The House of Silence

陈蓉妍 / 侯虹斌Jiangsu Kuwei Culture Development Co., Ltd. · ChinaSep 2026

3.2

Word count: 180K words
Chapters: 64

Summary

Late one night at the Lanting Club in Dongguan, a girl named Tang Tian falls to her death. Every trace is wiped clean overnight. Six hundred thousand yuan in cash becomes hush money, and a human life is hastily ruled an "accidental suicide." Her brother Tang Ren, far away in London, learns of her death, goes into hiding under a new identity—"Zhou Yitian"—and infiltrates Hongjiang as personal legal counsel to Zheng Tiancheng, head of the Lanting Group, a crime-tainted conglomerate. While sorting old case files, female detective Lu Jin discovers that twenty-three girls from remote regions all "vanished" after receiving aid from the Tiancheng Charity Foundation. Her request to open a case is returned, her colleague Lao He is demoted, and Lu Jin realizes this is not one person's crime—it is a system…

Editor's review

This is a novel that wraps social critique in a suspense shell. The story enters through a fall from a building hastily ruled a suicide: the brother infiltrates the crime-tainted conglomerate under a new identity, while the female detective traces clues from old case files to the collective disappearance of twenty-three girls, and the two narrative lines gradually converge. The book's readability comes from its control of pacing and release of information: hush money, a charity foundation, blocked case filings—details advance layer by layer, turning one man's pursuit into a systemic inquiry. Character motivations are solid; Tang Ren's forbearance contrasts with Lu Jin's stubbornness, and readers will care how they push forward under pressure. Suited to readers who prefer social-mystery fiction and care about the circumstances of vulnerable groups. One caution: the subject matter involves death and violation, the emotional tone is heavy, and it is best read in installments rather than as light entertainment.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy social-mystery and crime-investigation stories
Readers concerned with the rights of vulnerable groups and systemic problems
Readers who prefer dual narrative lines and layer-by-layer revelation
Readers looking for a full-length Chinese novel grounded in real-world issues

Not a good fit for

Readers hoping for light, entertaining fiction
Readers sensitive to violence, death, and violation
Readers who prefer pure honkaku deduction and tightly worked-out puzzles

Reading tips

First sort out the timeline and character relationships of the two narrative lines; a few notes on paper can help before reading on
When encountering case details, note who provides the information and judge how reliable the narration is
Pause between emotionally heavy passages; avoid reading straight through and risking psychological strain
After finishing, return to the opening description of the fall scene to appreciate the clues and echoes the author planted

About the publisher

Jiangsu Kuwei Culture Development Co., Ltd. China · Founded in 2014

Jiangsu Kuwei Culture Development Co., Ltd. is a cultural enterprise focused on planning and publishing literature and social science books. Public information is limited, and the available details come mainly from its in-house catalogue. Its publishing areas cover prose and essays, foreign literature, social science classics, mystery and detective fiction, and history books, with attention to reissues and boxed sets of classic works. Representative titles include Wang Zengqi's essay collection Renjian Youwei, Wanwu Youqu, The Little Prince, a boxed set of Western philosophical classics, Mao Dun's classic works, a collection of Yasunari Kawabata's award-winning works, Cai Lan's essays, and the Eddie Flynn courtroom mystery series. Its authors include Chinese and foreign names such as Wang Zengqi, Mao Dun, Yasunari Kawabata, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Plato, and Marcus Aurelius, reflecting a publishing profile that brings together Chinese prose, foreign literature, and philosophical and social science classics.

版权信息
第1章深渊的投名状1
第2章深渊的投名状2
第3章深渊的投名状3
第4章深渊的投名状4
第5章文工团的旧梦与假面1
第6章文工团的旧梦与假面2
第7章文工团的旧梦与假面3
第8章文工团的旧梦与假面4
第9章文工团的旧梦与假面5
第10章雷霆行动与破裂的骨牌1
第11章雷霆行动与破裂的骨牌2
第12章雷霆行动与破裂的骨牌3
第13章雷霆行动与破裂的骨牌4
第14章虚荣的棋子与涂鸦女孩的初闻1
第15章虚荣的棋子与涂鸦女孩的初闻2
第16章虚荣的棋子与涂鸦女孩的初闻3
第17章虚荣的棋子与涂鸦女孩的初闻4
第18章虚荣的棋子与涂鸦女孩的初闻5
第19章画框里的权力密码1
第20章画框里的权力密码2
第21章画框里的权力密码3
第22章画框里的权力密码4
第23章 2014·洗牌1
第24章 2014·洗牌2
第25章 2014·洗牌3
第26章猎头者的慈悲与残忍1
第27章猎头者的慈悲与残忍2
第28章猎头者的慈悲与残忍3
第29章猎头者的慈悲与残忍4
第30章消失的证言与兄弟裂痕1
第31章消失的证言与兄弟裂痕2
第32章消失的证言与兄弟裂痕3
第33章消失的证言与兄弟裂痕4
第34章消失的证言与兄弟裂痕5
第35章致命的合伙协议1
第36章致命的合伙协议2
第37章致命的合伙协议3
第38章致命的合伙协议4
第39章洗钱网络的三层架构1
第40章洗钱网络的三层架构2
第41章洗钱网络的三层架构3
第42章抽屉里的罪恶1
第43章抽屉里的罪恶2
第44章抽屉里的罪恶3
第45章破碎的棋局1
第46章破碎的棋局2
第47章破碎的棋局3
第48章破碎的棋局4
第49章破碎的棋局5
第50章破碎的棋局6
第51章最后的献祭晚宴1
第52章最后的献祭晚宴2
第53章最后的献祭晚宴3
第54章清算的晚宴1
第55章清算的晚宴2
第56章清算的晚宴3
第57章郑氏兄弟的绝路1
第58章郑氏兄弟的绝路2
第59章郑氏兄弟的绝路3
第60章郑氏兄弟的绝路4
第61章血色救赎1
第62章血色救赎2
第63章血色救赎3

FAQ

Is this a pure detective novel?

Not entirely. It has case investigation and suspense, but its center of gravity leans more toward the social-mystery approach, focusing on systemic problems and human circumstances behind the case. If you expect rigorous honkaku puzzle-solving, you may find the deductive element insufficient; if you like crime combined with social issues, it will suit you well.

Do the two narrative lines become confusing?

The beginning takes some adjustment. The brother's line follows his infiltration of the conglomerate under a new identity; the female detective's line traces old case files. The two advance separately at first and gradually converge later. As long as readers note the character and location cues in each chapter and keep the chronology straight, it is not hard to follow.

Is the subject matter too heavy?

It involves a fatal fall, girls' disappearances, and violation, so the tone is indeed heavy. The work does not deliberately sensationalize violence, but emotional pressure is present. Reading in installments is recommended; pause when you feel uncomfortable, and avoid reading straight through when you are in low spirits.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

陈蓉妍 Author

Chen Rongyan is an author about whom limited public information is available, with two works currently held in the collection. Her representative titles include The House of Silence and The Spiral Life, which fall respectively into the categories of suspense and mystery fiction and social fiction. Judging from the thematic direction of these two works, her writing tends to center on mysteries, secrets, and the circumstances of her characters as the story unfolds, using the structural tension of suspense and mystery to explore social reality and individual fate. Because information such as her nationality, dates of birth and death, and English name is unavailable, a full picture of her creative output and personal experience cannot be fully outlined. Nevertheless, the existing works suggest that she is inclined to blend observation of social issues into genre storytelling, giving her narratives both readability and a concern for real-world matters. This introduction is based only on the in-collection records and work categories; more about the author's life and creative development awaits further public information.

侯虹斌 Author

Hou Hongbin is a Chinese-language author about whom public information is currently limited; details such as place of origin, education, and career have not appeared in available records. Three of her works are held in the collection: The Remarkable Woman, The House of Silence, and A Spiraling Life. Their subjects span biography, mystery and detective fiction, and social fiction, showing an author who moves between nonfictional portrayals of people and fictional narrative. The Remarkable Woman tends toward biographical presentation of women, while The House of Silence and A Spiraling Life engage mystery and social fiction respectively, focusing on characters' circumstances and narrative tension. Because verifiable information about the author is limited, the full scope and style of her writing await further public material; readers may consult the three works above to understand her thematic interests and narrative range.