The tea house sat quiet at the edge of the market, no guards visible, no signs of trouble at all, and that quiet made Wei Liang more nervous than an ambush would have.
"Too calm," Garrow muttered, hand resting near his blade. "Doesn't feel right."
"He said he wanted to talk," Wei Liang said. "Let's find out if that's true."
They stepped inside together, Wei Liang, Liu Che, and Cixi, exactly as the message had asked, the rest of the group waiting close but out of sight.
A man sat alone in the back corner, plain robes, gray hair, hands wrapped around a cup of tea he hadn't touched. He looked up as they entered, and Wei Liang felt something strange settle in his chest. No cold power radiating off him the way Yin's had. Just an old, tired man.
"You came," the man said quietly. "I wasn't c
