sect Leader of the Suo Yan Sect?
The man whom no one had ever seen?
The man whose identity was shrouded in mystery?
The man even his own subordinates rarely glimpsed?
She had expected to meet a minor member of the sect.
Not… this.
Her mind raced.
Why would the Sect Leader meet her?
Why today?
Why personally?
But she kept her expression calm.
If she showed surprise, she would lose the advantage.
The man watched her closely — and his eyes widened slightly when she did not react.
Most people would have been trembling with excitement or fear.
She was neither.
She simply nodded.
"Thank you."
She placed her hand on the door.
And pushed it open.